Fence Fail (Again)

I had this great idea that if I wove thicker wire through the top of the existing fence Lloyd would no longer be able to crush down the chicken wire and jump into the vegie garden. Half way through the job, Lloyd casually jumped over the bit of fence that I’d fixed (left side of the photo) so he could check out what I was doing from another angle. Man that dog can jump! Now that I know he can jump it at its full, uncrushed height I guess I need a taller fence. It’s gonna be a pain in the bum to lean over anything much taller to tend to my vegies. And annoying cos I’ve got leeks ready to plant since I thought the fence would be a quick fix. As always, lucky he’s cute. 

Lloyd The Determined, Clever Menace

Did my usual damage check after Lloyd was left at home (all by himself!) for a couple of hours this morning. Note that this is pre walk so the following story is in no way his fault.. 

Somehow he managed to dig a massive hole (went down a good half metre) in the second vegie box while leaving the fence perfectly intact. I’m still not entirely sure how he did it but it would likely have involved him pushing the fence to make a gap underneath big enough for either him or just his paws to get through. Given the depth of the hole and the fact that the splatter zone was on the wall behind, I think he must’ve gotten his whole self under the fence. But the fence isn’t bent in the slightest. And he’s not small! And how did he get out again? I guess he took a leap of faith? 

The only other possibility I can think of is that he got into the first vegie box (I hadn’t fixed the fence until today) and jumped across to the second. But that’s still a decent jump and it’s over two intact fences with a half metre gap between them. Days like this I wish we had puppy-cam! 

Needless to say I was too impressed to be cross. Plus it wasn’t his fault. 

Plus he’s pretty cute. 

Lloyd The Menace

I pulled out the remnants of the tomato plants on the weekend and the freshly disturbed soil proved too tempting for a Lloydie puppy. The little menace has leaned his gorgeous little paws on the chicken wire to bend it enough that he can jump over it and dig up that lovely, pooey, soft soil. Time for an extra post for my very attractive chicken wire fence. As I always say, lucky he’s cute! 

Chilli Sauce

My chilli plant has gone nuts with really hot chillies. So I made chilli sauce. 

Ingredients 

125g “firey red” chillies, roughly chopped 

2 garlic cloves, crushed 

1/4 red capsicum, roughly chopped 

2 black russian tomatoes, roughly chopped  

1/8 cup white vinegar 

1 tbs sugar

Salt

Pepper

Method  

Heat all ingredients in a saucepan on high until vinegar is boiling. Reduce to simmer and heat for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Transfer ingredients to a blender and blend until smooth. Place in sterilised jar. Consume within 3 months.

Note: I didn’t deseed the chillies so this sauce pretty much blows your head off which is just how the hubby likes it. For a “cooler” version, ditch some seeds. (and save some to plant later for more chillies). 

RHCP

Last year my red “hot” chilli peppers tasted like capsicum. The odd one had a slight hint of spice but I pretty much just used them for their colour in my cooking. I thought I’d give chillies another go this year – I really want to make hot chilli sauce! When I saw some flashes of red in my chilli plant I picked one and put the whole thing in my mouth. It absolutely blew my head off! Probably should have started with a little nibble in hindsight. But I’m so happy! I didn’t do anything differently. Must’ve just chosen a better plant. Last years were called “fiery red chillies” and this years are “red hot chillies”. Don’t know what the scientific difference in the two are but red hot chillies win hands down! Keep a look out for my upcoming sauce! 

Puppy Proof Vegie Boxes Round 2

This is what Lloyd thought of round 1:

So ugly chicken wire it is. Hopefully it’s not forever.. 

I may be able to improve this. The way the corners sit means I had to cut off the edges. I could get around this with more stakes but they cost $7 each. Getting a bit pricey to make an ugly fence! At least I finally have some vegies growing again! Here I have Cherry Tomatoes and Black Russian Tomatoes. I also planted more herbs. 

And a Habanero Chilli plant. 

I’ve grown chillies before and they weren’t spicey. I blamed the Melbourne climate. But we have friends 20 minutes away who have grown various hot chillies and made them into the most awesome hot sauce. So I’m trying my luck with a couple of different types of chillies this season. Bring on some home made hot sauce! 

Summertime!

It’s like having a lolly tree in my garden.

First Cherry Tomatoes

They’re starting to turn red! 😊 🍅

To Prune Or Not To Prune

That is the question.

After two years of messy, out of control tomatoes, I’ve tried to be extra diligent this year, pinching off the laterals and keeping the fruit airy. But, man they grow fast! There are a couple of laterals that I’ve missed, little suckers! (which is funny cos laterals and suckers are synonyms. Ha).

So, here is my question: should I prune the little (big) suckers that have escaped my pincers and matured, or just leave them?

For example, the shot on the right is a lateral. It already has buds on top. It’s not in anyone’s way. Should I just leave it and let it fruit? I’m guessing the answer is yes but I love tomatoes so much I want to be sure I’m doing the right thing!

It Begins

Tomato time!  🙂