Venus Flytrap seedlings

I thought I would show some pictures of a few of my little Venus flytrap seedlings.  They don't grow as fast as I would like, but every seedling is genetically unique and I really enjoy growing Venus flytraps from seed.

Probably the most difficult part of growing venus flytraps from seed is getting the seed in the first place.  Most people online selling venus flytrap seeds don't have the seeds and will send you some other seed.  Ebay is notorious for fake seeds, never buy flytrap seeds from Ebay.  By the time you work out that you have been taken advantage of it is far too late to do anything about it.

Most of my seedlings look like a typical venus flytraps, the only real difference between them and store bought plants is seedlings are tiny and cute.  Some are far more vigorous than others.  I am told it takes 3 or 4 years for a Venus flytrap to grow from seed to a mature plant, from memory that sounds about right.

I think they are all pretty great.  Most of them look like the one below.

Tiny seedling already catching insects

The same plant but lager.  Look closely: it is already dividing

The one below has a bit of red on the leaves but you can't really see it in the photo.  Time will tell if it turns out to be more red or if it will only have a little red.  It was planted later so doesn't have as many leaves as large as most of the other venus flytrap seedlings.  It has grown a bit and has a few more leaves than in this picture, but you get the idea.

This seedling has a little red on its leaves

Below is another seedling, but this one is different to the rest.  This one has yellowish leaves and the traps are red.  The traps are all a bit of a weird shape and so far none of the traps have opened.

I am not sure if this will sort itself out as it grows and it will look more typical, or if it is going to grow into an interesting mutant.  I can hardly wait until it is older so I can see what it will become. 

 

This Venus flytrap seedling is interesting

Same plant but older.  Most traps are now red and oddly shaped, the leaf blades are yellow

None of the traps have opened yet, I am not sure if it is just slow or a crazy mutant

This seedling is very slow growing, but I really like it

All of these seedlings have grown since I took these photos, I just haven't gotten around to taken any more recent pictures. 

At some stage I will try to sell some of my Venus flytraps.  When I do I will make it clear if they were seed grown, or if they are named cultivars that were grown from divisions or leaf pullings.  When I so sell Venus flytraps I will list them on my for sale page.

Drosera capensis (cape sundew) seedings

About nine or ten months ago I planted some sundew seeds.  They were seeds from a relatively common and simple to grow sundew called Drosera capensis or 'cape sundew'.  They are native to the Cap of South Africa and often feature in people's carnivorous plant collections.  I quite like them.

The seeds I got were mixed 'typical' and 'alba', as a result I now have both typical and alba plants growing.  I prefer the look of typical capensis, but they are all nice in their own way.  I think growing both is nice.

One pot of my sundews

Sundew seeds are tiny, at first many grew but then winter came and a lot of them died.  Then we skipped spring and went straight into a really hot summer, and a lot more died.  Only the strong have survived, and these survivors have grown very well.

I have a few pots of these sundews, some inside and some outside.  I really need to repot them and separate them, but I enjoy having several plants in each pot so I will leave them for now.

Drosera capensis young seedlings

Some were too wet, they grew slowly

They grew larger and started to catch fungus gnats and other tiny insects

The more they caught the faster they grew, the larger they grew the more they could catch

Now they are large enough to catch house flies, moths, and other larger insects

Notice how the leaves curl around their insect prey

My little plants have grown even larger since the last pictures, they are really starting to look impressive and really need to be repotted into larger pots.

The ones I have growing outside are smaller than the ones I have inside.  I thought being outside would give them access to more insects, which it did, but they were also blasted by the heat of summer and covered in thick smoke for week after week.  Now that the weather is more mild the ones outside are starting to catch up in size and I expect them to surpass the inside plants.

Drosera capensis really is an easy to grow carnivorous plant.  I grew them when I was a child and loved them, I have enjoyed being able to grow them again.  They are hardy and forgiving and able to thrive in less than ideal conditions.  It won't be long before they are large enough to flower and set seed.

At some stage I will likely sell some of my sundews, and maybe some fresh seed.  When this happens I will list them on my for sale page.

