Monthly Archives: March 2021

Bangle Grooming Today

Took Bangle over to Emma’s for her six-weekly groom. She was a bit reluctant to be put in the washing machine but brightened up after a few minutes according to Emma. On way home got a coffee at Bay Espresso on Karamu Road then some pharmaceuticals from Unidem in Stortford Lodge,

Morning tea then it was time to go and pick Bangle up, which we did, going straight home this time.

Mark continued with his firewood project, clearing the farm shed lean-to. At one point he noticed that the ewe hoggets were eating my precious Puriri trees, the small tree guards were not tall enough, so he put a couple of much bigger old guards on for now.

I noticed that one of the nibbled Puriri had a couple of large splits in the bark near the base so I photographed this and sent it to Don at Takana nursery. He said:

We don’t believe that split will be an issue.

Puriri are a hardy resilient species, and we see in the nursery that they seem often to have splits, but we have not observed any drop off in their performance.

Experts have proffered different views as to the cause of the bark splits in Puriri, but a consensus does not appear to be close!

Let us know how things progress, but in our experience we don’t think there will be any issue.

In the evening we went out to Namaskar Indian restaurant in Joll Street, Havelock North with Peter & Charlotte and their guest David Greig. A very pleasant meal.

Big Splits In Puriri Bark Are Apparently Not Uncommon And Seem To Do No Lasting Harm

Even Little Ewe Hoggets Climb & Nibble

Oak Avenue Weather:16℃—24℃ 0.1mm rain [76.378] TdT eggs=2 Mark=4

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A Little Light Rain

Mark mowed the cottage lawn and curtilage then began the firewood project. That project is to clear out the farm shed lean-to so, if needed, it can store timber for the homestead renovation out of the weather. Builder Paul will buy as much of the structural timber he needs as soon as possible – there being a shortage in New Zealand that may not be overcome till next year. Mark is taking the weatherboard offcuts and other pieces of sawn timber down to the stump dump, the bale of meadow hay for chooks nest boxes to the hay shed, and then moving the eucalypt firewood.

To move the eucalypt firewood in the lean-to Mark will empty several of the apple boxes currently containing old oak firewood and put that on the wood pile over behind the homestead garage near the Avenue boundary fence. He’ll then backfill these boxes from the lean-to.

Karola started to make two new tree guards for the two Puriri trees on the top of the slope into the Ha-Ha. The netting is 16-gauge high-tensile deer netting and she got scratched when it sprang back at her, scraping her nose and cheek and hand – too close to her eyes for comfort. But she plans to soldier on, won’t let Mark make them.

Gill sent me the photo below. She found it while clearing out some old boxes of photos, wondering whether we’d recognise it. The wall lights give it away – that it’s is definitely Yeoman’s Drove. The belongings, furniture and pictures are very much ours but have followed us around from house to house.

Sitting Room, Yeoman’s Drove, Otterbourne, Winchester, HANTS, UK – 1980s I think

Oak Avenue Weather:15℃—25℃ 1.6mm rain [76.886] TdT TdO eggs=1 Mark=4

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Landrover Fixed

I drove the Landrover while Karola followed in Zoe along to Tamatea Motors so that Heath Goldfinch and his mate could fix the replacement driver’’s side read quarter bumper, unjam the bonnet catch, and replace the broken bonnet catch cable. All done by lunchtime.

The odd thing was that the bonnet had been bent about a centimetre sideways, towards the driver, and that jammed the catch; the dent where this happened was just above the headlight and between the bonnet and the mudguard – a small groove the size of a fat pencil that pushed the mudguard out a bit and moved the bonnet along. Hard to see how that could have happened.

On the way home in the Zoe we stopped at the Green Meadows New World and got an iced coffee for me, a regular coffee for Karola and did a bit of shopping.

It had been raining lightly since before dawn so Mark didn’t come today, it was going to be too wet underfoot even though the rain eased off after lunch.

Bangle was delighted to find a decomposing rabbit – maybe Mark shot it last week – and bring it back, disappearing under the house. Fortunately she didn’t leave it there but took it back out onto the lawn under the bathroom window so I was able to wrap it up in an old dog food sack and put it in the bin.

We had Keto Chaffles and more coffee at Lappuccino’s for lunch. I received a TXT saying the Landrover was fixed so we tootled down to Tamatea Automotive and picked it up mid afternoon.

As we were without the Landrover at lunch time we all went round the orchard and did the stop bank walk late afternoon.

Still reading Putin’s people an e-book version borrowed for free from the local library; I have another 148 pages to go. It is a riveting story of corruption, crime, plotting, and revenge. Huge, colossal sums of money being stolen or tricked from one person or business to another on every page. The number of names of people and businesses is overwhelming and I got the feeling that the author repeated references to many politicians and other villains many times as she wove an allegedly true picture of the fall of the Soviet Union and Communist party, the rise of Yeltsin and a short decade of hope for democracy, then a rapid descent into Putin’s empire where all the state institutions were suborned to his will, and all the major industries were controlled by KGB or ex-KGB people loyal to Putin.

