December 2011

Summer doesn't really want to come, but at least we had some ok days before year end...


These were a nice surprise. Got them 2 years ago for $1 at Mitre 10, because they were almost dead, and had one tiny leaf left. I had no idea what they were or would look like, and after two summers of a short time of small leaves and then dying again, suddenly we got those beautiful red flowers!


Our beloved spa pool (in the background) broke, and it wasn't possible to be fixed. We were looking online everywhere, but couldn't find another inflatable one. Eventually, there were two on TradeMe. The first one we got out-bid, and the second one we got (for even less ;-). And we can enjoy our daily (or twice-daily, or thrice-daily) soak again - yay! The old one I relocated to a spot next to the sheds, and I just use it to catch and store rain water, so that I don't have to tap into our drinking water when watering the plants...


Another evidence of the superfast growth! I LOVE the agaves!




The pohutukawas are exactly one year old now. They are quite wind-battered, but had some nice flowers around Christmas again! These are hardy plants that grow in coastal areas. It was so stormy up there that the wires and stakes broke. I just let them grow crooked now, shaped by the natural forces...


The toi toi grass grows nicely as well :)


I bought a little pot of rosemary in the supermarket for a lamb dish a while ago, then just planted the remaining little thing into the planter box - and now it is massive. I will plant more of those and enjoy fresh rosemary all the time :)


Before the big weeding session!




I weeded out the totally overgrown tomato bed, and planted new tomato plants there. The weather was very bad, with lots of rain and strong winds. Certainly not nice for the delicate young plants. We will see if they'll survive...


You now my favourite already...and it keeps growing ;-)


Click & Clack before the weeding session!

October 2011

Gee, after a very very very rainy spring and summer, we haven't been up much, and the warm'ish rain made everything grow like mad - especially the weeds and grass!


grass!


weeds!


that was my tomato bed!!!

A major weeding and cutting session helped (see next blog)!


The aloe had funny flowers. Sadly, I was overseas when they were out :(


The bane of my life! These guys and the stink beetles are eating just about everything. And we have thousands of both - snails in wet/winter time, stink beetles in dry/summer time!


Wasps were building everywhere! Here on an agave.


Huey, Louis and Dewey grew a lot! Is it a myth that goldfish never outgrow their tank/pond? I have the suspicion it is an old wife's tale, and I will soon have to think about a larger pond...

May 2011

It is winter in NZ and not much is happening at the bach. But we still go up every second or third weekend, if the weather is not too bad.


A noisy night time visitor...




Visitors I am more worried about! After last year's two times where the neighbour's two cows vandalised the land and ate off many of my plants, I can't have them far enough away (or behind a sturdy fence). They look cute though...


Double rainbow




The spa pool is best in winter! Nothing better to soak in the 40 degree hot water when it is cold outside :)


Remember this story? One of the first plants we got up there. Look at this and this ! I just love that palm tree, and can't wait for it to grow tall...


Another before and after. Here is how it looked when I planted them after the Agaves ate off what was in the planter box...

January - March 2011

It's been a year since I last updated this blog. The long time in between was mostly because I need to reduce my PC time to a minimum due to a very bad shoulder. But I think if I won't do it now, I'll never do it...


cleaning the guttering from tons of pine needles


We decided to spent New Year's Evening at the bach, since the weather was amazing, and we just wanted to enjoy a few quiet days. For New Year's Eve we got some nice steak for the BBQ, nice wine, and had a fire going. Bach time at its best!












my cauliflower just shot up like mad (so did the broccoli) and ended up unusable. Any idea why? I asked gardeners and they wouldn't have a clue :(




the tomato plants kept growing like mad!


Summer!


One weekend Tia came with us :)


This big moth enjoyed the cool side of the pond


Early summer morning, before the sun burnt off the cloud layer


Harvest time!


Our loot: 3.5kg of yummy tomatoes!


And chillies on the window sill at home


Neil roasted 1.5kg of the tomatoes and made an amazing pasta sauce...


...and I used 2kg and some chillies to make a chutney.



It was my first ever attempt at making chutney, and - in all modesty - it was the best I have ever eaten! We finally ran out of it, and Neil keeps telling me that I need to make another batch...


Snack before dinner: Our own chutney and pickled cucumbers, with cheese long red peppers and our own tomatoes...




Early morning (and not photo-shopped!)!


Great morning light


Some strange insect


The aloes from Tracey are growing shoots everywhere now!




The last small harvest of the season...