Art for Heart's Sake

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This is John testing out the Blogsy app on his iPad

 

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Hi this is just a test post, trying out john's iPad. Smiles...

Rosehips!

Hi, it's leap day here today (29th) and it always feels a bit strange to be having an extra day in February.  I'm sure there are a lot of people celebrating their ''real'' birthday today!

Yesterday I was doing more weeding when I realised a rugosa rose near the glasshouse had quite a load of ripe rosehips on it.  As you know I love these old roses, not only for their fragrance but because they produce the most luscious hips (giggle.. no, not bodily ones!).

This rose is rather special because it popped up as a seedling in my garden in Island Bay, Wellington in the late 1990's and when I moved from there I took it with me.   I think my sister babysat it when I was in Singapore for two years and then it was transported down here from the North Island (along with quite a lot of other plants) when we moved in.  It is a cross between Rugosa ''Frau Dagmar Hastrup'' and ''Scabrosa'' and is very pretty.  It does tend to sucker which can sometimes happen with rose seedlings.

I have eaten rosehips straight from my bushes in the past and apart from all the seeds they are really quite delicious.  I decided to try my hand at rosehip syrup so I picked the hips and simmered them for around 20 minutes, mashed them and then put them into my jelly bag to strain overnight.  Needless to say I don't have a HUGE amount of juice but it will make enough for us to get a few tastes of it. 

It was a chilly day yesterday and it spat with rain off and on all day which was really weird considering the weather forecast.  We got some rain last night too which made me happy re my composting etc.  Today it's cloudy and I think there is a possibility of more rain later.  I don't mind how much it rains because the garden loves it.

We are going grocery shopping this pm so I'd better get out in the garden while I can, then I'll make the syrup.  Smiles..

Feeling Autumnal

Hi, we woke to scudding cloud, a chilly breeze and a distinctly autumnal feel in the air!  I walked Chester and my hands got cold, which is very weird when it is still summer, at least until Thursday when autumn officially kicks in.  Here in Nelson we normally get our best weather in Autumn so it will be interesting to see how the weather behaves this season. 

Our day started with Chester being roared at for leaping into the fenced off bit of garden in his dog area and smashing down a lot of my precious perennials.  This garden was there before Chester and I don't want to have to get rid of it so John is going to have to thoroughly fence it off and I'll have to climb over the verandah railing to get down into it to weed etc.  These meds definitely seem to have changed Chester's behaviour - he's in puppy destruction mode and it's not fun at all.  Yesterday we left him by himself in the open plan kitchen, dining, living room are to test him out and sure enough about 5 m ins later John found him with his paws up on the bench which he's never done before.  There have been several other incidents in the past week or so too.  It is SO tiring always having to wonder what he's doing so we've had to start shutting him out on the verandah again when we aren't in the house, or when John is in his office down the hallway.  It's so sad because he was turning into such a gorgeous dog before all this happened.  Pookies is all I can say!  There are lots of times lately when I'd just love to go back to the way life was pre-dog!!  Don't get me wrong, I DO love Chester, I'm just tired of it all.

On a much brighter note, I did lots more weeding and composting yesterday and I'm really enjoying it.  I'm hoping the rain will stay away today (we've already had a few spits) so I can carry on.  I've run out of compost so John is going to get some more and in the meantime I'll continue re-weeding.  Hmmm I think it's cup of tea then out to the garden time.  Smiles..  ooh and I have to throw some sheep manure pellets around too so when it rains, as predicted, tomorrow they will swell nicely.. yum!  Giggle..

Hello Monday

Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

Ermmm if I've already posted this, I apologise.. I can't remember if I did or not!  When we were at the A&P show in Murchison we went on a ferris wheel - something I haven't done for years - it was such fun!

Right now Chester is resting after his morning walk, I've hung out the washing, changed the bed and am now sitting here with a cup of tea and a seed catalogue - oh and typing this to you!

I have just put 8 more jars of damson jelly into the storecupboard in the laundry - that makes a total of 15 jars of deliciousness!  I also have three large jars of damson gin underway (oooh I must take a photo for you) too. 