Maize Harvesting Along Carrick Road – Tour de Twyford 

Oak Avenue Weather:14℃—25℃ 1.7mm rain [76.664] TdO TdT eggs=1 Mark=0

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Henare & Debbie

Sheep had a few hours in the lucerne again.

Henare asked to come round and we had coffee and a chat. We suggested he could have two or three hives here, over where the runner beans used to be, if he liked – thinking of having bees to pollinate Karola’s micro-orchard just outside the cottage bathroom window.

He then brought up the possibility of the girlfriend of one of his cousins, grandson of his sister Ira, Rangatira (he of the bare legs and nettles hullabaloo) – of his girlfriend who is training to be a nurse doing some odd jobs for Karola for a few hours a week. This was quite unexpected but in fact might be an excellent idea as there’s lots of organising and cleaning that could be done inside the buildings here. We asked Henare to bring Rangitera and his girlfriend Debbie round for tea and a chat. We’ll see what happens.

I binge-watched the six episodes of Series Two of Unforgotten until way after midnight, which wasn’t very clever.

Oak Avenue Weather:__℃—__℃ no rain [76.829] TdT TdO eggs=3

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Beautiful Cool Sunny Autumn Saturday

Karola observed that the tree guards for the two Puriri trees on the top edge of the ha-ha slope will not be tall enough to stop sheep nibbling on hind legs so we’re planning to replace the current guards with much taller ones as soon as possible. Only the ewe hoggets are in the Front paddock at present but the older ewes would be a problem. We have a roll of deer netting and plenty of 2-metre wide black shade nettng so have the ingredients to hand. Perhaps Mark will help make the two new guards next week.

The Puriri To Stand Sentinal Over The 133 Gateway In Years To Come

Front Paddock Which Mark Finished Mowing Yesterday

Oak Avenue Weather:10℃—23℃ no rain [76.600] TdT TdO eggs=2

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Five Puriri Arrive And Are Planted & Watered

Haircut appointments this morning plus a quick dash to New World while Karola was having hers done.

Mark finished mowing the Front paddock and then he and I planted the five Puriri trees and watered them, putting tree guards on the two Puriri in the Front paddock (photo below) to avoid nibbling by the ewe hoggets.

Got my 2019/2020 tax return to sign from the accountants last night and Karola’s this morning. I was asked what our plan was for the chickens to which I gave the following answer:

It’s a bit of an experiment but has been done successfully in New York state in USA. The idea is that you free range the hens on pasture after or while grazing by stock and they are efficient insect/grub eaters and add significant fertiliser behind. So instead of applying nitrogen fertiliser and spraying for insect pests you run the hens either at the same time or after grazing with stock and it’s a more sustainable approach compared to applying synthetic chemicals. The hen house is on wheels intentionally so that it is portable between the paddocks. The chickens are free range. As egg layers go our chickens are poor performers, we’re lucky to get a 1½ dozen eggs a week which we mostly give away anyway and I expect the chickens to die of old age rather than use ourselves for meat.

The cockerel is not purely decorative either; we have lots of cats and several hawks that patrol all the time. I had chickens soon after we came back to New Zealand in 2001 and a year or so later a hawk decided they would be good for a snack – she (the females are larger) picked them off one at a time till there were none left. But with the cockerel around we’re expecting he’ll protect the flock from most predators. He’s doing a good job so far.

You would be amazed at how much manure seven chickens produce. It’s all a bit “green” I know but fits well with Karola’s inclination towards organic farming – like John Bostock who leases her orchard. The New York operations are on much bigger scale, unsurprisingly, and “pasture raised” chicken is a ’thing’ – better than “free range” so they do sell the meat and eggs as well.

https://www.thepoultrysite.com/articles/why-raise-poultry-on-pasture

>>Poultry can provide insect and weed control, increase soil fertility
>>Poultry will also scratch through manure pats, exposing internal parasite
>>larvae to the drying effects of sunlight and heat and consuming some of
>>them. Poultry will fertilize the pasture so that regrowth will be more
>>nutritious for the ruminants when they return to graze. In this way,
>>the ruminants prepare the pasture for the poultry and the poultry improve the pasture for the ruminants.

The Two Puriri Which One Day Will Frame The North View From The Homestead

Oak Avenue Weather:8℃—21℃ 0.1mm rain [76.475] TdT TdO eggs=2 Mark=4

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Somnolent Day

A few showers of very gentle rain last night and during the day. I slept much of the morning only rousing when Bangle barked at Mark’s arrival.

Mark came to continue mowing the Front paddock but stopped after 90 minutes due to the gentle rain just making the grass too wet to mow.

Mark mentioned he’d caught several hedgehogs in the cage traps over the week and seen several whilst mowing – there must be a mini-plague of them this summer.

Little Hedgepig Met While Walking Bangle Round The Orchard

Oak Avenue Weather:8℃—18℃ 1.3mm rain [76.685] TdT TdO eggs=3 Mark=1½

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Stop Bank Drama

Subaru had a flat battery this morning so I tried to use the Landrover to jump-start it. But when I came to open the Landrover bonnet (hood) it would not budge. Took it down to the garage at the Caltex petrol station on Omahu road and they tried, again without success. Came home again and thought I’d give the release cable a good tug. The cable broke.

