Struan Farm

An Apple A Day

Guess who at Struan Farm has decided she likes more than a bit of apple for a treat? We may have created a monster...

Yep, Rosie! She gobbles pieces out of our hands as fast as we can serve them up. John started this, we tried apple and carrot horse treats with the pets, but the only one who would touch those was Ruby. Rosie clearly prefers the real deal. Now it's hilarious to watch her barrelling over when she sees us out walking, so we need to make sure to bring a bag with some apple whenever we go out walking, she gets quite aggressive about wanting her special snack!

Wattle We Do

I've spent hours and hours over the past two weeks working down the small bank near the new(ish) house here at Struan Farm. This all started with weeding the bank so that we could deploy the mountain of chip mulch left us by the roading crew around our native landscaping. That job has been done, but since we still have heaps of chip left to use I made the mistake taking a good close look down at the bottom of the bank. You know how that goes, when one small project morphs into a monster?

By way of back story, a few years ago when we built the new house John and I needed to take down twelve or so black wattle trees before the power lines could be installed. John's dad Maurie had planted these many years ago for firewood. And while we continue to enjoy the firewood, what he didn't know at the time is that the trees are a noxious weed (officially designated so in Australia and South Africa, not NZ as yet). The stumps and seeds, which can live in the ground for 30 years, have continued to sprout out of control.  People tell you they're easy to kill via a combination of pulling them out and/or poison, but I don't think these people have really had to contend with the reincarnations of a number of these huge trees themselves. Much easier said than done. 

We now have several hundred young wattle trees in various stages growing away. No exaggeration, and a problem since they're embedded in the bush with other trees and plants growing around them. They've already been pulled out and/or poisoned two-three times, although perhaps not in an excessively compulsive way.

Enter Karen, who's decided that compulsion is indeed required or this will just get more and more out of control. I've started weeding around the mother tree stumps, after which I will pull out or poison the growing wattles, then spread chip to keep weed growth around the stumps suppressed so we can actually see the wattles when they start to re-sprout (nephew Mike will do that last bit). Once this work is done I'll hunt down the wattles that are growing in the adjacent bush, pulling them out and/or cutting them off and poisoning them.  

 

Have you ever had that daunting feeling you'll be doing something for the rest of your life, hoping to make (at least) a dent over the next 20 or so years? This would be one of those.

 

Houston, We Have Germination!

Very exciting to see that the various seed trays of vegetables and flowers I planted out last week in the glasshouse at Struan Farm are already starting to germinate. I won't bore you with too many different photos of minuscule little plants breaking through dirt, since they all look pretty much the same. Here are two:

As of this moment flower seeds germinated are the marigold seeds I gathered up and saved from last year, scabiosa, and echinops. Tomatoes are King's Seeds Oxheart and KB's "Big Red Cherry" and "Pear Shaped." The latter two are growing from seeds I saved last year from Mr. V's heirlooms, I will need his help eventually for proper identification. But I'm pleased to have had some initial success saving tomato seeds. That being said, you never know until they grow! I'll be starting some zucchini and pumpkin seeds in pots in the next day or so.

It's just been (correctly) pointed out to me by a blog reader that the flowers we thought were "snow drops" are actually in fact "snow flakes," since they have green dots on each petal. Thanks Marg, glad to learn this!

Spring Comes to the Cottage Paddock

We know spring is coming when the snow drops flower in the Cottage Paddock here at Struan Farm. These flowers date back to John's parents, they have always been in this spot on the edge of the Cottage drive. The sheep seem to leave them alone, for some reason they don't get nibbled.

I was interested to get down at eye level with the flowers to see inside them. Normally they droop or "drop" down, hence the name. 

