Cooler weather

The weather has cooled down - especially at night. Little if any rain - but cooler anyway. The flowers love it when there is consistent weather and it has been for a while. Warm days and cool nights and the flowers are really blooming well at the moment.

They are so healthy - which means a bit of leaf culling otherwise the baby buds just don't get through to sunshine and fresh air - they get trapped in the undergrowth and often wither and die quickly, or at least if they do make their way up through the thick foliage the stems are crooked.

That does mean that Miss A scores them for her outside flower market - she did well last Thursday, but business was not good on Saturday, but then the light rain shower sent the little troup inside and not to return. Thursday seems to be the best day for the roadside market.

Future of Gough Hill Farm

We love the flowers and so do the grandchildren. They think they will always live at the Gerbera Farm, but both families (the adults anyway) are considering other options right now. The drought limits any expansion, and some of us have new jobs which is really taxing.

We have someone looking at taking it over. We'll wait and see.

The flower above is one of the most popular of our flowers. Any "hot pink" sells well. They are a lovely flower, but have periods when their stems are very bendy. The flower is usually perfect, but we and the florists prefer long straight stems.

Gerbera picking day

It is Saturday - picking day. I'm up a little early - before the sun. I can see a faint glow through the trees. I can hear the magpies and crows. The sky is cloudy - we do hope for rain.

So many folk ask how we manage in the drought - it is hard as we have to use all town water unless it rains, and it costs money. Rain is free. We have a Brisbane City Council Water Efficiency Management Plan, so are authorised to use the water from the city pipes. At the moment.

We still are at a crossroads. We'd like to move on. It has become so difficult with the water situation.

We have a few ideas and this week I will be approaching an organisation to consider taking it over. We will see.

Meanwhile - it is picking today. We'll go to the hothouses about 6.30 am today.

Our Dream

Early in the business life of Gough Hill Farm we had big ideas that we now know will not come to fruition. At least not with us at the helm, as things stand right now.

With the lack of water in the South East Queensland area, we are rethinking our strategy and three of the four partners are thinking of careers in other directions.

However, there is a little hope that our dream might come to be. Another organisation is considering some other options and we are going to drop informtion about Gough Hill Farm into the mix. Just maybe something will become of it. Just maybe.

At the moment we are at a crossroads. I'll keep you posted.