IBC Wicking Beds for renters...

IBC Wicking Beds for renters...
We have some friends who are renting places with no garden space for veggies so it got me thinking how we could help them out... We came up with the idea of using the same food grade IBC containers we are using as Aquaponic beds & tanks as Wicking garden beds... By cutting them in ½ you can get 2 beds that are essentially large pots that you can grow quite a few Veggies & herbs in...

We were lucky enough to get 3 of them for $40 each... The only problem being that they contained "Liquid Boot A" which is a tar like concrete sealing compound that is used to seal concrete drinking water tanks, pipelines & concrete slabs for buildings... We could not remove the compound with a water blaster as it had dried to the tank so had to come up with another way to use them...  We decided on lining them with the 200um plastic to keep the soil from coming in contact with the residue in the IBC's... I think we could find others without the residue for under $100 which makes them cheaper than the colorbond alternatives you can purchase from hardware stores & suitable for renters who are not allowed to dig a garden for a veggie patch...
: )»

Catch up time...

Have been doing a few small bits & pieces around the patch since I last posted...

Wicking Bathtub...
An old bathtub came up for offer on Freecycle  a few weeks back so we grabbed it to try turning it into a Wicking Bed...

 I wanted to set the bed up as a Thai curry bed but as we have enough Chillies already for what we need a Capsicum was planted in there instead...

 Seeding & planting update...
The morning the Bathtub bed was made we went to the local markets & purchased,
2 x Thai Mint, 1x Giant Capsicum & a Calendula seedlings... They were fairly advanced & very healthy looking so a bargain for $4 all up (if memory serves me right)... 1 of the Basils along with the Capsicum went into the Bath along with the volunteer Lemongrass we had growing in a pot...

Last Sunday (16th Oct) Bianca & I potted up all the seedlings that were advanced enough into 10cm (4inch) pots to allow their roots to develop a bit more & for us to make space around the place or find new homes for the leftovers... We now have the below thriving quite happily in their new pots,
Eggplant, Long Thai Purple  x 6
Eggplant, Udumalapet x1
Eggplant, Rosa Bianca x 2
Tomato, Black Russian x 6
Tomato, Brandywine Pink x 6
Cucumber, Mini White x 3
Rockmelon, Minnesota Midget x3
 The remaining Mini white Cucumbers & Minnesota Midget Rockmelons (3 each) went into 2 different barrels with cadges on them.. The Cucumbers should vine up alright & it will be interesting to see how the Melons will go...
B☼ also planted another 4 Amish Paste Tomato Seeds as we are really enjoying the ones we have already eaten fresh & turned into sauces.. The plants in the lime beds just are not doing as well as they could so we are going to try them in a Wicking bed where they will have constant water & see how they go.. Just need to find the room now... 

Aquaponics...
Not a lot has been happening with the IBC system other than the occasional Yabbie shedding its exoskeleton &n an influx of Mozzie wrigglers.. Some of them were taken care of quickly today after we introduced about 30 Firetail Gudgeon feeder fish into the Sump Tank... The Yabbies were put in there a few weeks ago & the Goldies from the house were put into the Barrel system along with the Pacific Blue Eyes we had in the Barrel pond in the patch... The Barrel system has still only got a trace reading of Ammonia & no readings that I can see for Nitrite or Nitrates... The tank is being supplemented with Seasol as well as Chelated Iron while the pH is above 8 as high pH locks out Iron which can appear as a yellowing of the leaves like a nitrogen deficiency...
I have been collecting bits for the plumbing work & think most of what is need has been found as well as buying a 2500LPH back up pump that is running during the day at the moment... 
Did a bit of rearranging of the AP site today & will be trying to knock off the rest of the set up in the next few weeks...


Potato update...

We have had a few problems with a Spotted Potato Ladybug infestation in the Kipfler drum... They are on all of the plants but really hooked into the barrel plants.. We started to spray all the plants with Neem & these are the only specimens I could find today but from the 

shot on the Left you can see the difference between the 2 plants...
I think we may just harvest the Barrel this weekend if the plant dies back to much... The Kipflers on the right in the shot have been left alone for now so we will be keeping the Neem up to them until harvest time...




A little Carrot experiment....

Mmmmmm.... Well, I did try to save to poor little feller...
The results can be seen at the start of the clip below.. : (»

Garden Walk through...

Tried to cram in as much as I could but still miss a fair bit out... The Patch just keeps growing which I can't really complain about..

New project....
Here is a sneak peek of a new project we will be starting today or on the weekend...

Going to be fun, messy but Fun....

Have a great one all....
: )»

Seed tray, Seedlings & Strawberry wall update...

