Struan Farm

Reuse, Repurpose, Recycle

Most readers of the Struan Farm blog will know we're pretty creative about reusing, repurposing and recycling various things around the property. "It's in our DNA," to quote NZ home improvement chain Mitre 10, although in their case they're referring to DIY projects, something else we're also keen about. We don't engage service providers unless we absolutely have to, and we don't waste very much of anything, except sometimes time. John's dad Maurie was rather well known for his improvised use of recycled materials (as most farmers are), and I've joked with John that he is becoming more and more like his father every day. I must also say it has rubbed off on me.

This week we noticed the road traffic management crew setting up signs and road cones at the southern border of our property, and wondered what they were up to, especially since there wasn't a slip or any fallen trees. It turned out they were getting ready to replace wooden posts supporting the steel guard rails running alongside a bend in the state highway with steel. John's mind immediately jumped to what they were doing with the posts that were being taken out, and if we might be able to get them to reuse on the farm for various projects.

He spoke to the contractor working on the job, and ended up contacting the owner of the company. We've negotiated to buy the posts at a reasonable rate in exchange for letting the company leave their gear on the farm overnight while they are working. The 70 kg. posts, which will eventually number over 100 by the time the job is done, will be dropped at the end of the old road. The company would normally resell the posts for use as garden sleepers, but selling them to us saved them considerable transport and fuel costs and sorted out where they were going to leave their equipment during the job. Yes, a "win, win."

These will be used in due course around Struan Farm. What immediately comes to mind is to help create steps on various tracks down hills, including out past the rusty steel sculpture on the knob looking out from our house, and to finish the track running from the QEII bush reserve below the Cottage down to the river. We're working to make it easier for people who don't know the farm as well as we do to be able to explore and wander around, easily. Or at least more easily than has previously been the case.

A Jarring Experience

Recently I uncovered a stash of vintage Agee "Special" and Agee "Utility" jars in a cabinet in the Homestead here at Struan Farm. They belonged to John's mum, and are an old size, too large for jams and seemingly too small for fruit. John didn't remember her making relishes or pickles. I wondered what she used them for, so did a family survey.

Well it turns out she did make both pickles and tomato relish. And when the family at home was smaller she also used these for Golden Queen peaches, being the practical lady she was. I will probably use them most for flowers, but because rings and seals are still made for this size jar, I can also use them for those delicious spiced figs in brandy, or even preserved lemons.

The "HMS Maurie"

You may remember that John and nephew Mike have been refurbishing a vintage wooden rowboat that was made by John's father Maurie many moons ago here at Struan Farm. It was given to a family friend who returned it after 30 years (or more). John decided he needed another project, so over the past few months it has been stripped, had a few holes mended and fibreglass put on the seams, then repainted.

We're still not sure where this boat is going. It's quite heavy. Most likely it will float on one of the ponds, within reach so it can be cleaned out from time to time. It has been christened the "HMS Maurie."

I'll have to get a bottle of champagne for the official launch party!

 

Brushing Up on Bruschetta

I've recently expanded the repertoire of what we do with our heirloom tomatoes here at Struan Farm to include bruschetta.

When John and I are up north in Auckland we normally eat at one of our favourite neighbourhood restaurants, Volare. When we lived in the area we ate there all the time, the owners and staff still know us well (in fact they still remember my usual order and favourite wine!).  If we have a starter with our meal we will most likely share bruschetta. Given the looming tomato surplus, I decided to try making it; turns out it's really easy.

Chopped fresh tomatoes are mixed with a tablespoon or two of good olive oil, one teaspoon of balsamic vinegar, a clove of garlic (or two) crushed, basil (preferably fresh but dried will work in a pinch), salt and pepper. Mix ahead of time in a bowl but leave at room temperature for best flavour. In the meantime, brush rounds of french baguette with olive oil and toast under the grill or on the BBQ, turning so both sides are toasted.

I've been putting them out on a beautiful wooden serving board that John gave me for Christmas, made by Tamaki woodworker Henry Bernard of recycled native timbers from old houses. If you want to check them out his number is 020 4039 9939. 

A few final words of wisdom on bruschetta. The tomato mixture doesn't keep overnight, it gets mushy, so just make what you're going to use that day. I also wouldn't put the tomato mixture on the toasts ahead of time for that same reason, the toasts will get soft. It's easier to put out a stack of toasts with a bowl of the tomato mixture and have everyone make their own.