Using the Kioti tractor I did jump-start the Subaru successfully and kept it running for the next hour including a quick trip into Hastings where Karola did some shopping in the organic shop, Cornucopia.

Landrover is booked in to get the bonnet catch fixed on Monday and I also rang Landy Heaven and Ali found me a replacement right corner rear bumper to replace the one that fell off somewhere between Woodville and Hastings on the return from the Mount Biggs school centenary. He’ll drop it off at Tamatea Automotive (Heath Goldfinch) along with the replacement (second hand) bonnet cable. Landy heaven is a Landrover wrecking specialist – hence the go-to man for old Landrover parts.

I went down to the stop bank for my cycle ride and today I got a terrible fright as a speeding cyclist coming the other way almost crashed into me. I was on the left, more or less, listening to a Charles Paris or Agatha Christie drama on earphones, and didn’t see the approaching cyclist until he was right on top of me. He slammed past leaving me weaving all over the show and almost off down the bank. I always ring my bell when about to pass someone walking or cycling – if I see them in time.

Mark came and has started mowing the Front paddock with the Grillo, getting the thatch off to let the young grass grow.

Left Rear Corner Bumper – As It Should Be

Right Rear Corner Bumper – Is Missing

Finished Mowing The Middle Paddock, Sun Setting over The Treetops

Oak Avenue Weather:11℃—21℃ 0.5mm rain [76.840] TdT TdO eggs=3 Mark=4

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Zoe Passes Her WOF

Time for Zoe to get her warrant of fitness (WOF) so Karola, Bangle, and I set off after breakfast, having created this week’s shopping list, in convoy, me driving Zoe followed by Karola in her Subaru. That end of town, Karamu Road in Hastings, is very busy at that time of the morning but eventually we got to the garage, Ebbett Hawkes Bay, and left Zoe there for her WOF. Apparently Ebbett is a chain of garages in the north island, New Zealand.

Weekly shopping now on Tuesdays went without a hitch. Then off to Artisan for coffee and nibbles and OMG next door for the GF bread. On the way home picked up dry-cleaning at Diamond Dry Cleaners, opposite the Salvation Army shop which is next to Rush Munro’s. Paul Libby our builder and Henare Ormond, Karola’s cousin, both rang me whilst I was shopping in New World, arranging to meet in the afternoon.

Karola and I took the recycling down to the Transfer Station in Henderson Road and dropped in to Gagan’s roadside green-grocers close by. Got cauliflower and avocados, both on my list but neither available at New World this morning. Also a cob of corn for my brunch and some more pears for Karola, she likes pears, and so does Bangle.

Off on my Tour de Twyford at the earlier time of 11:00am – sans Bangle, sans Karola, returning home just as Mark arrived at noon. Mark continued mowing the Middle paddock, finishing by afternoon tea time. One little incident when the Grillo wouldn’t engage the cutting blades. I quickly found out that the main belt driving the blades had come off its pulley wheels and it was a matter of a few minutes to put it back on.

Paul Libby came, he’d rung earlier and arranged a time, and we discussed the first steps in beginning the work on the homestead. I got the specifications and plans by email from Hastings District Council and, as Paul requested, sent them on to mark.primmer@carters.co.nz so they can order the prefabricated parts of the renovation. Paul says everything is delayed due to Covid 19, the difficulty of getting ships unloaded etc, so things will not move swiftly. He also reminded us that Elizabeth Pishief needs to be alerted and I need to arrange insurance while the work is being done. I called Dean Sewell at Hurford-Parker and he’ll get cover from tomorrow. Elizabeth is expecting me to let her know when work begins as she has to perform archaeological survey of the ground under the existing lean-to and the sun porch before the new foundations are excavated. Shortly we’ll also need to alert the sprinkler man, Paul van Weerden, and the security alarm man, Selwyn Cook of CooksAVS.

After the break Mark cleaned all eight sheep troughs and moved them to fresh positions in the paddocks. Meanwhile I dug four more holes ready for the Puriri. Each hessian root ball is supposed to be about 400mm across and 375mm deep, weighing about 30kg.

I got a TXT saying Zoe was ready so Karola dropped me off at Ebbetts Hawkes Bay and I drove Zoe home, detouring to get myself an iced coffee and Karola and Mark ice-creams.

Late afternoon, after working on their twenty hives down in Hawkes Bay- they have more up on The Mahia I believe – Henare and Scott came and borrowed the Landrover and big trailer to take a load of firewood to Henare’s older sister Ira.

