Struan Farm

Reporting for Duty

Our trusty scarecrow "Henry" reported in for his seasonal duty today here at Struan Farm. He tries his best to keep naughty birds at bay. Last year we deployed him in the raised tomato bed near the workshop, this year I'm testing him back in Veggie World. I'll plant rows of corn beside him.

I've managed to pull the accumulated cobwebs from the shed off his outfit and refreshed his chapeau with vibrant fruits and veg. Next year he might get a new pair of jeans.

Henry participated in our first Community Fruit & Veg Stand float in the Piopio Christmas parade several years ago now. One of the little boys who volunteered to be a bunny rabbit eating carrots in the veggie garden scene gave him his name. And so he's been Henry ever since.

Countdown to Veggies

I've been busy in the gardens here at Struan Farm the past few days with some decent weather. In addition to some seriously overdue extreme weeding, on which I made a respectable dent, I potted up a few hundred heirloom tomato seedlings ("Big Red Heirloom," "Super Steakhouse," and "Vintage Brandywine" from seeds saved from last season plus "Black Cherry," "Black Oxheart" and a mix called "Chef's Choice," all from King's Seeds). The glasshouse is operating currently at capacity. In fact, I had to move some seedling damson trees outside to make room for tomatoes.

I have four seed trays of Cherokee Purple heirloom tomatoes still to pot once they're big enough. For some reason the other varieties have taken off this year but not my favourite. It will come in its own time, I'm sure. I've shifted it onto a different rack closer to better, warmer sunlight.

Most of the "Black Coral" zucchini, several "Big Chieftain" butternut, "Wild Fire" chiles, and several of three different types of pumpkins have germinated (Musquee de Provence, Jarradale, Queensland Blue). I've had to repot several zucchini since it's too early to plant them out just yet. My seed tray of Italian parsley has germinated but the plants are holding off for more heat to grow further. Still too early to start any basil, you'll be wondering about that I'm sure.

I always try to grow more plants than we require since you never really know what will germinate and what won't. Plus it's good to have surplus plants to contribute to the Piopio Community Fruit & Veg Stand and the new Maara Kai Roopu Maniapoto "MKR" Community Garden that grows fruit and veggies for the local food banks.

Labour Weekend. Patience Grasshopper, patience..... But those broad beans and peas had better get a move on. The peas have read the memo, pods are ripening away, the broad beans are just flowering.

A Rescue Mission

Word seems to have gotten out about me. I got a phone call over the weekend here at Struan Farm from a local lady I didn't know, alerting me that a section in town behind her house was being redeveloped, and quite a few lovely red currant bushes were being pulled out and tossed. Would I like to come and take them to get them to new homes?

Of course you will know what I said. I hate to see fruit go to waste, and that would include fruit trees, heirloom/heritage or not. And so I went over to meet this lovely lady on Sunday after after she returned from church to dig up some up. John's parents grew them and had quite a few bushes with the raspberries, his mum Rosemary made red currant jam. These were planted by her family at the turn of the century, so I've called them "Gaynor's Piopio Heritage Red Currants." 

They are very healthy if tart, with heaps of Vitamin C, and are coming back into vogue currently. Upon returning home I potted up rooted cuttings into pots with good soil that I'll offer out to the community via the Piopio Community stand and the Piopio Heritage Fruit Tree project.

Preserving Peter's Golden Apple

Last winter I had the opportunity to cut "scion" wood from an heirloom golden delicious apple tree in nearby Mahoenui, grafting it onto rootstock here at Struan Farm. A lady named Hester has several old fruit trees growing on her property on Gribbon Road along the Awakino River, and invited me to come have a look and try to propagate whatever I wanted. 

This particular Golden Delicious apple is crisp and yes, delicious. Not at all like modern Golden Delicious, which I find rather mushy. But what intrigued me more was this apple's heritage. The tree had been moved from its original home at the hut of a man named Peter Nilsen, a Norwegian immigrant who lived further down Gribbon Road near Leitch's Clearing. It's a place that is still quite remote today, and would have been considerably more so then. 

