July is the middle of winter...

let's plant and harvest...

Frederic said:" Enough, I have been hidden in the shed, behind tree trunks and tucked into high grasses;"

Now he stands proudly, guarding the parsley!

He challenges all the hidden garden gnomes to come forward and show themselves for what they are!



Tiny Erlicheer is the only Daffodil that grows in my garden.In winter it pops up everywhere. If I can't see it I can smell its heavy perfume.

Jaboticaba bears fruit a few times, winter is one of them. The Jaboticaba fruit clings to branches and trunk. It is very tasty but it must be really black and ripe. The trick is to suck out the gelatinous pulp and spit out the tough and sour skin.

The fruit from this tree has only a tiny seed which can be eaten with the pulp.

I love to eat them munching handfuls while walking around in the orchard.

The Jabuticaba (also called Brazilian Grape Tree, Jaboticaba, Jabotica, Guaperu, Guapuru, Hivapuru, Sabará and Ybapuru) is a fruit-bearing tree native to Brazil. The fruit is purplish black, with a white pulp; it can be eaten raw or be used to make jellies and drinks (plain juice or wine).

The fruit tree (named jabuticabeira in Portuguese) has red leaves when young, turning green posteriorly. Its flowers are white and grow directly from its trunk. The jabuticaba (Myrciaria cauliflora (Mart.) O.Berg. [Myrtaceae]) is a small tree native to the Minas Gerais region near Rio de Janeiro in southern Brazil grown for the purple, grape-like fruits it produces. Traditionally, an astringent decoction of the sun-dried skins has been used as a treatment for hemoptysis, asthma, diarrhea, and gargled for chronic inflammation of the tonsils. The fruit is borne directly on the main trunks and branches of the plant, lending a distinctive appearance to the fruiting tree. It has a thick, purple, astringent skin that covers a sweet, white, gelatinous flesh. Common in Brazilian markets, jaboticabas are largely eaten fresh; their popularity has been likened to that of grapes in the US. Fresh fruit may begin to ferment 3 to 4 days after harvest, so they are often used to make jams, tarts, strong wines, and liqueurs. Several potent antioxidant and anti-inflammatory anti-cancer compounds have been isolated from the fruit.

I have done some plant shopping. I bought home two dwarf Cannas.

1 Butterfly Flag,(Diplarena moraea.) I have some already in the garden and I hope it is a different one.

1 Dianella Silver Streak, I have the gold one and a few other species.

1 Callistemon Captain Cook with brilliant red brushes for the madow garden.

1 Acacia fimbriata also for the madow garden. Acacias are called "Wattles" in Australia. There is for every month one to flower.

1 Banksia Asplenifolia and

1 Melaleuca Leucadendra fine leaf form, my favorite tree.

I have planted them all and now I can watch them grow.



Meyer Lemon, is the Lemon to cultivate in the home garden because it bears all year round fruit. It flowers, bears from tiny to all sizes green fruit, and at the same time ripening and ripe fruit. It is the ultimate tree to have in the garden.

The exact origin of the lemon has remained a mystery, though it is widely presumed that lemons are wildly grown in both India and China. It is also speculated that lemons were first grown on Mediterranean bushes, coined lemon bushes, but they have evolved and modern-day lemons grow on trees. In South and South East Asia, it was known for its antiseptic properties and it was used as antidote for various poisons. The lemon was later introduced to Iraq and Egypt around 700 A.D.
The popular drink lemonade may have originated in medieval Egypt. It was distributed widely throughout the Arab world and the Mediterranean region between 1000 A.D. to 1150 A.D. At this time, the lemon was first recorded in literatures to a tenth century Arabic treatise on farming and was used as an ornamental plant in early Islamic gardens.Wikipedia

The last harvest of passion fruit. The vine is cut back or a new one is planted. Pawpaws and Bananas are harvested now.




I bought Aeoniums and Echeverias through the Internet. They arrived bare rooted, which was expected, and I had to plant them quickly as they were a bit dehydrated.


Here they are neatly planted. I leave them in the nursery until they are well established in their pots and can be slowly introduced into the sun.

