Excess Tomatoes, Potting Succulents, & RA

 Normally at this time of the year, in a sub tropical garden, it is closed down from Nov to March, due to the heat. The cooler weather we have had all though still hot, has certainly kept my garden going, on just a watering every few days. The tomatoes never seem to stop and with 4 Kilos in the fridge decided I had better do some preserving. 

Being on the Homemakers Forum is certainly an advantage as there I found out about Roasting Tomatoes for a sauce or in my case I let it thicken into a thick relish, to use as a thick sauce or a dip.

4 kilos of assorted Tomatoes

So I just topped the greenery off and cut them in half if cherries or slices for the big ones, which were excess from the Community Garden, and put them into 2 baking dishes with a dash of oil, blitzed garlic, and a sprinkle of thyme.

Once they started to turn black I pulled them out of the 180C oven. I found the slight burntness gives the tomatoes a rich flavour, compared to just cooking them in a pot. 

All of this I put into my little blender and blitzed it again, and adding some fresh basil from the garden.

I decided not to preserve in bottles but to freeze instead, because of the basil. 3 cups to a zip lock bag.

I didn't use all the juice when I blitzed them and this I put into a jug for John to use, which he did over spaghetti. There was enough left over for a dip that he enjoyed with the daily happy hour visit from the neighbour.

I might add that it is delicious, and so easy. 

Large yellow cherry tomatoes still producing.

We took a trip to Brisbane for our Rheumatoid appointments this past week. A very long day as we left at 6.45am and got home after 10pm. John had liver scans, at the hospital first, which were passed as ok and his RA has settled down on his tablets, with his liver not playing up and accepting them.

A  jungle mix of Zucchini, Cucumber, basil  and climbing beans.

 On the other hand my RA has flared up excessively and now on Prednisone a form of steroids, plus tablets plus injection. If we can't bring the inflammation down as it is very high, Roche will not allow me to have a new subscription for the injections. I am not sure why that is but we have a month to do it in, as luckily as of today I  have 4 weekly injections left. 

I didn't feel that bad, but you get used to the pain, and just put up with it. I did feel worse when taken off the tablets though, because of the wrong reading of my liver. 

Steroids thin the bones, so another bone density to do after the course, more blood tests for inflammation and fingers crossed for luck. 

On a happier note Miss P came over yesterday and I decided it was time to fix the succulents on the fence that I look at from the kitchen.

They were very overgrown and it has been 2 years since this was done. We emptied everything out and I had a tray of new little ones plus we cut back a few of the oldies with roots, and replanted them as well.

It surprisingly took nearly 4 hours, just to do a few pots.

 

 I also filled up 2 hanging baskets with succulents, which are now hanging in the front above the rails.

The will fill up quite quickly. The rest of the old succulents I will put onto the bank garden, which at the moment is covered in fine couch grass, in the pathway and I am going to have to spray it, as it has become a real nusiance.

 

There is so much to do in the garden it is very overgrown with weeds in the paths, and the back garden area, now has nothing in it but weeds, but it is also hot and I am not feeling like it. I have sorted the linen press and dumped all the bits of started wool projects and wool not accounted for on the spare bed, which I will sort today. 

Good news is the painting is finished, more next week.

Till Next Time.