I'd never grafted a fruit tree before, so this was an experiment in more ways than one. I'm pleased to report that my two attempts were both successful, thankfully. I'd like to think this was because the scion wood came from a very special tree that needed to perpetuate its story.

In our home library we have a book called "Waitanguru," compiled by Stan Frederickson and published by the Waitanguru Jubilee Committee in 1990. The book purports to be a "collection of memories depicting optimism, disaster and progress of the Waitanguru, Mangaotaki, Ngapaenga and Mairoa districts," all located in the wider Piopio area. 

There's a chapter written by Cedric Verry, with his recollections on the story of Leitch's Clearing, that provides some information on Peter. Hester referred to him as "Peter the Hermit," and remembers her late husband Russell helping to remove Peter's body from his home after he died.

Peter and his two brothers emigrated to New Zealand from Norway before the war, taking up a bush section on the Awakino River. After starting to clear the land and building a bach it became too difficult and they walked off the land, a common occurrence at that time. Peter returned to the area circa 1940 working on the roads, and spent weekends opening up the track back to the old hut. The land, along with that of other abandoned farms, had become state forest. After Peter gave up his job in 1943 he went to live in the hut, clearing some land to graze sheep. While the Forestry Department were not happy and tried to move him off the land, he lived there until his death in 1962. Hester and Russell subsequently moved his apple trees to their place down the road.

Here's a photo of the hut:

This winter we moved and planted out the two trees, which I've christened "Peter's Golden Apples," in a newly fenced paddock with our chook house. Hopefully the trees will survive and thrive, with the chooks taking care of any codling moths if they dare come near these special trees. 

 

 

 

 

Damsons, The Next Generation

I was very excited this past week when I went to check on the bags of damson stones in compost I'd stashed in the garage fridge this past autumn here at Struan Farm. They'd begun to sprout, hooray! 

Now I have several trays of damson seedling trees growing in our glasshouse being nurtured along. The two different types are from heritage trees still fruiting in the wider Piopio area, one from a settler orchard in nearby Mapiu, the other from Grandpa Anselmi's damson tree here in Piopio.

Grandpa was an Italian immigrant to New Zealand who made grappa from the fruit of his tree, a rather special historic tidbit in my view. While his descendants don't use them to make grappa, they do dabble making damson gin and vodka with the fruit, along with vinegar, glaze, jams (my absolute favourite jam on the planet), and paste. There was some thought that this tree might be on its last legs, it's leaning over in a paddock, so last year I grew a new one for the family from a stone. However the tree must have sensed it was being threatened, and this season burst into major growth and fruit. It's funny how trees can read the minds of those around them and react to that, isn't it?

Damsons are a type of prune plum, so can also be dehydrated to make prunes. If you'd like to learn more about them, order and read Lynda Hallinan's definitive book. It has heaps of recipes and is a great gift for anyone who either has a tree or might be interested in learning more.

I am excited to be able to grow these trees and pass them along to the next generation. Of course I'll plant one of each here at Struan Farm, somewhere.

Savouring the Last of the Summer Strawberries

We are starting to get to the end of this year's strawberry season here in Piopio. You can sense it at Piopio Berry Orchard, that relief of being through the holiday peak is palpable. The summer recruits have gone back to school and it's family members and long time employees who remain for the home stretch.

Here at Struan Farm we're savouring every last one for as long as we can.

This past week for dessert with friends over I made David Lebovitz' "Strawberry Sour Cream Ice Cream" and "Strawberry Sorbet," both from his ice cream bible "The Perfect Scoop." And yes, I did strain the seeds for the sorbet once the strawberries were macerated in sugar and pureed. It makes a huge difference to the final product. 

This turned out to be a good pairing. The sorbet is intensely fruity, John finds it too much so on its own (predictably, I don't!). The sour cream in the ice cream cuts some of the sweetness, it works really well both as an ice cream on its own and a companion to the sorbet. There is also a version of this recipe made with peaches, which is excellent. (I'll be making that again once the Golden Queens land.)

