Captains Log - Getting Results and Changing Priorities

Overall Progress

Another week, another win - ”soooooooo much winning” etc etc

Morning dews are common now, and rather than a loss of ‘good’ weather, it feels like a transition as the kale, silver beet and salad greens are being resurrected. Looking out the window at the last cherry tomatoes, I appreciate how well these plants have fed me this summer (Mind you, so has their price in the supermarket!). Storing the surplus is well underway, with the freeze-drier back in action. I briefly thought about getting the pressure canner out… but then I remembered how much I hate canning.

Also, in the last three weeks or so, I’ve effectively halved the water, time and labour involved in watering and basic feeding of my southern garden. This will be a template for the other gardens.

Irrigation Improvements

Extending the irrigation worked out better than expected:

  • The ad hoc irrigation layouts are effective enough, so I won’t buy additional components.
  • Using the hose pressurises the tank supply enough to run all the planters concurrently.
  • This Saturday’s watering/feeding was reduced from 45 minutes to about 35 minutes.
  • I can use that time more productively, due to not standing and pointing the hose in the right direction. The only ‘real work’ involved is that of getting/adding the compost tea.

The experiment with liquid calcium is complete for now
  • Various problems like blossom end-rot are resolved. It was a special joy this morning to see an explosive increase in capsicum growth and fruiting - I guess the liquid calcium helped there as well.
  • After some research, I won’t include liquid calcium in the bulk watering/liquid feed, but rather to apply as needed via various methods at different stages of the plants lifecycle.
  • I think the weekly cycle will look something like this


 Rebalancing My Priorities

One benefit of this blog is tracking where my efforts have been. I don’t see myself as a gardener, yet most of my efforts have been on growing food or making it easier to do so. Running a homestead/household is a complex ‘business’, and my list of ‘before winter’ repairs and maintenance has been overtaken. So now is good time to shift gears - apply the irrigation lessons and tackle the pre-winter maintenance before the season fully sets in.

That's it for this week :)

Location: 327 Massey Road, Māngere East, Auckland 2024, New Zealand

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