June 2025

 

Winter's definitely here.  We've had a lengthy cold and wet snap that is very un-Marlboroughian.  When there's even a little sunshine, it really feels warmer, even if it's still cold.  Can't complain because it IS winter, and maybe we're noticing it more because we're home more.  It's leaving very few, sometimes if any, functional gardening hours, so tasks have been chipped away at rather than completed.  

 I managed to clear the temporarily-overlaid weed mat from the 3 beds that are going to be permanently decommissioned.  Those beds need levelling and then replaced with brushed-off said weed mat to cover the whole area, including where hedges have been removed.  It's a dirty, sticky, and heavy job, but hopefully the slow and steady progress will pay off soon.  The zones will eventually be covered in gravel, as will the bare areas in the soon-to-be (but not soon enough) fruit cage.

My shoulder can't cope with too much of the same action so I've been spreading the load by keeping a few jobs on the go at the same time.  The mound of soil needs to be moved to the raised-higher beds in the horse arena that Peter is working on, along with the remaining compost from the big compost area.  There's still heaps of soil to go, but only a bit more compost is left.  I hope that my guess that there's about another 6-8 barrow loads isn't too much wishful thinking.  The compost bed will need some structural work before new compost material that's accumulating elsewhere in the garden can be transferred over.  

I've completed the easy task of weeding the tunnel house (both sides now) and spreading some well-rotted cow manure that Billy gathered while we were away.  It won't take much to make it seedling-ready in spring.  The repair to the plastic roof isn't totally holding out, but should be re-fixable when things dry out.

Karyn came round to help with orchard pruning (season 13, part 1) and good progress was made (thanks Karyn!).  Peter has been chopping down some of the orchard trees that don't provide us with fruit and are now big enough for firewood.  They include a flatto nectarine and 4 cherry trees which were a very foolish purchase several years ago - they're ex-commercial orchard trees, used to having the bejesus sprayed out of them and so don't produce a viable crop in an organic environment.  A double grafted apricot was also a foolish buy.  No need for double grafters when you have heaps of space, and when one graft dies off there's no pollinator.  It was a gnarly and characterful tree though, sad to see it go.

I acquired some limes from Tākaka, gifted a few and dehydrated the rest.  They should be good in gin one day.  Our own citrus is only just starting to colour up so probably won't be ready for a while yet.  Also dehydrated were Granny Smith apples, which I found on roadside stalls west of Nelson.  Karyn asked me to look out for them and I was surprised they were still available.  I'm down to the last few persimmons, and the final remaining crop to gather and process is the yacon, which I'm thinking of dehydrating into powder.  Sam and Molly brought their yacon crop and we peeled, blitzed and squeezed the juice out of them, then condensed the yacon liquid into syrup in a pan on the fire.  The syrup looks pretty disgusting, but it tastes ok and is allegedly a superfood. 

🐾 RIP Lexie

Sam and Molly's elderly greyhound, Lexie, developed cancer.  They knew the end was near and asked if she could be buried here on the property.  Sadly that day arrived (Matariki) and they drove up from Rolleston with her.  They chose a spot in the orchard and she's resting there in peace, below a newly planted greengage plum tree (Reine Claude du Bavay).  It's a beautiful spot for a beautiful dog. 

                  

                                                 

I'm heading back to Tākaka for the first July week, but my plan to keep chipping away at the garden has been thwarted by a huge ongoing storm that's spectacularly hitting the top of the South Island.  First a night of gusty gale force winds, then rain rain rain.  Many regional roads are closed from the Wairau River flooding and slips, but luckily the Onamalutu just held its banks at our place.  So whilst we have lakes and saturated ground, there's no moat or indoor river.  The rain's still coming today - no post-storm calm sunshine yet - but it looks like we're over the worst.  The main highway through to Tākaka has taken a big hit too, so fingers crossed it's accessible by Monday.  