Cookie & Milk

The rainy evening before last Farmer John walked up the drive to deliver Struan Farm's first pet lamb of the season, hooray! He'd found this little one in the paddock without mum, and wasn't able to find or reconnect her with mum. I've been pestering him for pets, worrying that we might not have any this season. This past week I went so far as to cast a wider net, sending emails to friends who have farms to put the word out that we'd be happy to have any abandoned lambs they didn't want to look after. While I kept trying to console myself that no abandoned lambs would be a good thing, pet lambs bring me so much joy and happiness I really can't imagine a year without (at least) one.  It would be a considerable void--I'd miss those baaas outside the bedroom window at 6:05 a.m. much as I moan about them.

In any event, let me introduce you to "Cookie." She's a lively little girl with an endearing brown tip on one ear. She spent the first night in the garage, but now the Pet Pen is home. No issues drinking from the bottle at all!

Here's hoping she might get a friend or two joining her in the next week or so, but if not we'll make sure she's not lonely. You will enjoy getting to know her I'm sure.

p.s. given continued rain I decided to pull out one of the leftover "lamb coverlets" from last year, like the one so fashionably worn by Pip. Cute, eh?

Little Lantern

It's shaping up to be a bit of a floral week on the blog front. Apologies if that's not your thing, but things are starting to bloom here at Struan Farm! A few days ago I came across this wee abutilon flower in the Homestead's roadside wooded garden. I recall digging the young plant up from another area of the garden where it had self-seeded and transplanting it--it seems to be quite happy here.

 

Abutilon are part of the Mallow family, Malvaceae. Common names are "Indian Mallow" or "Chinese Lantern." We plant them around the property because they are easy to grow and the native tuis love to feed on them.

 

 

Camellias, Captured

You'll tell me if I've gone over the cliff with too many photos of the camellias from the gardens at Struan Farm, won't you? I've been overwhelmed by them, really. I take them for granted most of the time, but after a recent stroll around the gardens I'm finding them quite amazing. The sheer variety that John's parents planted, different types and different colours. While sister-in-law Anna can rattle off most of their names, John and I are pretty hopeless on the score.

But let me share some of them with you:

Lots to be thankful for, isn't there?

Spring Clean in the Pet Paddock

The "Mad Mower" and I started a bit of a spring clean in the Pet Paddock at Struan Farm over the weekend.  I picked up fallen branches and raked leaves while John mowed and mulched the rest. It was much needed, and looks much better. In September I'll be able to get some paddock grass seed down on the bare spots around the trees. These are caused by a combination of fallen leaves and sleeping sheep!

 

Nephew Mike continues clean up work on the fallen tulip tree in the far back, along with the other trees damaged when that toppled over on them in a recent winter storm. 

Going & Being Potty

I couldn't decide between the two options above. The first means "going crazy," while the second means "being keen" about something. Suffice it to say that at times both apply here in Piopio at Struan Farm!

You will (of course) remember John's "Next Big Thing," the massive area of scrubby paddock that is being fenced off from stock to plant for an extended native bush reserve. The one that runs along the stream down to the Mangaotaki River from one of our existing QEII protected bush reserves. Well, progress has not been exactly rapid on this little project, the weeks of rain this winter have not helped. The fencing constructed hasn't proven to be sheep proof, we've watched lambs hurdle the fencing and jump big limestone rocks to get into the area, much to John's dismay.  Weed control hasn't commenced either, something that needs to be done before any trees get planted, let alone a thousand or so. So considerably more groundwork is needed on a number of fronts.

John has been stressing out about all this, since we have a narrow seasonal window in which to plant. This weekend reality collided with enthusiasm, and an executive decision was made to grow on the native trees purchased thus far for another year, repotting them all.  

You know who is jumping into this fray, right? I'm learning all about PB3 bags vs PB5 vs. PB whatever. I've already done some flax and some kahikateas to warm up for the main act, although the work may very well get done in instalments given everything else I've got going on.

I've set up a staging area with a wooden bench near our mountain of potting soil. It's actually quite easy, relaxing work relative to the weeding I've been doing lately, good to have a change of pace. And I swear the plants seem to perk up noticeably after being put into a larger bag with fresh soil and a good water! 