Puriri Hole #1 – Near 133 Gateway

Puriri Hole #2 – Alongside Front Drive To Homestead

Puriri Hole #3 – In Shrubbery South Of The Ha-Ha

Puriri Hole #4 – Top Of Ha-Ha In Line With Homestead Eastern Verandah

Puriri Hole #5 – Top Of Ha-Ha In Line With Homestead Western Edge Of Sun Porch

Oak Avenue Weather:4℃—22℃ no rain [76.851] TdT TdO eggs=3 Mark=4

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Preparing For Puriri

I had a mildly exasperating morning trying to sort out my networks in the cottage. Something stopped working last week and also I’ve been advised to connect my main computer directly to the router with a cable rather than using wireless. I have an ethernet cable tester which is invaluable in finding out whether the cables in the walls are working properly. I found a couple of free cables that I’d assembled myself seem to have a wire loose or misplaced, thanks to the tester. I checked the wired connections to the Farm Shed, the Panasonic solar battery in the cottage garage, the extension leading upstairs in the cottage, and the connection to the security monitoring system. By the end of the morning I’d checked it all out and actually tested the connections by communicating with the computers and devices attached to the cottage network (picture below).

I am trying out a new regimen whereby I go on the Tour de Twyford cycle ride along the stop bank in the morning and then Bangle, Karola, and I go round the orchard in the evening – that way we all get a bit of exercise without getting bored or frightened by the bangs of bird scarers down on the stop bank.

Meticulous Maids came and did their thing mid afternoon.

Mark continued mowing the Middle and Totara paddocks until afternoon teatime when he then helped me with deciding on the placement for the Puriri trees and began clearing undergrowth for two of them in the tangled shrubbery between the ha-ha and the 133 front driveway.

Report On The Devices Attached To The Cottage Network Right Now

Oak Avenue Weather:9℃—19℃ no rain [76.974] TdT TdO eggs=3 Mark=4

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Autumn Sunday

Karola and I discussed where the five Puriri trees should be planted: one is to go out near the 133 gateway, replacing and slightly inward of the dead Lacebark that used to be in the apex of the triangle including the concrete rainwater tanks. Two more are to go at the top of the ha-ha in the Front paddock, in line with the sides of the house. The other two will possibly go in the shrubbery near the wooden gate and big Lime tree.

Don Turner at at Takana Native Trees Ltd said they could leave the nursery on Tuesday and be with us on Friday.

Sternbergia lutea – WInter daffodil or Yellow Autumn Crocus

The Usual Autumn Bounty Of Hawkes Bay Feijoa

Oak Avenue Weather:9℃—19℃ no rain [76.49] TdT TdO eggs=0

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Autumnal Temperatures

Quiet overcast day but no rain. Turned on the watering systems as there’s been no rain for over a week and the ground is getting very dry.

Still giving the sheep half days in the two quarters of the One Acre with a decent crop of lucerne.

“Lord Of The Rocks” – Gill’s Ben Comes Out Of His Coastal Lair – 2020

Oak Avenue Weather:12℃—18℃ 0.1mm rain [76.576] TdT eggs=3

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Black Doris Plum Replaced

Excitement of the day was a metallic gold SUV coming up to the homestead, turning round, and driving off again. And Bangle didn’t bark so was it someone who’s been here before we wonder.

Mark spent the afternoon mowing the Middle and Totara paddocks, still more to do next week.

I checked that Dan would be there at Greenleaf Nurseries tis afternoon then Karola, Bangle, and I went there in the Subaru with the uprooted Black Doris plum tree. It’s been very sickly since first it sprouted leaves two years ago. Anyway, Ben pointed out that where the graft had been applied the bark was split and the wound still trying to heal. He said that it’s due to someone putting herbicide on the tree, obviously unintentionally, while in the field, before it came to the nursery. He replaced it without a second thought. So, that went well.

Mark planted the new Black Doris in the hole vacated by the old, damaged one.

I suspect that the Pukekas have figured out how to open the “Chooketeria” by standing on the plate like the chooks do so I’ve put the chooketeria inside the chook house hoping that they’ll not venture there.

Oak Avenue Weather:11℃—18℃ no rain [76.765] TdT eggs=3 Mark=4

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Kirsty & Bruce Drop In On Way To Mahia

Karola & I had regular visit to Frith Gray, our Ear Nurse Specialist this morning, after which we could hear more clearly which has some advantages. Almost next door to the OMG brad shop and Artisan coffee shop so we stocked up on nibbles and a cup of coffee.

Early afternoon Kirsty & Bruce met us at Lappuccino’s just down the road and we had lunch, I again having a Keto Chuffle.

Mark meanwhile continued mowing the Ram paddock and then began on the Middle paddock. The idea is to get the old and dead grass off the paddocks so that when rain comes the new grass will have best chance to flourish.

As we took Bangle round the orchard this evening, along the rows of Galaxy apples where picking has finished, I saw a couple of trees laden with apples still. Not sure what variety the little yellow apples are, but certainly not Galaxy, so not surprising they weren;t picked. As for the others, I suspect that tree was just a week or more behind the others so wasn’t ripe enough when the pickers came through.

Tree Of Little Yellow (Crab?) Apples In A Row Of Galaxy

Galaxy Apple Tree – Possibly A Late Ripener That Missed The Pick

Oak Avenue Weather:11℃—18℃ no rain [?] TdT TdO eggs=3 Mark=4

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Driving Theory Refresher

Off we went just after 9:00am to the Masonic Hall in Waipukurau for our free course to remind us of New Zealand road rules and best practices on New Zealand roads. Carol, the presenter, was from Aged Concern, a government service. She roped in a genial police officer, Tom Romans is his name I think, to help with the more technical aspects of give-way situations and to comment on how we could become better drivers.

