Tomato time....

It's the start of the full on influx of tomatoes.....I pick about 20 ripening tomatoes off the plants each day....so far have made passatta, have bottled some and made tomato sauce.....running out of ideas....will blanch, peel and freeze some today as the ones I have picked are ripe....been giving lots away...everyone loves to receive homegrown tomatoes.....as always growing things is amazing !!

Homemade organic toasted muesli ...

Had a bit of spare time so I made up my favourite organic toasted muesli.....just organic oats, organic coconut, organic nuts: almonds: macadamia: walnuts: pecans: hazelnuts: pumpkin seeds, macadamia oil and organic honey to coat, then toasted in the oven ........when cooled add chopped organic mixed fruit : apricots, apple: raisins: pear: sultanas: cranberries..............delicious for breakfast with bananas, mixed berries and organic yoghurt ....so nice I gave a jar to my girlfriend along with her birthday gift !

Everyday Composting

The need to reduce the amount of rubbish put into the bin and to make good fertilizer for the garden is helped along by composting.....I'm not a compost nazi, but I do put all vegie peels, tea bags, and other scraps (not cooked, meat or dairy etc.) into a bin in the house which is then transferred to the outdoor compost bins, which will be put into the garden beds when they have decomposed. .....I also have the worm farm which uses the kitchen scraps, tea bags, wet cardboard and especially avocado peels...the worms just love the avocado.......it is going along nicely now and producing plenty of worm tea which goes onto the vegie beds.....did go a bit sour for a while but used a handful of garden lime and this removed the smell......every little bit helps to save the environment and reduce landfill....

Very busy Saturday morning.....

Tomatoes dipped quickly into boiling water

Peeled skins off and placed in pot to cook till soft

Passed through a seive to make the Passata

Not bad for a mornings work !!

Wow, what a busy Saturday morning I had.....finally had enough ripe tomatoes to give the Passata making a go......very easy....only made two containers for the freezer but was a great practice for when I have heaps of ripe toms.......also baked a loaf of bread.....made a fruit cake from my Auntie Joyce's family recipe which has been handed down a few generations....used up zucchini overload by making muffins and zucchini soup....delicious soup,......recipe off the internet, added a bit of cooked bacon and croutons when serving...fantastic.......so great to make food from scratch...very new to this experience and absolutely enjoy the process....especially when some of the produce has been grown in my own garden.....amazing !!

My first mosaic ..

Along with creating a simple and sustainable life, the move to the hills was to persue all of the creative aspirations I harbour......along with writing and painting I am trying my hand at mosaic.......I have a vast empty space on the outside wall along the verandah and am working on a piece that will measure 1800 x 600.......I looked on the internet how to mosaic, planned a design and started....so far I am really enjoying it....quite medatative and a bit like doing a jigsaw...breaking up pieces and placing them to create a picture...a bit theraputic....I love having a permanent creative space in the house where I can work.....its magic.

Another beautiful summers day

The weather has been absolutely beautiful this past week....so great to get out into the garden and let the girls out to free range in the backyard.....they are so funny to watch...another of the girls has gone broody, but there will be no more fertilized eggs to pop under her ....been there and done that....not sure if the two 9 week old babies are girls or boys....they are starting to act a little agressive so I think they may be roosters.  This will be a problem......have to find them a new home if that is the case.  The Isa Browns don't seem to go clucky at all, but both of the light sussex go broody from time to time...they make great mums though.  The chicks are still nesting with mum at night even though they are pretty big now.  Hope she won't be too sad if I have to give them away.    The vegie garden is still proving very prolific......the tomato vines are almost touching the ground they are so laden and this morning I was happy to see that a new fruit is on the Qld blue pumpkin vine....it has a lot of catching up to do with the other two monsters that are already growing.

Will be adding another four raised garden beds this weekend....it is quite addictive........I just want to plant more and more crops and watch them grow......amazing.  My friends and family are reaping the rewards as the oversupply of goodies is making its way to them....I made the beginners mistake of planting all the seedlings at once instead of staggering the planting, so I have a plethora of produce all at once.....currently looking up recipes for preserving tomatoes.....have loads of them and will have a try at bottling them...as usual, have not done this before so will see how it goes...fingers crossed... next season I will stagger the planting and hopefully have a steady supply instead.

Writing Group

My Gumboots

I've recently joined the local community house writing group...a lovely bunch of creative people who have all come together to learn and hone their craft under the guidance of Marie...I've been trying to write for a long time but lack the confidence to share my writing....hopefully the class will help not only develop my skills but also encourage me to share what I write with a larger audience....fingers crossed.   First small assignment was to write about what you see when you look out of any window.....I looked out my studio window and saw the gumboots....so I wrote about that....not sure that I am ready to share it on this blog.....will get some feedback and then decide.......who know perhaps I will put it up here !!

Home Grown....who'd have thought !!

Todays harvest from the Garden

I know I keep harping on about the veg, but I am continually amazed daily by what I can gather from walking into my own backyard.........it's like a bounty of goodies silently waiting for me to select them and share our table with them......I'm certain that this is what people are meant to do......be in touch with the earth that grows their food.....watch it grow, nurture it, treat it gently.....it gives back a hundred fold for all the loving attention....Life is so good.....I find something to amaze me everyday.   I wish everyone could have this joy.

