(AKA September 2022 Update)
What a month. Mainly it was all about my new job and trying to get my head around all the different things I do. So far all boxes are being ticked which is fantastic. School holidays threatened to put a spanner in the works but Mr T was able to work from home the days I was working, and go into the office on the other day. And as my head started to settle, and I got used to the routine, I was finally able to get back out to the garden!
And what a state it was (and still is) in! The asparagus bed has one sole plant surviving I think, the netted bed and herb bed were pretty much just weeds, and the tomato bed was a combo of weeds, borage, snow peas and a few tomato plants. I managed to weed that enough for the tomato plants to actually produce some tomatoes (mini amish and mini san marzano). And as the snow peas were on the edge of the bed they did quite well – except I didn’t trellis them properly and they ended up sprawled over the lawn!
I made some more strawberry jam and all the pots I gave away were returned with a “that was delicious” 🙂 It was a bit runny so I’ve been reading up on how to perfect jam making and it seems the trick is to keep in some of the less ripe strawberries and any green bits at the top as that has more pectin than really ripe fruit. Also adding some lemon juice as the acid helps the pectin to form properly. Next time!
Bayside Homestead 