Sprinkled with a few foraged blackberries for some pops of colour this was a great summer dessert on a hot night. I surprised even myself!

Blackberries from the Berry Orchard

This past weekend Piopio Berry Orchard unveiled its first crop of blackberries. This season they're introducing both blackberries and boysenberries to extend their range. As if their exceptional strawberries, blueberries and raspberries weren't already enough! But we're happy with whatever they decide to do since they do everything so well.

I decided to improvise here at Struan Farm and make a blackberry frangipane galette. Galettes are fun because they're rustic, free-form, quick and easy. First the pâte brisée/pastry is made in the food processor, it needs to chill for at least an hour before it can be rolled out. For the frangipane I adapted a Martha Stewart recipe from her "Pies and Tarts" book, one of my baking bibles. The original recipe uses poached pears set atop the frangipane. To make the frangipane butter and sugar are creamed until fluffy, to which eggs, ground almonds, almond extract, a wee bit of flour and amaretto are added. I substituted amaretto for the rum called for with pears, sticking with almond flavouring. 

The frangipane is spread in a circle on the rolled out pastry, topped with blackberries, a few sliced almonds and a sprinkle of sugar. The pastry edge is rolled and brushed with egg and milk, after which the galette is put onto a baking tray and baked for 50-60 minutes at 200C until it's golden brown. I just keep an eye on things after about 45 minutes. Every oven is different.

And the verdict is that this was really delicious.

We're now going to need to take a pause on the desserts ahead of Christmas. That or do daily walks down to and back up from the river, which we probably should be doing anyway. There's a huge Christmas cake seasoning in the pantry, although I know I won't be able to stop myself from making a pavlova wreath too. 

A Fresh Chapeau for Henry

I've just been reminded by Lulu H. that her son named this scarecrow "Henry" last year. In fact, he said "Henry Danger," but I don't remember the "Danger" part. Henry was part of our Piopio Community Fruit & Veg Stand float in the annual Piopio Christmas parade. And we won a prize!

After the parade Henry did his duty looking over the raised tomato bed at Struan Farm, then went into a shed for a winter's nap. I've just dusted him off and given him a fresh chapeau for the season, decorated with a sunflower and chiles.

He's told me he likes his new look, change keeps the birds guessing!

Tales of Citrus Surplus, continued

Two days ago I got a call from an elderly lady in Piopio, telling me of a friend in nearby Te Kuiti with a number of citrus trees "dripping with fruit." The message was for me to ring her if I was keen to go pick surplus fruit for the Piopio Community Fruit & Veg Stand. I made contact with the lady and arranged to go to her home to pick fruit yesterday.

I found an established citrus orchard of six trees: lemons, tangelos and mandarins. They were planted circa 1980 in a protected area near the garage and house. The amount of fruit on the trees was staggering. Fruit on three of the trees wasn't quite ready to be picked, so she's invited me back to get more in the next few weeks. I was glad that I'd brought plenty of bags and boxes with me, as well as my extendable fruit picker!

I returned home with boxes and bags of fruit to put out at the community stand. I was too wet and muddy to join her for a cup of tea, but she also gave me her handwritten lemonade recipe with some of the ingredients. She reminds me so much of John's late mum Rosemary that I almost got a bit teary!

Can I just say that some days you know why you do certain things?

Confessions of a Citrus Scrounger

I've found myself getting increasingly passionate about working to make sure surplus homegrown fruit and vegetables get put to use. I guess it all started with setting up Piopio's Community Fruit & Veg Stand and being part of this initiative around the country. Seeing what people are happy to share with others, what people are happy to take, and also what might otherwise go to waste. 

