The weather’s been hot, like REAL summer scorching hot these last few weeks. I haven’t tended to the garden at all except to go out at sunset and give the poor buggers a drenching.
No liquid fertiliser, no food, no added nutrients. Just water.
And you know what? The patch has been very forgiving.
Remember my cucumber/zucchini/leek patch last month?
cucumber, zucchini and leek patch, Dec 2013
That is what it looked like in December. Now, 4 short weeks later here is the same patch, gone a bit mental!
Cucumber, zucchini and leek patch, Jan 2014
We have lots and lots of beans. Dwarf beans, French beans and Purple King beans. I can’t remember the last time I actually bought any vegetables!
Our fairy tale eggplant is going a bit berserk too. There are over 25 eggplants on a plant about 30 cm tall!
We have tomatoes coming out of our ears.
I’m also trying my luck with potatoes again after our kipfler and Pontiac experiment last year. This time there are Gabriella potatoes I bought from my local farmers markets. They started sprouting after a week. This time, I plan to bank up the soil and mulch as the plant grows and hope for a better harvest in 3 months’ time.
So the garden continues to thrive, through the humidity and heat wave! The Garden Share Collective is thanks to Lizzy at Strayed from the Table, a collection of vegetable patches across the globe.
To see my vegetable patch’s growth before your very eyes, please take a moment to view my previous posts here.
Happy Gardening!
xx
Gourmet Wog 
Well it doesn’t look like your garden minds the heat or even no nutrients. I can see eggplant parmesan in your future. 🙂
Not at all Karen, though I have to admit a lot of work and prep went into the soil before the plants were planted. And now it shows!
There’s a purple theme in your veggies at the moment with purple beans and that beautifully marked eggplant! It all looks delicious though, and so much growth in just a few weeks – will your garden share for February be a photo of the garden completely taken over by zucchini plants?
LOL thanks Sarah! Yeah, I can imagine that zucchini plant outgrowing the patch and spreading out onto the lawn real soon!
Wowsers! What a difference in such a short space of time. Maybe it was all that rain in November getting things going for December? In any case, what a lovely bonanza to enjoy 🙂
I know right?! It’s amazing how quickly everything is growing!
Wow! That zucchini patch is amazing! Lovely to see pics of an abundant summer garden.
It really is Alex! I love being out there and seeing it grow before my eyes!
How lovely not to have to buy vegetables. That’s not only a saving but I’m totally sure you’re eating much better quality produce. I can’t believe how quickly everything has grown. I love the look of your purple beans – not sure I’ve seen that type at the shops xx
Thanks Charlie! The purple beans are quite something, so buttery in flavour! And the best thing about them is they turn regular green when cooked!
It has certainly been hot here too. I must admit that John’s dad planted some corn and yesterday our next door neighbour said, “Maureen, is that corn growing over the fence??” I want a garden like yours! 🙂
and I’d love a view like yours 😉 !! xx
Your garden is looking amazing! Love the pics …
Thanks Julie!!
Lots of great things growing! It’s nice to have a bounty. Since it’s winter here, it’s nice to see and hear about the warmth. Cheers!
Oh I wouldn’t mind a bit of a cold change right about now, its been a scorcher here!
Those dark purple beans are a beauty! Glad to see that the garden is flourishing well! 😀
They sure are! Really tasty too, they’re so buttery!
G’day and gorgeous, Lisa, true!
I wish I had a green thumb and always great to seeing your garden doing well too!
Cheers! Joanne
Thanks Joanne! I hope the green thumb is contagious and you too will one day have a great veggie patch! x
Huhuh!! Lack of time has led to the same scenario of watering and leaving . . . You must have begun with way better soil as my results this year and so far are . . . shall we admit it, quite pedestrian 🙂 !
Yep, i’ll admit my husband did do a lot of prep work before the plants went into the soil! Lots of 5 in 1, mushroom compost, blood and bone, dynamic lifter. Lots of smelly stuff!
Shall carefully tempt some of the plants with smelly stuff now! Would you believe one neighbour actually sounds off, tho’ the ‘odours’ really only last till the next watering 😦 !
Lisa, Don’t be shy. How many tomatoes are you getting from your 33 plants. From my 17 plants last year I reckon I got enough tomatoes to last us 4 years so on my calcs you won’t have to buy tinned tomatoes for 8 years!!
a shit load! Oh I just realised the picture didn’t come up, I’ll try to amend the post!
I have to admit thought, we’re going through them pretty well!
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Wow, your garden is looking so green and luscious despite the heat! Everything is clearly flourishing. Any ideas on what you will do with all those eggplants?
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Thanks Carla! Not sure yet, probably a lot of parmigiana and vegetarian lasagne dishes 🙂
Please come on over and help me! I had to throw out all my Brussels sprouts as they were infested 😦
Unfortunately that is the one veg I cant grow!! We tried our luck with Brussel Sprouts and the white cabbage moths attacked it before we were able to salvage it! Bugger Tandy
Holy Moly! talk about serious growth. The combination of heat and your afternoon watering has really paid off the past four weeks. For a beginner veggie gardener, you are a true inspiration. Also what is the eggplant variety you have?
LOL yeah, the garden has a life of its own! The eggplant variety is Fairy Tale 🙂
Wow! Very jealous (but happy for you!) Our weather is still like Spring. I have worn a jumper everyday since forever….and my poor garden has been VERY slow to grow. There is some tomato fruit but it can’t ripen without the warmth 😦
It really has been a funny season. Not long after I submitted that post to publish the weather has gone cold again and i’m sitting here with my jumper on too! Weird…
I cannot believe the growth in that bed! Unbelievable. It all looks amazing, well done.
Thanks so much Bec, neither can I!
Lisa your garden certainly has grown. The zucchinis and eggplants are amazing. I love your purple beans too, do they need destringing before cooking? Soon, you won’t have to mow at all, but just keep watering your garden. The lemon tree is so healthy too, it has shot up, it must be good soil they are in. Are the pests leaving you alone now?
It all looks fantastic Lisa! Happy New Year!
It’s all looking so lush and green, watering at night is a good idea when it’s so hot – besides when it’s really hot I can’t move much from the cool of the house! Nothing better than fresh home grown veg 🙂
Lisa, I commented on this post days ago and for some reason it has disappeared! I said how awesome your garden is even throughout this hot weather Sydney has been having. Also when we were living in Perth we couldn’t grow anything except thyme because it died 😦
Where have you been, waiting for your next post.
Wow! What a bounty!
Very impressive. After 8 years living out of our suitcases travelling around the world, we’ve just settled down in Cambodia’s Siem Reap and are about to establish a garden on our sizeable balcony, which is how I ended up here. Ours won’t be anyone near so large – I wish it could be. But well done! Must be quite an achievement.