Photographic inspiration

800 DSC_4832 - 2011-10-14 at 08-19-10

Our veranda is ablaze with Spring colour which gives an uplifting note to the otherwise large green landscape surrounding the house.  The more I look at the cheery blooms the more intrigued I am by the shapes, sizes and textures of tulips which serve to boost their beauty.  It’s too late for this year but [...]

Going fruity

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Friends of mine would rather leave the country than spend time in Wellington in October and November.  It’s this time of year that Wellington most earns it’s weather reputation as being wild and windy.  It’s a worrying time of year if you’re growing fruit trees since there is a high probability of the fruit tree [...]

Blooming marvellous

800 DSC_4748 - 2011-09-30 at 04-15-441

It seems an age ago that I was crated up for hours on end in an airplane winging my way back to the southern hemisphere.  As I crossed the globe I made plans for the garden.  As always my parents garden provides plenty of inspiration.  There is always so much colour and although this invariably [...]

Snowmaggedon

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“Be afraid, very afraid” was the weather forecasters message this time last week.  A once in a lifetime snow storm was heading across New Zealand that would eclipse the snow flurry we had a few weeks before.  Twitter was forecasting #snowmaggedon with tweeters across New Zealand comparing notes on the size of snowflakes as the [...]

Frozen fruit and veg

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It’s been slim pickings for the birds since the snow arrived.  These Plovers were distinctly put out to be wading through inches of snow to find something to eat.  The little birds of course were turning loop the loops as they feasted on the chicken food and then snuggled up inside the eaves of the [...]

Winter Wonderland

Winter Wonderland

Today was like waking up on a Christmas Day and hoping for a snowy festive scene.  I was so excited to pull back the curtains to see if the snow dump forecast had given us a southern hemisphere winter wonderland.  Imagine my delight the snow had indeed arrived. Even in the pre-dawn light I knew [...]

Winter chill

Winter Chill

Lulled into a false sense of unseasonably warm temperatures it was a shock to the system for winter to bite back this week.  The thermals have been dusted off, gloves dug out from the back of the cupboard and just to be sure I’ve had the possum fur ear flaps down on my hat. No [...]

Distracted

Slow going

I took this picture last weekend to reassure myself that I do indeed have a kitchen garden even though I’ve hardly seen it close up in recent weeks.  What with the rain and winds I’ve just had to cross my fingers that it will survive, although I’ve had to make the occasional dash to reinforce [...]

Gardening drama

Greenhouse

Our latest garden development has been a drama of epic proportions with the trials and tribulations tweeted over recent weeks.  Thankfully though I can report on a happy ending. The greenhouse is almost ready for its official opening, just a little more compost to be imported and an internal pathway laid. For a plastic covered [...]

Earthly goods

Spuds

It’s not just the Irish roots in our household that make potatoes a staple food for us.  Since I invested in a potato ricer it’s elevated the humble potato to an every day luxury food.  I finally dug up the remaining main crop potatoes before the rain started to make them rot.  I didn’t weigh [...]