There were about 20 elderly people there, I suspect we were the youngest and the only ones coming up to our 75th birthday this year.

Morning tea and a sandwich for lunch with coffee or tea. A friendly, agreeable bunch of old codgers, mostly women.

Couple of notes:

  • You can get larger rear vision mirrors to replace the one you have
  • Use your left hand to open the drivers-side door, it forces you to look behind
  • Tom, the policeman, insisted on the 12 second rule – always be aware of hazards all around you and 12 seconds out
  • He also recommends strongly that you back into driveways so you can drive out forwards

According to Tom, New Zealanders are among the world’s worst drivers, and Hawkes bay drivers are the worst in New Zealand. Our preferred method of killing each other in Hawkes Bay at the present is head-on collisions. Only a tiny number of accidents are down to tourists, despite the widespread gossip, it’s locals that overwhelmingly kill ourselves.

20kph is the legal maximum when:

  • passing a stationary school bus
  • passing a police checkpoint
  • when traffic is being directed by police

The course finished early and we got home around 2:30pm, in time for afternoon tea with Mark.

Mark completed cutting back the hedge along the 133 railings and began Grillo mowing the Ram/Goose paddock.

Oak Avenue Weather:8℃—22℃ no rain [76.985] TdT eggs=2 Mark=4

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Calming Down After The Weekend

Did the weekly shop a day early as we’ll be out tomorrow at a Drive-Safe driving refresher course run by Aged Concern for the less young.

On the way dropped in at Harris Pumps & Filtration again; this time I took example taps with me and they showed me where the o-rings fitted to avoid leaks up the shank of the tap.

Mark continued cutting back the hedge along the railings at the 133 entrance.

Parcel arrfived, Karola’s replacement boiler suit. Unfortunately, although it was the right colour, made of the right material, and the same size designation as Karola’s old boiler suit, it was too long in the arms and legs so I contacted the seller and await their advice on what to do next. They say that this has happened before.

Photo From Mt Biggs Centenary, Karola and Unknown Fellow Pupil

Oak Avenue Weather:8℃—25℃ no rain [76.666] TdT TdO eggs=2 Mark=4

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View Of Te Mata Peak

Hearing the buzz of a chainsaw out on the avenue I went to investigate. I man up a telescopic platform was pruning the avenue trees, presumably continuing the work the council had commissioned a few weeks ago. I waited patiently for him to come down when he confirmed that the two drooping branches that possibly impede our phone and Internet access – from the homestead garage to a transciever 15km away on Te Mata peak – were next in line to be pruned.

Now I’ll have to see if there’s any improvement in the evening performance of our Internet connection.

Mark came and dug Karola another compost pit before mowing the cottage lawn and curtiledge and beginning trimming the Karamu shrubs along the 133 entrance railings.

Karola watched the days two Americas Cup races, the last one being quite a shocking turn-around from early in the race when the Italian boat was way way ahead.

I contacted Takana Native Trees and asked about their large Puriri trees. I hope to purchase five (their minimum order) of the smaller trees in their 45 litre packages. I didn’t know until I spoke to Ben today that they had a Puriri growing very well on the slopes below their Seatoun Heights house.

Line Of Sight Obstruction – About To Be Removed

Oak Avenue Weather:11℃—24℃ 0.1mm rain [76.991] TdT TdO eggs=3 Mark=4

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“Free Thinkers” Meeting At Karl Matthy’s Place

Invited by Karl and Peter Offenberger I went to a meeting of the “Free Thinkers” held every second Sunday in the month at 12:30pm.

Not a bad group in that it is fairly eclectic, not just all Trotskyites or flower people, a mix of left-leaning and right-leaning people. A dozen attended today but it varies a lot I’m told depending on the topics. There seem to be fewer than twenty on the group’s mailing list. Format is to have a round-the-table chat on topics of the day, so everyone has a chance to insert their hot button into the fray, then afgernoon tea, then discussion around a pre-selected topic.

Let the sheep into the crop for a few hours. Ground still damp from the decent bit of rain last week.

Oak Avenue Weather:10℃—22℃ 0.2mm rain [77.484] TdT TdO eggs=2

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Mount Biggs Centenary Gathering

Woke to a sunny day but very windy. Bangle had slept quietly with no fuss in her crate – without a door – all night. We let her outside to wandee round the garden while we had breakfast and gathered up our belongings. Only odd thing was that there were no mirrors, not one. I wondered if it was some religious preference we’d stumbled across but later Yvonne said no, sh did recollect Nikki saying that the mirrors hadn’t arrived yet. Nikki has furnished and decorated the house with skill and flair; it has plenty of room, is obviously sunny all year round, and has good views over the Rangitikei river towards harry’s farm, Burleigh, on the opposite bank. Downstream on the same side is Mary Wilson’s home block, Maungatapu.

