Gardening

[Dax]

Do you have a tractor, if so there are some really good cheap 3 point linkage cultivators for sale on ebay. Had one for a couple of years and it works really well, chucks our small rocks and jumps over big ones. Big blades that does good job and by adjusting your speed, you can get a fine or clumpy outcome, we have a Spanish heath problem in our area and the cultivator removes them very well.

Have used it to get rid of bracken by cultivating the areas over and over until there is none left, you can get rid of bracken by slashing as well. Don't make the mistake many other do and slash it all the time, wait for autumn and do it then once, the bracken wont grow until spring then you can do it again and if you cultivate as well, after a couple of seasons you have really good soil and no bracken.

[HBS Guy]

No, no tractor here. Block is only 825sqm.

Thinking of a ride on mower and some attachments eventually. Gorse and broom seedlings likely to pop up from the acreage across the road from my block.

[HBS Guy]

Grass from nearby farmland too. Not really farmland I think, not anymore anyway.

[Sprintcyclist]

No, no tractor here. Block is only 825sqm.

Thinking of a ride on mower and some attachments eventually. Gorse and broom seedlings likely to pop up from the acreage across the road from my block.

that might work well

[HBS Guy]

I won’t have much lawn tho, life is too short to mow lawns!

[Sprintcyclist]

I was thinking of it more for the different attachments.

Can you get them to dig holes or make swales or whatever ?

[HBS Guy]

Might get the bloke with the tractor to do some deep scarifying in the four rows week before I get there. Makes it easy to dig the holes, have the soil moved to the right places by contractor with a dingo, probably the first working day after I get there so I can peg out where it is to be dumped.

[HBS Guy]

Gawd, such a gloomy grey day. Bet suicide rate went up a bit!

[HBS Guy]

“Grow a little Fruit Tree” suggests close planting—root competition keeps the trees small. So plant them 1 metre apart!

An idea! Keeps them small, ensures good pollination especially. Stella is a good pollinator but so is Napoleon. The Kentish sour is a different species and self fertile.

Could also plant two groups of three cherry trees stems trained away from each other, prune/manage the trees as one tree, keep centre open so light and air can reach branches and leaves.

[HBS Guy]

The rootstocks for the apple and cherries, M111 and Colt respectively, are tolerant of clay soils. That is GOOD! Clay is me! 4' of it!

Both want more acidic soil than I have, the main reason I am buying soil. With mulch (even pine chips!) and woodsy compost should get the pH a bit less alkaline. Will add iron and potassium sulphate, bit of an acidity booster. Potassium is good for blossom and fruit set anyway.

Wonder how watering with say 10L water with 1 cup vinegar go? I will take a small amount of vinegar with me, mix with the soil—does it fizz? Is my bedrock limestone?

The colt rootstock does not like drought but if I irrigate it the trees will grow huge! How much water is good and how much too much?

If I was there I could hand water a bit. Will pay someone to do that. Apple trees can be on a batterty powered electric irrigation controller. Won’t put the cherries on that.

Got my litre raw Neem oil. Will spray my trees before I go—ANOTHER thing to do! Then need to pay someone to spray in my absence:

An indolent cleric frae May
His roses allowed to decay.
His wife, more alert,
Bought a powerful squirt
And said to her spouse : "Let us spray".

(Scottish limerick)

Will see if I can get a heap of unscented talcum powder: spray the tree, coat the leaves with the talcum, should keep cherry slugs at bay a bit. When I am living there a bit of BT should help too—a bacterial culture eats caterpillars etc. I sometimes use derris dust here but won’t do it there, it can kill earthworms and I want to get a nice soil ecology going! Talc kills insects—they can’t get oxygen into their body—great non–toxic (it is just soft rock!) way to get rid of ants nests. Get talc almost free at garage sales etc.

[HBS Guy]

I was thinking of it more for the different attachments.

Can you get them to dig holes or make swales or whatever ?

Missed this

Don’t know yet, Sprint. I am not going to leave a nice expensive ride on mower in the garden shed unattended!

I reckon this guy I know, with a proper tractor, can dig the swales and deep scarify the soil making it easy to dig holes. Idea is to save time. Love to get it all done in 10 days leaving me two Saturdays to take it easy and a day or two to do some exploring (i.e. wine and cider tasting.)

I also told Mum I would take lots of photos and make a slide show of the trip down (trip back up will be hellacious because of lack of sleep in cabin on ferry! Christ some blokes can snore! I was sure the bloke on the bunk below me had died!) around my block showing digging and planting and the trip to and from my block to town centre, etc.

[HBS Guy]

https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/NEW-PLANTCRAFT-Tiller-Cultivator-65CC-Petrol-Rotary-Hoe-Garden-Mini-4-Tine/380647585948?epid=1747390503&hash=item58a05d389c:g:rL8AAOSwqo5bemr3

[Sprintcyclist]

I was thinking of it more for the different attachments.

