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Post by milspec on Nov 5, 2019 21:36:58 GMT 10
Ducklings. I'm growing ducklings in my garden 😣 On the subject of ducks, I counted 29 ducks in the yard this morning! I think they've finally discovered the chook feed bounty which the rest of the native birds have been chowing down on.  |
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Post by Peter on Nov 6, 2019 22:19:59 GMT 10
feralemma and milspec - are these ducks a suitable source of protein? I've heard sometime in the past that some ducks are edible while others aren't. I have no idea...
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Post by milspec on Nov 7, 2019 5:58:26 GMT 10
feralemma and milspec - are these ducks a suitable source of protein? I've heard sometime in the past that some ducks are edible while others aren't. I have no idea... There are several species amongst the ducks that hang out at our place. I haven't identified them so I can't answer your question but if it came to the crunch I'd be trying them all  |
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feralemma
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Post by feralemma on Nov 7, 2019 12:09:29 GMT 10
Lol our ducks are domestic muscovies, and a great source of both meat and eggs.....I just have a mumma duck who thinks she does not belong in the poultry yard with the rest of the ducks 😂 and proceeds to nest, sit and then raise her ducklings out of the yard too.
The wild ducks are good eating, we used to trap and eat them as kids. And as my great uncle told me: be nice to the wildlife and encourage them to be around, you never know when you might need to eat them!
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Post by milspec on Nov 7, 2019 17:21:30 GMT 10
as my great uncle told me: be nice to the wildlife and encourage them to be around, you never know when you might need to eat them! ^ This. |
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Post by spinifex on Nov 7, 2019 17:26:32 GMT 10
When it comes to wild ducks always remember ... the duck you shot on a nice clean creek or dam may have arrived overnight from the nearest sewerage works! And by nearest I mean upto 200km away. Many species move long distances rapidly.
Botulism used to get (and may still be) regularly detected in wild ducks in central Australia where the main source was the Alice springs sewerage treatment plant.
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Post by Peter on Nov 7, 2019 23:12:58 GMT 10
When it comes to wild ducks always remember ... the duck you shot on a nice clean creek or dam may have arrived overnight from the nearest sewerage works! And by nearest I mean upto 200km away. Many species move long distances rapidly. Botulism used to get (and may still be) regularly detected in wild ducks in central Australia where the main source was the Alice springs sewerage treatment plant. So in other words, well-done is a safer option than medium-rare... |
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Post by milspec on Nov 8, 2019 6:24:41 GMT 10
Here's some info on botulism and safeguards regarding botulism in food.
Normal thorough cooking (pasteurisation: 70°C 2min or equivalent) will kill Cl.botulinum bacteria but not its spores. To kill the spores of Cl.botulinum a sterilisation process equivalent to 121°C for 3 min is required. The botulinum toxin itself is inactivated (denatured) rapidly at temperatures greater than 80°C .
Botulism is a subject worth studying for anyone interested in canning/preserving foods.
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bug
Senior Member
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Post by bug on Nov 8, 2019 19:03:30 GMT 10
When it comes to wild ducks always remember ... the duck you shot on a nice clean creek or dam may have arrived overnight from the nearest sewerage works! And by nearest I mean upto 200km away. Many species move long distances rapidly. Botulism used to get (and may still be) regularly detected in wild ducks in central Australia where the main source was the Alice springs sewerage treatment plant. So in other words, well-done is a safer option than medium-rare... Wouldn't recommend 'rare' in any wild animals. Kangaroos and deer are notorious for worms. God knows what else is out there that we tend to forget about because of our sanitised everyday food source. On another topic, had to give in and resort to getting snail pellets. The minor hits on my other plants became worse during the week when the turds stripped two of my zucchini seedlings. |
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bug
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Post by bug on Nov 12, 2019 15:34:48 GMT 10
Have replanted the daikon into a full sun position and they are beginning to sprout again. |
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Post by SA Hunter on Jan 11, 2020 18:12:48 GMT 10
Garden has taken a hammering with the heat over the past few months.