After breakfast we upped sticks and drove over to Mount Biggs primary school for the beginning of the centenary celebrations at 10:20am. We parked te Landrover with Bangle inside in the shade and went over to the school. Plenty of people there, mostly very old or very young (pupils). Karola’s clan was well represented: James Wilson, Philippa Petrie, Aidrien Kebble, Cecilia Johnson, Yvonne with Amy and Frances, Karola and me. Karola’s old teacher, Margery Cobb nee Hulme was there too.

After morning tea Karola stayed with the guided tours of classrooms and other activities while I popped back to Burleigh and had another chat with Harry, returning in time for the barbecue. Karola had actually had enough by then soe we beetled off homewards, stopping in Feilding for an omelette and coffee and again in Woodville for an ice-cream on a stick and a newspaper. I drove as far as Woodville, including over the Saddle Road; Karola drove the rest of the way home.Somewhere between Woodville and Karamu the Landrover lost its back left-hand side corner bumper.

358 Mingaroa Road, Bulls

Very Comfortable, Furnished & Decorated With Care By Nikki, Yvonne’s Friend

West Across The Rangitikei To Burleigh Farm (Harry)

Oak Avenue Weather:11℃—18℃ no rain [?] TdT eggs=2 Mark=4

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Drive To Rangitikei

Karola hair appointment in the morning then we finished packing for our two-day adventure, attending (some of) the Mount Biggs Primary School Centenary. We stopped for lunch at the rather pleasant Hatuma Cafe just the other side of Waipukurau – plenty of gluten-free food options. Then on over the Saddle road, the detour now that the Manawatu Gorge road is permanently closed. The Saddle road is busy, very windy, steep, and slow.

We planned to stay with Yvonne Wier, widow of Karola’s brother Kaz, who lives not five minutes from Mount Biggs school. However, since we arranged that both of Yvonne’s children, Amy and Francis, decided to fly up from the South Island for the centenary event. Yvonne arranged us very pleasant accommodation – a friend who was spending the weekend in the South island lent us her house.

Karola went with Yvonne, Francis, and Amy to the opening of the centenary while Bangle and I went to Burleigh to have dinner with Harry & Chloe, Tessa and her children Ashleigh & Jimmy-James, and Laura. Ashleigh helped Chloe prepare the meal of pan-fried fish and salad followed by raspberries and cream. Chloe had GF flour for my bits of fish and it was a delicious light meal, just right for the occasion.

Takapau Plains – Very Dry, As Usual Every Summer

Oak Avenue Weather:13℃—20℃ no rain [?] eggs=2 Mark=0

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At Last A Decent Spot Of Rain

Woke to rain falling gently but persistently; it rained all day and into the night.

Mark didn’t come, nor will he come tomorrow as it’ll still be very wet underfoot if not actually raining. He’s agreed to come over on Saturday morning to tend the sheep and flighted things.

We read and dozed all day venturing out only to get the paper, the mail, and for me to do the Tour de Twyford with Bangle (without Karola who instead did the cleaning and drying of Bangle upon our return). Also to feed the chooks, geese, and doves, and to give the sheep about four hours access to the lucerne crop.

Water Lies On The Riding Arena After A Day Of Rain

Oak Avenue Weather:9℃—18℃ 19.1mm rain [76.576] TdT eggs=2 Mark=0

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New Shoes

Shopping – it’s Wednesday again and, in addition to the usual New World, OMG, coffee, and cash, I bought replacement farm shoes – robust walkers from Rebel Sport – and Karola bought some artisan chocolates from La Petite Chocolate in Heretaunga street for Yvonne who is putting us up tomorrow night for the Mount Biggs 100th Centenary Bash.

Mark helped me cut down the dead lacebark near the 133 gateway. It was at the apex of the triangle between the two driveways, the triangle that contains the three large concrete rainwater tanks. The plan is to plant a Puriri tree just behind that dead Lacebark so that, in 50 years or so, it can stand sentinel over the entrance.

Mark also dug out more blackberry, of which there seems to be an inexhaustible supply. I let the sheep graze on the One Acre lucerne crop for a few hours.

Also, having prepared two large earthenware pots yesterday, today I scattered blue Cornflower seeds in each pot. Now it needs to rain.

Morris Minor At The End Of Ormond Road

Oak Avenue Weather:13℃—24℃ 12.1mm rain [75.92] TdT TdO eggs=3 Mark=4

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And Then There Were None

Red-Band turned up for breakfast today without any chicks.

She has been a disappointment, mother-wise. She laid at least seven eggs in a nest hidden under the boundary fence. Unfortunately the nest was on a slope and at least four of her eggs rolled out of the nest and into the tall grass – Mark found them today. Red-Band hatched two of her three eggs, losing one a couple of days ago and the last one this morning.

Mark finished his mowing work in the One Acre and then pulled out a lot of small blackberry bushes along the fence between the 121 driveway and the Ram paddock.

I popped into town stopping at Harris Pumps & Filtration to discuss my leaking garden taps. The leak is almost certainly the perishing of an o-ring, the size of which varies with manufacturer. Replacement taps cost at least $20, an o-ring, maybe a dollar. Then on to Farmlands where Vince served me. Vince has had 36 years at the counter in Farmlands and they gave him a trophy for best long-serving member of staff. I purchased some chook anti-mite powder, a metal dog whistle, and 25kg of whole maize.

