How to make weed juice and other stuff

I really do plan on writing a blog every week but there are always some shiny things that distract me along the way.

So, this time I thought I'd share something worthwhile with you all - how to make weed juice. Weeds, when broken down can make an excellent source of nitrogen and when mixed with other waste stuff like animal poo and other green waste then broken down, makes an excellent liquid fertiliser that I call Weed Juice.

So here's how it's made...
Step 1 - Get your hands on a large container like this one with a loose lid (so there's no gas build ups). I know that most produce stores sell them. Buy a tap, an O ring and a clamp (to put on the inside and hold the tap in place) then drill a suitably sized hole to match the tap. Add a little silicone or plumbers tape to ensure a seal and put it together. I bought this stand from Bunnings years ago but you can also use an old bucket.

Step 2 - Fill it with water. I'm using the (Council made me do it) water tank off the new shed and have placed the Weed Juicer next to it for ease of access to water.

Step 3 - You need weeds and poo. Guinness and Irwin gladly helped out here and I've put one and a half barrow loads of donkey poo into the container. I also added weeds from the garden.

The poo and weeds will float until they start to break down and then become Weed Juice.

Step 4 - Pop the lid back on and let it do it's thing. The heat from the sun, combined with the water will start breaking it all down and in a few weeks you'll be able to extract weed juice from the tap to fertilise your garden.

NOTE: Mix weed juice 1 - 10 parts with water cause it's concentrated. Then just water it on your garden.

Step 5 - Keep adding weeds, animal poo and any other green waste as you get it and top up the container with water. Horse poo works well and it won't seed if you use this technique.

Meanwhile, it's also been hotting up there in South East Queensland. Last weekend was record high temperatures for this time of year and outside my car got as hot as 46.5 at one stage - crazy! The weekend before I'd given the animals all a good haircut - bet they were thanking me for that (even if they didn't appreciate it at the time).

Baillie was particularly keen on keeping cool last weekend.

Meanwhile Guinness thought it would be fun to play in the cold ashes in the fire pit. He does this to keep the insects off (although no one else does it) and he seems to have an unnatural attraction to fire when we're burning...

Roman had a brain fart one day a few weeks ago and decided he needed to eat Max. A night at the vet and Max it was decreed that Max had used up a few of his nine lives, having only two bitemarks (it must have been bloody close - you could see where the other teeth didn't penetrate his skin). So, no more inside dogs. Roman seemed particularly put out about this when we were all inside last Sunday in the airconditioning during the heat wave and he was outside on the deck.

This morning Max seems to have totally forgotten about the incident and was playing and smooching with Roman like they used to. Don't think he's long for this world, that one.

This weekend it's been hot again (nothing like last weekend, thank goodness) so I've had a chance to get into the garden. The bees were keen to help out when I cleaned out the fountain. There were literally hundreds of them and it's good to know they have a water source on hot days. I've planted lots of bee and insect friendly plants so they can help me with pollination when I need it (win/win). Am keen to learn more about bees and maybe get a few hives.

The eggplants are going nuts!

 The waterlillies are starting to flower as well.

I've been splitting a few herbs as well and have a heap of lemongrass ready to share. (Happy for anyone to come pick one or two up). My comfrey just keeps on giving and its ready to be split again (I've done it 3 times in the past year).

My tomatoes have been a bit disappointing so far this year and I've had to resort to spraying them today for bugs that are eating all of the romas. Interestingly the other breeds aren't being eaten. Fussy bugs?

Lost a couple of chooker moles to a goanna (it wasn't pretty) a few weeks ago. I've had a good chat to Red Rooster about toughening up and he seems to be taking it on board so far.

It also looks like we're going to have bananas up the ying yang again in coming months. MOTH peels them and then freezes them on a metal tray and then pops them into a container. That way they stay separate and we can grab a couple for smoothies, etc. and they don't go brown.

Can't believe it's Christmas season again - where did the year go?

