Sunday 22 November 2009

Food Gardening and the Machinist Cooks!

If you look carefully at the photo below,  you will notice raspberry canes growing in between apple trees.  I can just imagine both of them together in a pie....


I love permaculture and companion planting.   My brother, Gary, told me years ago that the gardeners of old would plant by the moon.  They somehow knew what to plant depending on the phase of the moon. When the Machinist's Ouma was still alive, she often attempted to share her love of plants, flowers and trees with us. Random gifts of greenery in washed out jam tins were common.  A week at our home and their demise was common too.  It didn't stop her green-generosity, though.  The Machinist reckons she'd be smiling down from Heaven if she could see us now, knowing all her efforts were worth it.

She must have sensed our potential....

Today, our garden is brimming with life.  When we are in the pool, we are surrounded  by trees - most of them fruit bearing. It's gotten to the stage that I have to transplant and / or give plants away. 



Said raspberry canes were recently tranplanted to a damper spot, right up against the back orchard fence (corrugated zinc-allum, dug into the soil and cemented, for snake-prevention because of my Ophidiophobia). The Machinist surrounded the canes with thick lucerne mulch, and covered them with square mesh frames. Rusted. (Not the tin roof the B52's sing about).

With bum in air and head to the soil, I scoured the rest of the orchard for weeds, tugging madly at dominating thistles, while protected with leather welding gloves. It's a good job I'm hidden in the garden. How the Machinist must love me....

And talking of the Machinist, he made a delicious meal tonight.  Ground beef with sauteed celery, fennel, herbs, red onions and carrots over rice noodles. 

"Would you like some more, Babe, or do you want to leave room for a surprise I have for you?  Or, would you like both?"
"Both, please". 

Come on, I had to. It's polite.

Later, the Machinist disappeared into the kitchen, and came back carrying two dishes of The Surprise.  Cherries in Syrup with whipped cream.

Can  you feel it?

3 comments:

French Fancy... said...

Ha, you're clamped to my sidebar now so I don't miss anything.

The Bretons that I live amongst still plant by moonlight and you can always see the little almanacs for sale listing all the lunar configurations (or whatever the fancy word for that is). I think Vita SW also did the same.

Me - I'm not exactly the world's most energetic gardener by daylight. Any nocturnal visits would usually be Mr FF and his gian telescope being wheeled into the garden.

That meal sounded divine btw. I suppose when you're busy cooking pies all day it's nice not to have to do the evening meal as well

Alan Burnett said...

There is a splendid song by Flanders and Swann called Misalliance about two plants growing together. The first verse goes as follows :
The fragrant honeysuckle spirals clockwise to the sun,
And many other creepers do the same.
But some climb anti-clockwise, the bindweed does, for one,
Or Convolvulus, to give her proper name.
If you don't know the song you can find it at :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UF-1yd97igI

matron said...

Planting by the moons cycle really does work,my daughter had an old book telling you how and when to plant.The veg she grew was the biggest and best i have ever seen,she also did companion planting and did not use pesticides or chemicals.
I wish my other half could cook,your husband sounds a gem,and your dessert sounds like heaven,cherries are my favorite fruit and with cream---just wicked !!!!

CATERPILLARS & KEEPING IT REAL

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