Ian's microfarm.

[kingofnobbys]

I've done all my own plumbing upgrades at home over the years ( Cu and PVC ) and build laboratory test rigs ( Cu, steel , PVC , Acrylic pipes and even glass ).

Wasn''t sure of how to assemble an irrigation system using polypipe and polyfittings so made the mistake of thinking a gardening contractor would know his stuff wrt irrigation systems , thus making installation quick and properly assembled ( I was silly in that I expected the 19mm and 13mm fittings and pipes would be welded together ) not just pressed together onto barbed tails and clamped using ratchet pressure rings ---- hell I could have done myself , no special kit needed.

I've learn my lesson , that's for sure , in future I'll do all my own irrigation work , this way I know it'll be done right .

 

[kingofnobbys]

29 JUNE

Spotted a very impressive eastern water dragon visiting drinking from one of the dripper emitters on my front native garden this afternoon …. gone by the time I got the camera and returned to the front door.

Bit surprised that it was there since was only about 19 degC this afternoon, but it was sunny and windless at the time.

Plus …. one of the resident geckos was talking to us this afternoon by churping ( was somewhere in the study ).

 

[kingofnobbys]

5 July Update.

My strawberries are all in flower. I think they like the on fence gutter-troughs .

Joy variety

Temptation variety

Mulberry is growing like crazy , 2 weeks past winter solstice.

Native hibiscus loves it's new home , already blooming

 

[kingofnobbys]

Plan to transplant the tubestock herbs on the weekend into the 5 tier vertical planter + the 8 new strawberry plants + transplant the new raspberry & blueberry varieties into 40cm selfwatering pots.

 

[kingofnobbys]

So much for my plans for this weekend , category 1 cyclone force gales here since Friday with rain and worse to come .

 

[kingofnobbys]

26 July Strawberries

Temptation (top gutter bed) strawberry plants are thriving , got lots of flowers and berries growing , no sign of snail/slug attack (yet)

Joy (bottom gutter bed) strawberry plants are showing good signs too.

 

[kingofnobbys]

Berry farming update.

Got some yummy black mulberries off the little potted black mulberry , enough to mix with some Yoplait Strawberry Yoghurt.

More flowers and baby mulberries forming - is now 5 ft tall.

The pomegranate cuttings are growing nice , am tempted to take an extra cutting from the lanky tall one to make it 3 plants in the pot.

The blueberries are flowering !

The Temptation and Joy strawberry plants in my on fence gutter troughs are going gangbusters , loads of new leaves, lots of flowers ( the bees love them ) and dozens of berries , some a huge and starting to ripen !!

Top gutter

Bottom gutter

Herbs and strawberry plants ( more Temptation and some Alpine ) are now planted in the 5 tier planter tower.

Still getting nasturtium seedlings sprouting in the top bed of the big 6m x 3m bed , let them grow for a month or so to make sure they are nasturtiums , but not letting them flower, then pulling them out , the dragons and bluetongues get the leaves as treats. Hard to get rid off these nasturtiums, wont be growing them in a big bed again.

Only in pots or along the top of the driveway underfence retaining wall in future ( for the colour , habitat , and reptile food ).
The rootball is sprouting a new plant in the pot.

The new blueberry plant is already in flower ! See above.
The new raspberry plant looks happy . See above.

Sowing veg and greens and tomato seeds in seed raising mini-tubs this weekend , wont be doing the sprouting in zip lock bags on damp tissue paper or paper towel this time.
Hoping to have some greens ready to harvest for late spring and tomatoes too.

Think I'll buy some more gutters , this time I'll get BUNNINGS to precut to 1.2m lengths , I'll put these on 390mm long x 190mm high x 190mm wide Bresser blocks , run Dripper tube from a new manifold offtake ( I'll insert another 20mm PVC Tee to a new globe valve & pressure reducer & inline filter ) to an 19mm poly branch that'll split off to 13mm poly pipes feeding the short off ground gutters. I'll plant seedling of greens like cabbage, lettuce , choys , spinaches , mustard and collard greens in these short planter gutters.
Off ground means less likely to be raided by snails and slugs !!


Front Display Bed some flowers !!!! and yep some weeding needed ( suspect seeds were in the eucy mulch ).

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In back L shaped native flower bed , fewer weeds , rain arrived so couldn't get photos of back 6m bed.

 

[kingofnobbys]

In pots

blueberry w/ sprouting Lucerne mulch , native edible violet no mulch.
\
close up blueberry

blueberry w/ lucerne mulch

two more native edible violets and another blueberry w/ sprouting Lucerne mulch.

 

[kingofnobbys]

The native flowering food / habitat plants in the big beds.

6m x 1.5m bed along NE end of back fence.

Map

 

[kingofnobbys]

9sqm Hockey Stick bed next to driveway ( middle of backyard )

afterthoughts added later to this bed
https://i.postimg.cc/PfbTwqSj/screenshot-412.pngimg]
Map
[img]https://i.postimg.cc/jjvFx0x1/21may2021-plant-map-for-Hockey-stick-shaped-bed.jpg


In 40cm selfwatering pots, edible flowers

More edibles ( berries ) in 40cm selfwatering pots 1st planting in backyard .

 

[kingofnobbys]

First full quarterly water rates bill since completing my 3 automatic garden irrigation systems
ie
System 1 = Front for 6m x 3m native flowing plant garden bed on for 10min per day
System 2 = Back HockyStick 9sqm native flowing plant garden bed + 2 x 3.6m on fence strawberry gutter troughs + several berry plants in pots on for 15min per day
System 3 = Back 6m x 1.5m native flowing plant garden bed , note the three 3m x 1.5m herb/veg beds are currently fallow and their isovalves branching off the 20mm CL12 Mains Pressure PVC manifold are closed , on for 15min per day.

My water useage increased from 379 L/d in Autumn Quarter to 842 L/d in the Winter Quarter , used 384 L/d in the same quarted last year.
An increase of 219% .
So it's like we added 2 new members to the household.

Time to think about harvesting rain collected by my house roof , as per this layout

and from garage roof and carport roof perhaps to drought proof my gardens to a the two back timers/taps in an isolated rainwater system.

So on the hunt for water tanks & pumps to boost the heads at the outlets to at least 1.5 MPa to connect to my house roof gutters, and to my garage and carport gutters .

Pressure Specs for PVC PRESSURE pipe, we get ambient temperatures in summer heatwaves up to 45 degC here and never get frosts in winter (min ~ 5 degC).

If the Payback is < 4 years I'll try to get these installed before Xmas.

 

[kingofnobbys]

More arrivals to plant .

Herbs

Natives

 

[kingofnobbys]

20 August gardening update - wow - gonna get lots of strawberries , take a gander at some of these beauties .

Top gutter

Bottom gutter different variety of strawberry

Lucerne mulch sprouting ( is edible )

Got some whoppers nearly ripe enough to pick and eat. No sign of slug/snail attack , or of bat or bird or insect attack.

Couldn't be more pleased with how the on fence gutter beds are working for the strawberries.

 

[CooperDragon]

Those are going to be a nice treat. Do Cleo and Caesar like to eat Strawberries? Darwin like to eat the green tops occasionally.

 

[kingofnobbys]

23 August update.

Wife couldn't resist sampling the strawberries any longer, picked the biggest ripest looking one to taste.
Was nice , juicy and sweet ,but a little bit of white under the green stork crown and a little pink inside. Maybe a week would been enough to get it fully ripe and sweetened.

My wife loves the yellow pompom flowers

and the stunning firey red kangaroo paws

( they literally glow when the sun hits them ).


More info on the new natives that are hardening on the front patio while some weeding happens.