Well the weather is still cold but I notice that birds now have nesting material in their beaks and when separating a rhubarb today, there are faint stirrings in the all sorts of things amongst the perennial veg.
Not too long now till Spring (I hope).
:) the dog days of winter?
songbird
Guess you learn something everyday. I would assume that the dates are attached to the seasons but apparently not so in places like Oz:
Ack! Bite your tongue woman! I want to see red tomatoes first. Great, heaping piles of red tomatoes of all sizes, garnishing the plates of innumerable al fresco dinners. Then you'll get your turn ;O)
If it makes you feel any better, The grape harvest will start next month, and I'm stacking this winter's firewood, now, or should be. Gotta go!
Looks like being early here too, the birds are all getting frisky, the butcherbirds are calling (beautiful) and the swallows fly in to inspect the interior of the shed for nesting potential whenever the door is open.
A couple of asparagus spears have popped already. So far no fruit trees have flowered which is good as there wouild be a big risk of a late frost.
D
The definition of season varies all around the world. In fact in some part of Oz it is different to others. People tend to forget that we have tropical, subtropical, warm and cool temperate climates in the one country. In Darwin they have only wet and dry. In Sydney they have four seasons in a year, in Melbourne in a day.
David
Do they even have dog days in Oz?
Yup. And I am 'over it'!
The official start date for the start of Sping is 1 September, but as any gardener knows, dates have little to do with seasons.
:-)) Well if it's any consolation, I know that in the past, I've still been waiting for red toms to arrive when all you northern hemispherians have been bragging about the warmign weather and you've all had seedlings coming on.
Great,
:-)) We think we have enough wood to get us through the rest of the season.
We pruned my house grape last week and I've weeded my berry cage and dug up and divided a venerable rhubarb clump, but basically that's all. The roses still need to be pruned (all 110+ of the sods) and that's traditionally an August job in this cold (for Aus) climate.
I was listening to a weatherman reporting that this winter looks like it might be a record breaker for higher temps and a snow shortage (in terms of depth and period of coverage) for the Mountains. Poor snow bunnies ;-P
the birds are all getting frisky, the
:-)) I love the bird aqctivity in Spring (except for the ******g Currawongs which I hate with a passion).
And today I was thrilled to see a flock of about 40 yellow tailed Black Cockatoos!!!!! Such majestic birds wheeling round and screeching.
Indeedy! I must check my asparagus tomorrow.
Well, if you are asking if we have them and name them as such to coincide with the rising of the Dog Star as did the ancient Romans and Greeks, then no, we don't have them because the Dog Star can be seen for much of the year here (or so I've been told).
If, however, you mean do we have those stinking hot days of mid summer that are called 'dog days', then yes, we certainly do have them. A week of temps over the old ton are enough to drive both humans and dogs quite bonkers.
"Farm1" wrote:
Yes, that was the question. Although, I "thought" that it must be, I was unsure whether Sirius is even visible at Australia's latitudes. I'm in the SE USA, where Canis Major, Orion, etc. are pretty high in the sky. Of course, a fire would be required in order to get me up early enough to see it this time of year. "Dog days" are when Sirius and Sol are in conjunction and rise at (about) the same time of day. Glad to read that you're seeing a few optimistic harbingers of Spring; reassuring, isn't it? Is winter over or do you still have more cold weather coming on? I'm far enough south in US that, for practical purposes, "spring" arrives in mid-late February and outdoor gardening can begin, although, a slight possibility of a nasty "March Surprise" still exists. This time of year, here, all but the most heat tolerant plants are gone from the garden and it's still a bit early for a "late" planting of beans, curcurbits and tomatoes; far too early to put in cool weather crops. Just as well, for the time may be used for chainsaw tuneup/repair (firewood on hand but not yet bucked to length or split), manure-hauling, etc. Making plans and putting together a final seed order for the fall-winter garden, though. At your suggestion, "Fordhook" Swiss chard will be included in this year's mix, with a series of succession plantings starting once the weather cools a bit. Never had any "luck" with chard and don't recall having tried any other kind of beet. Of course, it's all on you, if my dismal record continues: It's the new "American Way", LOL!
Of course, I have no idea what that means unless it's a sailing reference and is hot, indeed. Rarely gets out of high 20's, maybe very low 30's, here.
Where Fran lives I would say not at all. Up north maybe. Oz is a big place.
We are concerned with that too especially with stone fruits. If they flower early and you get a late frost the flowers or fruit will fall and your harvest can be almost nothing.
The five-colour sort looks nice but fordhook is reliable. You don't need to succession plant it, if you keep pulling the outside leaves it will keep growing new ones from the centre. I have some here that has been going for
8 months. It will probably bolt to seed in the spring. You can save the seeds.A ton is a hundred, a car going over a ton is over 100mph, temperature is over 100F. This is all in antiquated pre-metric measure, the septics ought to feel right at home.
David
I love usenet because of the things I can learn as a reuslt of the interaction. I know sod all about stars but I've just done a google and according to the results of that, Canus major is a 'constellation of the southern hemisphere'. I would have thought that would mean it's more visible in my hemisphere than yours?????? In any event, the whole constellation is apparently visible in my latitude but to you it would look upside down.
Of course, a fire would be required in order to get me up early
No way Jose! We still have lots of cold and frosty mornings to come still but that doesn't stop either the flora or fauna in my garden and surrounds knowing that spring is coming.
or do you still have more
Spring is uncertain here too and we often get a late frost. That is why I prefer the long balmy days of Autumn.
I drag in manure or clean out the chook pen when I get a round to it. I never have any defined season or time for doing it.
I can't understand why you've not been successful. It's one of those 'tough as old boots' plants. Mine self seeds and I find it in all sorts of add spots and it lasts thorugh winter and gives a few greens at times when other greens are in short supply. And the tiny leaves are great in a mixed salad with tomato, crispy bacon, grated cheese and a tomatoey pasteish style salad dressing.
Of
Yeah well I'll blame you Merkins for the loss of our language.
Every young Australian who keeps chooks now says they keep 'chickens' and they don't know that a real chicken is quite different to what they think it is. But what would I know, I'm just an old woman who was raised on a poultry farm........................
We use Celcius for our temps and ahve done for decades but I grew up with it and so know what American mean when they complain of high 90s etc. A ton is a 100 (and yes IIRC, it is derived from a reference to speed). 100degrees F was hot but that is now an old measure so anything that is over the old ton is still darned hot. These days darned hot is about 39degrees C or somehing close to that in the old ton measures.
I did a google David and foudnt hat at the nearest observatory I know of, apparently the whole of Canus Major is visible in Canberra but upside down. That should mean it'd be visible here.
(snip)
Yup. I've only bothered once with the coloured stuff and I still can't get rid of it from my garden because of it's self seeding.
You don't need to
Yup. I just harvest them and drop them in my wanders. I don't do neat straight lines most of the time.
(snip) , the septics ought
Ooohhh you are naughty!
I'm familiar with the practice of "cropping" potherbs for an extended and continuous harvest. The successions would be to determine practical planting dates.
So, what is the temperature range during chard's best growing season? ...at planting time? I normally plant "cool season" veggies when temperatures moderate somewhat and begin trending toward cooler days, not necessarily according to the calendar.
Thanks for the info. Never have heard the expression before; had me dazed and confused.
Here it goes well in winter (mostly 4C to 18C) and spring and autumn (10C to
28C). In summer it grows OK but wilts in the heat (17C to 38C). It is also frost hardy down to about -5C. D
and loving it.
Good nite,
I'd add that we've had it hardy to -9C
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