Garden Update May 2014

What is happening in the garden…

Dust off those gumboots, it is time to play in the mud. The inter-rows have been ploughed and the tractors are seeding cover crops all through the vineyard. Broad beans and snap peas are being planted by hand in selected rows along the entrance road and in front of the restaurant. They will be accompanied by beetroot and radish to make full use of the rows. It has been a busy time with visitors coming through the gardens and keen to learn more about biodynamic agriculture and the natural rhythms of the earth and the cosmos.

Fennel bulbs have been transplanted and outer leaves are removed to thicken up the bulb.
tatsoi, rocket and oak leaf lettuce are loving the autumn conditions and producing rich green and tasty leaves. Chinese cabbage will be harvested to be pickled and served fresh.
Jerusalem artichoke, which are related to the sunflower family, are ready for harvest to be made into puree and baked. The leaves have fallen off and roots will be harvested as they are needed. Calendula is sprouting up all over adding colour and attracting beneficial insects to the gardens.

The BIG compost heap has been constructed out of the pressed grape material, hay, cow manure, wood chip, clay, basalt dust and 10% mature compost from last year. The materials are layered and drenched with water as the heap is built. We will monitor the temperature and turn at least three times until the heap begins to cools down at which point we will insert the biodynamic preparations and let nature run its course. BD 500 has been made with fresh cow manure inserted into cow horns and buried in the gardens for 6 months.

It is a good time to apply horn manure, make compost, transplant seedlings, pruning, wine racking and harvesting for storage from the 1-4th and 19-29th of May. This is a descending or waning period of the moon. From the 8-18th and the 30-31st it will be good time to apply horn silica, plant seeds, graft and harvest for early consumption. This is an ascending or waxing period of the moon.

WE ARE CURRENTLY HARVESTING…
Tomatoes, Capsicum ,Sugar snap peas, Jerusalem Artichoke, Beans, Tatsoi, Mizuna, Rocket, Beetroot, Wong Bok, salad greens, herbs, edible flowers, Radish, Chilean guava, Feijoa

If anyone has any queries in regards to the garden, please feel welcome to ask… Cheers, Jaimie