Flower Blocks.

I am currently working on the final block  for this top.

 I laid them on the floor yet again to decide on the colours for the last flower. I have the option of moving some blocks but only with ones of the same size. I am shifting the bottom left to the bottom 3rd to left, as 2 flowers beside each other had the same fabric in them.

 The 2 latest blocks are these below with  rather different colours. ( instead of more blue.)

 This one still needs it's stem hand appliquéd-it's just pinned here.

 One other pink flowered block needs the same ( that's why some appear slightly puckered in the photo.) They all need a trim and a final press too.

 Then I need to decide if I am making the sashing strips from one fabric or of joined 1" squares ( The  lot more work option ).

 I will audition both to see what I like best.

******

 Lots of salads on the menu. Some silverbeet is going to seed and I have just picked yet another handful of side shoots off the broccoli.......they just keep on and on. My celery isn't as robust as bought bunches but is doing surprisingly well and has never seen a spray of anything!

*******

Today is not the norm around here. We were up very early to ensure R was at his hospital appointment on time. One never knows with the rush hour traffic how long it will take. But we arrived with 15 minutes to spare. I also have to go to the dentist this afternoon ( broken tooth ) I had an appointment next week so when they rang and said they had a cancellation I had to take it.( my least favourite place on earth to go, so I  am trying to keep calm.)

 From there I will go back to see how R is getting on - he should be awake by then. If all goes according to plan he will be allowed home tomorrow.

 It is raining here now so I might even get to sew that last block later.

******

* Leanne bumble bees will work when honey bees stay inside their hive on dull days. They are stronger flyers in the wind and can be seen working early and late. It increases our odds of getting good pollination.( it may be the way in the future )

 * Isabelle  I found the book you are reading and got it and 2 others on my list.( one will be a gift for my sister.)

Bumble Bees and Charity Quilts.

Last Thursday our ordered Bumble bee hive arrived.. It is to help with pollination of the avocados.

 It is okay when a box is buzzing.... ( not ticking! )

 Carefully take it out of the protective carton ...immediately it has a dank honey /beehive sort of smell and the buzzing is much louder and more agitated.

It's not easy to get a photo but you can see them in there. 60+ . Maybe 75.

 The plastic hive is  sat on a stand of 4 wooden stakes in a sunny spot between the 2 avocado blocks. They are already flying off into the sky; we hope to the avocado trees. Tonight they will be joined by an Honeybee hive( the more normal type of bees used for pollination of our avos ( and later on our kiwifruit )).

*******

Last Friday at our Patchwork and Quilters group we had a final look at the many, mostly small quilts that members have made for various charities, before they get delivered. I can't show them all .

Here is a selection.

 Small ones like this are needed in the local Maternity unit .

 Larger ones like this are being donated to Plunket.   J did this design out of her William Morris book.

 Larger ones still are going the the Refuge.

 Larger light weight ones ( no batting ) and a clutch ball are going to the Ruel Foundation in the Philippines.

 and many many more.

*******

 A very wise vase of Flowers!

 I had to give the sage bush a partial haircut even though the bees were enjoying it ( there is still plenty ), as it was falling all over my wee newly up Whippersnap peas.

 This is my 3rd small planting. As the whole pod is eaten not many are needed for a salad.

 The 1st lot are just beginning to flower.( Yum I can't wait. )

Everything in the Herb garden has really grown fast. Even the strawberries under the frame you can see are finally sporting new lush green leaves and some flowers.

*****************

 Thank you to my commentators. ( commentors ) ( Jennifer; Q I : Isabelle; Gemini Jen; Charlotte and Esther. )

 I have written down your suggestions on a card I keep in my handbag for next time I am near a bookshop. I have also Googled all the books and Authors you suggested.

 So, 2 new, to me, Authors and several books to look out for . Thank you all and for your other comments I love hearing your views.

 Finally what about this for a colour scheme.

 I might use that in a quilt? ( It's a Euphorbia flower next to a Sweet William flower - By chance. )

Reading, Recipe and Prime Ties.