On to Green Door which is on the road from Hastings to Havelock North, almost in Havelock North. I bought six more swan plants, still on special at $25 for three. I did point out that they already had one or two caterpillars on them, but there was no extra charge. <joke>. I dusted the perches and nest boxes with the powder – precautionary.

Returning home I picked up an ice-cream for Karola and an iced-coffee with Raspberry ice-cream, whipped cream, and chocolate topping – breakfast.

Mark planted the six new swan plants and two of the three originals in a tight group in the Octagon. I added some Forget-Me-Not seeds.

Mark spent the rest of the afternoon moving the firewood and slash from my work yesterday to the woodpile and bund.

Denuded Swan Plant With Chrysalizing Monarch Caterpillar

Eight Swan Plants In Group On Octagon

Gill & Ben Learn To Roomba – We Await Feedback

Oak Avenue Weather:7℃—24℃ no rain [76.656] TdT TdO eggs=3 Mark=4

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Peachy

Karola & I went next door to the Cope’s orchard and picked two full plastic buckets of peaches from those left on the trees after the commercial pickers had finished.

Marcus Ormond came mid morning, as arranged, to pick up his bucket-full. He is interested in discussing how he might take over the grazing here once Karola and I find it too much. Will call round in a couple of weeks for chat and to show off his new logo for his lamb meat farming operation.

Just before lunch Peter offenberer came, as expected, to pick up his bucket-full of peaches. We talked about the Free Thinkers meetings held at Karl Matthys house in Taradale and whether, as invited by Karl, I might attend some of the meetings. The next one is next weekend.

Meticulous Maids came and did the fortnightly cottage clean.

In the afternoon I chainsawed up the fallen oak branches just off the north-east corner of the homestead garage, making it into firewood and slash. Exhausting.

Mark came and mowed the last quarter of the One Acre, almost finishing by 4:00pm, home-going time.

Oak Avenue Weather:11℃—23℃ no rain [76.931] TdT TdO eggs=2 Mark=4

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Ram With Ewes Today

I spied a large. branch of the oak next to the north-east corner of the homestead garage. It must have fallen in the short strong winds we had yesterday. Missed the garage by over a metre, not much over a metre.

Ewe hoggets imprisoned in the yards. Ram let out of the Long Acre into the Middle paddock. Ewes pushed from Front paddock into the Middle paddock with the ram. Ewe hoggets let into the Holding paddock. Tomorrow we’ll get the hoggets into the Front paddock and give the rest some time in the rapidly regrowing lucerne in the One Acre.

Pleasant day, some cloud and a gentle cool breeze, so we went to Clive for our walk today, Tour-de-Clive (TdC). I took Bangle 1.5km along the lime path adjoining the wetlands and then let her meander back. Meanwhile Karola walked with us for the first 800m then returned to the car. We saw a couple of white faced grey herons in the meadow inside the stop bank – the lime path sits atop the stop bank. An elderly man was tending his vegetable patch – sweet corn, runner beans and other vegetables. Black swans very much in evidence in the wetlands.

Large Oak Limb Falls Close To Homestead Garage

Clive Estuary At Full Tide

Oak Avenue Weather:6℃—26℃ no rain [76.968] TdC TdO eggs=3

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Where Is The Rain

Things pretty normal for early autumn in Hawkes Bay. Warm and a nice cool breeze. Red-Band and two chicks scratching about in litter. Lots of Barbary doves at bird table.

Bangle did set up a racket mid morning, barking and barking out on the lawn next to the bedroom. By the time we got there all to be seen was a little pile of white dove feathers and Bangle had retreated under the cottage. Don’t know what to make of it; I think it’s unlikely that Bangle would bark at a dead dove but we don’t know what could have come onto the lawn and left a dead dove there – a hawk maybe.

We were hoping for a bit of rain and it was hinted at but didn’t arrive.

Monarch Caterpillars On My Swan Plants

Rain Clouds Early Evening – But No Rain Here

Oak Avenue Weather:13℃—29℃ 0.8mm rain [77.311] TdT TdO eggs=2

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Shake, Rock, and Roll

At 2:27am I was woken by an earthquake – not terribly violent but it kept the cottage rocking and rolling for several minutes. As the quake continued I woke Karola in case we needed to flee; Bangle came into the bedroom but didn’t seem unduly frightened. I nipped upstairs and browsed to the GeoNet web site to see whether Wellington was safe; I also registered that we’d felt the quake, something that thousands of New Zealanders do after every quake. Breathed a sugh of relief when I saw the epicentre was east of us out in the ocean. The 7.1 magnitude quake centred about 100km east of Gisborne only less than 20km down.

A few minutes later Gill TXTed to see if we were OK – not harmed by earthquake nor consequential tidal wave (aka tsunami).

Two more big earthquakes followed but these were 1000km away just off the Kermadec islands. Big quakes though, 7.4 and 8.1 magnitude. The upper third of the North Island went on tsunami alert which lasted until mid afternoon. Anna TXTed later when the news got onto the UK media.

Mark continued mowing, finishing under the big oak and the teardrop lawn, the “D” lawn in front of the homestead garage, and under the washing line.