What I'm reading ..........

I belong to an amazing bookclub run by the local community house....very eclectic mix of people.....retired local doctor, retired journalist, local gentleman thespian.......to name a few..to date we haven't had very good books as a group, but the discussions are always fantastic...very educated bunch and have fantastic insight into the novels....and very diverse opinions on what makes a good read.

Last months book was The Household Guide to Dying...as the title suggests the subject matter is a little morose, but written with black humour in an attempt to make light of death and all it involves.....not really my cup of tea.....but worth a read.....looking forward to hearing what the group think......hopefully next months book will bring more joy !!

Some of the crops

The lettuce and zucchini's, eggplants & capsicums

 Pic's of the vegie gardens.....I check on them everyday to see how things are growing....I can't wait for all of the pumpkins to mature and be ready to harvest...along with the tomatoes, etc.... 

Some of the tomatoes...

This is the corn....not sure how it will go

The QLD blue



More tomatoes



My first tomato ...

The tomato crop is going fantastic....this is the first one to ripen up....so beautiful almost too good to eat...but we did...sliced it up, onto a muffin, salt and pepper...delicious...taste is so different from a commercially grown tomato.  Can't wait for the rest of them to ripen....

This is Daphne she's 3 years old

...and this is the baby Daisy..she's 5 months old

Doggie treats for my two girls....

Was given a recipe for organic wholemeal dog biscuits from the shop where I buy the goodies to make my own bread.....seemed like a good idea so I gave them a try.....the girls Daphne and Daisy were happy to tackle them...they may be a little big for Maltese X's but they gave them a good old go....will package some up for my daughter's dog Gilbert ...he's a staffy and will have no problem scoffing a few.....

We Relish the Relish !!

 

Well I have made the zucchini relish....a lot of zucchini's only made 5 small jars of relish...but it is really delicious...served with tasty cheese and crackers on a fruit platter...everyone gobbled it up and asked for more !!  Not only first time making relish, but first time ever using produce from my own veggie garden......wonders will never cease.

Just waiting now for the multitude of tomatoes on the vines to ripen so that I get try my hand at tomato sauce, passata etc....  watch this space!

Growing your own !!

First time growing vegies...what an amazing feeling to go into the garden and dig up some potatoes, pick some beans and zucchinis and have them for dinner....a small step for a little self-sufficiency.
Can't wait for the tomatoes, pumpkins, eggplant, strawberries, rhubarb, capsicums, lettuces and yes even corn !!  All organic, no pesticides, just charlie carp fertilizer, lots of water and worm tea from my worm farm (which is going okay after a bad start) . Have a huge oversupply of zucchinis, trying my hand at zucchini relish (friends recipe) , see how it goes.
It really is a joy to produce your own food....who knew it could be so rewarding and so far quite successful....
Quick note on the baby chickens...doing very well, are now 5 weeks old...first time ever raising fertilized eggs....mother hen has been fantastic....she adores them...just hope they aren't roosters....could be a problem !!

2013 Welcome the new year

Happy New Year....I love the end of the old and the beginning of the new....It's all about fresh starts and new beginnings for me...saying goodbye to last year and all of the joy, difficulties, good times and not so good....thats what life is about.  The dawn of the new year brings hope for beautiful days, good health for all and finding joy in the everyday.  Simple things that form the tapestry of a life well lived.  My mother celebrated her 80th birthday on 1st January...dad and all of us were there to celebrate this milestone...I feel so lucky to have both of my parents as many of my friends have neither mum or dad still with them...fingers crossed I have them for many years to come...enjoy the year whatever it brings.

Christmas Eve

Another Christmas has arrived.....very exciting this year as the G Baby is nearly 2 and old enough to know whats going on....I am a lover of tradition and every year we spend Christmas Eve with some wonderful family friends, unfortunately this year one of our beautiful friends is fighting cancer and currently not well enough for them to come....we will be thinking of them as we spend the evening  watching Carols by Candlelight without them, and rating the dresses on the female singers, but no champagne this  year ....we've had some great laughs with them over the years.,  My greatest wish is that my friend H recovers and that next year we are celebrating with the champagne as we always do.

Christmas day will bring the arrival of all the family to our place for lunch....Pork in the weber, ham and turkey ....my daughters christmas pudding and my mum's apple crumble with custard and cream.....we wouldn't have it any other way.,.....peace and joy to all.

Maison du Poulet

This is our hen house for the girls....first time raising chickens and I absolutely love them..they are such a joy to watch scratching around...plus we get eggs everyday...so many in fact I keep all the family supplied and I love to take them as a gift when we visit friends...

My first blog ...

Here I go with my very first blog....we have moved to the hills in Emerald Victoria to live a sustainble, simple and environmentally friendly life....well as eco as we can.  Have been following several great bloggers on line and thought I would have a go myself. ..can use this blog to continually motivate myself to persue the dream of a simple, creative, sustainable and beautiful life with the veggies, chickens, writing, painting, crafting, knitting, saving the planet etc......have been here several months now and the chickens and veggies are going pretty well....life is good..