 The Copper Beech is now fully dressed! ( it's a dull cloudy day here but still it's wonderful colours show in contrast with the green, green lawn - lovely )

Last night I finished reading Captive Wife, by Fiona Kidman which was based on a NZ historical  fact. I knew the story already having heard it on the radio some years ago.
I rated it 3.5 out of 5. It's a while since I read a 5.
 My sister left a bag of books for me to read when she was here a fortnight ago...ones she really enjoyed. We have similar reading tastes so I hope some will rate a 5 with me.
 What are your all time favourite reads? I'd love to know.
 Sometimes when books shops have their list of 100 favourite books ( or similar lists ) displayed I am surprised at how many of them I have read.
 There are just so many books in the world to read that I hate to waste my time on indifferent ones.
 When I was at college I wouldn't rate myself as an avid reader - not like 1 or 2 people I recall, always with their noses in a book. I was more likely to be out participating in sport. I now have a real love of books.  Back then Jane Eyre was a favourite - I used it ever so many time to answer exam questions.

 On my list of all time Best Reads are;-
The Various Flavours of Coffee by Anthony Capella.
The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver.
Remarkable Creatures by Tracey Chevalier.
The Book Thief by Marcus Zusak.
The Jigsaw Man by Paul Britten.

                                                ********
 Sometimes simple recipes are best. We have been having lots of salads from the garden -  very fresh and eaten within 10 minutes of picking.
 This salad  however has only 1 ingredient we grew, avocado. As the wind of 2 weeks ago  blew many avos to the ground we are using up as many as we can. This is delicious if you like avos and can get some good NZ ones.

 Just 3 ingredients; so hardly a recipe as such.

 Chop into bite sized pieces ripe but firm avocado, crisp red apple ( Pacific Rose are  good ) and roasted lightly salted peanuts ( or any nuts you fancy ) Stir together in equal proportions.

 Dress with a creamy dressing with an apple cider vinegar base.

 Eat straight away so nuts stay crisp. Experiment - there are other combinations I like. It is the contrast of textures as well as flavours that makes this work well.

 Hint - if you live in New Zealand do NOT buy avocados from those road side vendors that have lots for a cheap price. Mostly they are selling damaged windfalls or immature seconds. Rather buy from a reputable source. Buy them before they are ripe and keep your hands from constantly squeasing the fruit. If it is a Hass variety it will darken in colour and be slightly soft if cradled in the palm of your hand. If you are not sure remove the stalk and see if a toothpick will slide gently in.Once ripe they will  hold in the fridge for a few days.

*****

 What are prime ties you may wonder. They are soft stretchy rings of stocking material, cut  into narrow widths  that we buy and use to secure kiwifruit canes that won't quite reach the wire ( harder to describe than I thought )

 They are used by the 1000s.  Over the last few weeks I have been cutting off old used ones that are left knotted on the wires...... so they are all over the ground beneath the vines. We always grin when we see recycling has been going on. We  find bird's nests lined with them.

 This is a very untidy blackbird nest in the Viburnum tree.

 See the white dangly bit, that's an old prime tie. ( softer than straw )

 The other day I found a really strange thing. 

 An extra wide prime tie had been used and somehow a new growing shoot got trapped inside it. ( it looks like a nursery web spider nest but isn't )

 I was able to gently cut the stretched tie and release the contents unharmed.( a bit twisted but it will straighten out )

 Sometimes shoots also get stuck under the plastic clips and like wise if got to soon enough can be released to carry on growing.

 Occasionally we get prime ties made from black stocking  or glittery  fancy  stockings!! ( this was one of those )

Orchard and Garden.

Thank you all for your comments and good wishes on the previous 2 posts.
Shirley we are not allowed to use unregistered products on our kiwifruit vines so peroxide would not be allowed.( at this stage anyway )
 The psa has slowed and we have not found any more during this last week. That is good and probably corresponds with sun and a copper spray. We will keep monitoring closely. 

