A Planting Tutorial by Indi

How to plant dwarf butter beans in your garden...

Step 1. Admire the colour and texture of the beans that look like little black beetles.

Step 2. Poke holes in the ground. Nothing quite like the feeling of dirt under your fingernails.

Step 3. Drop a shiny bean into the hole.

Step 4. Firm the soil down.

Step 5. Water well, and wait for the bean shoots to pop their little green heads out of the soil. Be sure and check every few minutes of the day ;)

Thankyou, Indi. 

End of the Light

This weekend marks Samhain; the end of the light half of the year on the Pagan calendar. Though I'm not specifically Wiccan, I do try to observe the seasonal turning points and the cycle of the year.

My understanding of Samhain is when the masculine aspect of the divine leaves the earthly realm, returning to the cauldron of life, becoming one with the goddess to be reborn of her in the spring. It is a time for reflecting on death and reincarnation, and remembering those who have left this world. It's also a time for tying up loose ends, and ridding ourselves of things we no longer need.  

For some reason I am feeling very connected to this particular Sabbat. Perhaps because I've had such a busy and fulfilling summer; we've swam in the ocean, played in the sun from dawn 'till dusk, lazed on the green grass, plunged our hands into the warm earth and feasted on her abundance.
The last week or so I've had such an urge to be outside. I've been gardening with an almost furious passion; perhaps sensing the end of the warmth of the soil.
I've also noticed myself clearing the house of clutter, again with a furious determination.

Tomorrow we will build a fire in our outdoor fireplace and, as the sun falls and the masculine aspect leaves our realm, we will light it and farewell Him.

Blessed Be xoxo

Indica Rose's Garden

We have decided to keep the cubby as a play house, not a chook house. Indi and Keanu love playing in there and it makes it easier for me to do work in the backyard because they are amused--and distracted from the pool!
So, we put the verandah back on the front and Indi has decided she is going to make her own garden.

Putting the verandah on.

Once the verandah had been 'tested' by Keanu, we dug up a little patch along the front.

The first thing she planted ...

... a bromeliad that we'd split up the day before because they had outgrown their pot.

I'm really happy that she is enjoying being in the garden and getting her hands dirty. As for the chooks, well, I guess we'll have to think of another plan! 

Let's see whats growing

I'm stealing a few minutes to write while Keanu is having a feed (one-hand typing, so excuse any typos please!)

I've only just started getting out to the veggie patch and tidying things up, now that the weather is starting to cool off. The last few weeks of summer just kinda frazzled what was left in there. At this point, I'm planning on growing what I can over winter, then I might plant some fruit trees and turn it into an orchard. It's hard to get stuck into the garden with Keanu around; he just runs straight for the pool as soon as he is outside!

I've had to scratch all the mulch away when I plant things, because it is full of slaters and they love the taste of newly sprouted seedlings. It seems to have worked; the snow peas have all sprouted and are nearly an inch high. The last two lots I planted out were gone as soon as they popped out of the ground.

I've harvested a heap of burpless and crystal apple cucumbers  over the past few months. The vine grew right up through the star jasmine; so high I couldn't even reach the fruit at the top! I didn't get any pictures though - my camera is dying a slow and painful death and only works when it wants to.)

Here are my beautiful eggplants. I've planted these out the front. This is the first time I've grown them; they are such beautiful plants I just want to plant them everywhere. I've harvested a few fruits and I'm going to make a vegetarian lasagne with them this week.

And the bromeliads, bursting out with colour. This is my 'comfort' garden ... when everything else get eaten by the bugs I come and stare at this one! It always looks green and healthy.

Here she is

I have a real aversion to crappy plastic playthings. I find myself leaning more and more toward simple, imagination-inspiring toys for my kids. Unfortunately, such toys don't come cheap :( so I decided to make my own ...

 
My beautiful crocheted mermaid. I'm very proud of this one!

Indica Rose has been running away to play with her every chance she get's so she has taken a while to finish, but the end result was worth it ...

The look on Indi's face when I said 'she's finished!'

Bear with me

I'm back to my usual, cheery old self again, but I can't find any time to write a blog post. Every time I sneak away to the computer to write, 'life', in the form of two little kids, gets in the way. Even now as I type this, Indi is screeching at me. *Sigh*. Perhaps tomorrow ... ? So many things to write, so few babysitters hehehe.