Alternatively don't wait until winter and have that apple crumble now with stewed in-season rhubarb. Kiwifruit, limes and mandarins are also in season. This is a great time of the year to enjoy all the autumn brassicas such as broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage and kale. Pumpkin and onions are also abundant.
In the vegetable garden
There is still time to get some crops in and established before winter sets in. It's a great time to plant all those cold weather-loving plants that will keep you and your family healthy over winter. If you want a lazy winter garden here are some suggestions for crops which don't require a lot of maintenance apart from the initial planting and the occasional weeding - perfect for busy people; beetroot (from seed), spinach, silver beet, carrots, parsnip, leeks, spring onions, and brassicas such as broccoli, cabbage and cauliflower.
Make the most of the autumn leaves. Rake them up and layer them in your compost bin. If you don't have a compost bin, crush them into a large plastic rubbish bag, tie at top and pierce the bag several times to allow air exchange and store the sack in a shady, out-of-the-way corner of the garden.
Over winter the leaves will rot down creating a lovely friable leaf mulch which will be perfect for all your new spring plants.
Slugs and snails can be a problem this time of year as they seem to appear from nowhere when they have this added moisture (dew) to skate along on top of!
If you have any late tomatoes that are still on the plants and are just showing signs of turning colour you can pick and place on a sunny window sill.
Alternatively you can pull the entire plant out, fruit and all, and hang the plant upside-down in a cool shed or garage. The fruit will mature in a matter of a week.
Urban fruit orchard
My stone and pip fruit have now all cropped. The kids have picked all the fruit and any wind-fallen fruit have been given to the rabbits and the chickens.
The trees are now preparing to shed their leaves and shut up shop until next spring. If you have had problems with brown rot or peach leaf curl this is a good time to spray with a copper-based spray.
I have had a problem this summer with fire blight (Erwinia amylovora). This is a bacteria which mainly infects apples and pears. It causes the blackening of twigs, flowers and foliage. It is well-named as it looks just like a fire has gone through the tree, burning the foliage. It can be spread by birds, insects and contaminated equipment.
I have been busy pruning out all the infected branches and dipping my tools into a bleach solution between cuts, to prevent spreading it further.
An organic method of control is to spray the tree when it is dormant with neem and copper.
If you have a fig tree still producing attempt to beat the birds by hanging CDs and shiny tape in the branches to scare them from the developing fruit. If your tree is small attempt to net it.
Herbs
Rosehips will be on many rose bushes this time of year. Rosehips are the cherry sized red fruits of the rose bush left behind after the bloom has died. Nearly all roses produce rosehips and they can be used for eating but the tastiest for eating purposes came from the variety Rosa rugosa.
Rose hips are extremely high in Vitamin C and are best harvested after the first frost as this sweetens them. Harvest the fruits when they become fully coloured and slightly soft when squeezed. Obviously only harvest rose hips from spray-free plants.
Here is a really simple syrup to make which is great over ice cream, desserts and custards. It's a great way of getting vitamin C into the kids without them knowing!
• 4 cups washed and de-stemmed rosehips
• 2 cups water
• 1 cup sugar
Boil rosehips in water for 20 minutes in a covered stainless steel saucepan. Strain through jelly bag. Return clear juice to pan and add sugar and return to boil for a further five minutes. Bottle and refrigerate.
Keeping rabbits
Rabbits' teeth are continually growing and naturally are ground down when they chew fibrous material in the wild. Domestic rabbits love nothing better than to chew anything they can get their teeth into for this very purpose.
If you house your rabbits in wooden hutches, you can find that they will start to chew this wood. I provide my rabbits with freshly cut branches so that they can keep their dental hygiene at a level any dentist would be proud of.
To be on the safe side I use only freshly-cut branches of anything deemed edible to us. Branches of pear, apple, oak, chestnut, peach, or hazelnut will all do the trick and keep your rabbits happy and their teeth healthy and your hutches in one piece!
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