We've had a completely wonderful weekend away. Of course we forgot the camera, but at least we remembered the children, each other, nappies, sandfly repellent and beer, so nothing vital was missed out.
We walked into the Oparara Arches. I think they may be the most marvellous things I have ever seen. We forgot to bring the Ergo (baby carrier) and Brighid was asleep when we got there. But usefully, Favourite Handyman had bought a too big but very good bargain price oilskin vest at the market earlier in the day and he also had long spare straps in his pack. So we strapped Brighid onto my front using the vest worn zipped up over both of us with the strap tied very tightly around my back and underneath her bottom. It worked surprisingly well.
We stayed in cabins at the camping ground and as they are not yet busy, it was perfect for the children. We went with friends so four adults and four children and we all loved it.
We had dinner on the beach (sausages and marshmallows cooked on the spot of course) and checked out various coffee and liquor establishments as well as making our own back at the camping ground.
On the way back today we stopped at Granity where they had a fun day. Fionn got his face painted, we admired many crafts and I bought some gorgeous homespun and home dyed wool (just a small amount, I'm not quite giving up my rule on not buying more wool before the last project is being worn). I thought it was a gorgeous hippy paradise and Favourite Handyman pointed out to me that it is also a coalmining town. No doubt that makes for some tension and in that it is a microcosm of the entire West Coast of New Zealand's South Island.
Next stop was Punakaiki where we stopped for an early feed and drink at the tavern there. The life size replica horses (carrying beer to the pub in the 'old days')out the front are always popular for playing on in our family and today was no exception. We took a walk down to the beach and collected some more seaweed. No I can never have too much seaweed!
In several places I got to have a close look at some permaculture-style home gardens. I admired the gorgeous cacti garden at Rongo backpackers, as well as having a closer look at his raised beds with sand paths in between them. He used drift wood and found stones to create a maze of probably a dozen raised beds. Then we called in to see the people at Atawhai Farm. I've met Bill once before when I bought garlic from him but no one was home when we called in today. Nevertheless, I still got to have a good look at the garden bordering the drive up to his house. At both Atawhai Farm and later at Granity, I saw tunnel houses which had wind break cloth for the first half or two thirds of the walls and then after that plastic, which also stretched over the top. So good ventilation and also the warmth of the plastic roof. Given the rainfall in the area, also some control over the flooding aspect. We are now talking about implementing this idea at our place.
We also talked about art a bit in the weekend and watched the five year olds make wonderful pictures. So far at our current home, my energies have almost all gone outside, on the garden. But I'm now thinking of painting the plain chipboard behind the fire deep deep red and putting lots of Fionn's pictures and our photos on the walls. This summer.
The entire trip was wonderful. We're planning to go back in January, with our tents.
Sunday, December 14, 2008
Thursday, December 11, 2008
compost
Today our friend who works as groundsperson at our local high school delivered a trailer load of grass clippings. She is bringing another tomorrow. Wonderful for the compost.
I then realised I still hadn't moved all of the seaweed from the wheelbarrow, where it has been steeped in water for at least a fortnight. It turns out that some kind of insect larvae is now wiggling round in it. It is all dumped on the garden for the moment, and I hope we haven't unleashed some crazy breeder onto our garden environment. Presumably (and hopefully), this water-based insect will not survive on land.
I then realised I still hadn't moved all of the seaweed from the wheelbarrow, where it has been steeped in water for at least a fortnight. It turns out that some kind of insect larvae is now wiggling round in it. It is all dumped on the garden for the moment, and I hope we haven't unleashed some crazy breeder onto our garden environment. Presumably (and hopefully), this water-based insect will not survive on land.
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
I can do it
I can do it and I will do it. It is true that our very high rainfall and short season summer make gardening challenging at times. Sometimes challenging equates to many things dying, or failing to thrive. My plans for eating our own fruit have been thwarted somewhat. The first lemon tree died and the second one has had a hard life but I do see a couple of new leaves, so still alive. The blueberries lost their berries and one of the two bushes looks very unwell. The blackcurrants are alive and have a few currants on them. They are up the best drained end of the section. The feijoas seem fine but no flowers. At least I have two this year.
