Healthy garden greets me on return from holiday

One of the first things I did after returning from three weeks away was to survey the garden.  The lychee tree is full of leaves, and most of the plants underneath it have recovered quite well from the sudden blast of sunshine. Luckily we have had a little rain to ease the way, and my darling hubby has been watering. Of course it also allowed a spate of weeds to grow up everywhere!

 Among the weeks are plenty of cherry tomato plants which I have left where they volunteered. They fill in the gaps and hopefully will give us some tomatoes.  This has not been a good year for tomatoes - maybe not enough sunny days to ripen them.  We often have cloud cover and I think they like clear sunny days, or so they tell me!  It is warm though - I have not stopped swimming all through the winter, other than when I was away. The gardens seems quite happy.

 In the veggie garden the kale, lettuce and carrots have come along well, although I never get those enormous leaves that seem to grow in other climates.  I do pick the leaves small though - before the bugs can find them ;)  I think next year I might plant even closer together.  The eggplant produces prolifically, even though it does get a bit of bug damage.  A bandicoot got in one night and dug a few holes - they seem to lie in wait for a gate left open and then they pounce.....

 A jap pumpkin vine has made itself at home against the fence, and climbing up the happy plant where the passionfruit vine used to be. Vertical gardening at its best.  I am not sure what will happen when/if I actually get some pumpkins forming, if they will pull the vine down. I guess I will face that when I come to it.  I tied it off out of the way so that it doesn't take over the entire veggie patch.  A branch of the pawpaw tree got too heavy and broke off in some strong wind.

There is already a baby pumpkin - I have killed so many by trying to pollinate that I will leave this on its own and see what happens.  How do you know when it has been pollinated?  Has anyone tried baby vegetables - they are delicious in stews, and potjies (those cast iron three legged pots you use on the fire in South Africa.) I am not entirely sure if they are a different hybrid or just vegetables picked immature.  I had butternut not much bigger than this little guy - delicious!

The silverbeet has been languishing for months and now suddenly took off once some zinnias sprung up beside them - new companion plant?

The rosellas are ready to pick, so I plan to try and dry them for tea - I have taken the seed out of the rosella and then dried some petals in the sun. I find inside the car one of the best places for drying teas (and raising bread dough)

 I have an idea that I would like to try to make rosella "tea flowers"  insert a slice of ginger in place of the seed, but leaving the flower whole and dry them together to make rosella ginger tea flowers.   Tea flowers look so pretty, and are mostly made from chrysanthemums, but I thought I would try my own version. I am hosting an afternoon tea in September to raise money for Habitat for Humanity, so tea is on my mind at the moment.