Changing seasons

I spent the afternoon clearing out the spent summer growth in one of my vegie gardens. A pumpkin vine had taken over...but it wasn't earning it's keep, lots of flowers and no pumpkins. So off with it's head! I salvaged the last of the silverbeet (the leaves that the caterpillars left me anyway) and mixed up some tasty ravioli filling for the freezer. I've found this makes it super easy when you have a craving for fresh ravioli. Simply mix up some pasta dough, roll it out and fill with your frozen mix. I'm usually lazy and just have it with burnt butter and sage sauce. We can have dinner on the table in 30 minutes (more if I'm patient enough to rest the dough properly). 

I need to sit down and plan for my autumn planting. Autumn is one of my favourite seasons to grow veg. It's a little cooler, often more rain and plants just seem happier. Summer is passionate and chaotic - boom or bust. Autumn is a pottering, pondering season. I prepared a second bed during the heat of summer in anticipation. The warm temperatures are perfect for kick starting a lasagne style garden bed, gets everything breaking down. So far all I've managed to plant in it is lots of basil. What are you planning for the next growing season?

News and Links

Hey there skillcyclers, it has been quite a while since I last posted. I wanted to say a quick hello and update you with a few bits and pieces. 

In the time that I've been away from this space, we have moved house and are setting up (rental) home in a little cottage on our own. Quite a process. One of the things I'm excited about is knowing EXACTLY what we own and only keeping those things that are useful or wanted and have a place in our home. My husband and I were sharing house for 20 or so months and it was easy to accumulate things in a large and rambling home and lose sight of what we had and where it was!!

Another thing I'm very excited about is that a friend of mine is looking to start Skillcycle in her own town. She's been chatting with friends and thought there was no point in re-inventing the wheel. This opens more possibilities for inspiring one another and seeing what clever skills another lot of people are interested in and have to offer.  So we'll keep you posted with these happenings. 

And, finally, I wanted to put up a link to a write up on Megan's blog, The Byron Life. Megan also contributes on Simple, Green, Frugal Co-op where you can read about all sorts of things to do with sustainability and simple living. Megan has just written an article about another clever woman, Rhonda Hetzel, her blog and her new book 'Down to Earth: A guide to simple living". Rhonda has an interesting story and has a huge change of heart and lifestyle. Worth checking out! Click HERE to go to the article. 

I'm also curious to know what you're reading or what events, groups and happenings you've been involved in that share similar values to Skillcycle?

~ Melania