Harvesting

The bed in the paddock that we refer to as the Tomato Bed is continuing to produce a steady flow of produce and the Mango trees are ripening their fruit. Being February the Fig tree is ripening its load. Normally it rains in February and the Figs explode. But not this year. Our preference is to have the rain but as with all things there is some good in everything. As is the way it all comes at once.

Corn and Mango

The one and only Pimply Squash

Figs

Friends have received their gifts of Watermelon quarters as we just can't keep up with the abundance. Everyone seems pleased at their windfall. We hate to waste this sweet produce and when it is of this high quality we gift it to various people. If it is just not quite perfect the chooks have a bonus. As it is they love cleaning out the left over skins leaving only a tissue thin shell.

Our cattle are back on sprouted grain and a small biscuit of Lucerne. There is a fair bit of roughage about on HHF but it is of poor quality and the supplementary feeding will keep them in top shape and content. We were lucky that we stocked up on Lucerne in Spring as it is getting more and more expensive and harder to acquire. Grain is 60 cents per kilogram and about 2 KG per animal is good value to keep them happy and well.

Some of the larger land holders with big herds are forced to buy in large loads of grain or pellets to supplement their feed regimes. There is hay available from Victoria but the freight cost is astronomical.

The rain forecast indicates little volume in the next 28 days, just a medium chance of small showers. About 250 mm over a week would be ideal. After rain it takes another two to three weeks to get the grass to edible height. Possibly mid to late March before ground feed resumes. That is the best case and it could be later. Then of course if it is later we enter April and the Summer grasses slow down growth. Could be a miserable Autumn and Winter for the farmers.