Can you get them to dig holes or make swales or whatever ?

Missed this

Don’t know yet, Sprint. I am not going to leave a nice expensive ride on mower in the garden shed unattended!

I reckon this guy I know, with a proper tractor, can dig the swales and deep scarify the soil making it easy to dig holes. Idea is to save time. Love to get it all done in 10 days leaving me two Saturdays to take it easy and a day or two to do some exploring (i.e. wine and cider tasting.)

I also told Mum I would take lots of photos and make a slide show of the trip down (trip back up will be hellacious because of lack of sleep in cabin on ferry! Christ some blokes can snore! I was sure the bloke on the bunk below me had died!) around my block showing digging and planting and the trip to and from my block to town centre, etc.

............. his guy I know, with a proper tractor, can dig the swales and deep scarify the soil making it easy to dig holes ..............

that sounds the best idea

[HBS Guy]

I think so.

Will send him an email tonight, see if I can book him for early april.

[Sprintcyclist]

I think so.

Will send him an email tonight, see if I can book him for early april.

Yes, best by a long way.

Hire a local expert who has the right equipment.
Give him a cup of coffee and cake, have a list of work for him to do.

[HBS Guy]

Oh, he wants more than coffee and cake! $200 travelling time!

Hah! The day before leaving for Tassie last April I made a cake—sand cake with almond paste filling—and put it in a tin. Forgot to take the tin! Was going to eat some on the road, rest in the B&B. Really missed that cake!

[Sprintcyclist]

Oh, I meant his quote AND coffee and cake.

I always look after people who do work around our place.

[HBS Guy]

Yeah, he did the work the week before I got there but invited him for a beer. He doesn’t drink beer so coffee and cake next time!

[johnsmith]

I always look after people who do work around our place.

in the long run, it usually off

I recall mum used to have an old guy mow the lawns at her old place, he used to charge her $20 for about 650m2 of lawn. Mum always had a coffee and a beer or two waiting for him when he finished mowing, and all the coid water he could drink while he was working. When ever something wasn't working for her, or she needed some odd job done, she'd ask him and he'd either fix it or arrange to have it fixed (mums English wasn't great) usually at no charge.
The lady next door had less than a quarter of the lawn mum did, everything else was vege gardens. She never offered him a glass of water let alone offered him coffee or beer. In fact, if mum saw him working next door at it was a hot day, mum would often give him a beer or water than too. Mum asked her once why was she such a tight arse, her reply was that she paid him enough and he could buy his own beer or coffee. He used to charge her $30. He never helped her with anything other than what she paid for.

The only reason he looked after mum was because mum looked after him. He wasn't doing lawns because he needed the money, they were just something to keep him busy in his retirement.

[Sprintcyclist]

John - I have done that sort of work.

It is really hard work, you don't earn a normal salary.
If someone shows some consideration, it makes a big difference.

[miketrees]

What?

[johnsmith]

John - I have done that sort of work.

It is really hard work, you don't earn a normal salary.
If someone shows some consideration, it makes a big difference.

I know it's hard work. Especially in the middle of summer.
It's not just gardeners though. When I was painting it was amazing how some people looked after you. I've had clients have a cooked BBQ and a case of beer ready for me and the crew every lunchtime for the whole time we were painting his house (inside and out).
Another had a fresh home made cake ready for us every morning tea time.

I can give many examples, but these two stick out in my mind. I always made sure to take extra care when painting, and cleaning up afterwards, for these people.

[HBS Guy]

Hi Mike!

What you think of my idea of planting 2 groups of 3 cherry trees (Colt rootstock) with the trees in each group like 1m apart?

[Sprintcyclist]

John - I have done that sort of work.

It is really hard work, you don't earn a normal salary.
If someone shows some consideration, it makes a big difference.

I know it's hard work. Especially in the middle of summer.
It's not just gardeners though. When I was painting it was amazing how some people looked after you. I've had clients have a cooked BBQ and a case of beer ready for me and the crew every lunchtime for the whole time we were painting his house (inside and out).
Another had a fresh home made cake ready for us every morning tea time.

I can give many examples, but these two stick out in my mind. I always made sure to take extra care when painting, and cleaning up afterwards, for these people.

good on them .

[pinkeye]

What?

.

So with just 825sqm you don't need to buy any large equipment, especially if you are using the land to produce food etc.
Lawn would likely constitute the links between your various patches. Yeah? Minimal, in other words.
So a simple push mower is all you need.. or you could get a self-propelled Lawn mower.. but it isn't enough area to warrant much expenditure.
If you will be protecting your trees etc from raids by animals, like native wildlife in the area , and have them secure, you could get some chickens and GEESE. Great grass eaters.. amazing eggs,
AND .. you need to BE THERE.
When will you be there.?
I wish you all the best .