Eight Acres

I know its not quite October yet, but I have some special plans for October, so there will be no time for updates! I suppose its natural that spring would be a busy month, but it seems like I've got so much to write this time!  Unfortunately we have had no rain in September (so far!), but there must be enough moisture in the soil as the grass is getting greener.   I have finally harvested broccoli and we'll just keep taking small florets from this one The frost damaged Poor Mans Bean has recovered and is thriving, soon to take over my garden fence once again! I returned from a trip to the parents-in-law with a stash of tomato seedlings and a couple of basil plants that just self-seed in their garden. Herbs in pot (escape risks - mint and oregano, and thyme) Rosemary, sage, capsicum (survived the frost) and pathetic looking lettuce. Aloe plants that used to live in a small pot, time to plant out, and part of another experiment with ferment...

When we first moved into our house at Nanango we thought we should probably get the septic pumped out, this went on the list of things we should do and quickly ended up near the end as we found more and more urgent jobs that required our attention.  Finally, 18 months later, with the evaporation trench getting a bit soggy, we decided it REALLY was time to get it pumped out and booked in a contractor. a typical septic arrangement Septic systems come in a few different shapes and sizes, ours is a large underground plastic tank, which all our waste water flows into.  The solids are supposed to sink and the liquid drains out of an opening near the top (but underground) and into a large evaporation trench (attractively located in our house yard!).  The evaporation trench should be a gravel-lined shallow pit, with grass etc growing on top, in which the pipes branch out so that the water can spread out and evaporate (also called the leach field).  Its pretty hard to...

I bought these neat little Fregie sack reusable bags from a health-food store recently and found them really useful at the Nanango markets last week.  I probably should sew some of my own, but this was so easy and convenient! I used them for almost all the produce I bought (just one sneaky bag with pineapples, sometime the salespeople put things in bags before you can stop them!) The Freggie sacks

A few weeks ago I requested a soil test kit from a soil testing company.  They sent me several plastic zip-lock bags, instructions and a price list.  I chose two areas in our top paddock to sample.  The first was a bare patch and the second had relatively good pasture.  I was hoping that the comparison of the two samples would assist us to improve the many bare patches on our 8 acres.  I sent the two samples away for the 'premium test' and consultant report, at a total of $165/sample. The bare patch (one of many!) The stainless steel core-sample tool (made by my husband of course!). The sample before I put it in the sample bag. The good growth area Sampling tool again The samples ready to send away We received the results a couple of weeks later.  The results from both samples showed a low pH (5.3) and deficiencies in phosphorous, calcium, copper, boron, iron and manganese.  These are all important minerals for plant...

Its funny that I have recently read two very different books that both focused on the importance of minerals for ongoing health.  The first book was Natural Cattle Care , by Pat Coleby, as recommended by Bel at  Home Grown .  I was eager to read the book as Bella had mastitis at the time and I wanted to know the quick solution. The first few chapters are all about minerals in the soil.  I read them, thinking to myself "yeah, yeah, get on with the natural cattle care!", until I realised that was it.  Pat's theory is that if cattle have all their mineral, vitamin and protein needs met, they will be naturally healthy.  The interactions of the minerals is quite complex.  A deficiency in one mineral can cause a deficiency in another, so its hard to summarise, however the main points for me were: Calcium and magnesium levels must be sufficient or cows will be susceptible to mastitis infection Copper must b...

When I have to stay away from home for work, the one thing that miss the most (apart from my husband, the dogs and the other animals) is fresh eggs from our chickens.  We eat eggs for breakfast every morning whenever possible (sometimes we have to eat porridge or weetbix in winter when the chickens aren't laying regularly) and I do notice the difference if I don't have them, as I get hungry earlier in the morning.  I usually order eggs from the hotel for breakfast each morning, but they are not the same as my home eggs.  They have a darker orange yoke and a funny taste.  I assumed that was because they were almost certainly cage eggs, however on a recent holiday we bought eggs from the supermarket and they were just as bad.  I did my best to buy organic free range eggs, thinking that they were the closest to our home eggs as possible, but they still didn't taste or look right. That's when I realised that organic isn't everything!  Our chickens don't ea...

Its amazing what a little rain can do!  40 mm actually, the first rain we've had since June, and with a little warmer weather as well, the garden is turning green again :) The spring onion are flowering - I'm waiting to collect the seeds (peas, parsley and broccoli in the background) Broccoli, don't think it will get much bigger though, looks like its about to flower so I'll have to pick it soon. The crazy bean plant has re-sprouted!!!  Check out that stem!!! Broadcast sowing of bok choy was a success, I was hoping a few other things would sprout too though! The chickens are laying and soon it will be time to start hatching some chicks, we're hoping to get started before it starts raining again, so that we get some better quality eggs.  We will be hatching Rhode Is Reds and White Leghorns again. Bella is still providing 2-3 L a day and giving the rest to Molly.  We can leave them for a weekend if we want to and still have milk when we need ...