Fos1's Edible Backyard

Joined:25/09/11 Updated:28/07/12 Frost:
Location: ST LEONARDS

About My Edible Backyard

As an ex Brissy girl & living in Northern N.S.W , moving  to  Tassie nearly 4 years ago was a complete turn around in gardening. I still love my subtropical plants & have a few things like avocado, bananas & pineapples, dragonfruit, chillies, passionfruit, cardamom, curry trees growing well but still in early stages.

But can also grow amazing fruit trees like apples, pears, fig, cherries, apricots, hazelnuts, almonds, plums, quince, pomegranate, grapes. endless types of berries etc, etc. So much choice.

Not to mention all the vegetables & herbs  that can be grown here & lucky to have some beautiful wasabi plants too. The soil is amazing & what struggles in the ground seem to do well in pots & or hothouse. The big difference I found was time.. a slow maturing till fruit, some fruit trees take many years to produce fruit but worth the wait.

But with full sun, good rain and  protection through Winter anything is worth a try. My goal is to have a completely edible garden because they look just as good as ordamentals & you can eat all your fruit, vegetables & herbs.

I wish Daleys could send to Tasmania.

Comments

Do you have the dragon fruit plant in Sumerset

Sorry, no longer in somerset. Have one small plant left.Fruited once.

Just trying to work out if there are any Hylocereus Undatus on the southern side of the pond..i.e in Tasmania

Hi Globe Collector, Yes,still in Tasmania & have one small Red Dragon Fruit plant left (cutting left from the original in photo),keep inside as house plant..as no longer have a hot house.Hope this helps you.

Thanks Fos1, I just wondered of this plant were allowed in Tassie. I was just in Melbourne and met a Vietnamese lady in the Footscray Market who had this plant in her back yard there and had been selling the fruit off it. She took me home and I saw the plant, but it had no fruit left. My wife in from Vietnam and is desprately looking for a cutting to propagate in her greenhouse. We have a possible lead that there is a plant in Geevstion we wish to follow up on, but any chance your plant is healthy and large enough to get a cutting from?

Hi Sorry,Unfortunately my remaining plant is too small / young for a cutting, only a few inches tall. The orginal cutting came from Queensland about 7 years ago,mail order barerooted from a grower/nursery. Can't remember name off the top of my head.Back then it came through quarantine ok. When I asked they said they'd no problem in the past sending here. I suspect today with changing Quarantine rules & fruit fly problems you'd be unlikely to get a mail order cutting here now. But you could try accredited mail order nurseries who send here (not many) because of the rules,extra cost to treat & paperwork. The only other thing I can suggest is try ordering though a nursery down here, they might be able to help ? Sorry, hope you have better luck in Geeveston.

Thanks for the reply, at least I know there are some of this species of plant, this side of the pond.

Passionfruit - Black (Seedling)

Comments: - February  2012   Black ?  Thought it was, but don't think so now. Seed came  from a fruit I bought from a fruit & vegie shop. Fruit have been dropping off the vine still greenish. I leave on bench & wait until they turn a pale Yellow ? - about a week.

Just tried the first ripe fruit ...sweet & amazing passionfuit aroma, photo coming

 Taken cuttings from the parent plant for future seasons, better than the grafted one I had , it just suckered out of control.

Planted: 2010

Pollination: Self Pollination

Pineapples (Cutting) ^10/10

Comments: -

I have been planting pineapple tops for the last few years in a 1/2 drum in my hothouse. All growing well, hope for some fuit soon. Don't water through Winter but during summer creating more humidity.

December 2011 First fruit ...yippee !...growing fast now 4 inches tall

Fruiting Months January, February, December

Planted: 2008

Height 60 Centimetres

Growing: In a Pot

Qty: 10

First Fruited: 3 Years after I planted Cutting

Sun/Shade: Full Sun

Fertiliser or Organics Used: Liquid Fish, Seaweed

When I Fertilise: When Fruiting

Organic Status:Organic

Quince Fuller\'s (Grafted) ^10/10

Comments: -

In its 2nd year in the ground, a beautiful tree with large pink blossoms ( I counted 50 this year) now setting fruit.

December 2011 ended up with 12 set fruit.They were growing well - golf ball size...then the Tassie wind came & blew them all off !  Protect more next year.

Fruiting Months October, November, December

Height 2 metres

Growing: In the Ground

Qty: 1

First Fruited: 16 Months after I planted Cutting

Sun/Shade: Full Sun

Pollination: Self Pollination

When I Fertilise: Spring

Dwarf Avocado - Pinkerton (A) (Grafted) ^6/10

Comments: - Survived last 3 Winters (1st with protection). Slow growing but healthy, about to flower. Had a Wurtz in NSW, was the best dwarf tree loaded with fruit after a few years. Bacon is supposed to be the best one for Tassie, so will see how this one goes ? Mulched well with pea straw, full sun outside.

Planted: 2008

Height 1.4 metres

Growing: In the Ground

Qty: 1

Sun/Shade: Full Sun

Fertiliser or Organics Used: Blood Bone, Rapid Raiser

When I Fertilise: Spring

Organic Status:Organic

Comments

Wow you are growing a wurtz in Tasmania? How is it going? Is it in a greenhouse in a pot or in ground with no protection in winter? Do you get many frosts in Tasmania?

Oops I just seen you grow in ground, that’s amazing. Do you only protected it the first year from frosts? Hope it is still alive and has fruited for you.

Dragon Fruit - Red ^7/10

Comments: -

Have grown this one before successfully in northern NSW, a much warmer climate..It's growing surprisngly well after planting these cuttings (30cm) in Feb of this year. Had lots of buds 5wks after potting up.Survived Winter in tunnel , no water through this period. Just sprayed with liquid fish & seaweed sparingly  to create more humidty during growing period.

Lots of new buds in Spring at the moment.

Brilliant Flowers & fruit....will see how it goes here.

Photo 2 January 2012, growing well but more horizontally with a couple of vertical leaders...could prune extras off for cuttings or just wait & see how it progresses...

Planted: 2011

Height 0.5 metres

Growing: In a Pot

Sun/Shade: Medium Sun

Pest Control:

A few snail holes (easily squashed) but recovers ok.

Organic Status:Organic