Stitching Along!

Having a fabulous day, have just been given the bestest-ever present... A new sewing machine!
It has been a while since I did any sewing that wasn't darning or fixing, or hand sewing... This machine is a beauty and my old clanger that got rocked in the earthquake looks prehistoric beside this one that could almost make coffee...! Thank You Honey - it was a lovely birthday present.
What to sew first? Theres a few with requests, Barbie clothes, Dolls House furnishings, fishing rod carriers...  Knew my fabric stash might come in handy one day :)

Haven't been up to a lot of gardening after last week, have not had as much time on my hands to potter and get engrossed in the weeds as last year, but the garden has responded well to the mulch/composting it got just before Winter... There hasn't been the waterlogging I had previously, and the plants seem to have suffered little (so far) from Frosts and wind.

Well thats me for today, I'm off to make ice cream & eat cake with the extended family, thats an extra lap around the block for tomorrow no doubt :)

Take care & Keep Warm :)

XXXXXXXXX
EB

Happy Shortest Day...

It sure is Winter!

After the last fortnight, I think cabin fever is rife around here. Ive been knitting some beanies to help ward away the cold!
Its been so wet and cold, snow, rain, sleet, hail, watery sun. We've had The works!
I keep telling myself that this is good. And this too shall pass :)  It means all the soil in the garden gets cleansed, and all the bad things in it get washed away, then it gets frozen so the soil is clean and ready to go in the Spring. I just dont like wet feet. Or Icy sidewalks, Soggy socks, holes in gumboots... yuk :)

We've had a lot of illness in our schools these past two weeks, and its worrying that our children dont have the strong immune systems they might have once. We as parents, need to work on that. Fresh fruit and Veggies. Expensive as ever at this time of the year, when we dont have them in great supply in the garden (Im down to onions, toms (inside) and Silverbeet! ... even if the local supermarket has 1kg of frozen veg for just 99.c - an awesome special - its a good start though.
The Intermediate school my son goes to gave Flu injections free this year. A first. Oddly, they have been down to just 7 at school out of 30 last Friday! Its a worry! After speaking to his teacher, she hasnt had a full complement of 32 in about a month.

Cant wait to start the new seasons growing.
It seems ages since I went out for a morning in the Garden. Ive pulled it all out, the citrus and pots are under cover, waiting for some warmth, which, without being too hopeful may happen this weekend if the weather man has it right :)


There are the odd eqs still happening too, but theyre getting smaller, less often, and wide spread. We share them with a lot of other parts of New Zealand at the moment, and... even Melbourne, Australia. Poor Sods, its scary.
No matter what size, when you least expect it, it is SCARY.


So yeah, Happy Shortest Day.
This means we are half way to Spring? I sure hope so...
Did you plant your Garlic? ... Do you have plans for your new seasons Garden? Ive finally listed some seeds on a local auction site, but Im also giving them away where I can, it makes good sense.
Herbs, Vegetables... dont forget the companion planting...Marigolds, calendula, tansy, and lots more... Then theres mulch and compost, a light fertilizer, working into the soil while you work at keeping warm inside!

Thats me for now,
Stay Warm, stay safe,
Roll On Spring...
XX
EB

Quick Post - Echinacea Haven is Bumblebee-tastic!

Its freezing cold out there, and the wind is nasty, and still these little bumbles work over time.
I love seeing bumblebees at work, they are so busy, and seem so happy at what they do :)
Snapped this photo, the echinacea flowers always seems to get mobbed, and the bumblebees cling to their spiny cones, sometimes gathering pollen, sometimes just resting on top and riding the flowers in the breeze.
I never realised just how gently scented the ech flowers are, heavenly!

Love,
E Butterfly
XXXXXX

Rain following the wind... January Snow...How does your Garden Grow?

Sunflowers over 6ft before wind

Rain Following the Wind...

Long time not a lot of  blogging going on, but news has been scarce around here. Its not that we havent done things, its been a lack of camera, and theres only so many stories you can write about without pics...

News to hand is... its raining.

Not just a little bit, but hard rain. Weve had a lot of rain in a short time. Yesterday was mucky and drizzly with some pelting thunder/lightening storms. Today its not mucking around, its serious rain, hard and heavy. The gardens needed rain, but the people who are in Red Zone houses with holes did not.

Nature at its best out there though, providing for its own (plants)

Echinacea

Last week was horrendously windy.

The garden suffered, and everything got trussed up, Ive had to cut back my echinaceas to my sorrow, both plants ended up losing hunks to the wind. Ive tried to salvage the bits that fell off, they both had roots. We shall see! Fingers xed! The blooms have been gorgeous, scented and my favourite - PINK!

So its the middle of the night. Its cold outside, and nice and cosy in here.

Mid Summer... believe it or not :)

I cant sleep, and after pulling muscles in my arms doing some major weeding jobs, (yes... that shows how tough the ground is here!!) sleep has been precious in the past two weeks.
We have a new piece of garden, and some new plants. In fact, they just keep coming.