 Bracken continues to be a very springy springer spaniel, absolutely full of energy and with boundless curiosity.  He adores hugging and being hugged and looooves having company at home, especially when visitors play with him.  Lucas and Laura are patiently awaiting the availability of their new house, delayed since February for 'red tape' reasons.  Hopefully there's been a little more progress recently.  Billy's still in Italy and planning to stay there a few more months.  He sent us more 'care packages' - aka food parcels full of UK delicacies like Bassetts Licorice Allsorts, wine gums, galaxy chocolate and heaps more.  

The UK is having a hot summer, so no surprises that we're having a fairly harsh winter here.  At least there's time and head space to make a few future plans.  I've decided to spend several months gathering funds and then head overseas to do some humanitarian midwifery work - something that I always thought I'd do before having a family.  No idea where or exactly when yet, but I'm confident that the best path will open when I'm ready. This quote from Mahatma Gandhi is a big inspiration: "The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others".   

May 2025

I've spent the last couple of weeks in Mohua (Golden Bay).  A work opportunity came up that was too good to turn down, and at a perfect time in terms of my shoulder healing.  Luckily a fairly good time to leave the garden to its winter slumber, though I wish the weeds also got that memo.  I suppose no hurry to sort them out.

             

Before I left, we managed to complete all the self-wicking beds.  No mean achievement given that there are 11 half-IBCs and 3 blue barrels, and each one took 5 full wheelbarrows of soil/compost.  It's been great to use up the delicious compost that's been sitting in the big compost bed since long before we went to Australia.  Heaps of topsoil is left over from the original raised beds that will have to find a home somewhere.  

The self-wicking beds are all planted up too.  2 are full of Karyn's strawberries, 2 have raspberries (self-supporting varieties), and the rest are accommodating whitecurrants, NZ cranberry (Chilean guava), gooseberries, redcurrant cuttings, and 3 blueberries in the half barrels.  Peter will grow spuds in 2 and breed White Cloud Mountain Minnows in another.  The last one is spare but probably not for long.  

                                   

The vege garden had been planted fairly late in spring, delayed by being out of NZ, but it's managed to crop reasonably well.  There are still perpetual leeks and walking onions, and the yacon is hanging in there until it succumbs to a big frost.  The Verdia is producing lettuces, greens and celery, and some herbs.  I bit the bullet and dug up the skirrets, not really knowing what I'd find.  Only a small crop but they were sweet, chewy, and tasty after being blanched and roasted in butter.  Probably not a big thing going forward for me, but I replanted the base plant so it can remain a curiosity for another season.  Gotta love a weird vegetable!  I decided to go ahead with a proper winter garden, and commandeered Karyn's bed, which had been emptied of its bounty and fertilised with compost.  There are now heaps of red onions, spinach, bok choy, beetroot, and mizuna seedlings planted up, and carrot and parsnip seeds sown.  I'm interested to see how well they grow, and therefore how worthwhile it is to create a future winter garden.  I won't plant garlic as it seems to find its own way into my flower garden.

The drive to Tākaka takes about 3.5 hours, and I included a recharge stop in Motueka to ensure the car made it over the Tākaka hill.  It's a long way for work, but a beautiful route and you could never tire of the view from the hill saddle, looking out over Tasman Bay and Golden Bay, both arms of the Tasman Sea.  

                    

                                             

I was staying in the gorgeous Ligar Bay, a few km along the coast from Pōhara.  It's a breathtakingly scenic route to the health facility in Tākaka, and includes a section of road crossed by Little Blue penguins.  I was lucky enough to come across a little blue whilst driving home from a birth one night.  There wasn't any other traffic so I could spend a while happily watching it.  The photos of Ligar Bay are taken from the site of the Abel Tasman monument.  Tasman was the first Pākehā to arrive in Aotearoa on 18th December, 1642.  The monument tells us that '...the story has been lost, with the passage of time, and the truth remains forever suspended in the seas of time'.