Even though it has been a while since the last post a bit has been going on out the back...
But first, a quick update on the Rust & pest problem from the last Blog post... The beans were removed & disposed of in the garbage in an attempt to get rid of as much infected matter as possible... The garden was then sprayed on the 17th of September with Neem... The White Cabbage Butterfly caterpillar & Colorado Potato beetle populations have nearly disappeared completely so I am very chuffed with that.. I was contemplating purchasing some Dipel powder for the caterpillars as it will be needed for the Aquaponic system as it is Fish friendly but that can wait until the beds are all set up..


Spring sowing's...
Seeds...
Since the last post a few seeds & a couple of seedlings have gone in...
Bean, Black seeded Snake, Madagascar/tropical Lima
Purple Vienna Kohlrabi
Mangelwurzel 
Beetroot Early Wonder
Cucumber, Muncher Burpless, Lebanese, Mini White
Corn, Baby Pop
Rainbow Chard
Eggplant, Thai, Udumalapet, Large White 
Cumin
Tomato, Black Russian, Brandywine Pink
Rockmelon, Minnesota Midget
Cos lettuce & Unidentified Lettuce seedlings from mum
Seedlings
Mixed Capsicum
Transplanted unidentified volunteer Brassicas  x 2 Bed #2
Transplanted Red salad & Brown onions into Bed's # 1 & 2 form various beds in the patch...
Transplanted the Broad Ripple Yellow currant & Wapsipinicon Peach Tomato seedlings from the Lime Bed into newly prepared Wicking Barrels with cages...

Still waiting for most to sprout & most from the previous batch are yet to sprout but here is a quick look anyway...

Strawberry wall...

As the remaining Strawberry barrel was cleared out to make way for some Tomatoes so what was left was put into the Strawberry wall... Was a bit of a squeeze to get them in but they're all in there now... What surprised us the most was finding 2 small plants that look like they have sprouted from seed...
 Left is a shot before the other plants from the barrel went in... There is a quick look at what they look like now in the clip above..



 
Happy Harvests... 

We are still harvesting the last of the Carrots from the Bath tub bed along with Kohlrabi & Spring onions for coleslaw a few times a week... The last of the Beetroot& Purple Cauli's were harvested for a nice Roast Lamb lunch with guests on Sunday... They all went down a treat...
Still getting heaps of tomatoes from the volunteer plants around the yard & the Mangles that had all their sick looking leaves trimmed off are now providing us with some lovely fresh greens...
Most of the tomatoes on the Right are now a very tasty tomato paste in  the Freezer...


Have a great one all....
: )»

Wicking Barrel Modifications....

Wicking Barrel MK II
Have come up with what I think is a better way to set up the reservoir section of the barrels so they will hold more water using the ag pipe...

I am going to trial the new barrel set up by growing 5 different types of heirloom Tomatoes as I have found them to be a very thirst plant once they reach about 4 foot in height...
Have a great one...

 Have a good one...

: )»

Neem V's Rust, Powdery mildew & pests...

Bean rust & Powdery mildew...
   Rust & Powdery mildew have both present in the patch for a while now but due to the growing size & variety of plants that can/have been affected in the patch I think it is time to get serious with the control of these diseases...  To be honest I have been slack in my research to find control methods that will work against these diseases in the past...

   Rust (Left) was only dealt with once became obvious... Infected leaves were picked off or if the plant was to infected, the whole plant was pulled... 
   Plants infected with Powder mildew (Below) were sprayed with a 1:10 Full cream milk & water mix once the infection had set in with virtually no change in the infection or is spread... Others swear by it's use & say it works great for them but I think our more humid conditions here create an environment where the mildew thrives once it has infected a host... The other spray I used was a commercial Neem oil spray that contains a wetting agent... I had searched & found that Neem was successful in controlling both the mildew & the rust so have sprayed both with a 1:10 solution of Neem oil to water with slightly better results of the milk but ended up resorting to pulling leaves that were infected the most in the hope of the plants bouncing back...
    I have decided to read more than brief snippets gleaned from Google searches & came across "Neem: A tree for solving global problems"... It appears that I have been using Neem the wrong way.. After reading pages 53 & 56  I found that it should be used as a preventative on the plants... Neem works best when sprayed onto the plants before an outbreak occurs as it has little to no effect on the infections once they have settled in... As a result of this newly discovered information I cleaned out the beans & will be spraying the pruned back Lemongrass along with the rest of the patch to try to reduce the risk of these diseases reoccurring in the patch...
The next lot of  Beans going in are Snake Beans which are said to be very resistant to Rust so they will be planted directly into the beds this weekend...
Pests...