So all the fruit needs to be moved to the highest end of the section. And nourished a lot. The glasshouse when we build it needs to go where the old chook run garden currently as. It needs to be raised off the ground quite a lot and have well drained (deepish shingle or bark or sawdust) paths all around it.
The garden along the back of the house grew us some lovely tomatoes last year. The part of it where I mixed in some blood and bone, lime and seaweed is growing quite well - I have a broccoli forming a head there. A head! First time in years. But the poor raspberry, even though I encircled it in seaweed, is definitely not happy. The onions are doing okay there but not fabulously. Though of course at least they are alive which is more than I could say for my onion attempts last year.
So last night I weeded and pulled out the flower bulbs which were still in the ground. I now have a blank patch of over a metre long (and perhaps 6ocm deep back to the house) with nothing in it except one tiny maori potato which has just peeked through. That could push it's way up through more soilish items though. It is time for intensive help. I think the biggest probelm over and above the wet is that the very large tree which is not far away from this garden bed has roots extending down into this garden. Deepish roots for the most part and if I raise the bed up with lots of nutrient-intensive material, I should get noticeable improvement. My fingers aren't crossed because then I can't type, but in my mind I have many things crossed.
I've got sheep poo, sheep dags ground into a soil conditioner, seaweed, blood and bone and pea straw all on hand. I'll have to check the state of the last batch of compost because it would be great if that was ready to use as well. I want to raise the soil by 10 cm and then put pea straw on top of that.
My kefir is still alive. I'm hoping that if I leave it in a coolish place (i.e not the hot water cupboard like I have been), then it will be okay to leave unstrained and unrefreshed by more milk for 2-3 days.
Why? Because we are going on holiday this weekend. Holiday. Holiday! To Karamea for two nights. I am so excited. Karamea is still on the West Coast and it still could rain but it is a very beautiful place that I have wanted to go back to (last went as a child) ever since we moved to smallwettown almost three years ago.
So all the fruit needs to be moved to the highest end of the section. And nourished a lot. The glasshouse when we build it needs to go where the old chook run garden currently as. It needs to be raised off the ground quite a lot and have well drained (deepish shingle or bark or sawdust) paths all around it.
The garden along the back of the house grew us some lovely tomatoes last year. The part of it where I mixed in some blood and bone, lime and seaweed is growing quite well - I have a broccoli forming a head there. A head! First time in years. But the poor raspberry, even though I encircled it in seaweed, is definitely not happy. The onions are doing okay there but not fabulously. Though of course at least they are alive which is more than I could say for my onion attempts last year.
So last night I weeded and pulled out the flower bulbs which were still in the ground. I now have a blank patch of over a metre long (and perhaps 6ocm deep back to the house) with nothing in it except one tiny maori potato which has just peeked through. That could push it's way up through more soilish items though. It is time for intensive help. I think the biggest probelm over and above the wet is that the very large tree which is not far away from this garden bed has roots extending down into this garden. Deepish roots for the most part and if I raise the bed up with lots of nutrient-intensive material, I should get noticeable improvement. My fingers aren't crossed because then I can't type, but in my mind I have many things crossed.
I've got sheep poo, sheep dags ground into a soil conditioner, seaweed, blood and bone and pea straw all on hand. I'll have to check the state of the last batch of compost because it would be great if that was ready to use as well. I want to raise the soil by 10 cm and then put pea straw on top of that.
My kefir is still alive. I'm hoping that if I leave it in a coolish place (i.e not the hot water cupboard like I have been), then it will be okay to leave unstrained and unrefreshed by more milk for 2-3 days.
Why? Because we are going on holiday this weekend. Holiday. Holiday! To Karamea for two nights. I am so excited. Karamea is still on the West Coast and it still could rain but it is a very beautiful place that I have wanted to go back to (last went as a child) ever since we moved to smallwettown almost three years ago.
Soooooooooooooooo
Favourite Handyman is missing in action, last seen in the pub.
Brighid has just emptied all of my new lettuce seedlings onto the ground. She sorted things efficiently - seedlings on the ground and the soil in her wheelbarrow.
Fionn is writing Christmas cards. Someone has to be good Christmas person round here and it turns out that this year it is Fionn.