Papalo days to harvest

Papalo is an ancient herb that is commonly grown and eaten in South and Central America but is practically unheard of here.  Finding seeds of this amazing herb in Australia was far more difficult than I had imagined.

Papalo has a unique and intense taste, it is often used as a substitute for coriander leaf but they taste different.  Young papalo leaves are mild and older leaves are more potent.  I love the taste of papalo, it is one of my absolute favourite edible herbs.

Unlike coriander, papalo grows well in the heat of summer.  It is said to be drought tolerant, but mine wilts badly on hot days and picks up nicely after it gets a bit of water.

Papalo leaf showing oil glands

There is a bit of confusion over the binomial name, I a told they were Porophyllum coloratum but there is a chance that they may be a different form of Porophyllum ruderale.  Until I am a little more certain I will only list the genus.

I planted two batches of seed, both had dreadfully low germination rates, which is meant to be common in papalo.  Papalo grows vigorously and its smell/taste is remarkably strong so you only really need 1 or 2 plants.  This summer was incredibly harsh so these days to maturity may not be representative of an average year.

Days to maturity papalo (Porophyllum sp)

Seeds planted       17/08/2019       Day 0
Germinated           03/09/2019      Day 17

These died off before the first true leaf stage so I planted another batch. I think heat/sun killed them.  I gave the second set of seeds protection from the afternoon sun, and they fared much better.  In a less intense year they would do fine with full sun, but this year we skipped spring and went straight from winter into a raging summer which isn't great for small seedlings.


Seeds planted       01/11/2019      Day 0
Germinated          18/11/2019      Day 17
Harvest start         22/12/2019      Day 51
Flowering             28/03/2020       The growing conditions are not ideal, I assume they should flower earlier than this

Papalo starting to flower

I started to harvest earlier than I should, but I couldn't wait to taste papalo.  I am guessing a decent harvest would have started around day 80.

Click here for a full list of vegetable days to maturity when grown from seed, this includes vegetables, fruiting vegetables, culinary herbs, berries, and carnivorous plants.

Quillquiña days to harvest

Quillquiña (also spelled quilquiña, quillquina, quilquina, and probably a few other ways) is an ancient herb that is similar to papalo.  While papalo is virtually unheard of in Australia quillquiña is even less common and no one seems to know of it.  They smell and taste pretty similar to me.

I was told that they are classified as Porophyllum ruderale but there is some confusion over the binomial name, and there is some confusion regarding if this is a different variety of papalo, or a different subspecies, or a different yet highly similar species.


Much like papalo these seeds displayed a dreadfully low germination percentage this year, but this is meant to be representative of these herbs so I was expecting it.

Please note that the days to maturity listed were recorded in my garden in Australia, these numbers will be slightly different under different weather conditions and different years.  They are intended only to provide an indicative guide.

Days to maturity quillquiña (Porophyllum sp)

Seeds planted       17/08/2019       Day 0
Germinated           03/09/2019      Day18
Similar to my papalo, these seedlings all died when tiny so I planted another batch.  I gave the second set of seeds protection from the afternoon sun and they survived and went to to produce large plants.  In a less intense year they would do fine with full sun, but this year broke many heat records.

Days to maturity quillquiña (Porophyllum sp)

Seeds planted       01/11/2019      Day 0
Germinated          19/11/2019      Day 18
Harvest start         29/01/2020      Day 89
Flower start          01/04/2020

Quillquiña, they were larger than this when I started to harvest the leaves

For a full list of vegetable days to maturity when grown from seed, including herbs, berries, and carnivorous plants, please click here.

Target hops Australia

This summer has been exceedingly harsh and many of my plants did not cope.  One of the few plants that coped this summer was hops (Humulus lupulus).

Hops are commonly used in brewing beer, but they have many other uses.  The young shoots are said to be the world's most expensive vegetable, it is used in pillows to aid deep sleep, and it is used to make a calming tea.  I have read that hops has a heap of other uses such as providing summer shade, is useful as livestock feed, when fed to cattle reduces the amount of ammonia produced, can be planted in a way that reduces soil erosion and stabilises banks, and is meant to hold potential for producing biofuel.