 

Peek-a-boo

Clifford has taken to hiding himself under the vintage wooden rowboat John is refurbishing outside the workshop here at Struan Farm. It's a cool spot on hot days, and Clifford thinks we don't notice him there. He would be wrong.

The boat was made many years ago by John's dad, Maurie. It was given to a family friend many years ago (20?), but recently returned to us when they stopped using it. We didn't think it was a loan, but it seems they considered it as such. It's well made, but quite heavy. John decided to strip and repair it, he enjoys this sort of project. He's thinking it may end up floating in one of the ponds on the farm as rustic scenery. I'm not entirely sure about that. Who's going to empty the water out of the boat after it rains? I'm worried her name may be Karen...

 

My New/Old Garden Shed

I've now officially settled into my new/old garden shed at the Homestead here at Struan Farm. While there wasn't an official ribbon cutting ceremony it is now in use.

You may recall I'd been ordered out of my old garden shed, which is next door, and the old mower shed/garage underwent extensive renovation for my use. Still not sure why, and what's happening with my old garden shed, but I'm very happy with the new one. I was able to design bins at the back for garden stakes and standards, as well as racks and shelves. It was re-lined and painted, made mouse proof (or so they say). There are tidy bins for storage. The exterior even got a fresh coat of paint, with the roof to come. Mike installed french doors recycled from Maurie's old workshop, now the Garden Cottage bedroom at the Homestead. Fortunately I had saved the keys!

I'm hoping I'll be able to avoid having John others use this as a dumping ground for "stuff." I suspect that's what will now happen with my now former garden shed, although there was discussion initially that it might be dragged down to the river for more guest accommodation. 

So yes, sheds have at least nine lives at Struan Farm: they get recycled, reborn, redefined. Signs are involved, and here are my new ones for the new/old Garden Shed, repurposed table/placemats:

 

p.s. please don't confuse this garden shed with my new/old recycled tool shed up in the backyard near the veggie gardens at the house. That one is still a work-in-progress. I'm not so sure about either its location or the real need for it, aside from John wanting to move the old wash house down to the farm from Papakura and reuse it for "something." It has the feel of a white elephant and may very well end up storing "stuff."

 

 

New/Old Garden Shed

I'm being evicted from my garden shed at the Homestead! John has decided he's going to try to move yet another hut down the river track at Struan Farm, for more guest accommodation overlooking the Mangaotaki River on the border of our property. He's eyed up my existing garden shed and decided that it could be converted into a nice bunkroom. (Historical note: at one time this shed was called "John's Hut," and he actually slept there. He used Time Magazine covers for wallpaper.) Whether this major move happens remains to be seen, the digger will undoubtedly be back on the scene to do the job when/if. 

But as a result, the adjacent shed, known until recently as the "mower shed" is getting a major remodel for my gardening "stuff." In a previous life this shed was the garage, housing the family Studebaker. 

Nephew Mike has been working away. He's removed the existing plywood doors, which didn't lock, and installed recycled french doors that we saved from Maurie's old workshop, now the "Garden Cottage" guest accommodation. Fortunately I'd saved the key. The inside is getting lined with plywood and then varnished before racks and shelves of my design get installed. 

Sheds like cats have at least nine lives here at Struan Farm! 

The Pet Palace Takes Shape

It should be well-established by now that we recycle/reuse/repurpose things here at Struan Farm. This isn't a trend du jour with us, it's how we live.

The sculptures that arrived on the scene last week were packed in a solid wooden base. As soon as I saw it I knew it could be used to build this year's protective shelter for the pet lamb pen in the backyard. The little darlings need something to huddle into, under their protective tarp, between feeds. They are due to start dropping August/September, at which point my life and routines change appreciably for several months.

John is on the case. He's decided that the finishing touches can be done by the grandchildren when they are here for the next round of school holidays. They love being part of the whole pet lamb experience.  I have christened it "The Pet Palace." 

Clifford tested it out to make sure a lamb or two would fit. Knowing Ella it will be painted, and knowing Livvy it will be tidy!