My lovely friend Caroline visited today. I gave heaps of tiny baby-sized nappies and wraps to her son and his partner and we took a tour of the garden, admiring progress since Caroline's last visit. But the less exciting news is there isn't much hope for my raspberry plant. It has been in the soil since mid-April and is still less than 10 centimetres high. Perhaps it needs a different home. I'll be getting the fruit growing book out for more ideas later tonight. Out the front I showed Caroline my pumpkins and she advised against growing pumpkins in this part of the country. Not hot enough apparently.
But my borage is looking beautiful, quite ethereal. I'd love to have drifts of it throughout a curvy garden filled with flowers and herbs and vegetables.
But right now the children are falling apart and so I'll have to leave thoughts of dreamy garden vistas for another time.
Brighid has just emptied all of my new lettuce seedlings onto the ground. She sorted things efficiently - seedlings on the ground and the soil in her wheelbarrow.
Fionn is writing Christmas cards. Someone has to be good Christmas person round here and it turns out that this year it is Fionn.
My lovely friend Caroline visited today. I gave heaps of tiny baby-sized nappies and wraps to her son and his partner and we took a tour of the garden, admiring progress since Caroline's last visit. But the less exciting news is there isn't much hope for my raspberry plant. It has been in the soil since mid-April and is still less than 10 centimetres high. Perhaps it needs a different home. I'll be getting the fruit growing book out for more ideas later tonight. Out the front I showed Caroline my pumpkins and she advised against growing pumpkins in this part of the country. Not hot enough apparently.
But my borage is looking beautiful, quite ethereal. I'd love to have drifts of it throughout a curvy garden filled with flowers and herbs and vegetables.
But right now the children are falling apart and so I'll have to leave thoughts of dreamy garden vistas for another time.
baked beans
The baked beans made from scratch were fairly successful. I will be playing around with the ingredients a little to get the best taste - not entirely sure about the amount of molasses in this batch. I've put two dinner's worth in the freezer. Now all need to know is several hours in advance that I will not want to cook proper dinner and then I'll have beans for dinner which are not from a can. Though the home made ones really suited being eaten with rice which does make it a two pot meal. Which then counts as proper cooking.
The kefir is still alive. I've been drinking the drained kefir milk each morning.
It stopped raining for a while last night. I transplanted five lettuces from the seed raising punnet into individual pots. They can grow like that on the outside table for another fortnight or so until they are big enough that slugs will not devour them whole in one evening. I weeded a bit in the old chook run where there are still plenty of weed seeds which germinated when I transplanted the bay trees into this garden. Then I mulched with pea straw. The Maori potatoes which I planted all over the place are coming up - mostly in places where I forgot about them and planted something else there as well. I also staked some peas which have grown in the old chook run out of the mulch. Maybe we will get more peas out of this wild batch as we've only had three pods' worth out of all the carefully sown, bought pea seeds which I started off months ago.
I'll be thinking of my Mum's family this week as they bury my Great Aunt Shirley. My Great Uncle Ron died just days before we left for the UK, when we were already in Auckland ready to fly out. I lit candles for him in Ireland where we visited just two months later and I never made the time to let Shirley know this. She was on my list for visiting next time we go to Christchurch. I used to visit Ron and Shirley when I was a student in Christchurch. My brother and I biked around there for lunch one day when he was still at boarding school. Later I got lazy and caught the bus. Ron, a skilled handyman like all of the men in my Mum's family, kindly fixed our student flat washing machine many times. Shirley was a tiny woman, always very neat, who looked after her father in law, my great grandfather, with great love and care in his last days. Rest in Peace Shirley. May your faith give you strength and your presence stay warm in the hearts of your children.
The kefir is still alive. I've been drinking the drained kefir milk each morning.
It stopped raining for a while last night. I transplanted five lettuces from the seed raising punnet into individual pots. They can grow like that on the outside table for another fortnight or so until they are big enough that slugs will not devour them whole in one evening. I weeded a bit in the old chook run where there are still plenty of weed seeds which germinated when I transplanted the bay trees into this garden. Then I mulched with pea straw. The Maori potatoes which I planted all over the place are coming up - mostly in places where I forgot about them and planted something else there as well. I also staked some peas which have grown in the old chook run out of the mulch. Maybe we will get more peas out of this wild batch as we've only had three pods' worth out of all the carefully sown, bought pea seeds which I started off months ago.