Target hops quickly grew tall

Hops is dioecious which means individual plants are either male or female.  The unfertilised flowers from female plants are used in beer.  Most hops plants for sale are female plants as they are the most useful.

Hops female flower - this will eventually turn into the cone

Male hops plants are incredibly difficult to source in Australia, and I know of nowhere reliable that sells seeds in Australia (I am sure there are plenty of thieves on eBay making money from fake seeds), so backyard hops breeding is out unless I can find a male plant.

Hops leaf - similar to grape leaves

There are a handful of different varieties of hops available in Australia and each tastes different.  I wanted to grow a variety that was fruity and floral as that sounds interesting.  I also wanted to grow something that is a little unusual as that would be more useful to home growers than the more common varieties.  If you are going to grow something, you don't bother growing something that is the same as you can get in the shops when you can grow something better/unique!

The hops variety I have is called 'Target'.  Target hops is said to have been bred at the Hop Research Institute at Wye College in England, and released to the public in 1992.  Not many places sell target hops plants in Australia, and homebrewers who grow target hops tend to rave about it.

I have read on the internet that target hops have "very very complex fruity flavours and aromas with hints of Floral".

Another source says "I get stonefruit, passionfruit, pineapple, kiwi fruit, melon from this. Perfectly complements any type of English ale. Especially English IPAs and Pale Ales".

A place that grows and sells a lot of hops varieties site states that Target hops are "Extremely good for dry hopping to add some fruity aromas. Goes very well mixed with Columbus or Chinook to offer a much more rounded flavour profile. Probably my favourite varieties we grow here. Crops pretty well for a UK variety. The numbers are similar to Columbus however the armoas and flavours are worlds apart as in new and old world! I love the stuff personally cannot get enough of it".

The place I bought my plant from tests their hops regularly and said their Target hops contain 9.5% Alpha acids with 35% Cohumulone.

To me that sounds like target hops is very fruity and floral, and rather different from the kind of thing that is easy to find at shops, which is exactly what I was hoping for.

Target hops also sounds as if it is well suited to home growers.  Not only is it unique and tastes nice, it is also meant to be one of the more vigorous varieties, one of the easier varieties to grow, and one of the heavier croppers that are easy to harvest.  Target hops sound like a winner to me.

Target hops growing in a large pot of soil

Hops can be grown in the ground, or it can be grown in a pot of soil.  I have heard of hops spreading underground and being difficult to contain.  I also wasn't sure where I wanted to plant hops long term, and I want a few other named varieties and don't want to mix them up, so I chose to plant hops in a large pot of soil enriched with aged chicken manure.

Growing in a pot will likely result in a smaller plant with a lower yield than if it was soil grown, but it will be simpler to control and easier to divide over winter.  It will also mean that I won't mix up different varieties in the future.

Hops needs a tall and strong support on which to grow.  I have toyed with the idea of growing it over the chicken run to provide shade and I think that it could be well suited to that use, but for now I am using some long sticks tied together.

I have a photinia hedge that has the occasional plant of privet that pops up each year.  The privet grows rather tall before I notice it sticking out of the top of the hedge.  These long straight sticks make an ideal climbing structure.  Some of the photos have one stick, some have two or three.  I added to them over the growing season and eventually made a teepee out of them tied with string at the top.  This works really well and is easy to replace each year.

Target hops scrambling taller every day

I have taken a few cuttings from my hops, and if the plant is large enough may be able to divide the rhizome over winter.  If I have extra plants I plan to list them on my for sale page along with other perennial vegetables and interesting edible plants.

Strawberry spinach days to harvest

Strawberry spinach is sort of a dual crop, the leaves are edible raw or cooked and taste much like spinach.  The berries look like mulberries and have tiny hard seeds in them.

This summer has been extreme and many things failed in my garden, but strawberry spinach kept on growing.  They did not yield as many leaves as either regular spinach or silverbeet, but they cope with the heat far better than true spinach and they provided quite a lot of little berries that my kids seem to like eating.

Below are strawberry spinach days to maturity from my garden this year.  It was record hot and dry this year, plus we had weeks of thick bush fire smoke and dust storms., so potentially they would have been a bit earlier in a typical year.

