It’s been a month since a proper post. Looking back, one of the main developments has (truly) been the compost. I knew it was serious when I received an email titled “A new composting system” in mid-March. It’s a two-step process whereby all compost is first hot composted to kill seeds (which had become a major pain) and then put in the huge pallet bins to be finished off by worms. We also have access to more ingredients, with free sawdust from a local mill thanks to a neighbour. So Alex has been furiously making more piles, fuelled by the four cows eating (and making manure) in our paddocks, the new sawdust, coffee grounds from our local café, grass or greens from the garden and whatever else we have.  A huge drill bit arrived in the mail last week. Apparently it will make a turning device that will save time. I’m sure I will understand better in a fortnight. 

One of the goals of the past month (apart from making compost obviously!) was making sure the green manure had a good start before the weather changed. The aim is to have living roots in the soil which will feed the soil life and also hold the beds together if we get lots of rain. And it can be cut – with my sickle that Alex now admits is awesome – to be added to compost. Most of the top half of the garden (our worst beds) are now covered in green manure and,reassuringly it’s mostly looking healthy which gives us hope for the vegetables we want to plant in spring. Hopefully our soil saga is almost behind us!

The other major development has been the change in seasons made more stark by a last burst of summer. It was 31 degrees on April 3rd and 12 degrees on the 10th with snow falling on the nearby mountains! That certainly helps sharpen the focus on winter preparations – and makes you look for your winter gloves and gumboots! Without a spreadsheet I’m feeling quite nervous about the coming few months, especially now that the planting window has almost closed… Alex is as optimistic as ever. He has made a germination chamber (which I’m not allowed to photograph until it’s a proven success!) and is convinced that it and the greenhouse will keep things going over winter. Setting aside these innovations, the main crops to get into the ground are broad beans and garlic. Happily (assuming that they grow well!) we can use some of last season’s harvest as seed, which is a mini-achievement. I’m hoping the broad beans are big enough before the mice get hungry – I have vivid memories of the pockmarked garden beds in August!