Spring in my farmhouse garden

Come for a walk with me in my garden....

Spring has arrived & with the warmer temperatures have come such a bounty of beauty all around.  The trees are in blossom & the bulbs are springing to life ~ surprising us with their delightful appearances in rather random patterns all over the place!

Today the sky is looking particularly grumpy & the wind has increased, so put on your jacket & join me as we search the mess of plants from yesteryear & beyond and find some beauties amongst the tangle...

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First my newly planted strawberry patch ( I show everyone this ~  I've always wanted a strawberry patch)...

I had such a wonderful surprise the other day to discover a flower on one of my strawberry plants.  When I purchased these 'Cambridge Rival' crowns I was informed that they wouldn't fruit in our region until November or December.   I am looking forward to some tasty fruit from these heirloom plants that were planted in the dead of winter~ with dreams of a lush summer harvest!

Around the side now...

Thyme

My herbs are still growing prolifically ~ well except the cone-flower (echinacea) which dies off over winter ~but already we are appreciating the lovely new spring growth there & looking forward to many flowers on it come summer.  I enjoyed these so much last year that I planted more in August & now have many seedlings growing  ~ I'm looking forward to planting them out ~ I have a special area all ready planned for them around the front.

Parsley & Sage

I love my herb garden & have plans to extend it this year.  I have a prolific bounty of parsley, rosemary, thyme, mint, coriander, sage & especially dill.  These have continued all winter long & so we have enjoyed our fresh herbs the whole time!  I do intend to learn how to dry them though ~ it looks like so much fun :)   I have planted some seeds of oregano, chives & chilli to add to my collection this summer.

Rosemary

My garlic plants are also coming along nicely.  I planted before Anzac Day (as we should over  here in Australia) & look forward to seeing how successful they are.  Last year I had no success, but I  planted much too late.  This year I planted one bulb of cloves in the shade house & the other in the garden.  I will be interested in seeing which place grows the best ~ so far the shade house appears to be the winner .

Dill

As for the best part....

My wonderful hubby (have I told you how much I appreciate him? ) sacrificed a couple of  hours of his fathers' day evening this past Sunday to help me put together some new garden beds.  No, we haven't finished yet ~ so far it is little more than weed matting & sleepers (they are 2.5 m square), but I am so excited that these are finally taking shape.   I planted many seeds this past month  ( & have many to plant further in September) so I needed somewhere to put the seedlings once they have grown out!  I guess that truly is incentive to get these done!  You may be wondering why we have kept the garden so close to the house~ after all with 240 acres we have plenty of space ~ well at the moment we have no water supply to other parts of the farm & since summer is hot & dry, dry, dry here, I need to be able to give my plants a drink every second day (which is too much to bucket ~ especially with the size garden I dream of :) .  One day we plan on a big acre garden down near the big dam, but until we get a pump for it this is our best option! (Don't they say farmers & gardeners always need to be thinking about next year/s?)

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Don't you just love new spring growth?

All my little fruit trees are covered in tiny growth ~ the blueberry even has flowers on, the raspberry has small leaves covering it & the mulberry, kiwis & apricot trees are showing signs of a wonderful season of growing ahead!  All these are baby trees at the moment, but as I cultivate & water them regularly I envision them large & productive, producing much fruit for our family!  I pray that it might be so!

Next winter we plan on planting apples & possibly pears.  My hope is that by that time we will have water to the big "garden" area & we can plant an orchard down there also!  

Spring is my favorite time of year, the warming of the weather, the new growth, the flowers..... 

The flowers....

Did I say how much I love flowers of every kind :)
~Isn't God's Creation just Amazing!!!~

God saw all that he had made, and it was very good.
Genesis1:31a

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Oh no, the clouds have darkened & the heavenly tears are coming to nourish the earth (my garden sure could use it)

... Come inside for a cuppa before you head off ...

Make sure you visit again soon...this dancing, skirt - twirling weather of spring is so appreciated after the cold, dark days of winter!

I hope you have a wonderful day wherever you may be

Thanks for visiting our little farm!

Blessings