Wikileeks - leaks edition

Not a great weekend for gardening after last night's and this morning's massive downpours courtesy of ex-tropical cyclones Anthony and Yasi. Who would have thought weather systems in the far north of the continent could have such an impact here in Victoria? Large areas of the state have had a drenching. Mildura has had record rainfall - usually bakes under 40+ degree heat day after day at this time of year. As I write Koo Wee Rup residents are being advised to evacuate due to rising waters of the Lower Bunyip River.

The hills around Belgrave and the south east suburbs of Melbourne were hit pretty hard. The Dunns Hill weather bureau station not far from here recorded 150mm in 14 hours, must be some kind of record. The house did have a couple of leaks in the kitchen and dining area but thankfully nothing serious. The garden is soaked but everything looks fine. Stepping out on the deck this morning after the rain stopped I could hear the sound of water coming from the bottom of the gully. It was Monbulk Creek in flood. Usually it's just a small creek, no more than 2m wide in most places. But today I could actually see the waters flowing past the  Christian College. First time ever.

With nothing better to do my wife and I grabbed a camera and headed off to have a bit of a sticky beak...

Monbulk Creek in flood at McNicol Rd, Birdsland Reserve, Belgrave.

Old man Monbulk Creek.

Birdsland Reserve.

Kaola St landslip.

Wife contemplates crossing bridge. Monbulk Creek at Belgrave Lake Park.

Park bench that bore the brunt of flood water.

Belgrave Lake Park weir overflow.

Flood damage downstream of Belgrave Lake Park.

This was a footbridge, smashed by flood.

Just goes to show what nature can do and we're not immune to its effects even from events so far away.

Cheers.

Water, Water, Everywhere

It's been hot, humid and very wet across the eastern Australian states for the last few weeks. Something of a cruel irony for our farmers - after enduring years of drought and what promised to be a great grain harvest the rains have come in a big way, causing floods and ruining crops. Then again it may keep the locusts at bay in Victoria threatening to devour everything green.

Living on high ground in the hills east of Melbourne means floods aren't a problem here and everything is growing like mad, especially the tree ferns and the weeds of course. In the veggie patch the corn, tomatoes, beans, cucumbers and cos lettuce are doing well despite the soggy conditions and the ever present threat from slugs and snails (and thank goodness it's not from a locust raiding party).

Speaking of slug and snail control, I've found a safe non-toxic method is to place some take-away containers with openings cut into the sides around sections of the veggie patch. A little beer is added to the containers, which the slugs and snails find irresistable and they get happily drunk and drown. I know chemical slug and snail baits work well but there's always the worry about our cats sampling it and then there's the  birds like magpies that may happen to eat a poisoned slug and end up dead too.

Now that I've introduced to you some of the crops  in the veggie patch I'll be taking and posting photos (when it stops raining) to show you its progress. Plus, lookout for the Spain garden special coming up soon of photos from my trip to Europe in September this year. You'll be blown away!

That's all for now, happy gardening.

Cheers.