I'll be thinking of my Mum's family this week as they bury my Great Aunt Shirley. My Great Uncle Ron died just days before we left for the UK, when we were already in Auckland ready to fly out. I lit candles for him in Ireland where we visited just two months later and I never made the time to let Shirley know this. She was on my list for visiting next time we go to Christchurch. I used to visit Ron and Shirley when I was a student in Christchurch. My brother and I biked around there for lunch one day when he was still at boarding school. Later I got lazy and caught the bus. Ron, a skilled handyman like all of the men in my Mum's family, kindly fixed our student flat washing machine many times. Shirley was a tiny woman, always very neat, who looked after her father in law, my great grandfather, with great love and care in his last days. Rest in Peace Shirley. May your faith give you strength and your presence stay warm in the hearts of your children.
Monday, December 8, 2008
kefir learning
An update on my growing things inside menagerie. I have been googling and have found some information on kefir from a very enthusiastic man called Dom. I've joined a yahoo group of making kefir as well. Now I need to read at least some of the messages.
Today I drank some of the kefir drink which you strain off the grains and I liked it. A very pleasant way to substitute for expensive probiotics from the health food shop. My grains seem to be growing and I've transferred them to a larger jar and added more milk. That's three days I've kept them alive for now.
I used the chicken stock to make risotto for dinner. When we were a gluten free, egg free household, we had risotto every week. I still like it, but I love having more options on the dinner front. I used the first zucchinis of this season in the risotto. From my own garden of course. This year I have an heirloom kind called costata romanesco which has a ribbed outer. I do apologise that that sounds like a description of the fancier kind of condoms. My zucchinis were very nice and I look forward to many more this season. From my one plant. The others died.
I've just finished making up the baked beans recipe and have put it in the slow cooker to cook overnight. I had to adapt it a bit for the slow cooker and for the unhelpful measures in the recipe. It is the first time I have cooked from my Sally Fallon book, Nourishing Traditions and I have a couple of niggles. A "small can of tomato paste" is not a helpful measure in an internationally marketed book. Not that it mattered too much as we had no tomato paste of any kind in the house and I snaffled a jar of pasta sauce from the charity Christmas giving bag to use instead. I used some apple cider vinegar and presumed rather hopefully that it would not matter that it is three years old. My other niggle is that a cup is not the easiest way to measure sticky liquids like maple syrup and molasses. By standing on chairs and searching behind the old kitchen chippy chimney, I managed to find our maple syrup and molasses. I hope this recipe is yummy, as it could be the answer to using up more things which have collected in my cupboard. The odd ingredients retirement home needs an overhaul.
I bought a gingerbread man cutter because I have this probably overblown, optimistic idea that Fionn and I will make gingerbread men and send up to his whanau (extended family) up north for that day.
I sneaked a bit of weeding in before it started to rain this morning. Christy I am sorry that your garden is dry. I am feeling like we can't possibly live in the same country - there has been absolutely no need to water here and our garden produce is a long way behind yours. My raspberry plant is still only ten centimetres high. But I did find an actual fruit as differentiated from merely some flowers on one tomato plant this morning. So there is hope.
Today I drank some of the kefir drink which you strain off the grains and I liked it. A very pleasant way to substitute for expensive probiotics from the health food shop. My grains seem to be growing and I've transferred them to a larger jar and added more milk. That's three days I've kept them alive for now.
I used the chicken stock to make risotto for dinner. When we were a gluten free, egg free household, we had risotto every week. I still like it, but I love having more options on the dinner front. I used the first zucchinis of this season in the risotto. From my own garden of course. This year I have an heirloom kind called costata romanesco which has a ribbed outer. I do apologise that that sounds like a description of the fancier kind of condoms. My zucchinis were very nice and I look forward to many more this season. From my one plant. The others died.
I've just finished making up the baked beans recipe and have put it in the slow cooker to cook overnight. I had to adapt it a bit for the slow cooker and for the unhelpful measures in the recipe. It is the first time I have cooked from my Sally Fallon book, Nourishing Traditions and I have a couple of niggles. A "small can of tomato paste" is not a helpful measure in an internationally marketed book. Not that it mattered too much as we had no tomato paste of any kind in the house and I snaffled a jar of pasta sauce from the charity Christmas giving bag to use instead. I used some apple cider vinegar and presumed rather hopefully that it would not matter that it is three years old. My other niggle is that a cup is not the easiest way to measure sticky liquids like maple syrup and molasses. By standing on chairs and searching behind the old kitchen chippy chimney, I managed to find our maple syrup and molasses. I hope this recipe is yummy, as it could be the answer to using up more things which have collected in my cupboard. The odd ingredients retirement home needs an overhaul.