Days to maturity Strawberry spinach (Chenopodium capitatum)

Seeds planted       10/08/2019       Day 0
Germinated           25/08/2019      Day 15
Harvest leaf          ??/??/2019       I didn't record this, it was pretty early
Flowering             24/12/2019       Day 146
Berry harvest        20/01/2020       Day 173

To view a full list of vegetable days to maturity when planted from seed click here.

Strawberry spinach fruit looks like red mulberries

Almost ripe, growing in a polyculture with other vegetables

Strawberry spinach, when they are ripe the ants sometimes eat them

Summer Coriander, Papalo, and Quillquina

Here in Australia (and a few other countries) we refer to the leaf of Coriandrum sativum as ‘coriander’, and the seeds/fruits of the same plant as ‘coriander seeds’.  In North America and a few other countries people usually refer to the leaf of this plant as ‘cilantro’ and call the seeds/fruit ‘coriander’.  For clarity, any time you see the term ‘coriander’ being used in this blog post I am referring to the leaf and/or entire plant of C sativum.

Some people hate coriander, others love it, there appear to be very few people in between.  Some people have a mutation in their OR6A2 gene, these people strongly dislike the smell of coriander leaves.  Other people do not have this mutation, these people tend to love coriander.  I am in the latter group.  I really love the smell of coriander.

Coriander is at its best when fresh, it doesn’t store or dry very well.  Small pots of hydroponically grown coriander are often found in supermarkets, they are better than nothing but usually the smell is weak and diluted.  For these reasons, to have decent coriander you must grow your own.

Coriander has a bad reputation for being finicky and difficult to grow.  It dislikes being transplanted and often bolts to flower if the roots are disturbed even if the plant is tiny.  Coriander is best used in summer meals, yet it dislikes heat and will flower within days if the temperature is too high or if the weather changes too fast.  To make matters worse, many places sell seed of ‘slow bolt’ coriander that is not slow to bolt.  To help overcome this you can plant coriander seed and only save seed from the slowest to bolt in your garden.

Most varieties of coriander are extremely inbred and display little to no genetic diversity, so improving coriander can be a long journey with frustratingly small gains.  To help overcome this I deliberately crossed about a dozen varieties from several different countries.  I had originally planned on selecting for slow bolting but am deliberately maintaining it as a genetically diverse grex so people can grow it and select for slower bolting themselves.  Grow them, eat them, enjoy them, and kill off every plant that flowers early.   With this amount of genetic diversity it won’t take long before you have a variety that you created yourself to be the most productive in your garden.

Unfortunately, there is only so much heat coriander will cope with.  When it gets hot and dry coriander bolts to flower and set seed.  Unfortunately it is when the weather is hot that I want coriander, so I am searching for coriander substitutes.  I searched the internet and was told things like parsley or thyme can be used as substitutes, which they can’t.  Parsley and thyme are not even remotely similar to coriander.

In the past I grew ‘perennial coriander’ (Eryngium foetidum) which tasted similar to real coriander but I lost it in a move and have not been able to get another.  The leaves were also a bit tough for my liking but that may have been due to the growing conditions.   I thought about getting another one, and I probably will one day, but for now I am trying something else.

Papalo underside of leaf

Papalo top of leaf

Recently I got seed for some herbs named papalo and quillquiña.  They have many common names including "Papaloquelite", "Butterfly leaf", “Bolivian coriander” and “Mexican coriander”.

Unlike true coriander, papalo and quillquiña are said to love the heat.  They never bolt to seed in hot weather.  I have seen them described as being like summer loving, strongly scented, heat resistant coriander.  That sounded like it was worth a try.

Other than overseas seed sellers and a few confused foodies on cooking/travel sites there is little information about papalo and quillquiña on the internet.

The place I bought them from lists papalo as Porophyllum coloratum and quilquiña as Porophyllum ruderale.  I am not certain that these are the correct species.

Papalo young plant

Most overseas sellers either list both as varieties of Porophyllum ruderale, or they use the term papalo and quillquiña interchangeably for the same plant.  Other people claim this is one species with a narrow leaf form (papalo) and a wide leaf form (quillquiña).

