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After a wet finish to July and early August, it seemed this would be a month of increasing mud and drear...instead we had yet another magnificent bout of true Winter, with cold temperatures, some light frosts and lots of lovely...

actual ice We've made it to real Winter and are certainly experiencing the best and worst of it. Up until today (15th) we had an unprecedented run of perfect Winter weather, with 8 days of frosty mornings and still sunny...

June is possibly the most unreliable month of the year. Some years it can be a beautiful extension of Autumn, almost still Indian Summer. I remember a June (about 30+ years ago) when I had to buy water. I had...

At the halfway point of May, which is today, the marvelous weather has taken a turn for the worst and it's currently persisting down. Those poor folks in Canterbury would be so jealous, it seems to have forgotten how to...

Uh oh, only a couple of months in and I've nearly broken my monthly blog-pledge already. Having just read last month's, before starting this, I can see it was obviously expected. That April Birthday thing happened and a delightful array...

I love Autumn. Obviously Spring is great in its abundance, but its very ...busy. Autumn is much more peaceful, especially if the weather acts like it's supposed to! Summer is altogether too hot for me, it's my least favoured  season....

OK! Third time lucky. This time I am really going to write a Blog and publish it...a year will be too long for a come back, and 2024 is marching on. I will start this blog for February with November's...

I'm pretty sure that's a title of a Queen song...my dear Cousin, who shares my borderline obsession, says they're better than Shakespeare for offering suitable sayings! Oh dear, aren't we sad... In this case, referring to the approach of the...

Autumn is shaping up to be a lot more acceptable than Summer...we have had a fair amount of Autumn rain but in acceptable quantities now. It's quite funny reading last years diaries for Autumn, so excited to get 20 mils...

Well, it's March now, 2023 marches on, and technically Autumn is upon us. Autumn usually follows Summer, but in this case it appears to be tacked onto the veeeeeery long Spring. I know other parts of the country have experienced...

November has passed seamlessly into December, with little change in anything. The rain and wind continues, the rain infinitely more bearable than the wind. This morning it is raining pleasantly and thankfully the hurricane force winds in evidence for the...

As promised I'm attempting to get this blog out before the month runs out and the Silly Season descends. I need to give my slightly decrepit body a break between bouts of activity, so I can sit for a bit...

If you're a Spring or Summer plant in the garden, October is your busiest month. Everyone is rushing around madly, fighting for space and a spot in the sun. What we call weeds join in merrily, despite best efforts of...

September is in it's last week now, and I think the Woes of Winter are forgotten. However we are having a very wet Spring! Surprise, surprise! We've managed some lovely days tho, including today. I'm currently wasting a perfect Spring...

Very few frosts this Winter, too busy raining... Well on my records anyway. I believe Kaiaua officially recorded 347 mil of rain for the month of July, and guess what???August ain't looking a lot better. To be fair we had...

Don't you just love alliteration! W seems to an excellent letter for Winter Woes. I haven't even mentioned wild, windy, wet, watery or worrisome yet! July is here with a vengeance. The Northern hemisphere are having their party party time,...

They call the beginning of June Winter, but that's just to round up the calendar numbers. Actually it starts with the shortest day, which is fast approaching. I say this to make myself feel better about how behind I am...

Pots of cuttings lining up ...something wintry this way comes. Yes thumb pricking is the highlight of May as I rush to get cuttings in pots during this prime time. I always put off making the Rugosas and other super...

What a magnificent month is that of April! I have a birthday, which usually includes catching up with some family and friends and as of 2023 it will also be the birthday of my 1st grandchild who was born last...

This headline is a serious double entendre, possibly a triple entendre (pretty sure triple is not the French word for triple....looked it up, it's "trois fois", so therefore a "trois fois entendre", doesn't sound quite the same...) Whatever, the Blast...