          

I revisited Te Waikoropupū Springs, where we'd been previously with Marcus and family many moons ago.  These are the largest freshwater springs in NZ and an extremely serene place to contemplate the meaning of life.  The springs are recognised for their spectacular colour and clarity, estimated at approx 76cms, close to that of optically pure water.  To local māori, Te Waikoropupū is a taonga (treasure) and is considered wahi tapu (sacred), to be held in high cultural and spiritual regard.  Legend has it that Waikoropupū is the home of Huriawa, one of three main taniwha of Aotearoa.  Huriawa is a diver of land and sea and is believed to rest beneath the surface of the springs.

                 

                                                 

On a day off, I took the road to Collingwood, which welcomed visitors that day with a double rainbow.  It's a quirky little place in a stunning location.  On my return journey, I stopped off at Milnthorpe Park Scenic Reserve on a tip-off from my colleague, Ruth.  It's a coastal conservation area featuring a network of walking tracks.  The photos show one of the wetland zones within the regenerating vegetation, and Milnthorpe Beach, just north of the Parapara Inlet.  It was an exquisitely beautiful walk, and getting lost just added to the joy.

 

Labyrinth Rocks Park was also a fab find. In a fairy-tale other-worldly location, maze-like pathways weave through gnarly limestone outcrops and lush native bush.  Locals hide little toys and figurines for children to scavenger hunt.  It's another place where getting lost is part of the experience.

I have been booked for a few more weeks of work here in Golden Bay - plenty of opportunity to see more of the local sights.  A couple of my old neighbours (and previous yoga buddies), Helen and Kate, moved to Pōhara with their respective partners.  Obviously, I bumped into Kate on day one as she works in the Primary Health unit too.  It was lovely to catch up with them both and will be good to see more of them when I'm back.  Such a small world!

Plans are afoot for my (special) birthday holiday in Rarotonga.  Where better than Aitutaki, the world's most beautiful lagoon, to celebrate the arrival of my sixth decade?  There are other activities like sea scooter snorkeling and paddle boarding to check out.  Researching the options is ramping up anticipatory excitement and providing a raison d'etre for those extra working hours, and it's great to have some happy sunshine to look forward to in winter 🌞

  

 

April 2025

Autumn is peaking, meaning fresh sunny days, longer chilly nights and glorious colours.  The last summer hues in flower form still lend their radiance to the colour scheme. Most mornings bring striking light and shade contrasts.  Lots of leaves await being swept up and the last of the season's crops are being consumed and processed.  There are a million other gardening jobs on the list, several of which require 2 functioning shoulders.    

                                                          

Luckily, I'm blessed with friends who are willing and able to help out.  Jane helped me with the heavy lifting part of wintering down the beehives.  I was suspicious that the middle of the 3 colonies wouldn't survive, and sure enough, no bees and no honey in that hive.  I didn't expect that the outside hive had suffered a similar fate, but there it was.  Lots of wasps were in it, but I don't know whether they created the demise or just invaded later for the spoils.  Happily, the last colony was proper buzzing.  It was inspected, and we inserted the miticide strips and ensured they had plenty of supplies for winter.  

              

Karyn has been a true garden fairy, trimming hedges and digging up corn stalks and weeds and numerous other little tasks along the way.  She also gifted some strawberry runners that had gone wild in her garden beds - 86 of them!  Several were squeezed into the Verdia, and the rest were planted separately for future transfer to a self-wicking bed. 

        Recently harvested crops have been sorted.  The quince tree didn't look healthy, but it still produced a good supply of big fruits.  They were peeled, sliced and blanched and are now in the freezer, likely to be used in smoothies.   There are 3 sweet chestnut trees on the property, 2 of which are big enough to produce abundant nuts, and the 3rd probably will join them next year.  Billy helped to pick them, climbing up into the trees to shake down as many as possible.   The fig tree is overloaded with fruit (again) and is still actively fruiting.  The tree is huge now, but will receive a Karyn-style haircut in winter.  The photo shows figs foraged from the 2 fig trees in the pocket park next to Sam and Molly's house.  The fig and ricotta with honey on toast was Ben's creation for Hayley's and my breakfast.  Yum!  