Another benefit to Neem is its insecticidal properties... In the past when we have had a regular spraying regime in the patch we noticed a dramatic drop in White butterfly caterpillars (Left) on the Brassicas, Thrips on the Eggplants & Colorado Potato beetle (Right) on the Cape Gooseberries after spraying the plants directly...We were slack over winter but will be spraying the patch every weekend for the next few weeks then fortnightly after that...
  Neem is a plant that has many useful properties & has been used in India & surrounding countries for thousands of years... A great site with useful information is Discover Neem.... We have made up our own Head lice hair conditioner for the kids & have used Neem based toiletries for a few years now & have found them to be great...

Have a great one all...
: )»

Worms & Spuds...

Sad Worms...
Had to save some of the worms yesterday (Monday).... I had filled the top tray of the worm farm with horse manure that I had mixed some Blood 'n' Bone that contained added fertiliser without realising that they are not really fond of the B&B/Fertiliser... A few had become emaciated & passed on unfortunately  : (»
  I emptied out the tray onto the soil heap then put in some Mangle that had been put through the food processor as an attempted apology to the others... The worms that were rescued from the tray were put into a barrel full of fresh screened manure with no added extras to see how they will go... Hopefully they will thrive in there & I will be able to use the other barrels in the same way to boost worm & casting production... I would like to have a whole section in the proposed soil/compost bays just for manure composting with worms so as to reduce the feed bill for the Fish in the Aquaponics set up but that is a few jobs down the list at the moment...

Bags of Spuds...
Planted out the remaining Dutch Cream seed Potatoes yesterday into bags... I used a different blend this time as I think the Coir blend didn't hold enough moisture.. This batch was made up of reclaimed spoil from the garden, Mushroom compost & some of the "Safe Fertiliser" CBM Mix to give it all a bit of a boost..

Garden Preparations...
Will be setting up some more "hoops" in the garden for the shade cloth as it will have to be modified a bit to include the Aquaponic system... It will be a bit like a giant jigsaw puzzle : D»
I think we will have enough cloth so that will please the wallet me thinks...

Have a great one...
: )»

Spring time fun & Jobbies.....

Had a great weekend in the yard doing some jobbies, socialising with ADULTS & playing with a family heirloom that has been "lent" to me...

BBQ, Good Friends & Spuds...
   My farther has passed on custodianship of the family BBQ to us...  He built this BBQ for APEX outings before I was born (40 or a few less years ago) & it is still going strong with a few minor alterations like the tin side panels being replaced with Stainless steel & some Aluminium covers to keep the plate clean when stored & not in use... It had been out of service for the past 10 or so years as family gatherings had migrated to other relatives places so it needed a bit of TLC... The plate needed a bit of a touch to remove a bit of rust build up as well as replacing the regulator & lines just to be on the safe side... Not as flash as a newer model but we know it will last another 40 or so years if looked after.. I like that we can remove the burners & use them to boil the presure cooker (when we get one) for canning our produce in the near future...

    We got to use it for the first time on Saturday when we had friends visit for a bit of socialising...
   Was a great day & got a bit of help in the yard... We needed to harvest the 4 potato bags from around the side of the house as the stalks were all dying back so the young kids all got a go at digging through the soil to see what they could find... Wasn't the best yield but we are still learning with spuds... I think the mix we used was to free draining & it was a struggle to keep the water up to them...
    Also got a bit of a hand with the framework to finish off the AP site... Can set the fish tank & other grow beds up now... Thanks Guys & Girl's...
 

Fertilisers...
   We bought a couple of bags of fertiliser last week from Safe Fertilisers as we are starting to run low on the rock dust & have a few beds/barrels that need to be revitalised before they are plated out.. The last batch we got was an all rock dust blend but decided to try a "BFA Certified"  "Enviro Blend" this time..
CBM
Chicken manure, blood & bone, and minerals. This 100% organic blend provides the full
spectrum of macro and micro elements.
N 2%,  P 2%, K 0.4%, S 2000ppm, Ca 8%, Mg 2%,  Fe 1.4ppm, Mn 370ppm,  B250ppm,  
Cu 55ppm, Zn 120ppm, Co 10ppm, Mo 40ppm, Se 3ppm, C 20%, Si 5%
Not the most pleasant smelling blend but should help kick things on a bit... Will still be using the horse manure & worm castings as added organic matter to the beds/barrels, this is just to help add a few nutrients that were used up in the last crop or just not there...
The main crop of Beetroot is not preforming as well as the others planted out at the same time & it was suggested to us that it could be a boron deficiency so they will get a nice top dress of fertiliser too...

