Two new additions to my back garden in anticipation of a scorching summer this year.

I thought last summer was going to be killer, but I was wrong…it was warm, and sometimes hot, but remained manageable and without the environmental impacts I had (glass-half-emptily) expected.

This year is forecast to be different. The developing (super) El Niño is making meteorologists uneasy, with predictions of severe storms and extremely unsettled weather patterns.

In some sort of micro-prepping response, we have installed 3 new tubs for growing veggies to supplement our existing wooden planter (see pic).

The new tubs will grow tomatoes, beans, garlic, lettuce, cucumbers and carrots. The old wooden planter will now host pumpkin, and an attempt to grow watermelon and rockmelon.

We also purchased a new bird bath to provide our feathered visitors with some aquatic-play respite and hydration as the temperatures ramp up.

With the rapidly spreading avian influenza in Australia, there is now advice to minimize contact with wild birds. While I do not think this warrants abandoning our bird baths just yet, I will continue to monitor the advice as summer unfolds.
See more info here.

We have two bird baths now….one will be used for the larger birds and the original will be for smaller species. Here is a really good resource explaining the differences: Australian Native Bird Baths.