After relentless gales from the northwest we were blessed today with a cool, gentle southerly wind change. That brought us the astounding sound of silence from the noise of the winds, stillness to be outdoors and enjoy it, and warmth from the sunshine.
Jazz made the best of the conditions as he stretched to soak up the prevailing goodness.
We had a sharp frost here this morning but by 10.30am Jazz was making the best use of a lovely warm, tin roof, flooded with sunshine. Cats are wise and just know where the warm spots are, even in winter.
I hope the weather is being kind to you too, wherever you live in the world.
We have a bitterly cold wind gusting about us this morning. So far the sky is clear and the sun is doing its best to offer some warmth. However with snow and sleet predicted for much of the South Island and the high hills and mountains of the country it is a day to hunker down inside.
The slow cooker is working away on Moroccan lamb and couscous for dinner, the soup pot is now bubbling away gently on the stove, the tea- pot and toaster are at the ready. All to help keep the chill out today.
Jazz has a cozy spot by the gas heater to do his stretching exercises and I’ve got layers of wool on. If you are a New Zealander reader keep warm today wherever you are living.
Gardening is a mysterious occupation and the mystery often remains unsolved despite our best human efforts.
These baby beetroot are part of my third attempt at growing a small crop of beetroot.
The first crop was a dismal failure which I shrugged off as “one of those things that happen when gardening”. I had no prior experience with this particular plant so I figured I hadn’t got something right.
I optimistically planted a second crop and gave the plants a lot more attention. I made sure the plants were watered, had plenty of sunshine and fed but again I was very disappointed to find that the beets were very small at harvest.
Not to be beaten, although my spirits were low, I went on to the internet to see what I could find about growing beetroot. I was fully expecting to find that I had missed a critical factor or two. But information I found reassured me that I was doing everything right.
With this determined attitude I planted baby beets in mid March this year with intentions to harvest them in early May. Lo and behold I have a good sized crop of baby beetroot.
What made the difference? I would have to suspect it was the sudden and prolonged period of warm weather we experienced and then some wonderfully, soaking rain that saw the beets swell up in size within a day or two. But I can’t be sure.
I have been a gardener for long enough to know I can’t beat nature, but like many gardeners I return to planting in the hope that the crops will eventuate if I care for them appropriately. I also know that every so often I manage to catch perfect growing conditions and magic happens alongside the mystery of it all.
I’ve been quiet on the blog for a few days now. The ordinary care of the two cats became rather more of a full time occupation for a week. One of our cats is on medication for an inflammatory condition and it seems that the medication levels were too high for him. He was very out of sorts and required almost daily visits to the vet for extra fluids and lots and lots of TLC plus encouragement to pick up his eating.
I’m very pleased to say that he has improved and is much more his old self again. I now have to monitor the new reduced dosage and see how he fares. Fingers crossed.
On a quite separate note it has been confirmed officially that May, in my neck of the woods, was the hottest on record. We continue to enjoy very mild conditions here and I cannot help but note how easy life is without high winds and cold temperatures. The same weather officials are saying that our Golden Weather is almost at an end with the La Nina pattern diminishing. But for today we will continue to relish it.
ordinarygoodness 