Sweet Potato Creepers & Others

Since we migrated, I have not found sweet potato leaves for sambal stir-fry. I am really pleased that the space around the golden sheen trees can be used to plant this useful & edible groundcover, rather than being space for weeds or some decorative inedible creepers. One of the first sweet potato creepers planted. It has produced many shoots and creeping in all directions, just as I intended.

Here's the one my dog trampled and chewed on. Fortunately the wire cage works to protect it while it regrew and it is doing well too.

Here's the 3rd one.

This is a new one which I had just planted.

And another new one.

The last one here also doing great except being eaten by some pests.

The ivy which I transplanted to the conifer area is beginning to extend itself upwards. I would like it to twine around the black fencing for privacy.

Wow la...my aloe vera...mother plant is growing more succulent and baby plants growing larger by the day. They are extremely precious to me and I look forward to planting some babies in the ground...That would be an experiment.

My beautiful sanorita has put on new growth...those reddish ones...I did not even notice the new growth until recently.

Protea (Special Pink Ice) has also put on two new branches (lighter in colour). Both the Sanorita and Protea seem to be easy to grow as they do not need any fertilising and are drought resistant. I look forward to flowering. :)

Stir-fry Black Pepper Beef (Recipe)

Still about yesterday. Son was using the computer while I had a look out of my front garden. The rain was a cool refreshing change. The patch where there is a rose shrub and dying-down calla lilies...that still requires further work. I plan to plant hydrangeas or kangeroo paws and some other flowers. It is too boring at this moment. However, hubby wants me to take my time as I am burning up my budget every month! The pittosporum golden sheens are doing well but I wish they would grow bushier faster and taller! The sweet potato creepers among the sheens are doing great :

The two white nettings are where my other two tomato silvery firs are planted. Doing great. In the foreground are my sanorita and vietnamese mint in pots.

Two conifers flank the small gate. My eureka lemon in that square patch.

The yellow capsicums harvested and spanish (red) onions ready for my beef stir-fry.

Two slices of blade beef steak sliced into thin pieces.

Onions and capsicum fried in ready-to-use black pepper sauce (which I bought). Add beef. Fry till cooked. No need to add water.

Sweet Potato Creepers

A windy and cool day with sunny breaks.

By far this calendula flower is the largest bloom and it is produced by one of the calendulas at the patch next to the garage. Great stuff!

One Lilium LA Hybrid flower has opened. Was not as white or spectacular as I had imagined.

I found and bought four sweet potato creepers from bunnings. I thought it is a wonderful idea to grow them on the mulched areas where my golden sheen hedge is. My original intention was to either leave the areas mulched with red gum bark chips or grow some succulent crawlers to control weeds but having sweet potato creepers to do that would be even better. They can weed control when they spread out and they can be eaten too. The only concern would be winter as sweet potato cannot withstand cold. I will have to protect them when the time comes if they survive summer and autumn.

Lemon verbena which I transplanted into the lavender area outside my bedroom window is doing well. It is really a good idea to minimise root disturbance and plant the whole rootball + potting mix in. The plant did not show a single sign of transplant shock.

My sunflower Sun king...5 of them...do not look very fantastic this season. I think the soil here is not very good and I have to improve it after this. I have added more composted rooster manure and watered them with charlie carp today and hopefully they can grow bigger. At least they survived because in the beginning, they did not even look like they were going to make it.

I worked on this mulched area behind our bedroom wall. I removed all four existing shrubs which did not look fantastic nor were useful. The area has a lot of pebbles. I am beginning to understand that the pebbles were added by the landscapist to curb potentially extensive/invasive root growth since the plants were so close to the house. Strange that the lavender area has not a single pebble. Since this area is pebbly and does not get lots sunshine, I contemplate planting aloe vera here.

Two holes around the dripline of the plum tree area were further deepened and I put in a soft drink bottle tube (cut at both ends) each for watering/fertilising purpose.