We have discovered a slight problem with our Murray Goulburn water: there is not so much of it because of the drought, because there is not so much milk.  Obviously, it still officially being Summer here, we have need of the water for our paddocks, and also our crops.  The good news is that I was able to harvest some beans last night, although they must have been the smallest beans in recorded history as they had not by any means fully developed (the size of my eight year old's index finger for the longest!), but I did need something green in that nights dinner (old habits, as the Nun said, die hard), and the only things, other than using parsley as a vegetable (done that before!) were the beans.

 

Now, I have read another article in a back copy of The Weekly Times, a rural newspaper for farmers in Australia, and the writer claims that cherry/pear slugs are the larvae of a species of beetle, so one learns something new every day.  The author had the same methods of treatment, except did not mention the wood ash, but this seems to me to be the least invasive killer by far.

 

Now, those of you who have been with me since last week (a pathetic attempt at humour) will remember I wrote about frugality, one of my favourite four letter words being "free".  Another book in my death-defying tour of Melbourne (have you been in the traffic? Whew!) libraries is The Penny Pincher's Book- Easy Ways of Living Better for Less by John and Irma Mustoe (Souvenir Press, 1995, London, England).  On the section on Gardening, the authors write: "The best bird-scarer is free, bio-degradable and very, very quiet.  First, obtain a dead bird.  Attach one leg to a branch with a piece of string, letting the wings and head hang down to flap gently in the breeze." p. 93  Not, I agree, the most romantic idea in the world, but dead birds take forever to break down in the compost.

 

Another couple that I liked, which you may not know about, is that cats don't like black pepper, and a large old table fork (buy from an op. shop), or, I presume, a barbecue prong, makes a wonderful weeder.  Aren't human beings marvellous in all that they invent or re-invent.

 

I am having enormous difficulty typing this, we have David, the daschund father, back for a couple of weeks as Phyllis, his new parent-owner, has an operation coming up.  David insists on sitting on my lap (Daschies always greet those they love like long-lost rich relatives, and David is no exception), having missed me terribly.  He is an absolute caricature of a daschie, being enormously long and height challenged.  He has one bad tooth, which makes for breath that would astonish a vulture.

 

Remember too, that even though you are one of many billions that has ever or will ever exist on this planet, you are so important that other people love and care for you, that what you do, no matter how small, has ramifications that stretch into our planets life, and the love you share is magnified so many times, and in so many ways you could not even imagine, that it is vital that you show it at every opportunity, even if it is only to yourself when no-one else is around.

 

Dominus tecum,

 

Leonie 

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Crop your weeds!  We have, on our version of Old McDonald's, lots of ruminants whose principal idea in life is to get through as much food as possible as often as possible.  There is also a school of thought that maintains that you can work out what your soil type is from the species of weeds that grow, but every time I see such material, I usually am not in a position to copy or use it.

 

I have found numerous books and articles on the eating of such, as no doubt you have, too.  Weeds can also (carefully, depending on seed and growth habit) be used for mulch and compost.

 

Yesterday, I had the mixed blessing of cropping some wild blackberry plants on the side of the Cobden to Warrnambool Road on the way to Naringal.  A good lunch box full, and I could well have picked more.  I know that our local Council does not spray out there - I 'phoned up and asked, and I have never seen the devestation of weedicide rampant.  This will be my third year of picking.  My husband loves blackberry jam, but I also love fresh blackberries and cream on pancakes or toast.  I hope I am making your mouth water!

 

Which brings me to another point - urban and wild cropping.  There have been several books written about this over the years, most with a distinctly US bent, so have a search for them, because they are very rewarding.  Already this year, Arlene and Nita have been telling us about acorns and their uses, and there is a massive larder/pharmacopiea/supply store out there, waiting to be plundered if you are canny enough.  A few words of warning - be wary of too heavy a trafficked road, fruit is not fresh if it is loaded with carbon monoxide and other poisons, ask permission, know what you are cropping (positive identification is a must) and how to process it, make sure it has not been sprayed, and always leave a large percentage if it is indigeneous to the area.  No point wiping out an original species just because your taste buds got the better of you!

 

Now, I have been back down to Melbourne, and picked up another library card.  We have a wonderful TV show, Gardening Australia, and one of the hosts has a segment called "Pete's Mailbag", where viewers write in with original ideas to save money, trouble or time.  Peter Cundall has since published a book with these very useful tips, and I just happened to come across the book in my Library wanderings.  One of the best ideas I read was to save the Oasis medium used for flowers at the florists (our local florist chucks out excess and weary pieces) and use them for cuttings.  Much better than just newspaper or sweaty plastic bags. Speaking of plastic bags, one viewer wrote "Take a standard plastic shopping bag by the handles.  Swing the bag over the tomato stake 'ballooning' the bag and impaling it down over the stake.  Continue to slid the bag down to ground level to create a tent over the tomato seedling.  You can use a small amount of dirt to secure the edges around the seedling.  Next day, pull the bag up carefully off the seedling and slide to the top of the stake.  Secure with a rubber band until the next cold night.  It also makes a great racket in the wind and scares birds away."  Aren't people wonderfully inventive?  Oh, about the cherry slugs we have.  Friends of ours, Pete and Silvia who are permaculturing in Monbulk, e-mailed me to say that the dratted things are coming up out of the ground and that the cheapest way was to treat wood ash like flour and dust the stricken plants with it.  The slugs hate it.  It must be repeated several times, particularly after rain, when the black terrors come out.  They also wrote that white oil or a garlic and pyrethrum mix would do the trick, and will get back to me on ratios.  Ahh, what it is to have such friends!

 

Berry Days

 

The juice of a berry at its perfection

crushed inside my mouth

keeps me searching in frustration

for that elusive taste of liquid joy

 

Sometimes of wine,

sometimes of jam,

sometimes it is just Eden.

 

But each time I revel in that

perfection

I journey briefly to Paradise.

 

 Praise or Questions, send Leonie an email.