The Family Jewels

The work on my recycled tool shed continues behind the scenes here at Struan Farm. What's particularly interesting is that whenever something has been needed in terms of tools or hardware, it's usually to be found in John's workshop. In the stash that was inherited from his father Maurie. Maurie was renowned by his family as a bit of a hoarder, he rarely threw anything out. "Recycle, reuse, repurpose" wasn't a trend, it was the way he lived his life. Over the past few years we have done progressive clean outs of old sheds, disposing of things we know we won't or can't use, but we've saved a lot of things too. Tools, hardware, copper and brass fittings the likes of which really aren't available any more.

There is a considerable upside to this, especially when you live in a somewhat remote rural area. When things break you can repair them. When building projects happen, you've got the gear needed.

Behold, some of the family jewels:

Progress on My Tool Shed

Things have been happening in the backyard here at Struan Farm, my recycled tool shed is on the way! Nephew Mike is in the process of constructing the boxing for its concrete floor, and the shed itself has been moved closer to the edge of the native tawa grove so we can decide upon positioning.

Once it's in place we'll start repairs and glamming it up. I'm thinking maybe a window box with herbs or flowers...and of course paint and new roof.

Another Recycled Shed....

Go ahead, you can laugh!

My dear husband John is taking his penchant for reuse and recycling to the extreme on this one. The old wash house from our rental property up in Papakura wasn't moved off with the house a few weeks ago to make way for construction of a new medical centre. It was destined for the dump as they work to clear the site. John came up with the bright idea of putting it on the trailer and bringing it to Piopio. Surely we could make use of it at Struan Farm for something or other. Seems we don't have enough old sheds, do we?

That being said, Karen doesn't have a shed for her gardening tools, etc. up at the new(ish) house. I've been running stuff up from the garden shed at the Homestead as/when needed, although we do have a rack for spades and rakes in the garage. This little shed could fit the bill on the edge of the tawa grove in the backyard, subject to considerable refurbishment to get it up to my exacting standards.  Yes, already thinking about paint colours, so watch this space!

 

Buried Treasure

You will know that we recycle/repurpose/reuse quite a bit here at Struan Farm. We're starting to dig and border the new extended vegetable bed in the backyard right now. Nephew Mike has just finished paving stones on the glasshouse side of the bed. John decided that the bed was so wide that it might be a good idea to have a walkway through the middle to be able to access tomatoes, corn, whatever we plant here (it will be garlic, shallots and tomatoes this first year). Of course I agreed! 

So then the hunt was on for what to use for the walkway. We're running low on recycled bricks, those are needed to finish the new garden beds on the front lawn. It happened that I was down at the Homestead cracking into autumn cutbacks of dahlias, etc. etc. I remembered that we had quite a number of round stepping stones in the lawn where the old clothesline used to be. Excavation ensued:

Yep, buried treasure! More than enough for the walkway through the new veggie bed. Of course we'll fill in and re-grass those circles in the Homestead lawn "in due course." I've already planted garlic and shallots in a section of the new veggie bed, it's that time of the year.

Reconstruction

John and nephew Mike have been working to reconstruct a pergola (or "arbor") here at Struan Farm. It was pulled down recently from our rental property in Auckland, we've actually got two to reuse in the gardens at the new(ish) house. They're made of beautiful hardwood so should last forever or thereabouts.

They've been reconditioned and painted to coordinate with the house. The first one is going up at the entrance to the orchard. Clifford isn't so sure about all this, he was nervous about walking through it to get up to his house, but he'll get used to it.

Once reassembly is complete and the concrete dry the next decision will be what to grow around it and on top. John has suggested kiwi fruit but I'm leaning toward grapes. The other option is "espaliered" fruit trees on each side, but let's face it, we're not the best at training plants. We've just killed a wisteria, and I can't even discipline tomatoes properly! Hops would be attractive, although John hasn't announced plans to start a microbrewery on the farm just yet. "Piopio Pilsner" does have a ring to it though, doesn't it? Hmmm, might have to get some hops for somewhere.

 

Potting To Go

John and I went over to Smart Plants in nearby Te Kuiti a few days ago and picked up a trailer load of potting soil and a stash of PB8 black plastic sacks. My mission now is to repot the native trees John has purchased to date for his extended bush reserve at Struan Farm, at least those I haven't already done. This will give them sufficient room to grow on for the next year (or two if needed).

Above is my mobile potting station. We've re-purposed a macrocarpa table recycled from Maurie's old workshop, which lucky for me had wheels. This gets positioned near the mountain of potting soil, with the plants transported back and forth by barrow. After each use I clean the table and roll it into the garage to keep it in good condition.

