Struan Farm

Day is Done, Holiday Break

Do those Scouts and other campers out there remember the camp song "Day is Done?" It is sung at taps, when the flag is lowered and the sun setting. I couldn't find a simple You Tube video to embed, but the lyrics are:

Day is done, gone the sun, from the lake, from the hills, from the sky. All is well, safely rest. God is nigh.

Here's the latest sunset from Struan Farm, a beautiful sky really, to wish you a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. We are in the process of moving to the farm full time, and will be enjoying the holidays with family (38 for Boxing Day lunch!).

I will be back blogging full time most likely end of January, once we get internet access sorted in our remote rural location. 

Enjoy your holidays! xx.

Revival of Hope

John was having a hard time coming up with what to get me for Christmas this year, so I decided to help him out. I suggested that he take my grandmother's hope chest to Noel Pearson, woodmaker extraordinare, to see if he might be able to repair and restore it.

This chest has travelled around with me since I graduated from college. It's lived in Boston, LA, Boston, LA, and now New Zealand. It had definitely seen better times, had been damaged and neglected, but I've kept it both for sentimental and practical reasons. It's made of cedar, so is great for storing and protecting my knitted sweaters from moths.

While we don't have any "before" photos, here are the "after" shots. John was so excited with how it turned out (as was Noel), he couldn't wait until Christmas to show me!

This chest was made in Chattanooga, Tennessee by the Tennessee Furniture Company, which started operating in 1923. The chests functioned as hope or linen chests, and were used by women to store their precious laces, embroidery and fine wools. The Tennessee red cedar protects things from moths and other pests. For those unfamiliar with "hope" chests, these were given to young girls when they turned 14 to hold linens and clothing to be sewn ahead of their engagements and marriages (hence the need for "hope").

This has come up beautifully, with thanks to Noel for his workmanship and to John for a truly wonderful Christmas present. The grain of the wood, which previously wasn't at all apparent, is amazing.

Just goes to show you that one should never give up hope?!

Summer Lunch at Struan Farm

We always stop and have a civilized lunch at Struan Farm, even when we're both working away like mad in the gardens or out on the farm. It actually helps our productivity to take a pause!

This past weekend it was tomato sandwiches on toasted wholegrain bread with mayonnaise, salt & pepper, with a pitcher of ice cold iced tea. I've converted John to iced tea, something that Kiwis don't really drink. We both find it refreshing and reviving.

And yes, they are always fresh flowers on the table. Of course, this is Struam Farm after all!

Foggy Morning in Piopio

We awoke Saturday a.m. at Struan Farm to thick fog, sheep huddling under the big oak tree in the Pet Paddock:

 

 

 

It was hard to see past Hydrangea Hill! But this all burned off by mid morning, and it was a beautiful, hot summer's day.

Sooty and Oreo: Carded

It's taken me awhile to get my act organised, but I finally got Sooty and Oreo's black fleeces shipped off and back from being washed and carded by Rotocard.

And it will be another wee while before this fleece gets anywhere near a spinning wheel, but I'll report back when it does!

Hydrangea Hill is Happening

Hydrangea Hill at Struan Farm is definitely happening!

  

Always good to have everyone blooming happily for Christmas and Boxing Day.

Little Girls & Little Big Trees

As previously advertised, Ella and Livvy came down to Struan Farm this past weekend to help us with various work projects (in addition to enjoying the usual pancake breakfast with maple syrup, butter, and fresh berries on Sunday, prepared by Ella and JoJo).

They went on thistle patrol and spread grass seed, but the most important job they accomplished was potting up our seedling oak trees. These self-seeded from acorns that were in the leaves we put over our tulip bed last autumn, so an unexpected bonus!

Before the potting commenced, John (aka JoJo) walked everyone over to the largest oak tree in the Pet Paddock to put the seedlings into perspective:

There were over 20 in total, it will be interesting for both the girls and us to see them grow.

Weekend Flowers plus Major Life Update

First things first. Apologies that blog posts will be a little light this week. We're in the process of packing up and moving full time to Struan Farm, hooray!

I am ending my 36+ year career in financial services and "retiring" to the farm to get Struan Farm farmstay open full time early in 2014, again hooray! The gardens, veggie garden and orchard will thank me for this, can't wait.

We're setting up a flat in town for John, since he will need to continue to commute given some work commitments he has. You know how we love renovating, well, we're at it again.

Progress is being made on the new house at the farm, which we're hoping we can get into in some way/shape/form by Christmas.

So suffice it to say, lots on. Oh yes, and 38 family members coming to Struan Farm for Boxing Day lunch and festivities this year too. I've planned the menu and shopping list already, in my spare time. 

Lovely arrangement for our table this weekend:

Infrastructure, etc.

John has been keen to put in some "cattle stops" at Struan Farm in a few places, to replace gates that have to be opened and closed. The theory here is that stock won't walk over these (and it must be said that it isn't easy for humans to do so either!).

So the contractor working on our front entrance was engaged to put in two cattle stops as well. One at the back gate from the Homestead to the Cottage, so visitors can drive right through, the second on the drive from the Cottage up to the new Main House site. 

 

 

Fortunately Clifford has figured out how to negotiate these already, phew!

Great Oaks from Little Acorns Grow

John and I were out admiring our new front entrance at Struan Farm this past weekend and noticed little seedling trees sprouting up in our tulip bed in the wooded roadside garden.

Hmm. We'd taken leaves from under the oak tree in the Pet Paddock by trailer with the little girls when we planted the tulip bulbs in the autumn.

I pulled one or two up to find out. These were little oak trees! Very cool.

So of course I've potted some up and will encourage them on. Ella and Livvy are coming to visit again next weekend, so we'll have them pot the rest of the seedlings.

p.s. who was it that said "Great oaks from little acorns grow?" Winnie the Pooh!

Rainy Day in Piopio

We managed to get some work done in the gardens at Struan Farm before the winds came howling and the rain came sideways this past weekend:

It did give us some time to get up to the new house and move boxes into closets. The new house isn't habitable as yet but progress is being made. Last week the concrete foundations for the garage and workshop got poured, amongst other things.

So I didn't get quite all of the roses "dead headed," there'll be time for that another day. And as you can see above, Hydrangea Hill is really starting to happen!

Weekend Flowers

Flowers from our table at Struan Farm this past weekend:

Think you can actually see the rain on them, it was that kind of day!

Entrance, Continued

Good news, the concrete for our new front entrance at Struan Farm was poured this past week:

There's even a proper drain:

Next comes gravel/metal at both the roadside and on the other side of the green gate, then we can tick the box on this project!