Using the Family Silver

We've had some old silver spoons and forks sitting the drawers at Struan Farm for years now, gathering dust and turning black.  They are monogrammed with an "R" for "Robertson" and are most likely silver plate (the marks indicate "EP" which I think means electroplated). Not sure what happened to the knives, so it's not like we can really use what we've got for dinner place settings. John thinks the knives would have had bone handles. We do, however, have some proper soup spoons, so I decided that John and I could use those for a recent supper of parsnip and kumara soup. The silver polish was pulled out, elbow grease applied and the tarnish disappeared.

This brought us to a discussion over supper about whether or not they belonged to John's parents (wedding present?), or to his grandfather, Sir Carrick. John doesn't remember. I will get to the bottom of it eventually, or maybe not, since a number of family members have already reported back that they have no idea about them. There are marks I can research, but then again maybe we don't need to know, and it's just best to use them for what they are: spoons and forks. 

First Seed

A few days ago I planted the first of what will be many seed trays in the glasshouse here at Struan Farm, of both veggies and flowers. I started, predictably, with tomatoes. Yes, lots of different heirlooms, some once again from Mr. V. from Dargaville, some I saved myself from last year, some from King's Seeds, and some from Bristol's, a new source I discovered this year. Oxheart, Mexican Pink, Big Red, Beefsteak, etc. etc. etc. 

I've also started some chiles, parsley (curly for my hedge in the rose garden), and marigolds, echinops, and scabiosa. Heaps more to do in the coming weeks, but it's a start.

I've also deployed the label maker in a somewhat compulsive (or perhaps desperate) attempt to keep the tomato varieties straight. I'm usually good until they're planted out, at which point I lose track. I'm determined to try better on that score this year, but we'll see what happens. Mr. V. recommends a map. I know permanent marker on wooden sticks doesn't work, don't waste your time with that.

Picking up Pinecones

When family visit Struan Farm they know to expect "jobs." Like many things at the farm, this started with John's dad Maurie, who was known for sending kids up trees or onto roofs to do things, often quite precarious things from a protective mother's (or spouse's) perspective.

Robertsons don't really sit around much, and I am pretty much in their camp. I remember a bathroom and bedroom being painted one Christmas Day before everyone went to Anna's house for dinner (that one was a bit much for me). But when family members arrive they typically ask what jobs they're meant to do, even the grandchildren. Everyone helps.

A few days ago John led an expedition down to the river to collect pine cones, which we use for kindling in the fireplaces at our house and the Cottage. He'd noticed they were starting to drop from the trees above the river track. So we grabbed some sacks and rallied willing workers to gather them up for next year.

p.s. We do try to make "jobs" fun!

Reunion with Rosie

Of course our granddaughters Ella and Livvy needed to reconnect with pet lamb Rosie during their recent visit. So everyone trudged off to search the paddocks for the little darling. She proved elusive for a bit, I'm almost wondering if she was playing hide and seek with us as we walked around calling out her name.

But eventually she came running up and everyone was reunited:

After she'd had enough cuddles she ran off to rejoin the mob, jumping up in the air several times to show off for the girls. What a girl!

"Naked" Weekend Baking & Happy Birthday Ella

Not what you're thinking, okay? It's way too cold for that here in Piopio right now!

This past weekend I made my first "naked" cake at Struan Farm for granddaughter Ella's birthday. "Naked" cakes, where the sides of the cake are left un-iced, have been trendy for awhile now, I'm seriously late to this table (only the top and between the layers are iced or filled with fruit and cream). For Ella's celebration cake I baked the easy carrot cake recipe from Ina Garten's "Barefoot Contessa Foolproof." For the icing I made The Free Range Cook's cream cheese icing, adding Fresh As freeze dried pineapple powder for a bit of fruit flavour.

After baking and icing the cake I realised it looked a wee bit, well naked.