Harvesting & Planting out...
Have been picking a fair of  Kohlrabi, Carrots, Spring Onion & Mangle to turn into coleslaw lately & it has become a bit of a favourite... 4 bas of potatoes were also harvested (see picture above) as well as the garlic that is in the clip below... The stems went a bit soft on some & others had already dried out but were missed amongst the Onions so we though it best to harvest the lot..
The Silverbeet/Chard & other leafy greens are still being used to supplement the chooks diet.. They now look forward to their morning/evening treats & come running as soon as they see us in the patch...
    Below is a list of what was planted out last night to take advantage of the full moon...
Carrots, a  mix of Nantes (Johnsons seeds- organic) & Dragon (Eden seeds) x 2 rows in Bed #1
Carrots, Mini Round (Diggers seed) x 2 rows in Bed #1
Carrots, Heirloom mixed (Diggers seed ??) x 2 rows in Bed #1
Tomato, Broad Ripple Yellow currant (Diggers ??) in Lime Tree bed...
Tomato, Wapsipinicon Peach (Diggers ??) in Lime Tree bed...
All but the Nantes & Dragon Carrots were from the gift we received from from our You Tube gardener friend Watsamadoing last week... Thanks again :D»

Garden walk through Clip...
Bit of what was said above & other natterings...

Weather...
It will start to heat up here a bit by the weekend we are told, hitting about 29°C by Friday, so we are thinking about putting up some of the shade structure to try & stop some of the Broccoli from premature bolting... Will be trying to incorporate the mesh we got to try & keep the White Cabbage Moth/Butterflies from getting to the Brassicas & depositing their eggs...




Have a great one all...
: )»

Aquaponic update...

Aquaponic update...

The sump tank/grow bed have been set up now...  The clay balls were all washed & a failure on the shroud around the bell siphon was fixed...

The site where the fish tank is going has been set up ready for the tank & the grow bed frames to be installed... Had a friend give me a hand on the weekend with the box... Thanks Mark.. The pump is in but is a bit to powerful to just run 1 bed so will have to wait until the rest of the grow beds & fish tank are on line I think... Power to the site is delivered through an extension cord to the pump & a water proof connection box is used keep it all safe... A bucket is also placed over the top to make certain no water gets in...






The barrel system is still lacking nutrients so we hope to get the Goldfish from the house into there as soon as I can get the IBC system plumbed up so the Yabbies can be added to it...  It's just a matter of finding the $$ now for the plumbing fittings... I have also been told that we should have permanent power to the site within a month...
                        **Crosses fingers & toes**


Have a great one & take it easy all...
: )»

Gift of Seeds !!!!

THANK YOU !!!!!
Yesterday I got a little package From a fellow Aussie You Tube gardener & was blown away by by what it contained...
All the seeds are from Diggers...
Tomatoes...
Tommytoe Red
Powers Heirloom 30th Anniversary
Brandywine Pink
Wapsipinicon Peach
Yellow Pear
Broad Ripple Yellow Currant
Black Russian
The other seeds we received were,
Hunter Valley White Onion
Heirloom Carrot mix...
Also in the package was a "Baby Vegetable Collection" which includes,
Beetroot, Mini Gourmet
Carrots, Mini Round
Cauliflower, Mini
Cucumber, Mini White
Rockmelon,  Minnesota Midget
Corn, Baby Pop    (This was a big surprise as we were just talking about buying some Pop Corn seeds on Monday...)

She has put a lot of effort into this & has even used some little envelopes that she has made up herself when splitting the seeds up... The packets include all the info needed to plant out & must of taken quite a while to do... I am so greatful...Have got a few already picked out to go in this weekend but will need to get a few more wicking barrels ready for others...
***Does a big HAPPY DANCE**
 Thanks so much Watsamadoing.... Your small measly package is on the way & hope they grow well for you...
Her Spring Preparation 2011 Video for your enjoyment...

She lives in South Australia & has a great Channel featuring Gardening,  Hoop/Hot house & Chooks...

Sowing the seeds...
Got busy in the patch owing some seeds in trays & a couple of rows of Carrots to fill some gaps left by the last lot of seed tap that didn't germinate...