We have a new Clementine tangelo/mandarin who is potted, two new blueberries - Tif Blue and Centurion.

They went into the new plot, and I was surprised when I picked them up to see that they had fruit on them. Good Lookin!! Cant wait to see how many last the distance.

Clementine

Our Satsuma *Miho* is looking good.

It had small tiny buttons for fruit on it when it arrived pre-Xmas. The tiny buttons are now $1 coin size.

The horsey poo water is fertilizing things nicely, Ive added supa-gro to some of the pots to help things grow on. Im hoping to mulch some hay or straw in in the next few weeks, should finances allow.

Our own compost pile is looking good, it will sit over winter, and I ll put black plastic over it... just like a real farmer and silage :)

January Snow? - Who'd have thought we would get snow in January. Not here, but nearby in Porters Pass area. Its crazy! It leaves us believing that the seasons are changing into a myriad of different things. Perhaps we are amidst this Climate Change thing we hear so much about, and afraid of. I think the whole *Intuitive* gardening helps get through this. Mulching to keep our plants happy, and turning over the soil regularly making sure it doesnt clog with water... Here we are near enough to the water table that it could mean raised beds are neccessary to alleviate any flooding. I think our problem will be if we dont get enough sunny days, nothing will ripen fast enough and you get fruit rotting before it ripens.
Ive thought about these issues, and by far I dont have answers, just want to trial different things to see if they work. One thing is using thermal mass around the garden. Walls of brick to keep things warm for instance. I have built up, bricked-in trenches or edges that Ive got tomatoes in, around the edge of my pathways which are cement. The sun reflects off the cement and the heat of the bricks keeps the soil warmer than the bigger beds. These tomatoes are always the first to fruit, first to ripen... ONLY ones to ripen so far this year. We are at least a month behind where we were last year, and two months behind the North Island from what I read on popular gardening forums. Id hate us to get even less growing season, but if that happens, I have to invest in some glass for a glass house or similar. I simply cant NOT grow things :-)

Because I rent, I cant bear the thought of putting things into the ground and not being able to take them with me. So I pot.

I have some rather large pots now, and I am really waiting for Superman to call in when I need to shift. Cos Im thinkin he will be the only one who can lift the pots!!
Ahh well, maybe Earth Changes will happen and I ll swap my trailer for a Chinese Junk and we can sail to Gardening Heaven?

Home grown Potatoes!

Thats possibly enough of my Mid-Night Ravings, and I should possibly go back to bed and sleep.

Ahh, if only.

Seeding Sunflower

Akane Apple - just the one this year!

Tif Blue Blueberry!

Potatoes with a purple flower, pretty!

Stunning Carrot flower (Nutri-Red)

Bloody Butcher Tomato Babies, Yum!

Black Zebra. Can see the stripes, no black yet.

Jaune du coeur de pigeon - Yellow pigeon egg sized tomatoes

So thats us.

How about this for a Happy Earthquake Song? Love it! SEE YOUTUBE HERE

Take care out there.
I hope youre all well, and happy.

The shaking (aftershocks) - dare I mention? They are easing. For now.

There are other parts of the country that have had shaking too, so life in NZ where ever you move is going to be tenuous.

School goes back soon, and Im not looking forward to being without my Littles.

So Im not thinking about that, and trying to make the best of the time we have left together.

Love to All

Happy Gardening :)

E BUTTERFLYXXXXXXXXX

PS - AFTERSHOCK. See, it never ever pays to mention Mother Nature :)
That gave me a good fright, it was centred around the road, about 3k away and sent the ball of fluff on my knee flying.

Washington, Old Girl

Sunday for Thought...

Another Sunday almost biting the dust. Its been the coldest day weve had for a long time, and we arent happy. The kids are climbing over each other to get out, so out come the hats and jackets, and out they go... Except for the one who has to do homework... Lots of reading, murmurs and plans there...
But Wait Theres More! ...
We had a stellar day yesterday!
Saturday at its very best! Mr EB and Young Sir of 11yrs got down and did some carpentry. Chisel, hammer and nails and some boards, and Voila! If only I had a camera ... Will have to look into it, they have made me the most wonderful gardening boxes!!
Lots of nodding, measuring and the occasional dark cloud, but the results were fantastic! And they have plans to make more...
We bought our first Lemon (Meyer) and put it in a gro-bag so it can be moved, should we move...
Its awesome to have, it has some fruit on it too, which is kinda neat to see when you look out into the garden.

Seeds are IT at the moment - weve started sowing them for our new growing season.
Mostly tomatoes - Black Krim, Yellow Cocktail, Albenga Oxheart, Purple Calabash and Bloody Butcher so far...,



BASIL



Fenugreek

Some Basil - Red Rubin and Genovese, but also some fenugreek. It is growing nicely, so far so good.