This year I've gone on a bit of a crusade in the wider area about citrus fruit seen dripping from trees in yards. I've put the word out via social media and our local paper to people who have surplus to take it somewhere where it can be used and enjoyed! This week I found myself jumping into the deep end of the pool: I knocked on a few doors in nearby Te Awamutu and Kihikihi where I noticed trees in yards with fruit dropped on the ground, and asked if I might pick a bag of tangelos or oranges to share with our community. Two houses didn't answer, but three said yes! I met a lovely man named Gary in Kihikihi whose front yard consists of three citrus trees I've been eyeing for some time. And of course I didn't go overboard, leaving quite a bit on the trees for the residents and others.

So yesterday I came home from my errands with three bags of beautiful fruit for the stand. I also stopped by the Te Awamutu Courier offices and asked them to put the word out to residents with surplus citrus to take it somewhere, anywhere to be put to use: the local Sharing Shed or Community Stand, food bank, nursing home or elder housing. I also offered to help pick it or find someone else who could if someone wasn't able to do so.

I'm thinking I need to keep going with this. It feels like the right thing to do.

Damsons & Syrian Seven Spice Mix: A Match Made in Heaven

I froze several containers of damsons from the Piopio Community Fruit & Veg Stand this past summer so that I could play around them a bit further when time permitted. And damp, chilly winter days are usually a good time for playing around in the kitchen here at Struan Farm.

On my recent trip to the US I went to a store in Charlottesville, Virginia called The Spice Diva, where I purchased a container of the shop's custom blended "Syrian Seven Spice Mix." I've since discovered that this is one of those things that is different in every home, with every cook, and also in different Arabic countries. The Spice Diva's mix has allspice, black pepper, cinnamon, cloves, rosemary, nutmeg and green cardamom, although I'm not sure of the relative proportions of each spice/herb. It's fragrantly aromatic, heady even, and smells like it would be great in both savoury and sweet dishes. It's also something I've been wanting to play around with.

Today I decided it was time to play with both, making "Syrian Seven Spice Damson Jam." And boy am I glad I did this.

First the fruit is covered with water in a pot and cooked gently until soft, skins breaking.

The cooked fruit is then drained, and either sieved or put through a food mill ("mouli") to remove the stones and make a puree. I've bought a new mill that has interchangeable plates with different sized holes, and this has made a big difference working with damsons. Much easier!

Weigh the puree before putting it back into the jam pan, where it is warmed gently. Then add an equivalent amount of sugar and any spices. I added one tablespoon of the Syrian Seven Spice mix for 1.4kg of puree, but I've also used a combination of ginger, cloves and cinnamon that works well too. Boil the jam vigorously until set. (Trust you know about putting a plate in the freezer and then drizzling hot jam on the cold plate and running your finger through it. If it stays separated and doesn't run you're good to move on.) This doesn't take very long at all, the fruit must have heaps of pectin. Pour into prepared sterilised warm jars and seal.

This jam is a beautiful ruby colour, and tastes delicious. It's not terribly sweet, with savoury elements thanks to the Syrian Seven Spices. I am just loving it.

I'd intended to contribute the jam to the Piopio Community Fruit & Veg Stand, but am thinking I may need to hold back a jar or two for our use. Fortunately the fruit yielded seven good sized jars, so think I can keep a jar or two without feeling too guilty...

 

 

 

 

Faked Out By Quince

A few weeks ago I discovered an interesting looking ovoid fruit in the Piopio Community Fruit & Veg stand that I didn't recognise. It looks like this:

I asked the experienced horticulture experts on the NZ Tree Crops Association's FB page to help me with an identification. Several people responded quickly that these are Chinese quince, also known as "False Quince," or Pseudocydonia sinensis.  

In Chinese medicine they are used to treat rheumatoid arthritis, but they can be used in cooking the same way as more familiar varieties of quince. In fact, they are much easier to peel, due to their shape, and core. The core has many more seeds and pops out easily.  I'm thinking Chinese Quince would be easier to use for paste in particular.

