Hello friends,
Since my parents have moved closer, we get to visit regularly with them. I feel so privileged to still have them in my life.
So this afternoon we went over there. When I say over, I mean they live over the other side of the hills from us. These hills are the beautiful Flinder's Ranges. It is about a thirty minute drive from here.
While we are there, they like to show us how their garden is progressing. My mum and dad have green fingers for sure.
Dad mixes all types of manures together with the soil and this is the resulting veggies!
Tomatoes galore! Mum will be making relish this coming week J
Here is a new strawberry patch. A couple of years ago I gave mum all the strawberry plants from my garden, as I was renewing the bed. At the time they hadn't really set up their gardening area so she just plonked them in the soil, and from those first plants they now have another patch. The first year the millipedes ate most of the strawberries, but this year they have beaten the pests and have had heaps of feeds of yummy strawberries. The plants are starting to send out runners now and soon I will be bringing some back home to grow.
This is the old patch now. It all started with just a few strawberry plants! The strawberries have slowed down at the moment but will be back soon, there is still the odd few growing.
Silver beet patch.
Huge zucchini plants growing in the ground. We have been eating so many zucchinis! My own, and mum and dads.
On the other side is another area that is like a jungle. There are rock melons (cantaloupes).
Tiny tomatoes.
Cucumber vines winding their way through the tomato plants. Look at all those flowers!
The jungle!
Another one.
There are also apple cucumbers.
More zucchini bushes.
Dad trying to find some apple cucumbers for us to take home.
Out the front of their log cabin there used to be lawn. They hate lawn! So they smothered it with a huge piece of tarp and left it there for ages. Once spring arrived, the tarp was removed and dad dug up the soil and added manures. Now there are pumpkins where lawn used to be.
They have been set back a little with the hot weather we are having.
Climbing up the railing of the decking are seven year beans. Mum has always grown these no matter where they live.
Looking down across the paddock to where there are some fruit trees planted. Dad had to cover them completely to keep birds out!
Some pickings today.
Dad has offered up his land to the neighbour to run his sheep. Because of the drought they are short on feed. Dad had stubble leftover from reaping his poor crop, so to lesson the fire danger risk, he has sheep to mow it down.
Such a great sight to look out the kitchen window and see sheep!
What we brought home.
What I made with some of them. My favourite salad,
to have with these zucchini boats.
Yummo!
Next time I am up there I will take some photos of their goats and chooks.
My dad is 83 and mum 79. They have ten acres to keep them busy and they are loving it! My dad has never retired and has no intentions of doing so, this life has given them both purpose J
See you all soon,
xTania
