Its mid-November now and those of you who are gardening down here in the part of the world where I live in the southern hemisphere (New Zealand) are in the midst of peak planting time. By November the ground should have warmed up enough for you to get most of your vegetable plants in to the outdoor garden and you should have a good planting of everything in the ground.   Even if it is the first row of something that you are going to keep succession planting – but the combination of day length and increasing ground temperature means that the conditions are just right for peak growing.

Weeds in the wheelbarrow - how to avoid overwhelm in the vegetable garden.

Lemon Meringue Pie - Delicious comfort food.

“Spring stands at the gate with her finger on the latch”

I love this line by Patience Strong where she is perfectly describing this month where even though it is still winter, the promise of spring is in the air and popping up around us. She was of course writing in Northern Hemisphere so it was February she was writing for but the euivalent month for us down at the bottom of the world is August.

July here in our part of the world is till the depths of winter and although I’m thinking and preparing for the new season – there is not much time spent in the actual garden. It is  great to get out there on frosty morning to see how the ground is chilled and laced with ice – and to think triumphant thoughts about slugs and other pests not surviving the winter chill to make it through to eat my precious spring plants.  And then there is the occasional warm day when you notice that the daffodils are emerging and you realise that even when you can’t see it, there is still growth and movement going on.

Well the mid-winter solstice is upon us now and today I am going to be doing a bit of a tongue-in – cheek ‘ceremonial” planting of garlic. It is traditionally planted on the shortest day and harvested on the longest and as I am a fan of tradition – I am going to plant some in a facebook live.   All going well.   Meaning – if I can get my husband to be the cameraman as I won’t be able to plant, talk and hold the camera at the same time.

There is always a powerful psychological factor when it comes to new beginnnings.  As humans, we love the idea of ‘turning over a new leaf” and starting afresh don’t we?   I think every day is a chance to start afresh and do my best to create a better outcome each day but for many of us, we love the idea of a whole New Year stretching out into the future 12 months. 

Professional Countrwoman Garden at Bellbird Hill Otago New Zealand. Entrance Gate. Autumn Garden