Expansion

A busy Saturday saw my wonderful parents, Johan, Katelyn and I working to finish off the new enclosed Vegetable Garden. It will double the amount of growing room we have for veggies plus create a safe haven from hawks for the new chicks I'm raising.

At the moment it is also home for our new 'posh pigs' (who have been named Peter Pan and Wendy by the kids) - they are 10 week old Wessex Saddleback pigs from Fernleigh Frams in Victoria. When older, they will act as our breeding boar and sow, alongside Tinkerbell who is alread 14 months old and expecting her first litter (we hope!).

The new patch seems huge - 7 metres by approx 15m - with recycled tin around the base, 1 inch aviary wire mesh above - to almost the roof line - then thick commercial orchard mesh creating a ceiling.

By the end of the day the garden was bird-proof (and hopefully possum proof!) - there remains a bit of work to do on creating gates and finishing off the finer details but that'll come in time. Soil was brought in to fill the beds - thanks Mum! - so we're ready to go for more planting.

There has been a request for a cubby house, to be built in the next month before birthdays arrive. I'm thinking grand castle complete with moat and drawbridge - Johan thinks a frame built with the branches of last years pruned apples would be better, and would encourage greater participation from the 5 year olds involved ... I think he has a point...

We took time off during the day to enjoy a picnic in the orchard - the smell of the apple blossoms, the cool of the long lush grass, and Mum's delicious lunch (pumpkin soup, homemade hummus and bread, and salad) made it a special occasion. We also shared some of the Tasmanian Walnuts we bought in bulk- very nice mellow flavour, not a trace of bitterness.

I let the pigs out into the orchard in the afternoon - the grass is so long in places that they pigs seemed to disappear at times - only their happy piggy noises gave them away!