Waiting for the Bus

Did you know that Piopio had the very first school bus in all of New Zealand? Above is a photograph from the archives at the Alexander Turnbull Library/National Library of New Zealand, we have a print of this image hanging in the Cottage here at Struan Farm. It was believed to have been taken between Paemako and Piopio circa 1924-25.

But the special news is that a group of dedicated locals and their supporters have been working for several years now to fundraise and build a replica of this early bus, along with a place for it to be on display. They've been able to get the replica bus built, and are close to finishing the purpose-built "garage" where it will be housed for all to see. This is right on Moa Street (SH3) between the Mustard Seed Op Shop and the Community Hall in Piopio village. It is also conveniently located near the Piopio Community Fruit & Veg Stand.

Can't wait for everything to be finished and the grand opening!

Road Trip with Rewarewa

John and I took a quick trip into town over the weekend to pick up another stash of screws for the new shed project here at Struan Farm. Nephew Mike has been working away putting up the sideboards and then the batons between and was running low.

We also stopped at Smart Plants and picked up some corokia hedging for the Auckland flat, along with a reasonably sized native rewarewa tree that sat between us in the car on the journey home. Now that the wetter weather allows for more favorable planting conditions, we're starting to work on landscaping down the bowl below our house, where the macrocarpa trees were taken out this summer. The rewarewa is quite interesting--it's very straight and tall, has beautiful flowers that bees love too. At the moment we're considering a line or cluster of those with two other natives, essentially mirroring the line of Douglas Firs and the rimu and kahitakea on the opposite side (but with different types of trees).

We took the scenic route home, along Oparure Road and the Mairoa. It's an interesting limestone landscape!

Kai Safari Piopio

Events of the past long holiday Easter weekend here at Struan Farm may result in another "fifteen minutes of fame" for me, just when I thought I'd done my dash and was fading into the shadows. John is joking that I can now write my memoir, "From Manhattan Beach to Choice TV."

About a week ago I got a call from a producer of the Choice TV show "Kai Safari," saying that they were coming to the Waitomo/Piopio area and wanted to come to film here at Struan Farm. They were interested in our figs and feijoas, and I told them about the kahikatea berries I'd been experimenting with for jam. We agreed they'd appear the morning of Easter Sunday with the hosts and crew. Later in the conversation it became clear that I was meant to cook something. Of course we also had twelve farmstay guests here over the weekend, not much on!

The weather forecast for the day was pouring down rain. Fortunately that didn't happen. John announced he did not want to feature AT ALL so I was put on the spot. A drone was sent up to get some aerial shots of the farm's landscape. Co-host Sonia and I picked figs from one of our heirloom "Huia" fig trees, also kahikatea berries (koroi). No one had known kahikatea berries are edible, so it was good to be able to spread the word about that. Friends Lizzie and Ripeka were driven into Piopio and the Community Fruit & Veg Stand for a brief chat about Piopio before returning so that I could make a fig, apple and feijoa shortcake. It was the first time I'd combined all three fruits in one cake, but producer Pete directed me to do so and he made a good choice as it turned out (he's a chef and clearly knows what he's doing!). The day wrapped with afternoon tea around the dining room table.

The next morning they went off to see Melanie at The Fat Pigeon Cafe and Night Owl restaurant. The cafe was so busy that they moved filming over to the restaurant, a quieter and better spot. Mel was presented with a wild hare shot a few days ago on a nearby Hangatiki property owned by a fellow named "Jazz" and his family. She ended up creating an amazing "Hare and Pear Salad," marinating the meat in a blackberry vinaigrette before searing it and slicing thinly, serving it with freshly foraged watercress, walnuts candied in Piopio Gold honey, and kahikatea berries. Mel hadn't known about kahikatea berries either, so I feel like I've done my bit on behalf of kahikateas. After Mel's segment was finished filming everyone involved gathered around a big table at the Night Owl for a "hakari" or feast to celebrate. My shortcake featured for dessert. Co-host Russell composed and played a song on his guitar to commemorate the occasion.

