Road to Imago Forest

Well Summer has certainly turned out different to Spring! It's been very wet -- 280mm in December and 200mm so far in january. So it's no wonder that the plants are growing like mad.
Even so plants like tomatoes and eggplant have only just started to produce fruit. I think the mountain climate means our warm season is about two months later than in the valley.
The biggest issue with all this rain however is that access to the farm has become problematic again. Mt Royal Rd to my gate is in good condition and until Christmas i'd fixed my road from the gate to the packing shed so that i can drive in and out with my road registered ute even if it was pouring. However all this rain has washed away a crucial section.
So, making the road 2WD access all the way to the mandala garden (and certainly to the packing shed!) has become number one priority.
Because of the amount of rain we've had, some parts of the drive are very sloshy and i'm going to fill them in with broken bricks, rubble etc. Then i'm going to order a large amount of gravel (semi-trailer probably!) and spread it out over the driveway. Then at last i should be able to relax... at least for a few months! I'm sure there'll be plenty of repair work needed to keep it maintained and keep the rain from gouging it out!
Ahhh, life on a property. Can't beat it!

Happy New Year!

After a few weeks away from the farm, it was a wonderful sight to be greeted by a garden full of happy chooks (thank you to the chook sitters!) and abundant vegetables. The rain over the christmas period has made an incredible difference to the garden and i'm now wading through the vegetation to get to the beds.

On reflection, this lush growth is a great bonus compared to having bare earth paths, because it now provides extra vegetation when creating compost heaps or mulching a bed. A quick run over with the mower provides a large pile of organic material.

One thing i've noticed with having the beds on six month rotations, is that the plants get a chance to go to seed fully and i'm starting to see plants come up all of their own accord. These plants are very often happy and full looking plants as they have sprouted at exactly the right time for them and haven't had to be transplanted. I've also noticed that some of them are crossing with each other... so if you notice a vegie in your box that looks like a cross between a Bok Choy and a Tatsoi... that'll be the Imago special plant ... a Tats Choy!

This year I got the first of the fruit including nectarines, plums and peaches. They were exquisite... but unfortunately not yet abundant enough to make it past my belly and into your boxes. Look out next year though, as i'm sure there will be enough to go around then!