The list

Well, the long weekend is over and I am stoked to say the list (see previous blog) was all but accomplished (excluding planting pumpkin seeds and the stuff that was to flow over to next weekend). I did add a few more (significant) things to said list and, with MOTH's help (albeit not 100% keen), we got it done. Poor MOTH, he wasn't keen on helping me plant the couple of hundred plants I turned up with on Monday afternoon.

But great news, my new garden bed has finally gone from this…

And, with a little help from a very large excavator, to this…

And then I did this…

… to this…

After a comprehensive cat scan…

...this is what passed muster...

Just a sprinkler system, a few more plants and some  mulch to go… thank goodness there's another long weekend coming up!

Then I can start on my next project…

BTW - Jeff has settled in magnificently and I think someone is a bit of poser when the camera comes out. How could any human dump such a magnificent creature, he is just so lovely.

Meanwhile MOTH got caught on Sunday afternoon tormenting Red Rooster by recording his crow and then playing it back to him over and over and over. Poor bloody rooster is mighty confused now! Again, how could someone dump an animal so magnificent?

And there's always time for another UpsideDownAmil shot of Moet (they all do it)

The comings and goings of Clear Mountain

Life has been pretty busy the past few months and my blogging has suffered.

We've had some new editions to the farm like Red Rooster, rescued from the local vet after he was found dumped. He's settled in really well and is quite taken with his 9 new girlfriends. Interestingly they are now wandering further from the house with him looking after them.

Unfortunately it hasn't stopped the chooker moles from laying eggs wherever they want.

On the goings front, the butcher has been booked for SirLoin. I'm no longer posting photos of his face because the backlash is too much. Seriously, some people really think meat comes from a supermarket. He was bought for meat and that's where he's going - into my new chest freezer.

I suppose the lesson to be learnt is make sure the next one is ugly.

He's also done the rounds of the valley this week, introducing himself to all of the neighbours - which hasn't helped with my plans for his destiny. He's currently bunking up with the neighbours Friesian steer for a few weeks until D day because he has no respect for the electric fences at our place.

The donkeys are happy. Am sure they would like a bit more grass at the moment (it's so dry) but with SirLoin taking leave, hopefully the competition will be a little less.

There's been another little miracle arrival - not here but at my friend's place - a miniature colt, 6 weeks premmie. Called Dumbledore, cause he was a Dummy Foal and is (according to the vet nurses) adorable, he's managed to struggle through the first three weeks of his life thus far.

Dumbles, as he's now known, has splints on his legs because his kneecaps haven't formed yet. He obviously has quite a few other internal organs that aren't also 100% functioning but he's such a little trouper. He was only 7kg when born and rides around in the passenger footwell of his mums car.

Anyway, gotta' get cracking - there's lots to do today. Hope you have a great day.

It's a fine line

Well HELLO THERE and sorry it's been so long. To say I've been busy is probably an understatement  (and a conversation for another time). Let's just say that I have finally recognised that sometimes I wear too many hats.

Over the past few days we have had record breaking temperatures here in South East Queensland and Clear Mountain hasn't been missed. There have been major bushfires on nearby islands, and my fire brigade have been actively involved. Similarly, I have been to a couple of fire callouts as well over the past few weeks - seriously who lights a fire on Christmas Eve and then again on Christmas night! [jumps off soapbox]. So I've worn my helmet much more than one would expect at this time of year.

I'm sitting here now watching the serious smoke wash over the mainland from the Stradbroke Island fires, visibility is limited and the smell is very strong. It's everywhere. I was asked to go over there yesterday for a few days but decided not to wear that hat.

Anyway… I have been thinking about how fortunate we are to have the fine line of (dare I say it...) harmony at our home. It's a very very fine line, which can be thrown out of kilter without a warning. I have two cats and two large dogues that all get on and (generally) adore each other. The two cats and two dogs that don't seem to worry about chooker moles (who are closely guarded by two donkeys). Our newest addition, the Miniature Galloway steer, is also discretely guarded by the donkeys, who generally don't like to share - an interesting relationship developing here.