Black Russian tomatoes are about 10-30cm at best. I've usually harvested bucket loads by now. Peanuts are flowering, so expecting a crop soon. Nothing on the chilli bushes-haven't even flowered yet. Zucchini & Eggplants are just starting to flower, so will see if any fruits take.
Mango plants are going ok-just transplanted into larger pots-about 15cm tall. I planted out some Thai Mango seeds as well - see if they take.
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Post by SA Hunter on Jan 29, 2020 19:44:38 GMT 10
On recommendation from a bloke I know who makes up his own soil - instead of Dynamic Lifter, try Seamungus. All I can say is, that plants in pots turning yellow,after using it, are bright green and healthy. Tomatoes are raging, zucchini raging, basil going berserk, even my kaffir lime tree has grown another 2 feet the last month. I highly recommend it. Attachments:seamungus.webp (20.77 KB)
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bushdoc2
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Post by bushdoc2 on Jan 29, 2020 20:27:49 GMT 10
Purslane (pigweed).
fennel.
Scotch thistles.
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Post by SA Hunter on Feb 18, 2020 21:34:35 GMT 10
First time in 5 yrs, getting a nice crop of zucchini. Add to that Capsicum too - 3 plants in a pot, and I had to stake them as they are so heavy in fruit they were falling over.
Tomatoes are fairly few and far between. They are very late this year.
Basil booming ( I swear it's the Seamungus fertilizer )
Picked my first blueberries I had in a pot - ok, only 2, but they were beautiful and sweet. More starting to ripen.
Lots of potatoes coming up, and my pots of peanuts are looking really healthy.
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Post by milspec on Feb 21, 2020 6:40:57 GMT 10
Not much growing at the moment. I've reset it for the winter crop with lessons learned from the last few growing seasons.   |
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fei
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Post by fei on Feb 21, 2020 14:07:26 GMT 10
I finally picked the 8 carrots I had growing in a pot on my balcony. All were tiny (2 thumb size, other 6 all smaller), but were very dense and tasted great in a salad. Planted a couple dozen tomato seeds with the kids last weekend, and have already about 20 germinated. Kids have decided to do "experiments" with a seedlings in different pots and see which grow best.
Will be picking the last of the greens I have been continually cutting leaves from and replant some other leafy veg varieties. May try to plant pumpkins as well this year; used to grow great in our roof garden at the previous apartment, but not sure how they will go on our much smaller blacony where we are now.
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Post by SA Hunter on Feb 21, 2020 17:11:10 GMT 10
Planted some broccoli and cabbage seeds.
Also some Coriander.
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bug
Senior Member
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Post by bug on Feb 22, 2020 10:33:17 GMT 10
I finally picked the 8 carrots I had growing in a pot on my balcony. All were tiny (2 thumb size, other 6 all smaller), but were very dense and tasted great in a salad. Planted a couple dozen tomato seeds with the kids last weekend, and have already about 20 germinated. Kids have decided to do "experiments" with a seedlings in different pots and see which grow best. Will be picking the last of the greens I have been continually cutting leaves from and replant some other leafy veg varieties. May try to plant pumpkins as well this year; used to grow great in our roof garden at the previous apartment, but not sure how they will go on our much smaller blacony where we are now. Carrots are great for a shady spot. Leave them in the ground and they will keep growing until you want them. Have to remove all the rocks though or you'll have odd shaped carrots. |
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Post by spinifex on Feb 22, 2020 19:26:28 GMT 10
almost completed the autumn planting today. 12m of peas, 3m of snow peas, 3m of daikon. The 3m row of french beans I sowed earlier in the week is already up.
Eggplants that are now boxed in with laserlite and old windows and which got a good dose of SOA and MAP are now taking off with new growth and flowering well.
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Post by SA Hunter on Feb 29, 2020 1:00:28 GMT 10
After seeing the increase in vegetable prices, I've planted more broccoli seeds, about 100 onion seeds, and more coriander.
I also have more cabbage to plant, once the seeds I've planted pop up.
Then, plant beetroot, radish, turnips & swedes. If nothing else, I'll be eating plenty of vegetable Borsch.
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