Tania, turmeric and ginger.

With the arrival of a friend's cow, we now have no worries regarding manure. T cuts grass for it in the early mornings and our alarm clock has been altered to 4.30a.m. We were late this morning having had a disturbed sleep due to a vehicle reversing almost into the yard followed by loud cursing and getting on, for what seemed like ages, when eventually help arrived and the cursing drove away. Pre carnival festivities. The ginger plants, that T's sister K gave us, were ready to plant out, which I did, after weeding the beds for them, next to the parsley and turmeric, (or saffron as we call it even though it isn't) but I didn't fork as the beds are still good from when the tomatoes were there and anyway I feel that rooty tubers like a less sandy soil and , to be honest, I was tired. T , who was also tired, nevertheless, cut three loads of grass for the cow and then opened over one hundred holes to plant the Tania, on the top, just by where the cow is tied. There is so much weeding to be done or as a man that was passing observed,
"The bush killing you"

Rain

Rain, lots and lots and lots of rain, as I weed beans to the right of the footpath and T plants cabbage and tomatoes down in the beds where the first set of sweet potato were, the drains gush with water, a hundred little streams spring up from nowhere and the water covers the big stone ,where we have to pass to get home, in the river. T hauls me across as the torrent pours into his boots and Xena fights the current as she successfully swims to the opposite bank.
The Season is here at last.

Harvest

T organised a larger

water collector for

the hose which seems

to be working

admirably.

We have had no rain

and everywhere

is very dry.

I watered the carrots,

which are almost

ready to harvest,

T the new lettuce

and okra beds.

25lbs of beans.

dwarf,

were picked, which

makes a total

of 43lbs since Saturday.

There are nutmeg, mangoes, okra, cucumber, cabbage, basil and rocket.

Monday moments

T cutlassed behind the new shed
while I cleared below the second
mango tree. We have resolved to
spend the first hour of every day,
keeping the land clean.














After, I weeded and moled and tied
some more tomatoes, while T forked
some new beds for cabbage.
Some cocoa was cut and cracked
and put to dry.

This week's endeavours

This week
the cive
were weeded
and moled,









and a new shed
was under
construction.
We will be
spending
some nights
here, when the
tomatoes
and beans
start bearing.


New beds were
made and sown
with lettuce,
okra and
cabbage.







The dasheen
was weeded











as was the
rocket.
Some rocket plants
were transplanted
into
the small leaf
basil bed
and the drain and
land
below the Ceylon mango
was cleaned and cutlassed.



The dwarf beans
were weeded and moled
as were the tomatoes
which
were also tied.







Now all that is
needed is a door











and
a
lick
of
paint.

This week's harvest;

Cucumber, dwarf beans, okra, Julie mangoes and full fig.

So far so good.

We have tomatoes











with bamboo sticks











for support.











We have basil











and some more
tomatoes










the variety is
Heat Master
and very deserving
of the name,
having withstood
the dry season
admirably.









We have dwarf beans,









'saffron'
turmeric planted
in these new beds










two of the
purple Chinese beans
have sprouted,
( I may have planted
them a little too deep)







new carrot beds,








did I mention
tomatoes?







The siphon from
the river is working.












More tomatoes,













Oh, sorry, the
bamboo and
big stones
looked so lovely in
the late afternoon
sun,








more tomatoes,










cive beds are
doing nicely,











cabbage,













two varieties of
rocket,











Sweet potatoes,











6 week
sweet potatoes,











the original carrot beds
together with padaje leaf
as weed suppressant
and moisture keeper.









The second carrot beds
newly weeded today.












More sweet potato










cucumber growing
happily, in the ashes,











and finally,
more sweet potato.

Cabbage beds

T

spent the day

making more

beds for the

cabbage

whilst I finished

thinning the carrots.

We are having

a back ache

competition.