So why am I looking at a seed catalogue?  This season herb sales at Mapua Country Trading have been down somewhat, particularly when it comes to sweet basil which is rather peculiar as it is one of THE most popular summer herbs and last year I sold a truckload to MCT.  Ah well, I think it could be because more people are growing their own vegies and herbs, possibly from seed - good on them!  Heather has suggested perhaps we try selling some flowering plants and she has left it to me to work out what.  This is rather tricky as there are only a couple of seed companies in total in New Zealand and their range is pretty limited.  I'm thinking things like different foxgloves, special aquilegia (granny's bonnets),  and a few other perennials.  Most of the seeds available are annuals and they're just not practical for what Heather wants.  I also need to be careful I don't limit what I can sell from my nursery (Astrantia major for example) because I can't be seen to be selling things that she is also trying to sell at a more expensive price when I'm growing them for her.  A bit of a conundrum I fear.

Yesterday I got a lot more weeding and composting done and I'm about to leap out there again today.  There is a bit of cloud cover thank goodness so I need to make the most of it. 

Oooh I'm working on a few little tealight glass holders again to take to the market this Saturday and I'm really happy with them.  I'll post photos as soon as they're finished.  Okay, off outside I go!  Smiles.

A Cool Start!

Hi, crikey it was a bit chilly this morning when we woke up, 8.3 degrees C which is fairly cool for this time of year.  It's a reminder that the first official day of autumn is this coming Thursday and I have to say it can't come soon enough for me.  Once it is no longer officially summer I immediately feel more invigorated, even if the days are still hot, giggle!

Yesterday I managed to get quite a lot of weeding and composting done in the main perennial bed - I still have around 2 more full days work to do to get it composted but what I've done so far looks lovely.  I'm not putting the compost on as thickly as I normally would, mainly because my perennials etc don't need as much food going into autumn as they do when they are coming out of dormancy in spring.

This morning we are going to repair my scarlet runner bean frame (complete with beans, poor things) that was knocked down by the wind yesterday.  I realised yesterday morning it was a bit rickety after the strong winds we had on Wed night but yesterday a gusty SW wind was blowing in the afternoon and it decked it!  I hope we can put the frame back up without damaging the bean roots.  Scarlet runners are perennial and they don't take kindly to root disturbance.

After lunch I'm going to make another lot of damson jelly.  I do find it hard spending time in the house when the weather is so lovely for gardening but I can't waste our produce and anyway it will be a good thing to do while my lunch is going down!  

Oooh the other thing I desperately need to do today is continue covering up our grapes.  We were eating our breakfast this morning watching a female blackbird and a thrush brazenly picking grapes that aren't even ripe.. little devils.  I must go and put some food out for them on the verandah railings in the hope they'll take that instead!  Fat hope I fear, giggle.   Hmmm I'd better get off here and go and DO things.  Big hugs and smiles for the rest of your weekend.  More photos next week!  Smiles..

My Favourite Fruit Book

Hi there, I was having a really good day yesterday... until... dan dan dan... Chester decided to steal a book from the third shelf of our bookcase in the living room and munch on it!  Not just any book, but my favourite, well-used gardening book ''Complete Fruit Book'' by Bob Flowerdew (ermm cute name, giggle!).  Needless to say I was livid, so livid I know I didn't reprimand him enough.  He was out on the verandah having a great time when I found him with bits of my book everywhere!  I have a funny feeling I might have been too nice to him all week (i.e. giving him a bit too much attention because of the side effects of the drugs) and he decided he was being ignored by John and I so it was payback time.  John was in his office and I'd popped out to my studio leaving Chester ''asleep'' on the floor.  Crikey it is so hard to get the attention/no attention ratio right.  I also think the meds are turning his brain back to puppy-zone too.  BIG SIGH!  We are trying to keep the stress in the household to a minimum as we realise dogs pick up on it very quickly and it can increase the chance of seizures but oh boy when he does things like this the stress levels rise bigtime!  He's been badly behaved this morning already too.

Apart from that I did manage to get some composting done which is fabulous and I have a lot more to do today.  I also need to put another lot of damsons on so I can make jelly tomorrow.  I'd rather do it on Monday but I think the damsons will be too ripe by then, so tomorrow it needs to be!  I'll make it in the afternoon when it might be too hot to be out in the garden.

I'm off to spread that compost before it gets too hot.  Big hugs and smiles and I hope you're doing something lovely this weekend?  Smiles.. p.s. I know I talk about Chester a lot - if you get fed up with it please tell me!!! 

Compost Day Plus a Couple of Photos!

