The New Pond

PUTTING IN THE POND

We have started a pond in our garden. Yes! A water feature seems to be a must for most gardens, and attracts local wildlife. Unfortunately, one of the first visitors to the new pond have been the dreaded cane toad. My boyfriend discovered a pair of them living amongst our empty plant containers... :(

For those who don't know, the cane toad (Bufo marinus) is an introduced species which has since become an invasive pest in many parts of Australia. It produces a highly toxic venom, which if ingested by other animals, may cause death. Definitely one to keep away from pets and small children!

FILLING IT UP

Another problem we are encountering with the new pond is that the lizards and skinks which are attracted to the insects - and water source - are also drowning in it. Hopefully they'll grow to remember that there is now a large body of water in their area. I haven't been able to think of any ways to "lizard-proof" the pond.

FIVE DAYS LATER

It's been a slow start to the second season in the garden. Three Lebanese cucumber seedlings are in the middle bed. There are also a couple of pumpking and watermelon seedlings scattered around the garden. All grown from seed!

Fortunately the passionfruit vines which I thought had been poisoned by the council's annual weed-killing in the adjoining laneway haven't been much affected. They are both in full fruit and give off about one fruit per week.

First Taste!

We finally tasted our first home-grown passionfruit this morning!

My boyfriend found two ripened passionfruits which had fallen off the vine. One was perfectly juicy and sweet. However, the other had started to rot a little.. very disappointing.

At least now we know when to pick them off before they're over ripe. I have been eyeing the passionfruit for weeks now, but have resisted temptation so far. Who knew my patience would outlast the ripening process? We've had a LOT of rain lately too, which may have helped the rot factor.

MMMmmmm.. I know of at least 3 other passionfruit ripe for the picking!!

The colour of ripened Panama Red is a dull pink. You can wait until it becomes a more brilliant shade of red, but that runs the risk of other critters (which also LOVE passionfruit!) eating it before you do.

Yellow means the fruit isn't quite ready yet, just halfway. And green is definitely NOT ripe.

First Fruits

After waiting for what seems like A-GES.. our passionfruit vine has finally started to fruit! We didn't even notice the flowers - we were away for a week - and one day while checking the trellis I noticed a passionfruit almost the size of a tennis ball growing! Very exciting.

PASSIONFRUIT

Our big guava tree has also started to fruit. Just one at the bottomest branch at the moment. My problem now is deciding when to pick it. It's about the size of my fist now, however, it's not showing any signs of yellowing, the skin is still quite green.

PASSIONFRUIT FLOWER

Having never eaten guava before, my boyfriend asked what it tastes like. Guava has the texture of a pear, with a similarly thin skin. However it has many small seeds on the inside. Being a yellow guava, our fruit should grow larger than the local cherry guava. The fruit should also be quite fragrant.. and hopefully sweet.

YELLOW GUAVA

Dressing the Fence

Here is the final site for the climbing beans and snow peas. We decided to place them next to the bare fence in the hope that they will climb all over and eventually shroud the fence. My boyfriend placed some wiring on the fence with the hope of enticing the beans and peas to clamber onto. A bare patch of fence just seems like an empty canvas calling out for some colour and life.

We spaced the beans 15cms apart, according to the packet instructions. I decided to intersperse them with snow peas as well. Not sure how well that will work, and I wonder whether the beans will take over the peas. See what happens I guess!

The passionfruit vines planted nearby seem to be slowly but surely taking to the wires placed on their part of the fence. Our final aim is to have the whole back fence covered with food-producing plants or bee-attracting flowers!

To that effect, I am happy to report two of the nasturtium seeds have sprouted. I started off another four today in a recycled food container. I am becoming somewhat of a pro at punching holes into used plastic food containers for seedlings!

The chickpeas I planted 3 days ago have also germinated into what you see below (about a week later). I find the pale green leaves and long stems quite appealing. Apparently chickpea plants also bear white or violet flowers (depending on variety). Win-win situation for me! I must admit to being a fan of the humble chickpea. They are a versatile addition to curries, soups and many vegetarian dishes. Can't wait to try making hommus using home-grown chickpeas!