my garden today - march 2012

I finally did some work in the garden today! 

It so needed to be done and it has been on my mental to-do list for a few weeks now.  The summer crops have all but finished.  The corn, sunflowers and tomatoes were all dying off and really needed to be pulled out and the beds prepared for winter planting.  Another first, winter planting.  I have only ever planted in the warmer months, but this year I'm putting some things in for the winter.  I don't know what yet!!  Any suggestions gratefully accepted!

So I pulled and sorted, weeds for the wheelie bin and plants for the compost bin.  Being helped by Master Two, who did a great job of putting the huge sunflowers into their pile and Miss Four who intermittently wielded the rake.  At the end of the afternoon, I had two beds and the bark pathways around them weeded.  Achievement!!

Then onto the compost.  I had a very neglected compost area that needed tending to.  Two years ago, when we first moved into this house, I built a two bay compost area.  I used scrap pallets, star pickets, recycled findings and bailing twine (as are most things I build made from!!).  It has held up really well but since building it, I have not done anything more to it.  I have used it, adding kitchen scraps, grass clippings, garden waste and cardboard, with no particular order or method.  The first bay was filled, covered and left after about 12 months and then I've been filling the second bay for the next 12 months.  Because I don't have a third bay, I now have to deal with the first bay so I can leave the second bay to mature for a while. 

This is it, my two bay composting area.  It's not going to win any beauty contests, but it works a charm and cost next to nothing to make.

Once I cleaned all the items of the top, sheet tin, kids water play table and toys (I can't waste valuable storage space!!), this is what I had.

Beautiful compost.  In its mature state, the bay was about half full, so a rough estimate would be about 2 cubic meters.  Two cubic meters of loveliness to spread about the garden and spread it was.  I got it spread nice and thick, onto the two large beds, with heaps leftover for the other beds.

I did not pull all the plants from these beds.  I still have some very happy zucchini, pumpkin and trombone marrow that I left.  I think they will be even happier with the new compost around their tootsies.

And speaking of feet, it's been a good day in the garden if my feet look like this!!  I love bare foot gardening in the fine weather.

What jobs have you been doing in your garden?  Any suggestions for winter planting?

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 make : grow : thrift  ~   Saturday Garden Journal #3

 

diy microfibre kitchen cloths

If cutting fabric up is your DIY style, then this for you.
Very easy DIY! 

I bought a 6 pack of micro fibre car cleaning cloths (size 45cm*30cm) at K-mart for $3.50.  These were too big for general wiping and cleaning in the kitchen.  So I cut them into 4 pieces each.  No hemming, measuring or stitching.  Just eyeball it!!  Voila, good sized reusable cleaning cloths for surface wiping in the kitchen.  They stand up well to machine washing, even with unfinished edges.

(Inspiring photo of a cleaning cloth huh??!!)

In the past we used rinsable Chux cloths.  But for about $6 for 20 cloths which lasted us about a fortnight, it was fairly expensive.  I have heard about the Enyo micro fibre cloths, but never looked past the (for me) huge price.  $3.50 for 24 reusable cloths is very good in comparison.  Don't look for micro fibre cloths in the laundry/kitchen isle as there are very few bargains there.  Check out the car section as you are likely to find better prices.

I keep my cleaning cloths in a basket under my kitchen bench near my sink, for easy access. and wash them regularly.


Do you use reusable wipes in the kitchen?  What do you use?

zucchini cake - a recipe

Today I ended up with 8 fresh, local zucchini, from our garden and some from friends.
What to do with said veg?  Facebook friends had some good suggestions, one of which was zucchini cake. 

I grated all the zucchini with the food processor and portioned the extra zucchini aside into 3 cup packs to freeze.  Each 3 cup pack will make one cake later. 

Here's what I made with the 15 cups zucchini left.


Zucchini Cake (makes 8 cakes)

15 c grated zucchini
6c raw sugar
1.25lt veg oil
15 eggs
1kg sultanas
25g pk mixed spice (or 5Tb)
13c SR flour

Mix ingredients in order listed, together in very large basin.
Grease 8 cake tins.
Portion out mixture evenly into tins.  I used a cup measure and put into each 4c of mixture.
Cook at 180degC for 60min.  Check after 45min and move around if necessary.

This cake freezes (without icing).  Ice with cream cheese frosting, or your favorite icing, when defrosted, or when cooled, if you are not going to freeze them.



And now on to the photos...

Miss4 helping to stir.  Note the very large bowl used to mix in.  I used one of the kids toy containers, after washing it down really well!

My line up of filled cake tins, ready to go into the oven.  I only used 7 tins because the largest was filled with double the mixture.  Expect larger cakes to take longer than the rest.  Keep checking at 10min intervals for readyness.

Cakes in the oven.  One of the good things about having a double size oven is being able to cook in bulk without it taking all day!

There it is.  My bulk zucchini cake recipe.  I'm going to freeze some and give away the rest.
Share the love!!

Do you have excess garden produce at the moment?  How are you using it?

I'm linking up to Your Green Resource at Live Renewed.

washing potatoes in the dishwasher??!!

I don't know how green this idea is, but it certainly saved me time this morning.  I washed about 5kg of potatoes in the dishwasher.  Potatoes on the top rack, as they were to small for the bottom rack, and on for an eco wash, without detergent.

They came out clean enough to chop up, ready to boil for potato salad.

I will use my crazy method for potato washing again!!

What is your most crazy time saving thing in the kitchen?

kids storage nook

 

My storage area, above, and below, the original inspiration pic, from pinterest (obviously!!), for the otherwise unused space outside the older boys bedroom.

source

This is the (almost) finished result.

A friend of the family helped me build the (black) shelves from pine using my custom design and put up the panelling.  I had already painted the walls.  Since then I painted the panelling and screwed in some vintage hooks.  I still need to finish some painting and add skirting, but almost there!!

The space is used for storing school bags and coats - on the hooks, clean and sorted laundry ready for putting away - in the kids own coloured tub LHS cupboard, school books and paper work - in RHS cupboards, and extra toy storage - in tubs above the cupboards.

I am really pleased with the result.  One more thing ticked off the to do list!!

What have you have finished lately?  Have you checked out pinterest yet?