Cleaning up Backyard Sweet Peas Gone

 With the help of Miss P again this weekend we got stuck into the backyard garden. I have been working on it all week. No more sweet peas, kept what had gone to seed, but the rest was thrown into the bin, there is just so much of the seed you need and I kept plenty. 

John took advantage of this and put up some new arches as the others had really rusted through the pipes. I think they had been up 3 years so not bad for a $20 arch, but this time we lashed out as the new ones are higher and pipes much thicker. 

Still a bit to do but it is so much cleaner.

I have already planted some  purple climbing beans on one of them and will do another lot when they come up, then I am not overwhelmed with beans all at once.

Much higher than the old ones so hopefully can still pick beans.

I moved some of the rose pots around, emptied the sweet potato one, and moved one of the dahlias that has started to come up again, to a new fancy pot and shifted it to the fenceline. I always have trouble here with the soil so decided to just cover it up. 

Pot turned upside down

Sweet Potato Haul

Leftovers which I threw out, don't need any more growing here.

Think this is a burgundy dahlia and will grow high up the fence.

The lemon tree which we pruned really hard has new growth and just slightly higher then me, so now I will prune the ends to keep it that height. I have so much lemon juice frozen now. I don't need a big tree.

New growth is very pretty and a couple of flowers have just started.

What amazed me today is the red rose on the stand it is absolutely beautiful. Photos do not give it a proper look, but it is amazing. I had been thinking it was passed it's prime and getting ready for it to die, so pruned it back hard. Voila!

The pumpkins are getting bigger, but the rhubarb is really big so will pick some for my sewing friends tomorrow.

Jap at back, butternut in front

Rhubarb ready for picking

New Rhubarb in opposite corner. Must be a good spot.

We put a third arch in the front as Pierre de Ronsard is growing fast and now that we took the sweetpeas off the old wooden one it has something sturdier to climb.

Corner Rose Garden.

Self sown Tomato has turned out to be a grape cherry.

Last of the cabbages to pick and will make a double lot of chow mein this week.

Currently pulling carrots from the front bed

Front yard purple climbing beans already producing rapidly.

Throwing these in with the Madagascar bean burgers I am making for dinner tonight.

So as you can see, it is a great time in the garden I am trying to manage an hour a day, as it gets hot by 9.30 plus watching the UV which is about 5 then. I was speaking to someone in Seattle in the US and they don't follow the UV at all, she had a hard time finding what it was. Then again they get snow from about November to March, such a different lifestyle to mine. 

Carnations have started to bloom.

 While Miss P was here, yesterday, also taught her to make All Bran cake. I had forgotten about this one even though I used to make it all the time. It is delicious and didn't last long, some went home as it had no eggs so Miss G could eat it. I will definitely have to make another one though. 

I don't usually add recipes but for those interested here it is. 

All Bran Cake No eggs, No butter

1 1/2 cups of All Bran soaked in 1 cup milk, till soft.

 Add 1 cup SR flour

 1 cup sultanas or any dried fruit and nuts.

1/2 cup sugar

Mix all together, and you can add a little milk if it needs it, depends on how the all brand soaks up the milk. 

Put in a greased and lined loaf tin, 180C degrees, for about 40 mins.

When cool slice and put butter on it. Will freeze if it keeps that long. A double mix does a basic square tin.

Stay safe everyone. Till Next Time.