 Seeds planted into punnets were,
Zucchini, Lebanese (Mr Fothergill's) x 4
Rockmelon, Hales Best (Mr Fothergill's) x4
Water Melon, Sugar Baby (Mr Fothergill's) x4
Eggplant, Rosa Bianca (Select Organic) x 6
Eggplant, Udumalapet (Eden Seeds) x 6
Eggplant, Large White (Saved seed from Market purchased fruit) x 6
Cumin,  (Eden Seeds) x 6
Capsicum (Bell pepper), Perennial (Eden Seeds) x 6

 Sown/planted into the ground,
Carrot, Nantes 2 (Johnsons Seeds) x HEAPS
Cucumber Marketmore (Eden Seeds) x 2
Cucumber Muncher Burpless (Eden Seeds) x 2
Pumpkin, Kent (green Harvest & Saved seeds) x 2
Turmeric (saved rhizomes) x 2
Galangal (saved rhizomes) x 2
Ginger (saved rhizomes) x 2
Sunflower, Sunbird (Green Harvest) x 12


 Aquaponics...

Have made a bit of headway on the Aquaponic system...The sump has been dug in & the plastic has been painted... The Tin that was riveted to the cage has had the sharp edges covered with pipe to keep the resident OHS inspector happy..
; )»
Looks like I may get to plumb up the grow bed by the end of the weekend... Might even get some gravel & water into the system... Hoping  the Yabbies will be moving in sometime next week...
I hope...
Maybe...
Will be running the system with just the sump & grow bed for a week or so until the fish tank is made up in a few weeks time...
 The Barrel system has stalled on the nutriment side as I just don't think the Yabbies Poop enough  to keep the nutriment load up for the bacteria to process... Have been supplementing the system with water that had been removed due to the high Ammonia & Nitrites in the hope of keeping the bacteria going until the Yabbies get moved & some other Fish can be put in there...

 

Have a great one all...
: )»

Moving on slowly...

Have knocked over few jobbies from the list ...
Clips & updates...
Aquaponic Update...

Still haven't progressed from here during the week & have a busy weekend ahead so it may have to wait a while longer...
Worm harvest...

Got the top layer of the Worm farm harvested & hope to get to the other layers in the next few weeks...
Quick wander through the patch...

This was taken last Sunday with a bit added Monday morning...

This weekend...
Hope to get all the seed planted out for the spring crop by the end of this weekend... Some will be sown directly & others will be planted into punnets... Will try & do a full update by Monday night...

Happy harvesting...
Harvest our biggest Beetroot to date & plan to use it in a Beetroot & potato salad for dinner...
The Dragon carrot is one of the biggest we have harvested so far & are very impressed with the flavour as well... The Spuds gave us around a KG from one so cant complain about that really...


Have a great one all....
: )»

Off to a flying start...

Ready, set,     GO!!!
Had a great weekend in the patch with a few jobbies being knocked over...

Took out the 2 "Washing Machine" Wicking beds from the garden to make room for a few chairs & a small table.. Is nice to be able to sit in the patch with B☼ away from the spawn for a chat over a coffee on the weekend.. Well, that's the dream anyway.. I like to dream.. **nods**


 
Sick Fish & Aquaponics...
On Saturday morning the goldfish were moved  into a small "hospital tank"  then treated with a commercial anti fungal treatment...  1/3 of the water in the system was also replaced to counter the growing Ammonia levels as I didn't want to loose any Yabbies... On Sunday morning I hopped onto the BYAP Forum  & it was suggested that we salt to 10ppt for 1 hour then do a 50% water change to reduce it to a 5ppt concentration... Thanks Freoboy & all...  The fish picked up overnight & now only have a few spots of "growth" on them... Will do another 10ppt treatment today for an hour & see how they look again tomorrow... Not to keen on using the anti fungal treatment after reading the warning on the back about it containing carcinogens...

  Update shots... Left is from the 19th of July & the Right is from 10th of  August... As you can see there is a bit of growth & will continue to get better from here with Nitrates now being present in the system...The Nitrites are still fairly high but they should settle soon as they are  converted into Nitrates..

Today's readings are pH-below 8.2, Ammonia-.25, Nitrites-5+ & Nitrates are 80-160.. Added some Broccoli seed yesterday as it seems to be a plant we just cant grow enough of...
 Yabby Bum Left & Nippers, Right. They appear to be happy in there by themselves so all is good...





 Barrels of fun...

Made up 3 new Wicking Barrels on the weekend, 2 for the Mary Washington Asparagus, Left & 1 for the Jerusalem Artichokes, Right... 2 Asparagus crowns went into each Barrel while the Artichoke corms are still in the fridge for 2 more weeks...




Spuds...

Planted out the Green harvest Potato bags just over a week ago with the Dutch cream Seed Potatoes that were purchased with them.. Decided to plant out another 2 of the black bags on Saturday with some more.. We used one of the removed Washing machine beds & a ½ Barrel for some Kipfler Potatoes..The Desiree up the side of the house are looking rather good as are the 2 bags behind the Tomato Trellis...





