The mung bean bed at the Mid-levels got too overgrown. It was lush but crowded, and the plants were spindly and falling over each other in a tangle. What’s more, there didn’t seem an end to the flowering, with old pods spilling while new ones formed. So I figured it was time to treat it like the cover crop it was, pull it up, pick the pods, and dig the plants in. I ended up with a decent haul of beans, which the chickens loved in two feedings.
Read MoreBuckwheat has been a useful crop for me, and I’m sure it will be one of the staples here. I’ve planted a few stands, starting back in Winter, so I’m getting a feel for growing buckwheat in our conditions.
Read MoreThis week I started the sunflower harvest in earnest. I’ve grown sunflowers before but harvesting them is new to me. Sites I visited said that they are harvested earlier than I would expect, some say as soon as the heads turn down or turn brown on top.
Read MoreRed Aztec maize is worth growing just for the wow factor. The deep red cobs look great, and I couldn’t resist them from the seed catalogue. I had everything to learn about growing maize, and it’s been an interesting crop, but the first lot of cobs are mature now. From the main picture you can see that they’re not the big, full cobs one might hope for, but with this lot I would at least recover my seed.
Read MoreThe mung bean bed was a spur of the moment thing that paid off. I had a bed dug at the mid levels and a pack of mung beans that had beetles, which I was using for sprouts for the chickens. So I took a handful of beans down and tossed them on.
Read MoreThey’ve had a season of mixed fortunes, but by a combination of hardiness and good fortune, the sunflower beds have made it through to flowering, and will be putting on a show for Christmas.
Read MoreWhat do you plant when you’ve got to the end of your sowing list? Mung beans are a good way to fill a spare bed. I prepared a bed down at the main vegetable garden but didn’t have anything that urgently needed sowing. So on a whim I thought that mung beans out of the pantry might be a good summer crop.
Read MoreThe chicken world can be very unglamorous, even red in beak and claw.
Read MoreOur Marans chicks are six weeks old, and have turned from fluff balls to proper little chickens.
Read MoreI can see why broodiness has been bred out of many poultry breeds. With my hens the build up to broodiness seemed all advantageous, but that didn’t last.
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