Unfortunately there is little information available, and most of it is contradictory, so I don't know.  I know they are both from the genus Porophyllum, but don’t know what species they are or if they are the same species or not.

Quillquiña seedlings - one is green the other has some purple

Quillquiña growing larger

I found one reference claiming papalo and quillquiña to be subspecies that cross pollinate easily.   This person who said this claimed one flowered early and the other late, and once the early one set seed he would remove any further flowers to prevent it crossing with the later flowering one.  I am not sure if any of this is true.

The person I got seeds from lists papalo and quillquiña as separate species.  I asked the seller if they will cross pollinate and he said he attempted to cross pollinate them by hand but has not been successful.  As far as he knows they cannot cross pollinate.

Again, I don't know if this is true or not.  All I know is that the person who sold me the seeds in as honest bloke and was answering my questions to the best of his knowledge

Papalo - also called 'butterfly leaf' because the leaves flutter in the wind

Papalo with blue green leaves

I don't know what to think and hope to learn more in the future.  This summer has been hot and dry and horrible, but my papalo has grown well.  If my plants flower this year I hope to save seed as this is not a plant I ever wish to be without.

Papalo leaves - note the oil glands

Papalo and quillquiña are often used as coriander substitute, but they taste different to coriander.  They have a strong undescribable smell and a unique taste that I love.

Papalo and quillquiña taste much like each other, but they have different shaped leaves.  They smell rather intense, and I really like them.  Now that I have tried them I almost crave them.

Many people rave about how great papalo is. Some chefs refuse to be without papalo.  I have been told that in parts of Mexico papalo is kept on restaurant tables in glass of water so people can use them to spice up their food similar to how salt and pepper are found on restaurant tables in Australia.  I can understand that, I would probably go to a restaurant if I knew they had papalo.

Some people, like me, love the intense flavour of papalo.  Other people hate these herbs with a vengeance and describe them as smelling similar to skunk urine.  I don’t know if people who have a mutation in their OR6A2 gene and hate coriander also hate papalo and quillquiña, judging from the strongly polarised reception these herbs get I am assuming so.  Then again, my son loves coriander and hates papalo so perhaps there is more to this?

I have a lot to learn about these herbs, I hope they grow well in my climate and that at least one of them is useful as a summer coriander substitute. I will always grow coriander as it is one of my favourite herbs and papalo is not an exact match, but it would be nice to have something else to grow for when the weather is too extreme for coriander to thrive.

If I am able to save enough seed in autumn I will try to offer it through my for sale page.   While I am told that they won't cross I am not certain.  They do both smell the same, so if they can cross the resultant seedlings should taste the same but have different shaped leaves.

Savory herb (Satureja species)

Several years ago I was at a plant nursery looking over their various herbs. Among the usual collection of common herbs were ‘winter savory’ and ‘summer savory’. They both looked similar to one another, they smelled relatively similar. I tasted both (yeah, I am that guy) and I liked them. They were both relatively similar to thyme, I already had thyme and I had never eaten savory before so I didn’t get either of them.

Savory, both winter and summer, taste different enough from thyme that they are worth growing. Unlike thyme, savory plants are rarely offered for sale in Australia for some reason. It took me a few years to see either of them again and be able to grow them. I am glad that I did eventually find them again, they are great little herbs.

Overseas savory is often sold in bunches in supermarkets with other fresh herbs, and many people would not know how to cook without it. For some reason savory is relatively unknown in Australia and I have occasionally seen it for sale dried and never in fresh bunches.

Very few people in Australia have every tasted savory, and even fewer have been lucky enough to grow savory. Hopefully that will start to change and more people will be able to eat savory as it adds something special to a meal that thyme is missing.

Savory looks similar to thyme with slightly larger leaves

I find it interesting when I talk to anyone know knows what savory is, they all seem to love savory and most have strong opinions about which type is the best. Some prefer the bolder stronger flavour profile of winter savory, while others love the more subtle and sweeter summer savory. Savory isn’t like polarising herbs such as coriander leaf, it isn’t an acquired taste, and everyone who has eaten savory seems to like it.