Pretty slick operation, eh?

 

 

The Garden Cottage, Teaser

My sign is done, the carpet and bed are in, and the drapes are scheduled. We're almost there on the Garden Cottage at Struan Farm!

Here are two teasers. First my sign:

This will be affixed outside once the exterior is washed and repainted.

Second, here's a rather interesting reproduction of a vintage NZ travel poster of Mt. Egmont (which is now called Mt. Taranaki):

This hangs above the new bed (apologies, it is hanging straight but the photo is a wee bit crooked...). The colours work really well with the rest of the room, you'll see in due course! I purchased it at Kina Gallery in New Plymouth, a great spot for NZ art and crafts.

Sent Out to the Wood Shed

As I recall, this expression used to mean you were being expelled from the house, or sent outside for a spanking, but in these politically correct days that is definitely not the case for me! I'm a good girl, really, painting the new wood shed in the backyard at our new house at Struan Farm. It's been built out of timber and recycled corrugated iron.

I did a coat of special primer paint first, have just finished a top coat of Karaka Green (yep, your basic farm green). On everything but the roof and flashings, that's for John since there's no way I can reach that on my little ladylike stepstool, it may actually require standing on the roof!

And as reported earlier this week, the mountain of firewood is now stored safely inside, waiting for winter. Clifford is guarding our stash, clearly.

 

The Next Installment, Day Two

The next day Aaron turned his sights to projects at the Homestead at Struan Farm. While we've been having guests (mostly friends and family) on an ad hoc basis every now and then, we're opening the farmstay formally/officially on a full time basis at the end of October (God willin' and the creek don't rise?!).

So we're upgrading the driveway, parking, and landscaping at the Homestead entrance, which will be our main entrance. Visitors staying at the Homestead, Cottage, and Jim's Hut will follow signs through the property up to our new house, which will be "reception" for checking in, such as it is, this is a farmstay after all!  All our accommodation is self-contained, we'll provide breakfast, other meals by advance arrangement if desired or required. Maybe fresh organic veggies from the garden?

We've recycled slabs of concrete from the old drive to make a rustic wall. Once topsoil gets dumped behind the wall I will be onto landscaping, planting a few flowering shrubs to fill the gaps. The driveway project is next, I suspect...

A Thing for Jelly Beans

I think I'm directly responsible for this particular family tradition at Struan Farm. I started it by stashing a supply of jelly beans in a felted gingerbread house in the dining room of the Homestead, offering up two-three jelly beans to those children who had finished their dinners. At this point it's become a game, they come and check to make sure the stash is still there, and then patiently (or not so patiently, Livy?!) wait to get to the end of dinner.

And so when it came to making a table for the tree hut, I was thrilled to come across vinyl printed with none other than: JELLY BEANS!

We scored a wooden reel from our electrician, the sort of thing used for electrical wire or cable. As soon as I saw it I knew this could be recycled/repurposed into a cute little table for our tree hut at the farm. Of course it's been painted bright blue:

And here's the finished product--pretty cute, eh?

 

In Triplicate

This recent discovery at Struan Farm reminded me of my late father-in-law, Maurie. He was consistent to say the least. Also quite creative about recycling and repurposing various materials he was able to acquire for free around the district.

Remember my bright blue bench?

Well, I've recently noticed that two other benches around the place are the same in design and construction:

 

Maurie built these, as John recalls from wood recycled from shipping crates from motorcycles shipped from Japan to New Zealand. The local garage put the wood out for anyone who wanted it, and the ever opportunistic Maurie picked it up for projects around Struan Farm. 

I haven't decided as yet if they will also be painted bright blue, but they're both definitely getting a rehab!

Finds in the Tractor Shed

This can only go on for so long: discovering cool, rustic things that have been stashed in sheds over the years at Struan Farm.

In the past week I came across an old painted wooden ladder and what turns out to be "prehistoric" wooden scaffolding in John's tractor shed. This would probably be the only shed that we haven't cleaned out as yet, but that will happen eventually.

 

Hmmm, I feel a wave of repurposing coming on-- these might be great as supports for beans, peas and/or tomatoes in my new veggie garden! John is protesting just a wee bit, says they're Oregon pine (implying that might matter...). But it's not as if he's going to use either an old wooden ladder or ancient wooden scaffolding for any project, is he?

Watch this space....