I bought a gingerbread man cutter because I have this probably overblown, optimistic idea that Fionn and I will make gingerbread men and send up to his whanau (extended family) up north for that day.
I sneaked a bit of weeding in before it started to rain this morning. Christy I am sorry that your garden is dry. I am feeling like we can't possibly live in the same country - there has been absolutely no need to water here and our garden produce is a long way behind yours. My raspberry plant is still only ten centimetres high. But I did find an actual fruit as differentiated from merely some flowers on one tomato plant this morning. So there is hope.
Sunday, December 7, 2008
projects
It's like a menagerie, all the slow cooked, from scratch cooked, fermented, fermenting, soaking foods in this house.
Today I made bread which I had risen yesterday.
I strained the whey off the kefir which I am now growing indefinitely. Is 'growing' the correct term? Maybe culturing, maybe just looking after. Then I added more milk. I have a pile of things to learn about kefir, unhelped by the fact that never ever ever have I had a face to face conversation with anyone who has 'grown' kefir.
I put navy beans (which are white not blue) on to soak so that I can have a crack at making baked beans from scratch tomorrow.
I made ginger bread loaf which didn't involve any fancy waiting and soaking. It comes from the Edmonds Cookbook which is a salve for any kiwi in need of certainties in mad times of growing grains in milk and watching the world economy disintegrate. Tasted good.
I roasted a free range chicken which was on special. The level of ridiculous guilt and guilty ideas I had around this blasted chicken is so huge that some time I shall devote a special post to exactly how the greenies have taken over Catholicism's special hold on guilt. Now the chicken bones are in the slow cooker together with onions, carrots, bay leaves and parsley. And water. Making stock.
I made yoghurt. Or I put yoghurt starter in the easiyo machine. I haven't got a proper make the yoghurt from old yoghurt thing going but using the sachets is cheaper and more home made and creates less packaging waste than relying on bought, ready made yoghurt.
I bought some ingredients to make biscuits and to make ginger beer and I considered making radish and alfalfa sprouts but really enough is enough. I have two children, one husband and three chooks to care for without all this moving grooving food stuff as well.
Other useful things which I did today include planting out six celery seedlings, weeding and trimming the edges of lawn beside logs which are in turn edging and raising the garden beds. I also kept the children alive which was quite an accomplishment.
Today I made bread which I had risen yesterday.
I strained the whey off the kefir which I am now growing indefinitely. Is 'growing' the correct term? Maybe culturing, maybe just looking after. Then I added more milk. I have a pile of things to learn about kefir, unhelped by the fact that never ever ever have I had a face to face conversation with anyone who has 'grown' kefir.
I put navy beans (which are white not blue) on to soak so that I can have a crack at making baked beans from scratch tomorrow.
I made ginger bread loaf which didn't involve any fancy waiting and soaking. It comes from the Edmonds Cookbook which is a salve for any kiwi in need of certainties in mad times of growing grains in milk and watching the world economy disintegrate. Tasted good.
I roasted a free range chicken which was on special. The level of ridiculous guilt and guilty ideas I had around this blasted chicken is so huge that some time I shall devote a special post to exactly how the greenies have taken over Catholicism's special hold on guilt. Now the chicken bones are in the slow cooker together with onions, carrots, bay leaves and parsley. And water. Making stock.
I made yoghurt. Or I put yoghurt starter in the easiyo machine. I haven't got a proper make the yoghurt from old yoghurt thing going but using the sachets is cheaper and more home made and creates less packaging waste than relying on bought, ready made yoghurt.
I bought some ingredients to make biscuits and to make ginger beer and I considered making radish and alfalfa sprouts but really enough is enough. I have two children, one husband and three chooks to care for without all this moving grooving food stuff as well.
Other useful things which I did today include planting out six celery seedlings, weeding and trimming the edges of lawn beside logs which are in turn edging and raising the garden beds. I also kept the children alive which was quite an accomplishment.
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