Spice Wicking bed... 
Started to put this together on Friday afternoon & finished it off on Monday... Was a straight forward build & means that I can now get stuck into the Aquaponic set up during the afternoons this week.. This bed acts as a retaining wall for the gravel bedding... Will be letting the Spice bed settle down for a few weeks before planting out...

Compost...
Made up what I think will be a few great blends... The first lot was made on Saturday... It has Horse manure, blood 'n' bone, Mineral dust, & water from the Aquaponic set up... It was steaming when I used it in the soil blend for the Spice bed on Monday so I think it will cook down nicely thanks to the AP water & all the goodies in it... 2 bin loads were made up yesterday with a blend containing 2 shovel loads of Mushroom compost thrown in to see how it goes...


Happy harvesting...
**Does HUGE Happy Dance**
We got our first Capsicums off that didn't contain Grubs from a couple of feral plants that live in the Lime bed.. Can only put it down to the cooler weather... Will be making up some bags to cover the next crops of Capsicum with some bags that we will make up from an old Mozzie net the kids had over their cots.. That should keep the little buggers out this Spring & Summer.. Might have to make some for the Tomatoes as well for when the Turpentine Mangoes fruit.. A lot of people let them drop & rot which causes an explosion in the fruit fly numbers.. The pic also shows some of the first Amish Past Tomatoes we have harvested as well as some Caped Gooseberries & assorted Chillies..

We have also been getting some rather sweet Nantes & Dragon Carrots... Looking at pulling them all from the Bath tub bed soon & freezing them for use later as the I have plans for the Bath... The Mangles (Right) have been used in a few stews.. We are looking at freezing the rest of the large Kohlrabi for stews & casseroles.. The Broccoli is still producing but fear we have lost the climbing Beans due to my negligence & a rust.. 

Have a great one all....
: )»

Time to get going...

I just realised that we have only a few weeks to go until Spring & I really need to pull my finger out... There are are a few seeds I could start to sow in trays to get ready as well as a growing list of small to large scale projects I really need to make a start on...
IBC Aquaponic system... This one is the big one that really needs to be done but unfortunately there are a few other jobs that need to be completed in order to set it up...
Here is a list of the most important Jobbies as I see them...
# 1.Spice Wicking bed... This is going between the Chook yard & the AP system as an extra level of "scratch" protection... Don't really want Chook poo in the fish tank... Really need to get this in so we can move onto...
#2. Preparation of Aquaponic site... Part of the area where the Fish tank is going has been roughly levelled & some Besser blocks are cleaned & ready to be mortared in place, still need to pick a dozen or so up... We will be putting down some stone in the area on top of some used weed cloth & old feed bags to keep the weeds down...
#3. Cut & set up IBC's... To tell you the truth we are still a bit undecided as to which style of system to make... I like the idea of the grow beds that run on flood & drain using bell siphons that feed back into the fish tank directly with the pump running 24h... This will only need a basic pump & should be fairly cheap to build... If we go with one of the CHIFT PIST (Constant water Hight In Fish Tank, Pump In Sump Tank) system we need a pump with float switch & extra plumbing but I do like the idea of this system as the sump can be used as a separate tank for the Yabbies/Marron the real reason for getting into Aquaponics in the first place... (I don't like eating fish, go figure : D») To make it worse Backyard Aquaponics have released a Free Download Manual on how to build a basic IBC system as well as including HEAPS of the forum members own IBC systems... Heaps of ideas but really need to get it up & running for Spring...
#4. Harvest worm castings... This really needs to be done 3 weeks ago but haven't gotten around to it... A couple of new farms need to be set up too in preparation of using them as a supplemental fish food...
#5. Build Black Solider Fly Larvae farm... This will be a great addition to the patch... These guys will look after all our meat scraps as well as veggie scraps... After our Dog Bunny passed we have been cringing as we toss out all meat scraps into the general waste bins... I see it as a waste of energy that could be used to feed other animals or plants... The Larvae can be used as chook or fish food& the wast they leave behind can be put through the worm farm...
#6. Age/Compost more Manure... Will be needing a fair amount of this for Jobbie #7... I almost bout a $30 120L composer new last night & am glad I didn't now... Will be pulling out the Carboy barrels again & might even make up a wire unit lined with weed matting... Will need to get some more blood & bone to add to the blend...
#7. Front yard Wicking Garden... We are letting the girls have a bed each in the front yard as well as a few for ourselves & a few barrels... Looking at some dwarf stone fruit for the barrels as well as a grape vine... Need to start to look at providing more of our own fruit...
There are more jobbies to do but that is a list of the ones I feel are important to get us off to a good start for the spring/Summer growing season...

