Billy wrote:
In article ,
"David Hare-Scott" wrote:

FarmI wrote:
What's happening in your garden David. Have you got your tomatoes
in yet?


Yes weeks ago, I have small fruit on some.

Wait a minute. November 2 "Down Under" is like April 2 to the
Northern hemisphere, and your tomatoes are setting fruit already? I
can plant in May, but nothing happens until the ground warms up in
June. You really have green tomatoes?!

Yes, most have fruit and much blossom now, the early ones have good sized
fruit. They are still green but I expect some to be ripe by Xmas unless La
Nina camps right on the door step and we have no sun for a month. They will
produce well until the end of March (unless the Girl brings mildew) and then
slow a little until they finish in May. Fran is rather cagey about exactly
where she is but I think she is further poleward, further inland and higher
than I am, all of which shorten the growing season.

Similarly all the citrus were a riot of blossom in September, now they are
covered in fruit. I picked all the early apricots last week. [Yes! I beat
the possum this year!] They were absolutely yummy, several nights we had
them for dessert au naturel and there were enough for jam. The summer
squash are flowering well and have small fruit, there may even be some ready
to cut, I haven't been out today due to rain.

Soil temperature is not often a limiting factor for me, once the last
probable frost is past I can plant all the summer annuals and expect them to
grow. If I had an unheated hothouse (I wish) that provided frost protection
and some warmth in mid winter I could probably grow tomatoes all year round.
The winter ones wouldn't do as well as the summer crop but I would get
*something* off season. Given a few more years of global inaction on
climate change I might not need the greenhouse.

David