Blog
Living beautifully and acting effectively - making country life easier for the rural entrepreneur.
ELDERFLOWER TIME!
Quite possibly two of the loveliest words in the English language! Like distilled summer. Elderflowers are in full swing in hedgerows and paddocks all over the country – seems to be a great year for them. Some see this plant as a weed but it is fully medicinal and such an asset. Bubbly or cordial from the flowers, cordials from the fruit. Good reason for us to leave the hedgerows alone to provide food for human, animal and insect foraging.
The Kitchen Gardener’s Year - Late Spring in the Kitchen Garden. November in NZ
November (Or May if you live in the Northern Hemisphere ) is a wonderful time in the garden. The weather has warmed up although there may still be the chance of late frosts or even snow in the cooler parts of the country. But everything can be planted from now with a second sowing of many vegetables sown earlier in spring. This post is especially for you if you are following the Crop Rotation Poster .
The Kitchen Garden at a Glance for September (Early Spring)
Here are some jobs for you to do in the kitchen garden this month in early spring in our part of the world. Things are warming up and it’s about to get really busy! If you want some guidance on what to do and when for the gardening year then you may like to purchase the Crop Rotation Poster which you can find here in the store.
The Kitchen Gardener’s Year - Winter/August
I do love this quote by Patience Strong where she is perfectly describing this month. Although it is still winter, the promise of spring is in the air. The winter narcissi are flowering and the classic harbinger of spring, the daffodil will be out soon if not already depending on your micro climate. There are lambs frolicking on the hills and you may find that with the occasional warm springlike days we will get this month your own sap will start rising and you want to get out there and garden! But hold your horses for a bit longer. Get excited of course but channel that into this list of “P” things to do this month.
This Month at a Glance
What to plant in the Vegetable garden in the winter month of July in the Southern Hemisphere or New Zealand /Australia
Gardening This Month with the Crop Rotation Poster. July/Winter
July is winter here in New Zealand. We’re not long past the shortest day, sometimes called Mid-Winters Day, on the 21st June, but don’t be fooled into thinking that its the middle of winter. Winter is just kicking off as those currently experiencing heavy rain and snow will well know. I grow in a cool temperate part of the South Island so tend to speak most about what applies here but I will include more warm temperate notes as well.
Sourdough and Garlic on a Saturday Morning.
It’s Saturday morning and as I lay away early in the frosty dark I was thinking about what I was going to get up today. For a lot of us, the weekend it when we are mostly likely to get the chance to get into the garden for a couple of hours so keen to get out there myself. First thing will be to get a sourdough loaf started as it likes a good long rising period for all the good fermentation to take place so before too much gets done I’ll start that off. Some of you have kindly given me some good suggestions on how to get the best out of my culture so enjoying the opportunity to try out some different techniques.
Late Autumn in the Vegetable Garden. May.
Well it feels like everything is still growing as I write this at the beginning of May. There has certainly been plenty of rain around the country - some of you in parts of New Zealand and Australia are getting more than your fair share! The lawnmower in the family has been complaining that he even the grass hasn’t let up.