The Corn is as High as an Elephant's Eye

Honey Sweet Corn

This week on the Farm has been very busy and being self sufficient in most areas is another benefit of a lifestyle block. Summer of course is our prime growing season.

 "The Corn is as High as an Elephants Eye: and will be ready to eat any day soon. My recipe book says to put the pot of water on, go and pick the corn and eat when ready, but Lyn uses a long glass casserole dish in the microwave and it seems to cook the corn to perfection. (not sure how long, cause that's a Mothers secret!) I knob of butter on top and fresh ground pepper …YUM!

Delicious Baby 100s

The Garlic, Onions, Shallots are all dried and tied and hanging in the shed. Fresh picked beans (dwarf and climbing) Tomatoes of all sizes and shapes, (love those little Baby 100s eaten straight off the vine as you walk past) Capsicums, red, green and yellow, Garden peas with mint, Potatoes of 4 varieties, Lettuce, Strawberries, Boysenberries, Broccoli, Cabbage, Cauliflower and not forgetting Courgettes (sliced in half, with melted cheese and herbs), Beetroot, Spring onions & Lettuce are handy for salads

We have already planted some Brussels Sprouts and a veggie combo is planned for next week. The combo has 2x Cabbage, Cauli and Broccoli and I have made up some rubber pipes and netting to foil the white butterfly. Seems to have worked so far. We have another vegetable patch away from the main garden and this is planted with Pumpkins, Squash and a late crop of potatoes. The recent rain, followed by hot sunny days has ensured this area is well stocked with weeds, but I can see that the squash is quite large this year. The variety we prefer is a breed named "Corporal" and they are usually nice and dry with a sweet nutty flavour. Great for roasting and like the corn need a small knob of butter and fresh ground pepper when served.

Bird Proof Boysenberries

The Passion fruit vines are loaded and I keep thinking of Vanilla ice cream with passion fruit topping and my favourite home baked passion fruit square! I am working on plans to construct a special netting covered area in the old commercial polyhouse area and concentrate on berries, maybe Raspberries, Blueberries, Boysenberries (thorn less!) and if I have space a few other specialty varieties. We have tried Raspberries in the past, but the birds ate them before we could get them covered and the weather is too warm up here in Northland for many varieties. We netted the Boysenberries early this year and were rewarded with a huge crop of ripe fruit. Lovely with ice cream and during the cold months, delicious in a sponge pudding with cream.

Ripening Bananas

My new crop of Bananas have produced their first bunch and I look forward to plenty more in future. They may be a small variety, but their taste is intense and much nicer to eat than the bought varieties.Tamarillos, Macadamia Nuts, Avocados Red & Green Grapes ( looks like a huge crop here) Guavas, Quinces and a few other fruit trees make up our crops. The Plums, Nectarines, Apricots, Pears, Feijoas have failed miserably this year, but the weather at the start of Summer didn't help.

Our two Macadamia trees have kept us oversupplied in beautiful edible nuts and I am hoping to purchase a new Macca Cracker this month, so that the cracking process is less tedious and you can get more nuts for cooking, much quicker. Unfortunately our Walnut and Chestnut trees don't do very well in our warmer climate either and seem to get mouldy before we can harvest them.

I have been called an "Impatient Gardener" but I hope to get the Brussel sprouts and Leeks underway next week while the weather is warm.

Here is a video of some of our Garden Produce