The plants names (as long as I still have the labels!)

from left: Aeonium Arboreum var.atropurpureum "Schwarzkopf", left front: Echeveria shaviana, at the back, Aeonium "Cyclops"In front: Echeveria nodulosa, right: Aeonium tabuliforme right back: Aeonium atropurpureum.

Herb cuttings are protected by pots until they are established. The problem, Billy likes those strategic placed pots and carries them all over the garden.

Once a week I bake bread and sometimes I bake a cake. This is a Linzertorte a speciality from Austria.(I was a bit heavy handed with the icing sugar.)

Recipe for this bread:

400 g of organic plain flour

100 g organic rye flour

30 g fresh yeast or 2 teaspoons dry yeast

2 teaspoons salt

2 tablespoons ground flaxseed

1 teaspoon flaxseed whole

1 teaspoon carawayseed

350 ml tepid water

Mix first the yeast with the water,

Mix all the other ingredients

Combine water with the dissolved yeast and flour,knead well by hand or machine. Let the dough rise until double in size,

Shape two round breads place them together in a baking tin and let rest for 20 minutes.

Bake at 220 degree C for 35 minutes.

Recipe for Linzertorte: http://www.joyofbaking.com/Linzertorte.html/

The fairest of them all?

Rose cuttings.

A new addition, Epidendron Topaz

Sometimes I have to do some "work"!

Iboza, Tetradenia riparia, is also known as the Nutmeg bush, or misty plume bush. It is a sight to behold when the whole bush is covered with blush pink sprays of flowers.

Winter brings a bounty of Oranges, Mandarins, Tangelos and more. Fresh citrus fruit juices are delicious and loaded with vitamin C, keep away flues and colds.

Believe it or not: Plant your watermelons before sunrise on a May morning (to bad it is to late now, but never mind next year!) and they will never be attacked by bugs. (I won't take responsibility !)

Organic tip of the week.

If you can't or don't like to drink beverages with caffeine or teein, try this for a change:

Organic Rooibos, (pronounced like "roy-boss"), Afrikaans for "red bush"; scientific name Aspalathus linearis) is a broom-like member of the legume family of plants and is used to make a tisane (herbal tea). Commonly called South African red tea or simply red tea or bush tea, the product has been popular in South Africa for generations and is now consumed in many countries. It is sometimes spelled rooibosch in accordance with the Dutch etymology, but "roy-boss" remains the correct pronunciation.

Rooibos is grown only in a small area in the Cederberg region of the Western Cape province.[1] Generally, the leaves are oxidized, a process often, and inaccurately, referred to as fermentation by analogy with tea processing terminology. This process produces the distinctive reddish-brown color of rooibos and enhances the flavour. Unoxidized "green" rooibos is also produced, but the more demanding production process for green rooibos (similar to the method by which green tea is produced) makes it more expensive than traditional rooibos.

In South Africa it is more common to drink rooibos with milk and sugar, but elsewhere it is usually served without. The flavor of rooibos tea is often described as being sweet (without sugar added) and slightly nutty. Preparation of rooibos tea is essentially the same as black tea save that the flavour is improved by longer brewing. The resulting brew is a reddish brown color, explaining why rooibos is sometimes referred to as "red tea". Rooibos translates to "Red Bush" in Afrikaans, a South African language descended from Dutch.
Several coffee shops in South Africa have recently begun to sell red espresso, which is concentrated rooibos served and presented in the style of ordinary espresso (which is normally coffee-based). This has given rise to rooibos-based variations of coffee drinks such as red lattes and red cappuccinos.

Rooibos is becoming more popular in Western countries particularly among health-conscious consumers, due to its high level of antioxidants such as aspalathin and nothofagin, its lack of caffeine, and its low tannin levels compared to fully oxidized black tea or unoxidized green tea leaves. "Green" rooibos (see above) has a higher antioxidant capacity than fully oxidised rooibos.(wikipedia)



Copyright: Yesterday today and tomorow in my garden. T.S

Photos from my garden T.S.

Thank you for your visit and I hope you enjoyed it.