                                   

Feijoas are just starting to drop.  This year I'm down to one tree (from 4) so obviously expecting a smaller volume than usual.  Unfortunately, this is the first year the tree has underproduced volume-wise (of course), but the fruits are big and bonny.  The single bottle gourd will be seasoned and dried, then crafted into something fabulous.  Probably a musical instrument or a set of spoons.  When I work out how.

    Mushroom season is in full stride.  Molly kicked off with a very generous gift of Porcini mushrooms, harvested from her secret location that may or may not be military property.  I had plenty to pass on some of my stash to Craig, a fellow mushroom-lover.  Then Peter and Billy found field mushrooms in the paddock, and I've just devoured the Birch Boletes (Molly's favourites) from our driveway.  Molly's been my mushroom guru - I wouldn't eat any without her sage advice, and her enthusiasm is contagious.  

         

The last crops of the season are on their way.  The yacon and Baby Bear pumpkin are awaiting a decent frost - any day soon.  There are heaps of still-green persimmons that I heartily hope will turn into delicious orange lanterns in time.  And all the citrus trees - orange, mandarin, tangelo and lemon - are festooned with young fruit.  Karyn thinks the lemon could use more fertiliser, so off to Bunnings I'll go!  

                             

The newest compost pile in one of the garden beds is breaking down nicely, but is far from being closed down.  Hopefully, it'll make good base layers for the self-wicking beds when they're ready to be filled.  My shoulder is delaying progress on this as I'm not yet up to shovelling.  The soil pile created from the previous horse arena raised beds is now hosting a cracking patch of weeds that needs urgent attention.  They should be easy enough to pull up.  Peter wants to use some self-wicking beds for potatoes and for breeding White Cloud Mountain Minnows.  Research suggests they should work for these.

                                                  

The sheep are looking pretty awesome these days.  As in, they all shed their wool and not a bad hair day among them.  They do like to pose too.  Hawkesbury looks big enough to service his flock of ewes, so here's to the pitter-patter of tiny hooves later this year.  

                                                         

We took advantage of the eased outdoor fire restrictions (and Billy's muscles) to burn a whole heap of rubbish and random junk.  It was a quick and efficient fire and deeply satisfying to get rid of burnable stuff.  There is definitely more of a sense of less clutter around the place.

                       

Bumble bees continue to frequent the abutilon, diving in and out of the bright orange flowers and getting covered in pollen.  So cute, and such a shame they're reluctant to stay still for a photo.  The joy they bring is in stark contrast to the sight of wasps, which are also having a good year.

                                                   

The three 20-litre demijohns of wine (elderberry, rhubarb and cranberry) have been racked.  All are on the verge of being drinkable - definitely so far so good.  The next racking in a few weeks should provide a better prediction of potential quality, so fingers crossed they mature properly.  There's always the option of converting dodgy (or otherwise) wine into vodka with my new air still.  Just a case of getting round to learning how that works with a trial run.  Luckily, Molly can also be my spirit-guru.  Guessing I'll need all the help I can get.  

                                                        

Billy flew out of Christchurch, so I got to spend another few days there, staying with Lucas and Laura for a couple of nights, then with Hayley and Ben.  It was lovely to catch up with everyone, and there were no car dramas en route this time.  Billy landed safely in Munich and then headed into Italy, where he'll be au-pairing for the foreseeable - at least long enough to avoid the southern hemisphere winter.     

It's less than 3 weeks before my sick note runs out.  This non-working life thing is a bloody luxury that will be hard to relinquish when the time comes.  Fortunately, the world is my oyster for work opportunities, so maybe something will grab my attention.  In the meantime, there's always the lottery!