Growing Food and Animal Husbandry, Including Pics!

[Nuytsia]

Farseer, yeah I know in Australia bamboo has a bit of a bad rep for being a big weed. I think it depends on the type of bamboo and the climate you're growing it in.
Apparently the main difference is 'clumping' versus 'running' bamboo, (the latter being the weedy type), but there are hundreds of different types of bamboo within those two 'groups'.
Most bamboos are tropical, so it would be less of a problem in general in cold climates (like mine!!! ), and in fact there are only certain types of bamboo that would even grow (outdoors) here.
I'd love to have a bamboo forest!
Some types are really beautiful, and the thing I like is you can use it to make stuff!

Hey I saw that mythbusters with the bamboo too - creepy!!

Ahh I see re no rooster. We don't have a rooster because we only have 3 hens and also we don't really want to breed them at the moment.
Heh your poor son! Reminds me of a territorial pet magpie we had when I was a kid. I'm sure some of my friends from school days now have a magpie phobia!

I grow my plants almost exclusively from seed.
I have a book that says it's best to plant the seed directly in the ground for most things, if climate allows. Not sure if it's right, but that's what I've been doing.
The other advantage is that there's a much greater choice of varieties available from seed than there is as seedlings in the local shops. I get most of my seed by mail order.

My latest disaster was the chooks getting out unexpectedly and eating back several of my precious garlic plants! Argh!
They have a 6 foot high fence!!!!!!!
(but I think they got under the fence......... suspect a possum pushed through the wire at the bottom and the chooks found the weak spot! gah!)

In more positive news my first tomato seed just germinated for this year's batch. I grow the seeds indoors and plant out in month or two.