Mark completed the tap census – quite a number leak when turned on. He then reinforced the tree guards in the Ram paddock, making them stronger and taller so that the ram could not easily knock them down nor reach inside. Mark took down the electric fence separating the chook area from the ram area in the Ram paddock (aka Goose paddock). The young ram leapt at the chance for some fresh grass.

Oak Avenue Weather:15℃—28℃ no rain [77.424] TdT TdO eggs=3 Mark=4

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Minor Monarch Miracle

Red-Band still has her two chicks. I discovered ten Monarch butterfly caterpillars on the three Swan Plants I bought from Green Door last week, on special for $25. The caterpillars vary in size from one soon to pupate to others the size of matchstick heads. Advice from Ben is that 3 – 4 caterpillars per plant may mean they don’t eat it to the bone before pupating; more than that then one needs to cull.

Brian Cope’s mum came round, as she said she would, with peaches, a bucketful taken from the Cope trees after commercial picking had finished.

As rain and thunder storms threatened, and it began raining in Napier, we agreed that Mark would not come today.

Got petrol for the Grillo etc and refilled the Landrover without succumbing to chocolate, ice-cream, or biscuits – all temptingly on display at the garage.

Ten Monarch Caterpillars On My Three Swan Plants (Four “In Shot”)

Oak Avenue Weather:8℃—26℃ 0.1mm rain [77.396] TdT TdO  eggs=2 Mark=0

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Red-Band Has Twins

Excitement of the day was spotting a black bundle of feathers, a chook, meandering across the drive with a couple of little black bundles darting around it. Red-Band, AWOL for weeks, has returned with two of her three eggs hatched into bonnie bouncing baby chicks. Huzzah.

It’s Wednesday, so weekly shop, although in the early afternoon rather than mid-morning.

Mark arrived before we’d set off and set to mowing the cottage curtilage – the lawn he did yesterday but today he did under the big oak. He ran low on petrol before he could get to the teardrop lawn in the driveway and under the washing line. After that there was an irrigation pipe to fix, a leak causing a little fountain in one of the Lime avenue tree guards. Then he moved the sheep trough in the Ram paddock into a shady spot at the end of the paddock and created a join with the alkathene pipe running down the fence line to the Stump Dump. Lastly today he began a census of the garden taps spread around the property, there are about 18 taps excluding the ones on the outside of the cottage and homestead which feed off the house supply.

The brass taps were inexpensive and several of them leak not when they’re turned off – usually a washer problem – but when they’re turned on. Water comes out round the shaft of the tap and I have a feeling that in talking to Harris Pumps & Filtration they told me it’s a wearing of the metal, not a washer-fixable problem, so it means new taps.

Who Should Pop Out Of The Undergrowth Today?

Oak Avenue Weather:13℃—31℃ no rain [77.437] TdT eggs=2 Mark=4

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HOY Show Cancelled – Covid 19 Casualty

My day, after a very late start, comprised computer work such as paying bills, doing Karola’s GST (one day overdue which cost us $6), and writing emails.

Mark mowed the quarter of the One Acre vacated by the sheep yesterday and then mowed the cottage lawn. He brought some photos of the extended hen run he built over the weekend for his three new pullets, they complement his older lone hen.

Karola sped off in the Zoe to post a birthday card to friend in UK and on the way back dropped in to chat with our neighbour Janet Scott.

“Faith”, “Hope”, “Charity” – Or Whatever Mark Calls Them – Pullets In Residence

In Their New House – Relaxed And Happy, I’d Say

Pen Under Construction At The Weekend – Mark’s Dog Keeping Guard

Just Some Of Mark’s Menagerie

Mark’s Old Hen – Hope She Accepts The Newcomers

One Of Mark’s Rabbits

That’s Solomon – Mark Kindly Adopted Him From Us As A Kitten

One Acre – Karola’s Lucerne Paddock

Oak Avenue Weather:12℃—24℃ no rain [77.345] TdT TdO eggs=2 Mark=4

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Feels Like Sunday

On Saturday and again today I searched in vain at 7:00am for the newspaper that is supposed to be delivered six days a week. Today I found that karola had gone out later and retrieved both papers, and that’s why when I’d searched again late morning there was still no sign. I’ll test that theory – a later delivery – tomorrow.

I went round with Bangle and turned off the four watering stations. I noted that there is a break in one of the hoses, the one feeding the 15th lime tree in the Front paddock, so that needs to be fixed before the next watering. Also the tap for the water trough in the goose paddock leaks when turned on, as does the one near the wooden gate into the Front paddock and one of the taps in the Holding paddock.

Mark TXTed to say that he’d been building his extended chook run at the weekend which turned out to be a lot of hard digging so he’s not coming until tomorrow.

Saw a light in the homestead upstairs bathroom so went to turn it off and found the upstairs hot water cylinder still very hot despite it being switched off. We need to check in a few days to see whether there’s a fault and it isn’t turning off or whether it’s just taking a while to cool down.

Oak Avenue Weather:16℃—23℃ no rain [77.559] TdT TdO eggs=2 Mark=0

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