Hi, it's Friday and I'm declaring it international (well in my garden, anyway) compost and manure day!  I am going to throw around some sheep manure pellets and toss around some lovely compost too, especially now that the soil is nice and damp from the rain.  I need to conserve as much moisture as I can and the compost etc will help do that.

Yesterday I sorted out the rest of the damsons and put 2 more jars down for damson gin (although one of the jar lids is leaking..bah.. will have to see if John can sort it for me) and also put aside another 2kg for more jelly which I will make tomorrow.  I have another kg in the freezer too for me to do something with later.  All in all a fabulous harvest and yes, I thanked the tree!

Our grapes have started ripening slowly and the birds are beginning to plunder them already so it's time to make little sacks out of frost cloth to help protect them.  I can't just throw frostcloth (the permeable type which is much better than bird protection which traps birds) over the whole vine as it is against our verandah and is just too tricky to do so I have to cover each gorgeous bunch instead.  Needless to say it's quite a lot of work, but well worth it.  I hope to have the best bunches covered by the end of the weekend at least.

Here are photos of Chester and Sabah.  I took them a couple of days ago.  Chester's coat is quite a lot darker than it looks in the photo.  I think these shots of them are gorgeous! 

I'm off to get a cup of tea and take a wander down the paddock to check out the branch of next door's poplar tree that came down in the stormy weather on Wednesday night.  Smiles..

A Food Conundrum!

Hi yikes it's Thursday already!   This week seems to have sped by!  I had such a fruity day yesterday.  In the morning I made damson jelly which is oh so pretty.  I always get nervous when I'm making preserves etc in case they don't work.  My jelly is lovely and soft, still jelly, but definitely not solid.  I ummed and ahhed before taking it off the stove, did the ''crinkle on the cold plate test'' several times and then decided it was ready.  I could have left it just a little longer and think I will next time, particularly if I want to sell it on my stall or give it away.  I have to tell you the flavour is gobsmackingly gorgeous and I can't wait to try it with grilled lamb chops or cold meats.  Here is a photo - I tried to show how clear it is:

At the moment we are thinking about changing Chester's diet in case that is causing his seizures.  This is a really tough one because whatever we change it too could be just as bad, unless I start cooking all his meals at home.  I honestly am thinking hard about that one as even though I know it will be quite a bit of work, it might just be worth it!  We've done some research after someone told us that rosemary extract can cause seizures (epileptics have to stay well clear of it) and lots of pet foods have it in them because it is a natural preservative (and a neurotoxin, ack).  The food issue may have nothing to do with Chester's seizures but then again it might!  Crikey, what to do???!!!  Needless to say it's weighing on our minds.  If possible we'd dearly love for him not to have to be on medication, he's just so young!  I guess there is going to be no quick fix with this.

Ooooh I've also been drying some plums and prunes in our dehydrator and they've worked brilliantly.  I love dried fruit and homemade is just so special and delicious - plus it has no preservatives in it.  I'm going to dry some more prunes today, plus sort out the 6kg or so of damson plums I have left.  I've ordered some more small jars so I can make another lot of jelly and I think I'm going to freeze some for later too.

Even more exciting, we got a decent amount of rain yesterday and last night, round 1.5 inches or so so I'm a very happy chappy!  Everything looks so fresh.  Tomorrow I'm going to spread compost like a mad woman to help conserve the moisture. 

Right, I'm off to walk Chester-chops (one of his nicknames) and I just hope he has a bit more energy this morning.  Big smiles..

Photos at Last!

Hi, I'm on the damson jelly trail today - the liquid is all ready to be measured and sugar added, my book is at the ready while I have to stir it for an hour or so and here's hoping it reaches setting point fairly quickly.  Also on our agenda is grocery shopping this pm and I need to squeeze in vacuuming and dusting sometime desperately!

Here are a couple of photos from the weekend:

The table with all of the home baking I had to judge (thank heavens for John's tastebuds too)!

The sheep shearing competition.  This is always fascinating to watch and I am in awe of sheep shearers.  Some of them had ''kickers'' - the sheep's legs going all over the show!!

Here I am doing my absolute favourite thing - rock hunting!  The river you can see is called ''The Mangles''.  I adore rivers and mountains and Murchison has both.  Murchison is one of the most geologically exciting areas in the entire world!  Amazing!

I'd better go and start this jelly, it's 10.15am and it's going to take me quite a while.  Big smiles...