At the moment we are crush tipping the first growth on the female  kiwifruit vines.

 This photo ( click on to enlarge ) shows the growth at the end of a female cane. If you look closely you may see flower buds already showing. ( note also the sky - not a cloud to be seen! ) This shoot will continue to grow and we are crushing the growing tip very gently to terminate it when it has about 8 leaves. If we cut the end it will shoot out from that point again and we will have to keep doing it. By crushing the tip it self terminates and puts it's growth into plumping up the buds and later the fruit.

 I asked R to demonstrate. Using just the index finger and thumb gently squeeze the very soft tip.

  A delicate touch is needed.  If you squeeze too hard the tip will snap off.  So gently, gently...patience.... Not difficult at all... just get into a system and away we go.

 Also note in the photo some of the flower buds are already showing 2 or 3 together in a bunch. Thinning these to just one comes in a few weeks time but I find using my lady finger nails I can already rub some of these off. If it is done too soon all 3 buds will drop off. Like anything there is a knack .....and practise makes perfect.( one's thumb and index finger look like smokers' fingers after a while - staining from the sap as we crush )

 I should add that not all shoots need crushing -  on certain wood some are naturally self terminating ( which is helpful )

 ****

 I have been out in the garden taking lots of photos in the last week. My precious copper beech tree is getting it's leaves. ( like the kiwifruit it pushes the sap to the ends first ) hence the top of the tree breaks into leaf first.

Up close.

 I have been harvesting too. Radish are best young.

 Many of the little lettuce I planted in the flower gardens are ready too. This little Tom Thumb variety will make the base for a tasty salad at lunchtime.

 While out with the camera I noticed this industrious fellow.  A paper wasp just beginning to make a nest ( it won't be staying! )( I hate getting stung by them! )

 I prefer these friends...bees just everywhere - that is so good!

 Somewhere else there are lots of bees...I heard them buzzing, there were so many

 here on a Golden Totara tree.

 I checked in J.T. Salmon's book The native Trees of New Zealand and it tells me these are male cones that ripen and shed pollen.

 This is a very large tree and is covered in the cones ( which are tiny about 2 or 3 cms long ) and so many, many bees are working away collecting pollen.( there are bee hives being stored by a bee keeper on a neighbouring property so we get lots of bees in the garden. )

Finally  photos with  colours other than green!

The Weather was Appalling.

We got through our celebration of R's 70th no thanks to the weather. It really spoilt any outdoor activities. ( I was really hoping all the kids could play Kubb on the front lawn ) Before 11 am we thought we were getting away with just wind, but no, rain followed, on and off all day.We had small showers of  hail 3 times along with the high winds and generally very chilly. Interspersed with patches of sun just to trick us.

 Here R is helping the BBQ man by backing his machine onto the cobble stones with our tractor.

 People were very understanding about the weather knowing it was beyond our control. 

A friend had set up his big gazebo around the front deck but the high winds made rain beat in the sides . 2 tables were set up there and some brave souls ate their meal there.

 This is how it looked the day we put it up.

 The garden had been looking quite bright and tidy but got a bit trashed.

 R wasn't fussed about having a Birthday cake so I made lots of bliss balls and son arranged  them  and some marshmallows around the candles. R  had a good time with all his friends and family around. I think the final tally was 46.( all managed to fit inside the house! )

 Something I have learnt. There is no such thing as enough savoury eggs when you have lots of guests!

 If there had been double this number they would have disappeared.

 The young ones were a great help with the preparations and we just improvised as problems arose with mats by doors so folk wouldn't slip. I had never had hail bouncing in onto the lounge carpet before!

 Today's weather is even worse .The wind is gale force. But we are lucky we have power. Lots of homes up in Auckland have been without power for 2 days.

 As soon as it is fine again we will go back to work, as  we have done all the tidying up except I have washing outstanding but that will keep.

 Thank you to the bloggy friends who sent R birthday greetings.