Oh, & during all this it will still be life as usual with the girls schooling & general house duties or my chain will be shortened again by Queen B☼......

Feel free to crack the whip & keep me motivated...
Have a great one all...
: )»
**Removes self from Puta & makes a start...**

Casual weekend planing out the patch...

Getting ready for Spring...

 It's that time again when we start deciding which winter plants are ready to cull, which beds need a good feed & which if any need to be moved or removed... If we don't make a start now we will be behind the 8 ball for the Spring plantings...
This is a rough plan of what we would like to have done by the end of Spring... There are a few more beds I would like to add in the next few months but they will have to wait until the Aquaponics system has been set up.... Have also started to look out for plans to make a Black Solider Fly farm to grow some more food for the Fish & Yabbies to make it easier on the wallet & healthier for them...





 Decided to start with the Brussels Sprout barrel as it just wasn't preforming very well... Have also made a tentative start on the IBC Aquaponic system... Well,  moved the pavers, levelled off some soil & pondered the layout over an ale with B☼...

Will be laying off the fish feed for a day or so to see what happens to the levels...

Also cut up a few barrels to turn into Wicking barrels but really didn't accomplish as much as I wanted but that's always the way... Such is...

Harvest Shots...

The Swiss Brown Mushrooms have been a tad slow in producing so I am hoping that moving them into a warmer spot might aid in better growth... Have only gotten 300 or so grams in the past 2 weeks...
I might try a method I read about in the Simple Savings forum where you grow your own using chopped up "ripe" Mushies that are dropping their spores to start up another farm... Always up for playing around...

We harvested the last of the Dragon Carrots from Bed #1.. They will be vacuum sealed & frozen.. The lemons are being picked every few days & many a Lemony treat has been made for home & B☼'s work in the past couple of weeks.. Always nice to share with work mates & family... The Sugarsnap Peas are starting to get woody & are not as sweet as the past few harvests so 1 lot was pulled & the second has been left after getting a good feed with Fish, Seaweed & Rock dust fertilisers to see if we can pick them up a bit... A large handful of baby Spuds was taken from a bag

  We also got our first bug/maggot free Capsicum!!!!! **DOES BIG HAPPY DANCE**   It will go well in a roast Lamb & Quinoa salad me thinks... The Cape Gooseberries are slowing down a bit... We are getting 5-10 every few days so its a race down to the patch to see who can gobble them first at the moment...
Feel free to ask questions or offer advice...
Have a great one all...
: )»

Aquaponic start up with Barrelponics...

& we're off !!!

Finely got motivated & set up the small barrelponic system using 2 x ½  drums as grow beds & a whole 44Gal/200L drum as the tank...

We used some saved metal for the stand along with recycled bolts & timbers...  We felt the old Hydroponic pump (14+ years old) should be left on the mothballs & a new one was purchased along with 5 x 45L bags of Hydroton to fill the tubs... Blue metal would of been cheaper but I think the weight would of caused some problems with the barrels distorting & possibly sagging in the centre...

Will be out there daily now for a few weeks taking the Ammonia, pH & Nitrate levels just to make sure things are kicking off nicely... I do have a slight concern that the pH was up a tad today nearing 8 so will be looking into adding some Acid to lower the levels tomorrow if it climbs again... Might start with lemon as we have so many on the tree & it goes so well with fish... **nods**  I have also been adding a cap full of Seasol seaweed extract to help the growth of the plants while it is starting up.. Will be searching a few forums into if it is a good idea to add worms or their "tea" to the system to help it out...

Now for the IBC's...
Have been cleaning some Besser blocks to line the base of the "trench" FT/FT's will be situated in but that is as far as I have gotten on the IBC system... I have been holding out for the BYAP IBC Manual that is coming out soon to see how different systems are set up before a decision is made on the final build...

 We have been on the lookout for cheap pipe & fittings for the IBC system... Made a start a few weeks ago by buying 2 buckets of used irrigation fittings including 3 brass gate valves for $5 at the markets...  Have used a gate valve & fittings already on the backup water tank for the system & a 19mm tap in the GB feed in line on the barrel system so has well & truly paid for itself already... Last Sunday we picked up 2 small drain fittings for the IBC grow bed stand pipes to sit in for $1 each...Still not to certain on the GB medium we will use.. I like the idea of scoria/lava rock but haven't seen any for sale at the local suppliers... Might just have to be blue metal if I cant find it or it is to expensive...
Some helpful places to visit...
Just though I should mention the 2 places I have been lurking while trying to get sorted out...
Backyard Aquaponics & Practical Aquaponics...
Both sites have on line shops as well as forums that are full of helpful info...
There are other sites out ther but haven't gotten past the forums of these 2 yet ....


