Chocolate Lily's & Sundews Late Spring

Seasons... Winter then Spring, it all begins to happen..

Winter... Icy winds, rain & freezing... I made a hasty scramble to the car to take the photo above, I wasn't tough enough on this day to brave the conditions. What a difference in change of season, Tassie the island of contrasts. Spring, the hard work begins now....what an amazing view down to Launceston City & The Tamar Valley River, so tranquil.

Next the working bees, a huge tidy up. Soon the expedition with a packed trailer including chainsaw, wheel barrows &  all manner of garden tools to start clearing dead trees, stacking dead wood & pondering over rocks !! Some will stay in the landscape because they are too large to move, others will be used in walls. We'll need plenty of coffee on to get started...more photos on the day soon, hopefully with some of the local wildlife.

Last trip there, it's official... we have wombats, spotted & confirmed wombat poo !
I wonder if he is like "Combat Wombat " a resident at Cradle Mt when Rob was there ?

House plans are well underway, almost complete with some small tweaks in the design. The design guys at CBM are just brilliant.

Find of the month.. hardwood pallets for $5 each from Perth...heaps of them. Will need to get a load, ideas are already mounting for their recycling.. And next there's the fencing on the list....

Our plants in containers are rearing to go, at least two trailer loads alone to be moved ! The fun begins in November.....

Temporary Garden

I didn't like the idea of leaving all our plants behind having done this before and knowing how hard it is to start again. But new gardens don't need to be expensive to start from scratch. I am blown away by how expensive buying just one fruit tree, herbs, vegetable seedlings, pots, potting mix & landscaping materials has become in recent years.

We've been busy saving seeds, (kgs of coriander lately), taking cuttings & transplanting. Swap with others if you have spare plants or seeds. I'm always happy to share with others if I have extra. Most of our existing fruit trees, herbs & perennials are in containers ready for the move, with more to do in Winter. Reuse containers, I have reused 2 & 3L milk & juice bottles with the tops cut off and holes punched in the bottom, large fruit tins, old laundry tubs, drums, buckets & any suitable containers. 

The local tip shop is a great place to find pots & containers like old wooden crates, commercial cooking pots, washing machine stainless steel drums for bigger trees & other treasures for just a few dollars. I definitely won't use my latest find for a container...I came across a brand new pair of Blundstone steel capped gum boots size 8, luckily just the right size for Rob. Also 10 large plant pots & a wooden crate, it all cost $5. I couldn't believe the gum boots really only cost me a couple of  dollars. So trawl through your local tip or building recycling yard.

Ask a local farmer if they will sell you their excess wooden potato / apple crates for raised garden beds, they are just the right height. This is what we will be using when we set up the new veggie garden. And as much as I like playing in the soil on the ground they will be more practical down the track (I'm not old yet) but there may be a time if I don't get off the ground I will be composted before my time ! 

There is much more rock on the new block & I know Rob doesn't fancy hitting rock every time he puts a shovel in the ground. We've done that before on another block we had & ended up making a huge retaining wall & not paying to put one up, so it worked out well. But some rocks on site will be used in landscaping. So many things can be reused instead of having to buy new, you just have to think outside the square.

Next... wooden  pallets are gold, please don't burn them.

Summer January 2012

A contrast in seasons. Road work & infrastructure underway.
Next... Winter job - selectively clearing light scrub in the building envelope, especially the weeds & the bushes with the 2 inch thorns  !  Dead trees & limbs will be kept & relocated for habitat . A remaining beautiful snow gum will be a focal point.