 

If I'd had some edible flowers in season in the gardens those would have worked for the top, but absent those I finely chopped walnuts (which were in the cake), and sprinkled those in a ring around the top edge. Voila--a naked cake that looked good and tasted delicious. Happy Birthday Ella!

Daffodils on Ice

We've actually enjoyed several sequential days of sunshine here at Struan Farm this week, hooray. It meant I was able to finish cutting back the roses and hydrangeas, also pruning the apple trees. But you know what blue skies in winter means, don't you? Cold nights and heavy frosts!

The daffs got iced a wee bit but they tell me they're okay....

What a Difference a Year Makes

While I'm marking time waiting for a pet lamb or pet lambs to land this season at Struan Farm, I find myself smiling at pics of last year's pets when they first arrived. Especially compared with how they look today.

Here's Rosie so you can see what I'm talking about:

Quite the change, eh? But she's still a sweetie. I also can't believe how tiny Pip was!

Too Much of a Good Thing

Not sure we entirely agree with the expression "you can never have too much of a good thing" here at Struan Farm. Take firewood for example. Please! The storm damaged tulip tree in the Pet Paddock and the five poplars taken down by the road crew left at the back gate pushed us completely over the edge. Our firewood sheds are full, we're now stacking wood along fence lines to dry.

I was enlisted by John to find people who needed firewood. We've had three different parties come out with trailers and chainsaws to help themselves. Nephew Mike and several other family members have been loaded up. Last week I also found a friend of ours who was running low, so we've stocked her up for the rest of this winter and most of next.

Now that the existing stockpile is down I've been told my marketing job is done. We can also start to think about felling a few macrocarpa trees that need to come down....

 

 

 

You Scratch My Back, I'll Scratch Yours

Something unusual happened over the weekend here at Struan Farm: the sun came out! I was able to get out in the gardens to cut back hydrangeas and roses. I'm not done just yet, but almost. John and I also pruned Monty's Surprise and Peasgood Nonsuch, although we still have to get up to the Old Orchard Paddock to prune the other apple trees there.

On my way back from the Homestead gardens I saw Rosie in the Cottage Paddock with her mob. I decided to stop and say hello, give her a rub. She came right up to me, but after a brief hello was far more interested in scratching herself on the Rav!

Good to see you too, Rosie. Hope you were able to scratch that itch!

Weekend Baking: Apple Pastry Rosettes, Take 2

This past week Nadia Lim posted about making some delicious looking Apple Pastry Rosettes. They were supposed to be simple. Conceptually, they are. But I will tell you that practically, they aren't. And you know that I bake and make pastry quite a bit here at Struan Farm.  Friends Kris and Bob and I sampled something quite similar earlier this year at the Wakefield Heritage Apple Fair. So I was keen to try making them.

Thin slices of apple halves (doused in lemon juice and heated in the microwave to soften, then cooled) are set out overlapping along a strip of butter puff pasty that has been brushed with apricot jam. The apples are then dusted with cinnamon and the rosette is rolled up. My first effort looked great in the tins, but I had problems getting them out without deconstructing them. I wondered if I should have greased the tins or used non-stick muffin tins. I queried Nadia, but didn't get a response. They tasted great, so I decided I needed to try again.

"Take 2" was a considerable improvement. I watched her video. I saw that Nadia was using puff pastry that was a different size from the standard Edmonds butter puff pastry available in the grocery store to the average consumer. Her rectangles, and thus her strips, were wider than mine. (She used a ruler, I hadn't.) Her apple slices were also much smaller, so the ratio of apple to pastry was completely different, hers allowed for a cushion of pastry at the bottom of each rosette. She also used larger muffin tins than I have. Probably "Texan."

So I adjusted what I could, using a spoon to dig them out of the muffin tins when warm. A better result if still a wee bit mangled:

 

They are yummy served warm with cream, yogurt or ice cream, and worth the effort. But they are fiddly and just saying to clear the air: NOT THAT SIMPLE!