Have a great one all...
: )»

Half way there, BRING ON SPRING !!!!

On the downward slide....
As much as I love rugging up & getting comfy on the lounge with the family I really am a Lizard at heart...
Have had a few mornings at 0°C or below without to much damage to the Veggie patch...
**Knocks on wood**
Only a month & a half to go before I can start to thaw out...
Potato Harvest...
I have been dying to get into the potato bags & in a weak moment the other day we emptied one....

Not the biggest harvest but they were the best tasting spuds we have grown... They went down well in a Chook, Mushroom & kohlrabi casserole...
The rest of the bags are being left as I fear we haven't been keeping the water up to them enough for the spuds to mature properly... That has been rectified now as they have been fed with some worm cast tea & now will be watered every second day...

In the patch...
Not much has gone on in the patch except for harvesting the Snow & Sugar snap peas as well as the purple Kohlrabi & other assorted leaf veggies...
A clip from the 4th of July with a catch up on the beans, Beetroot & some more Carrots...

Left is a shot of the tiny Mushrooms from the Video as of yesterday... The Peat is starting to look a bit feral with some green mould moving in so I think it will be retired & we shall chalk up the $ lost as part of the learning curve...The other box hasn't produced any fungus as of yet even though we have been keeping a close eye on it...

     The black worm farm still hasn't been harvested as of yet... We should get around to it next weekend I think... Will be able to use the "Handy Dandy" Worm Harvester on it hopefully as this batch is a bit dryer than the last few... Right is a shot of today's pickings, just under 800grams of Sugarsnap peas a few carrots we are going to blanch & freeze...

Aquaponics... 

We made a start on the Barrelponics system on Monday...

Left The main frame for the bench is made from a frame of an old lounge, bits from a recycled futon lounge  along with some recycled timber & bolts... Right  One ½ barrel was found i a park after the January floods & the other was purchased at a 2nd hand store for $4... The black barrel  was bought from a local Produce supply store...
Koo has had heaps of fun helping with the build... The girls are using the Barrelponics as part of their science lessons so that should be fun...

Very annoyed with myself we the stuff up & will definitely be erring on the side of caution from now on... Feel really bad for what happened to the fish....
That's abooot it for now so Have a great one all...
: )»

Catching up...

Have been a tad slack with the blog with all that's been going on so though it was about time to have a crack... 1st up, here is a post on our other blog with a few shots of our Wedding.... (click on "Wedding"..)
Now to the garden....

Gates...

The 2 side gates finally have been fixed.... Both are a temporary fix but should last for a few years... I think they were mentioned in a walk trough Clip last week...



Mushrooms...

The first flush of Swiss Brown Mushrooms have been harvested...We bought a kit from a local nursery, set it up about a month ago & forgot about it...  B☼ harvested just over ½ KG of fungus on Friday night... The top layer of peat has dried out a bit so it got a small watering & is being misted daily now but fear we may have neglected them for to long...



Out with the old...
A decision was made to remove old Goliath to help make room for the reception marquee so a new one was made out of bits of leftover play equipment... Not as big as the old one **Sigh** but will still hold 2 loads from our 7.5kg washer... It looks like we will be making a proper more permanent line in this style up the side of  the house...

Quick update clip...

When wicking beds go BAD !!!!
This is what was found in & under the plastic liner in Bed #5 when it was removed....

Harvests....
We have been getting heaps of fresh veg from the patch at the moment...
Left is what the Raspberries looked like before the wedding & the guests got to sample the fruit... Getting ready to cut it right back after the last 3 or fruit ripen... Right is the Swiss brown we picked on Friday....


Left is the huge Kohlrabi that has been used in 2 stews, last nights Chook & tonight Beef one... Right is a shot of Mangles in the patch... After reading a thread on Simple Savings we "thinned" some out last night & they tasted great in the stew... The leaves make a great Spinach substitute...

Have finally started to harvest some mature Carrots over the past week or so & must say, we are most Chuffed with the results... No bitter taste as some have told me their home grown ones have had... We will be making up some more Carrot seed tape tomorrow so another batch can go in...
The Beans, Snow & Sugar snap peas have all gone crazy... We are harvesting about 500g of each every 3 or so days... Think the Snow peas my be nearing their end but have plans for that bed so all is good...

Right... Tonight's Beef stew with Carrots, Beetroot, Kohlrabi, Beans, Snow & Sugar snap Peas from the patch.... Very Tasty!!!!!!


That's about it for now...
Have a great one all...
: )»