It’s been a sleepy old month for the garden. At least, most of it has had a rest from me. I’ve begun the mammoth task of tidying up the horse arena beds (and paths), but rampant weeds are still mocking me whenever I dare look. The beds around the house are equally in need of a bit of attention. And the fruit trees are on a countdown to a serious haircut – awaiting a visit from chief-pruner Derryn.
An old outdoor toy box that we inherited when we moved here has been transformed into a cold frame by the talented Peter. We used to store outdoor toys in it, then as they became less used and less of them, it became storage for plant pots and other garden junk. Now the base shelf has been raised and it has a clear plastic lid. Fantastic - I've never had a cold frame before, and am sure that in the past I've created another level of transplant shock for millions of plants on numerous occasions. And yes, that is what passes for Peter dancing. It's as good as it gets...
There's still some grazing left for the stock, but we've started putting a bit of hay out, especially on frosty mornings. The cows really love their hay, but the sheep aren't bothered. It remains a mystery as to whether there will be the pitter patter of tiny hooves, though we live in hope. Walter has been spending some time with another flock of gorgeous girls. We’re looking forward to his triumphant return - hopefully his manhood will be proven quite soon.
The ginger foliage in Madame Cholet has finally died back. It won’t be dug up this year. Instead, there’s been a little bit of bandicooting, but most of the tubers will be left to grow again in summer. The barrel will be nourished with comfrey tea and compost. In spring the other barrel in there will be planted with turmeric.
Peter’s done some research on using the oven part of the woodstove. He came across instructions to empty the ashtray every 6 months. Um, what ashtray? Ah – that thing with the knob at the bottom, packed solid with ash that took several loads to clear out. It’s improved the heat emissions generally, and now we can get the oven to very hot temperatures. The instructions suggested that the thermometer may under-estimate the actual temperature, so we trialled a 'sacrificial' pizza that cooked in less than 5 minutes and was absolutely fabulous. The dial read 150 degrees celsius but it must have actually been well over 200. Then Peter surpassed himself with the best Yorkshire puddings he’s made in decades, and a magnificent Toad in the Hole. 
As the horse arena beds are gradually getting cleared, the gooseberry bed has reached the top of the priority list. The plants are getting very straggly and will probably be better suited to a new home directly in the ground, rather than a raised bed. I've been reading about gooseberry plants, and apparently, they are prone to hybridising. It looks like that's what's happened, as there were no green gooseberries in summer, only a couple of plants with big juicy desert berries, and several with small purple berries that were prolific and tasty enough, but more work to prepare because of their size. It’s a mammoth and very prickly task to dig them up, and I have the wounds to prove it. Once I got stuck in, it became clear that several new plants were growing from branches touching the ground, and there were places where their roots were collectively forming a very thick mat. Probably a good job I didn't wait any longer. The two plants that grew big fruit will be transplanted into another bed, and the rest will become compost. I’m thinking their vacant bed can become an edible flower garden.
The bees are still buzzing around, but I can only guess what’s happening inside. There are no dead bees at the hive entrances at least. There was lots of activity around the new split one sunny day. That nuc only had drone brood when last checked, so hope they’re planning a new queen for themselves rather than being robbed out. The miticide strips have been removed from all the colonies, and they all had plenty of food supplies. I’ll check again in a few weeks to make sure they’re still well enough fed, but otherwise all is pretty quiet on the bee front. The ApiNZ conference is coming up in a month, so I’m still managing to spend quite a lot of time immersed in bee-talk.
My ole mate Rachel was presenting at a conference in Sydney earlier in the month. Could I pop over and see her? Hell yes. I joined her for a long weekend, staying at the salubrious Travelodge Hotel in central Sydney. We did a walking/water-taxi trip around Sydney, taking in the harbour and Opera House, wandered around the Botanical Gardens lit up for the Vivid Festival of Lights, and spent a day mooching in 
Our baby Billy turned 18 on June 17th. We didn’t see or talk to him on the day as he’s on his Outward Bound course. We sent him a shoe box parcel of silly and food treaty stuff, and can’t wait to see and spoil him very soon. He wants a voucher to go sky-diving in Queenstown. Now that's a curious take on the old proverb about giving your child wings to fly!
