Tiny tots

Ms Tagalong thinks there is nothing more appealing than a cutely dressed toddler with a watering can in hand. They are pictures of concentration as they direct the water to the plant. Just look at these examples of loving attention to the silver beet.

Ms Tagalong can see, as always, there are a few tearaways racing around the path more interested in bicycles and speed than the slow growing plants. How lovely to think that this might be a regular occurrence and that our local youngsters could embark on some of the lovely projects that Ms Tagalong found on this website.

Ms Tagalong must have been a teacher in a former life because she was very attracted to several sites showing sowing varieties and other entertaining things to do with children.

So welcome our local Parents Group and long may your little sprouts be involved with sprouting!

And back to the wonderful pizza oven; its magical qualities have been the subject of many a conversation since its inaugural firing or is it the smell of the contents that entices?

When food is mentioned out comes the idea of the oven. Next book club will be served with pizza in the garden; working bees will utilise the oven; and of course the end of month cocktails now won't work unless pizzas are available and films to be shown!

Spirals and mounds

Have you ever seen so splendid a spiral? Ms Tagalong was admiring the growth of the mustard greens in the spiral outside the garden.

Then later in the day Ms Tagalong came across Legs Eleven the designer and planter of this admirable spiral.

“Have you seen the outcome of your hard work,’ Ms Tagalong questioned.

‘No I haven’t, she replied. Smiling her lovely smile and flashing her patterned legs she moved off to talk to others at the local community café. Many people had emerged from the perpetual rain of the last ten days and it was crowded, full of locals and friends of locals to come and enjoy the coffee and camaraderie.

Ms Tagalong just loves the friendship and connections that have been forged and made in the community through the café, the garden and even the community group. She is really hoping that the next working bee in August will see the completion of the pizza oven. She visualises the walls of the stand growing upwards, the clay being spread over the shaped 44 gallon drum. On walking back from the café yesterday Mr Ideasman was delighted to spot two steel plates for the oven doors lurking under a bush in the front of our garden.

It just goes to prove that there is always a use for everything and it just goes to show that you must never throw anything away! Ms Tagalong had to put that in as Mr Ideasman was breathing hard over her shoulder and just wanted her to feel better about the mounds of items still waiting for homes in their new house and garden.
Any ideas for new edifices in the garden? I’m sure we have enough to make most of them!

Just follow the rainbow to find the treasure of our locale. Nothing to do with the garden, I know, but I couldn't resist the break in the rain.

Short and sweet

Short and sweet, Ms Tagalong was thinking as she strolled along to the garden last night wrapped up and scarfed against the elements. A short and sweet blog this week.

And there they were struggling up the steep camber of the road. Three little chips and a not so old block biking back from an adventure.

'Are the chickens laying?' Ms Tagalong was asked. 'Come and see if they have,' said Ms Tagalong. Three oh so polite little chips and the not so old block from whence they came followed Ms Tagalong into the garden and into the chicken pen. Chip one fetched six eggs from the main pen and chip two found another one in the littlest pen. Chip three boldly grasped a chicken, a child from a chicken home obviously, with no qualms and inspected it curiously. Ms Tagalong noticed the covert look at the chicken tractor, made with loving care by Mr Block, and disdained by the community chickens. Time for its return maybe!

We all foraged through the garden and found herbs and chillis for Mrs Block to make supper with. Ms Mova joined us chatting but the cold wind proved too much even for hot little bodies who put back their sweaters and decided it might be time to bike home. The chickens huddled together all in the one pen strategically placed against the wind. They were probably glad not to have their feathers ruffled.

Ms Mova has not checked the forecast for this weekend's working bee but she assures me that the food will be hot, hot, hot. So come one and all to assist and complete the pizza oven around which we will be able to make merry in the months and years to come.

Boxes and ovens!

Boxes, boxes everywhere and not a thing to pack! Would that it were. Ms Tagalong has been up to her ears and eyes in boxes and packing this week and reneged on her facilitator duties for the working bee. She needn’t have worried. Ms Mova, as usual, had everything under control and when Ms T arrived in the garden with boiled kettle, milk and a few paltry biscuits, things were well under way.

Paint Pot Pat had provided a nutty slice for everyone and grabbing steaming mugs of tea she was shown what had been happening. Bricks had been picked up from several houses together with some fibro board and the site had been cleared.

On Ms Tagalong’s next foray in the garden at lunch time to partake of splendid barbequed meats, garden salad and pesto pasta (of course) she was astounded by the absolute hive of activity. There was a veritable chain gang cleaning the lime off bricks, a weeding team, a youth endeavour of a spiral herb circle outside the perimeter fence and some cutting of plastic baskets for the rosemary and lavender cuttings which incidentally are not looking too great. Methinks we all forget to keep watering them, hidden as they are in the little greenhouse.


Several hundred boxes later, Ms Tagalong is prone to exaggeration as you well know, she reappeared to have a final look before pack up time. Wondrous occurrences! Sheets of tin had been neatly stowed behind the water tanks, good hardwood was piled neatly for the next construction project, other wood sawn for fuel, cleaned bricks stood in neat piles , the outline of the base of the pizza oven had been laid and the young ones were watering the seeds in the herb spiral.


Redundant is a word that comes to mind; teamaker is another. But not one to be shrugged off Ms Tagalong is sure that she will rise again to the occasion as we celebrate our second birthday in July. So roll on working bee, come up with ideas for this splendid event, gardeners and give Ms Tagalong something to facilitate!


On another topic entirely Ms Tagalong wandered in on Sunday, just to get away from those dratted boxes you understand, and there were several children munching happily on just-pulled carrots! A sight to warm the cockles of your heart indeed. Deep in conversation was Ms Ishibaw with the Piper’s Son. After a few comments from the Piper’s Son about just coming in to glean produce, thank goodness for that, most people just like to come and admire it, Ms Ishabaw revealed that she might need a new name. So to keep in with her love of floristry where she is the happiest Ms Ishabaw is now I’m-much-happier-as-a-florist or Ms Imhaaf for those in the know!