Basil Red Rubin

Seven shoots of Rosemary have taken off nicely, theyve just been planted in Supa-grow after spending a few weeks growing roots in a glass of water... one is even flowering, the tiny little blue flowers lead me to think it might be similar to Rosemary *Tuscan Blue*

So thats it for now... Im hoping that for the start of the week, the wind may subside, it is bitterly cold with the wind today and makes working outside really unpleasant.
Or I may just have to make myself a warm hat :-P

Love to all
Keep Warm and Safe!

E Butterfly
XXXXXX

So, what about Tsunami?... Mini-post

Have been listening to the news, even Campbell live have been talking to Scientists and such about what will happen and when, and what can we predict, what do we need to watch for... Very interesting. Basically, the end story is the same - BE PREPARED.

So... What about Tsunami?
Have a look at this - if youre a Kiwi, this is a start to useful info.
http://www.prepare.co.nz/disasters_tsunami.asp

And I find this a good start to Info to File Away -

The three types of Tsunami 
There are three distinct types of tsunami.
The type you encounter depends on the distance you are from the place where it is generated.
Distant tsunami are generated from a long way away, such as from across the Pacific in Chile.
In this case, we will have more than three hours warning time for New Zealand.
Regional tsunami are generated between one and three hours travel time away from their destination.
An eruption from an underwater volcano in the Kermadec Trench to the north of New Zealand, could generate a regional tsunami.
Local tsunami are generated very close to New Zealand.
This type of tsunami is very dangerous because we may only have a few minutes warning.

As you were... Just a Mini-Note tonight.
Hope youre all enjoying the fine Chch weather, and keeping busy.
Some of our children are back at school for an hour tomorrow to pick up their bags and see their classmates.
Not starting in earnest til next week. Its nice to know theyre happy to go back and get into routine again!

Love to You
EButterfly
Information Searcher-Upperer.
 PS Enjoying the stillness - not a lot of shaky shaky today! Dare I say it!?

From The Height of Summer we write...Counting Blessings here!

We are in the height of Summer of course, being in the Great South, and today the Nature Goddess was making itself well known. Beautiful sun, idyllic puffy clouds, just a whisper of a breeze... and lots of ions in the air that cause those nasty headaches.
Poor Mr EB is susceptible to migraines, and this perfect weather and the nor'west winds just play havoc with his head, my darling suffers terribly. Add to that the bright sun, and it hurts the eyes, so the nearest thing to a cure is a day in bed, hiding in the dark. Not how you want to spend a day or two, but my god it takes away the ability to function... Poor Babe!
 And Whilst I lament, Ive not heard from my new gardening friends in France this week either. I do miss their emails, and I hope things will be better soon, best wishes to them!
*WAVES TO PHILLIPE & FAMILY*
I had wondered if they were indisposed with Winter ills, but from what I have seen and read, they too have winds, but of high strength which has in turn, knocked out their power and their cables!  Which could be okay, but of course they have very low Winter temperatures, ice, rain and snow at present, that has bought everything to a halt over there! I am thinking of them, my Dear Friends, How the Nature Goddess plays havoc with all that we do :-) Be it blessings or quite the reverse...

Ive been planting seeds tonight to put on the window sill until they sprout.
We enjoy watching their progress. We have been talking about the plans for the chook house too, hope to come up with a plan and a price for materials... All good :)
The Lazy A children are all sorted and excited about next week and the recommencing of school.
Im going to like being able to get better organized, or maybe that is just a dream I tell myself to get myself through the holidays... hehe maybe it doesnt really happen at all.... time will tell I guess :)

After languishing in a hot bath, I have been thinking about the things I have in my life that Im grateful for...
kind of  a Counting of the Blessings... 

Im grateful I live simply, regardless of the stem or flow of money, life doesnt get too complicated and for that Im very thankful...
Im extremely grateful I have a beautiful, healthy family of good people learning to be better good people as they grow.
Ive just checked, and Im grateful I can spell grateful, because I did wonder if it was in fact greatful... but no, as you were... it is grateful (anal? who me?? :-)

I have a generous, loving man in my life, who puts up with alot, he truly is a blessing and I love him dearly.

My garden has saved my sanity, filled my hands, my heart and my cupboards, and it came to me very easily...
Life goes on, sleepily for the most part, but without complications 

And although I had my reservations, I do love my cats... some more than others, I never was a *cat person*
but my Persian Princess and The Rogue are my best fur-blessings!

And for now, thats me. 
Can you believe it is nearly February?
Mr EB mentioned that it was now only 11 months until Christmas... which made me cringe.
Im sure he was just trying to help me organize myself :-)
I wonder, will it work?

Love and Blessings from my Heart to Yours

EButterfly
XXXXXX

PS some information on Companion Planting, also fantastic people for seeds - LINK! LINK! LINK! - Awesome NZ SEEDS - BUY ONLINE OR ON TRADEME/SELLA