November 2019

I’ve been a pretty fraudulent lifestyle blocker this month.  Anyone would think there was nothing to do outside.  The end of academic year madness has taken its toll on available outdoor working hours, and when combined with rampant spring growth, the to-do list has become somewhat overwhelming.  That slightly frenzied realization that putting some tasks off will only make them more monumental has become a persistent voice. The only effective silencing strategy is denial, and that can only happen if you don’t look.  Luckily the weather gods have done most of my watering, though obviously Madame Cholet did need some input and we’ve just entered a dry spell. Our neighbour, Craig, has made a start on the driveway by clearing the old pittosporum hedge, and work has been started on the bathroom (quiet yahoo!). So at least there’s an illusion that things are happening.  The stunning blossom of the tulip tree and delicate aubergine flowers are reminders that beauty (and productivity) is in the eye of she who dares to look beyond the untidiness.

The bathroom has been stripped, de-walled and re-walled, gibbed, plumbed and swept. We’ll paint the walls and ceiling white (too hard to choose a colour) after they’ve been sealed, the floor tiles will go in and the new bathroom will re-appear. By the end of the month apparently. It’s the first big home improvement project we’ve done in the house and I’m really looking forward to soaking away the aches and pains of a day grafting on the land in the new bath.


The sleepout has been pretty quiet, though it’s quite a

relief to not add the extra housework that usually entails. It’s blocked out for most of December and January anyway, to accommodate Lucas and Sam and Auntie Sally over the summer hols. The tea hedge is coming away nicely except for a couple of plants that have always struggled. I should have taken some autumn cuttings in case they completely lose the will to live, but will have to put that on my next autumn list. The wisteria is beautiful and has several delightfully scented flowers for the first time. The citrus trees are all healthy and I’m making a serious mental note here and now to remember to water them.

Our piglets-to-be have arrived on the planet and are currently next door with their mum Polly.  She had a big litter, but unfortunately, not all survived.  We're expecting 4 gorgeously grunty piggy bundles to take up residence in our pig run later in December.  We went to meet them when they were only a couple of days old and Molly had the happy privilege of a cuddle.

Elderflowers are blooming in vast quantities.  I started with a double batch of Elderflower Cordial, then found a recipe for Elderflower Gin.  It needed to steep for a week and then strained.  The resulting concoction is quite special and there was no doubt that a follow up was necessary.  So Elderflower Gin mark 2 is currently steeping, alongside the Rhubarb Gin - the recipe of which I found whilst looking for the Elderflower Gin.  I do need to find other uses for rhubarb which grows in abundance here.  I'm likely to rule out Gene Logsdon's rhubarb suggestion, as outlined in: "Gardening in the Nude (or New Use for Rhubarb)".  Too much of a sunburn risk in the NZ climate.


Peter has been clearing the front driveway area and has chopped down a number of trees.  The photo shows it in all its ugly glory right now.  Hopefully, it'll make a joyful 'before' photo in the fullness of time.  Our firewood pile for next season will be an intriguing assortment of woods including pine, willow, cabbage tree, elders, NZ wineberry, kowhai and the pittosporum.  It'll be interesting to see how each of them burns.  

He has also been busy building my Christmas present.  The wine barrel top bar hive is now triumphantly complete and awaiting its first occupants.  It's truly an item of beauty and I'm optimistic that it'll give much pleasure in its lifetime.  I'm hoping to find a swarm as it'll be difficult to introduce bees in any other way.  I've been doing my homework on how to manage a top bar, and I'm pretty sure I'll run into a few problems along the way.  Lucky that bees usually know what they're doing.

The flower gardens at the back of the house are really starting to fill up and are an eclectic riot of colour.  The lemonwood hedge is providing a lovely backdrop, and the new Ash and Robinia trees are adding some height and dimension.  The bed beyond the pizza oven is also looking mature and less weedy.  I acquired another placenta (for student teaching) that is respectfully buried under a red hot geranium, and when I was digging the hole I spotted my favourite rescue plant that I'd thought was lost.  It's a Himalayan blue poppy (meconopsis betonicifolia) and is in flower (singular - but it's a start).  It was like finding treasure.  The stretch of natives at the side of the house is also looking more robust, and most of it seems to have survived winter.  The bottle brush tree (gift from Lucas a couple of years ago) is particularly beautiful right now.

The vegetables are growing away, and lettuce, beetroot and asparagus are ready for the table.  Rabbit damage has been quite severe, this year with a particular preference for beans.  I planted runners, yellow bush, borlotti and soybeans, but hardly any of them are left.  I have no idea why they have taken such a hit this year.  The peas and corn are fantastic, and most other edibles are at least promising.  The need to weed is ongoing, but I'll be keeping the beds with mature vege plants unweeded, so that the weeds can protect them and the soil from the sun and drying out.  It looks quite messy, and sometimes I'm guilty of over-using the sun protection excuse.  Just not getting around to weeding is a much lesser excuse on the scale of crappy excuses, so it's one I avoid especially when talking to myself. 

The strawberry and herb beds have survived their weedmat experience (mostly) and are showing early signs of crop potential.  The un-weedmatted beds will probably have to wait until Autumn before hitting the priority list, but they won't come to any harm in so doing.  The rabbits have dug up all the sage plants, for some inexplicable reason.  I'll eventually get round to sorting that out, but in the meantime there a couple of sage plants in the garage herb garden.  Perhaps those dastardly rabbits have found a recipe for sage-beans.

We finally got round to liming after a longer break than it ought to have been.  Just the 3 paddocks at the side and back of the property that weren't limed at the previous liming because the contractor accidentally doubled the volume he'd spread on the other side of the property.  Now that the lime is down we're hoping for rain, but the forecast seems to be indicating wall-to-wall sunshine for the foreseeable.  Guess we ought to be careful what we wish for.   


It was dad's birthday on November 21st and I sent some flowers his way via the Onamalutu River.  I sometimes manage to get to Karaka Point in the Marlborough Sounds, where we scattered some of his ashes in the sea.  He'd have been delighted to see the historic celebrations when the Tuia 250 flotilla arrived in Picton at the weekend.  
The event commemorates 250 years since the first onshore meetings between Māori – the tangata whenua of Aotearoa New Zealand – and Pākehā in 1769–70. Tuia 250 also celebrates the voyaging heritage of Pacific people that led to the settlement of Aotearoa New Zealand many generations before.

I have leave next week that should provide some time to think about Christmas plans as well as get to grips with the garden and clean the house.  Yeah right.  The house thing is probably going to fall off the radar as usual, but probably it'll be fine and I'll be the only one worrying about it.  UK parcels have already been delivered, just a Switzerland parcel for Billy remains outstanding.  31-degrees today, so summer is hot on our heels.  Another beautiful day in paradise.