Savory can be used fresh or dried in any meal where you would normally use any herbs. We tend to only use it fresh, but that is because I have it growing and it is easier to pick it and use it now rather than think ahead and dry some. I am a better gardener than I am a cook, so rather than try to tell you how to cook with savory I will tell you how I grow it.

Savory is a typical Mediterranean herb, by that I mean it likes full sun and doesn’t need much care. I don’t know if it suffers pests or diseases because mine never have. I grow everything organically, I don’t use the organic poisons, if something is hit by pests or something it may be for the best that I let it die off. Savory plants look and behave a lot like thyme plants. Mine never grows very tall, maybe a little over 20 cm, it slowly spreads but I can’t imagine it ever being invasive.

Like many herbs, regular harvesting seems to make these plants more productive by encouraging leaf growth and delaying flowering. I try not to harvest summer savory too late in the season as I want them to set seed for next year. Normally this isn’t an issue and there are a few plants I didn’t know I had that are flowering somewhere safe.

When harvesting savory you could somehow remove individual leaves, but that sounds like far too much effort. Just like thyme we just cut off sprigs and roughly strip the leaves from them. These sprigs usually have a few leaves still attached, the mostly leafless sprigs can then be planted in soil, or put in a cup of water, where they will act as cuttings and provide you with more plants. Both summer savory and winter savory can grow from cuttings in this way.

Savory flowers are similar to thyme flowers

The two most commonly found varieties are summer savory and winter savory, I grow them both as they are different enough from each other and both nice enough that they have earned a spot in my garden. I also grow the rarer and really delightful lemon savory.

Summer and winter savory are very similar species that to the best of my knowledge won’t hybridise. They both grow into small plants, they both have tiny fragrant edible leaves, and the little flowers are loved by bees and other insect pollinators.

Summer savory (Satureja hortensis) is an annual plant that will grow in spring, flower in summer and autumn, and die off completely before winter. While it is really simple to grow from seed, summer savory seeds are tiny and difficult to collect so I just leave it alone and it seems to self-sow happily. I love growing things that self-seed for me as it means I don’t have to think about them too much, it also means each year selective pressure is applied and they become better adapted to my garden. You can also grow summer savory by cuttings during the warmer months. Summer savory has a delicate and sweet aroma that some people simply adore.

Winter savory (Satureja montana) looks much the same as summer savory, but is a perennial. This grows all year, albeit slower in winter, and can grow from cuttings. They also produce tiny seeds that are difficult to collect, so I normally grow it from cuttings which is far easier. Winter savory has a stronger more peppery aroma that some people prefer. Even if you prefer summer savory it is worth growing this so you always have some form of fresh savory to use.

Lemon savory - my favourite savory

I also grow lemon savory. I am told that there are a few different types of lemon savory, the one I grow appears to be a lemon scented form of winter savory (Satureja montana citriodora). Lemon savory is by far my favourite type of savory! I told you everyone has strong preferences when it comes to savory. With its clear clean lemon taste I prefer this to lemon thyme. This herb looks like the other varieties of savory and is perennial. As they are the same species, lemon savory will cross with regular winter savory, so if saving seed you need to take care. If you propagate these from cuttings (as I recommend you do) then there is no need to worry about trying to keep these two varieties of winter savory apart.

Savory herb is very simple to grow and tastes great. At the moment savory plants are difficult to find in Australia. When I have extra plants I will probably sell a few different varieties of savory and list them on my for sale page.

Woolly leaf tomato in Australia

Years ago I used to grow a tomato with the angora leaf gene.  This gene causes extra/branched trichomes on leaves and stems giving them a fluffy feel and interesting appearance.

I grow a tomato called "Angora 82" which kind of shows this trait, but not like I remember it.  This variety was in with some very old seeds (at least 23 years old) that I grew and I don't know where I originally got it from or where it got its name.  Angora 82 is high yielding, very compact, tastes very sweet, so it is worth growing, but it is not as woolly as the plants I remember.  None of the other old seeds with the word 'angora' or 'woolly' in their title germinated at all.  Considering their age I was happy that any germinated at all.

It appears that the angora gene was gone from Australia.  Importing tomato seeds into Australia is far too difficult and expensive for home growers, so it looked unlikely to be able to grow fuzzy tomatoes like this ever again.