They'll let us know when the show is scheduled to air. Who knows what bits will make the show or end up on the cutting room floor, but t was a fun experience either way! Piopio: Where It All Happens.

 

A Brief Journey to Middle Earth

Last week John and I had friends visit Struan Farm for a few days from Seattle, Washington. It was their first trip to Piopio, so we booked a tour at nearby Hairy Feet Waitomo, our local Hobbit film location in Piopio. While we weren't sure how much they were into all things Hobbit, Hairy Feet's setting and the surrounding landscape are so spectacular that it's not to be missed either way. Tour groups are quite small and personalised.

And here's Jim doing his best Gandalf impression:

It was a beautiful day and a fun time.

In Memory of "Bessie the Bomb"

We've been seeing vintage American cars travelling south over the past week here at Struan Farm, heading down to New Plymouth's annual "Americana" car festival. And over the weekend they all travelled back, many stopping in Piopio at the Fat Pigeon Cafe for coffee and/or a meal.

It was lovely to see the beautifully maintained cars and trucks parked around town! Almost makes me want a vintage Ford or Chevy pick-up truck...it would make quite the statement running into town each day to check the Piopio Community Fruit & Veg Stand, wouldn't it?

Growing up my mother drove a robin's egg light blue Chevy convertible we christened "Bessie the Bomb." Bessie would have been circa mid-late 1950's, so would have been related to some of these cars passing through Piopio. She didn't have long tail "fins," she was a bit more elegant and rounded, with a canvas roof. The sort of car one would drive wearing a head scarf and big sunglasses a la Grace Kelly or Audrey Hepburn. Her floor in the back rusted out toward the end of her life with us--things were a little hand to mouth at times growing up and my parents would have purchased her used. Eventually Bessie was replaced with a new VW bug that wasn't given a name. That was the car I learned to drive on, with the engine in the back and a stick shift of course.

Let the Festive Season Begin

Here in New Zealand the lead up to Christmas is called the "Festive Season," normally because of the amount of holiday festivities that go on.

Here at Struan Farm we celebrate festive a different way: by potting up hundreds of Italian Parsley "gigante" seedlings. I was interested to read that parsley symbolises "festivity" after a long day in the glasshouse, so figured I'm on the right track. I've planted out a trough of this in our veggie gardens, will put the rest of the plants out in the Piopio Community Fruit & Veg Stand to share once the plants have settled down a wee bit. 

Always good to share festivity, right?

Out to Lunch

Over the weekend John and I travelled down the Mangaotaki Valley to have lunch with Mark Verry, a friend of John's from Piopio Primary School days, and his wife Suzie. We hadn't been to their farm before, so after lunch went out on a drive and walk to take in the amazing views.

There are some pretty incredible landscapes in our part of the world, aren't there?

While the massive limestone cliffs along Haku Road are quite spectacular, the cloudy, white sky didn't lend itself to good photos. But features like that above ran for some distance. They're similar to what visitors see at Hairy Feet Waitomo.

Bottom line: we need to get out for lunch more often!

A Lament About Litter

Yes, I'm dragging out the soapbox, briefly. I was going to write about this a few weeks ago after John picked up a McDonald's bag full of vomit dumped at the end of our driveway here at Struan Farm. Revolting, appalling, disgusting really. 

I've held off until today, after returning from a collecting trip along our front roadside. The amount of drink bottles (glass and plastic, alcoholic and non-), used coffee cups, candy wrappers, chip bags, etc. tossed out from cars speeding by is staggering. Public rubbish bins are less than 10k away. I'm assuming that most of the rubbish comes from cars travelling north, but that may not be the case.

WHY, PEOPLE? WHY? Is it so hard to hold onto your rubbish until you get somewhere to dispose of it properly, rather than the beautiful, rural countryside? What adds insult to injury is that we have no kerbside pickup in our rural area, we actually take our rubbish and recycling by car into Piopio to dispose of it at the local dump. Including this.

Thanks for listening.