The cow accommodates for the dogs and seems to be more worried about sharing with the chooker moles. Max the cat has also developed an interesting relationship with Guinness, the donkey. BTW - Max thinks he's a dog and I've been able to train him to come, sit and lie down. Hmmm.

This fine line also runs into our gardens. I've installed 600mm chain wire fence as a boundary for all garden beds and the chooker moles can jump it but just don't. I have never seen them in the vege garden but have occasionally seen them in one of the other garden beds. It's a fine line.

Tomorrow I'm going to have to pretty myself up after two weeks of leave and put on another hat - the one that makes me the money (very important hat). Soon I'll put on some other hats that represent various organisations and associations I'm involved with also. Maybe I'll take a couple off - who knows… that's also a fine line.

But as we enter the new year I have a feeling of accomplishment - I've achieved heaps in the past year and even the past two weeks. Can't wait for the rest of 2014 to BRING IT ON!

Been busy

Keets didn't come back.

We're starting to get more eggs from the chooker moles.

The gardening blog thing I've joined has guilted me back into gardening again (which I'm actually loving).

Irwin walked on a lead rope last weekend for the first time - has only taken 4 years.

MOTH and I are heading to Vanautu in the morning for a well earned rest. And it's raining and the washing is all still wet and hanging in the garage and I have nothing packed yet...

Citrus is all about to ripen so it'll be major production for marmalade very soon.

Houston, the eggs have landed!

Since the post cyclone storms we had in January that caused all sorts of havoc at our place (refer previous posts), the chooker moles haven't laid a single egg between the 11 of them!

I've sworn at them, over fed them, under fed them, laid an axe on the chooker mole palace - all to no avail.

So, you can imagine my delight yesterday morning when I discovered not one but three eggs! The girls are back on - woo hoo! MOTH is particularly happy because he sells them at work and the proceeds fund his caffeine habit.

Wet

It's a long weekend here in Brisvegas to celebrate the Queens birthday. Long live the Queen but do you think it's not too much to ask to organise some good weather please?

There's rain in them there hills (if only you could see the hills for the rain)

Everything is wet... wet chooker moles

Wet keets...

6 weeks old now and stupider than ever

Wet donkeys...

And I even found a wet celestial chicken...

Camera did this all by itself

Cats and dogs had it worked out and are in front of the fire.

MOTH is cooking up a storm, red wine weather tonight for sure!

Thank goodness we have all those pumpkins to make soup with.

The reason my chooker moles aren't laying

Not!

A new message for the chooker moles...

You don't want to lay any eggs huh... loving your new palace... lots of lovely laying mash and fresh food... free ranging every day... your own personal security cat (another story for another blog)... guard dogs  at night to keep you safe from foxes... WHAT ELSE CAN I DO TO MAKE YOU LAY A COUPLE OF FRIGGIN' EGGS?

So.... [calm now] I asked some friends and was given some sound advice (see picture below).

Wait until they wake up in the morning...

On another tangent, the keets had their first outside experience today (@ 2 weeks old).

This meant introducing them to some of the other members of the family. Roman immediately assumed they were a gift for him to look after.

Baillie initially wanted to chase them (she's on a diet and would chase an aeroplane through the sky at the moment) but then her massive motherly instincts kicked in and it was pure love... for ages she didn't even move.

Those funny wee birds have more than tripled in size in just two weeks. Pity they're possible the dumbest animal to walk this earth.

Max the Manx also came over for a visit but his intentions were not as pure.

On a highlight, we had a little party for my birthday last night. Thank goodness we live in the country. One word: ROWDY. I love my friends.

As the sun sets...

I've been in the garden all day today with my three little helpers...

Max the Manx kitten (5 months) who thinks he's a dog

Baillie, now nearly eight and slowing down, but still the brains behind the security business

Roman (nothing else to say)

After a quick shower, I'm now sitting on the deck (with two cats and two dogs - security task force), watching the sun go down, with a glass of vino, listening to MOTH pumping out some original tunes from his studio. Now the rain has started to tinkle down... awesome Clear Mountain living!

Max earlier this morning counting his chickens (he does this every morning)