Herbs.....and more revisited

Geranium odoratissimum. I also call it the fruit fly catcher Geranium. I bought this plant many years ago at the Ginger Factory on the Sunshine Coast. I had this geranium growing in a hanging pot. One day when I was watering the pot I noticed it was thickly covered with fruit fly which is an abominable pest in our region. It makes fruit inedible. The fruit fly were sucking on the geranium leaves. The scent of this geranium plant must be very agreeable to the fruit fly. Peter sprayed the plant and could kill the whole lot in one go. He also sprays the plant so when the fruit fly comes to feed it will be poisoned too.
We do not use poisons lightly and generally we don't. In this instance with this menace there is no other choice. Now when the fruit fly feed on that poisoned plant,(she likes the smell of it too)
They get drowsy and one can easily kill the lot with a spray. We have a vegetable garden. Some years we cope better with our geraniums to ward of fruit fly. This year Tomatoes were still quite infected, but we still had a good crop to harvest. Before we had this geranium everything was badly infected, eggplants, tomatoes, cucumbers strawberries, loganberries and also all fruits. Now at least with this geranium plant as helper we can cope to keep the fruit fly at bay.

Borage is such a beauty. Its blue flowers can decorate dishes and can also be eaten. The leaves taste of cucumber. I use the leaves in my herb salt. Once one has a Borage plant one has it forever. It seeds itself. It also looks nice in a mixed border. The individual plant doesn't last long but is easily replaced with a seedling.

Zinnia has self seeded. It has been mauled by Billy looking for grasshoppers. He is a great help in this regard. He catches them and carries them around and then lets them hop away! Great!

Prostate Rosemary with soft blue flowers. I use Rosmary always fresh there is no need to dry it. It grows in abundance.

This parsley really had it!

Billy the big helper has a round of play.

Crystal balls. Hokuspokus? Yes....but I do believe because they are so beautifully catching the light, they make you feel good...

Bees working inside hive.

Inside hive.



"Bee-ral" on beehouse!

Basil plant has again visiting hours for grasshoppers.

The beehouse just big enough for two hives.

Bohnenkraut is said to be Summer Savory. I am not sure. I have an other herb Marjoram which is supposed to be Summer Savory. This one with the white flowers is a prostrate plant, spreads at least one by one metre. End of summer it is covered in dainty, white flowers. It is an excellent ground cover not fussy at all.

Tiny Parsley seedlings I have just planted. The stones, so Billy can't bury his bone!

This blue box is the home of the native sting less bee Trigona Carbonaria.

Believe it or not: Peppers planted by an angry gardener or a lunatic will be hotter!