Then a seed company in Tasmania listed one of the newer bred tomato varieties which carries this gene.  I didn't ask how they got this variety, I was just happy that they were able to sell me some seeds.  The variety they listed is called 'Woolly Kate'.

Woolly leaf tomato - looks like it is covered in frost

Woolly Leaf tomato flowering - stunning white foliage

This year I am growing a few "Woolly Kate" tomatoes.  They are a high anthocyanin tomato (they produce blue or black fruit) and they carry the angora leaf gene.  There are very few blue fruited woolly leaf tomatoes so being able to grow this variety is a real treat.

The leaves are green and covered in hairs.  None of these photos do them justice, in the right light they shimmer white and look like they are covered in frost.  Sometimes in late afternoon they sparkle in ways that I can't explain in words.

There are a few different genes that can cause the woolly leaf trait in tomatoes.  One is dominant and is homozygous lethal, and one is recessive.  It is difficult to tell them apart without growing out a large number of seeds, and crossing them with a variety that does not carry this trait is very helpful in working out things.

I am happy to say that this is from the recessive gene.  This means it will be relatively easy to do some tomato breeding and insert this gene into other new varieties. 

Woolly tomato leaf shimmers in the right light

Many plants that are covered in hairs like this use it as a way to protect themselves from harsh sun or excessive heat.  Sounds useful in Australia.  In other plants the leaves help protect them from mild frosts, which would be useful in extending the growing season.

It is currently unknown if this woolly leaf trait helps tomatoes be more water efficient or grow better under hotter condition or protects from mild frosts.

I would also be interested to know if tomatoes with woolly leaves are more resistant to pests and diseases, or if they have more issues with pests and diseases.  At this stage I am not really sure.

This summer has been the hottest on record for this region, it is also driest on record for this region, and I have very little water, so it will be interesting to see how the yield of these tomatoes compares to other varieties.

Even if the woolly leaf trait does not help in any way the plants really look amazing so I will keep growing them.  The leaves also feel soft, kind of like a plant called lambs ears (Stachys byzantina).  My kids keep touching the leaves each time they walk past them, they are really fascinated with Woolly Kate tomatoes.

Woolly Kate in the foreground, various other tomato varieties in the background

This summer has been pretty dreadful in my garden (and pretty much everywhere else in Australia).  I planted late, then it has been very hot, very dry, I haven't had much water to spare, we have had several intense dust storms, and there have been many weeks of thick bush fire smoke.

At this stage I don't know if my plants will survive summer.  This summer already I have lost a lot of things that have always performed well for me.  My other surviving tomato plants are all flowering but the flowers are aborting, so far only Woolly Kate has a few unripe fruits that have not dropped off.  The tomatoes are fluffy and the plants seem to be handling the extreme conditions better than my other varieties so far.

Woolly Kate grafted to a regular leaf plant, the difference in foliage is amazing

If I get to save seed from Woolly Kate and if I have enough spare seed I will try to list them for sale through my for sale page.  If not I should have enough seed to sell in future years.  I also have plans for breeding with them to get a few other varieties with woolly foliage in Australia.

Woolly leaf tomato with unripe fruits

Blue fuzzy tomatoes still not ripe

Air Quality

The air quality over the last five or so weeks has been pretty bad due to all the bush fire smoke.  So far we have been lucky and there hasn't been any real danger to us, but there are still a few months of fire season to go.

Below is a graph of three air quality stations from Canberra over the first week and a bit of 2020.  The one day where air quality was ok on the graph we had a large dust storm.  I am not sure if the dust storm made it to Canberra or not.

The craziest part of this is that we have gotten off lightly so far.  There have been a lot of places far worse than it is here.

When smoke is combined with record breaking heat, record breaking dry, it makes this summer rather unpleasant.

The dotted purple line at 200 is considered a hazardous level, we are way above that!

Some days the smoke isn't too thick.  The hills in the distance haven't been seen in some time

Other days the houses are completely lost in the smoke

This is the day the smoke cleared, and the dust came.  The dust got thicker than this

Some days everything is bright yellow