Two spikey things came to mind this morning. The first being the lavender in my garden, of which I harvested 2 big bunches yesterday. I have an all-time favourite lavender bush - one with the longest spikey stemmed fragrant flowers. I still don't know which variety it is - French, Spanish, Italian or English. But it speaks to me in my nasal olfactory senses in a way the others don't. One of the bunches I harvested was placed in a vase to inspire me while cooking, while the other one was hung upside down from the ceiling of my kitchen to dry. This will be my pillow-sachet filler. My last one is so well used that it doesn't carry much scent anymore. I place it under my pillow at night and when turning over, am rewarded by a faint scent of summer.
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| I once entertained the idea of planting a whole field of lavender in the garden. |
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| Bee fodder |
The other spike which comes to mind is the pair of visitors we have welcomed to our garden this morning. We were sitting and having our cup of organic, fair trade coffee when there came an urgent knocking on the door. Our excited neighbour breathlessly told us to come and rescue a mamma hedgehog and her 3 babies on the driveway, or else her dog would kill them. Well, wildlife rescues are best left to my daughter, so I unceremoniously ran upstairs and rushed her out of a warm cosey late morning bed laze. Just the word "hedgehog' and 'rescue" was all it needed to get her springing out of bed and running for the task, albeit still in her pj's!
Alas, mother and babies all scattered at the first sign of human interest and only one baby was caught with mum. The other 2 shimmied under the driveway fences and despite a concerted search and rescue effort, couldn't be found. So Josephine and Napoleon (rescued rodents-like critters) have been released into our garden, along with another half a dozen who have all been gifted to our garden by caring neighbours. No wonder we don't seem to have such a major slug and snail problem this year! I have read that hedgehogs were so named, for their fondness of living under hedges, and their likeness to hogs or pig's snouts. They have apparently changed little in over 15 million years!! Come to think of it, they do look a little prehistoric!
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Feisty little critter tried to escape, quite
capable of climbing the box! |
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| Mum Josephine and baby Napoleon |
We have just returned from a wee holiday in Turangi, south of Taupo. Not being the outdoorsy type of family Turangi draws for winter skiing, trout fishing, hunting and hiking, we grew tired of the cabin and the very spartan view of the tarred driveway. So instead of luxuriating for a week at a popular holiday destination, we cut it all short, unanimously voting to return to our little haven, after a few spectacular short walks in the area.
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The view from our sliding doors!!
Note that lack of screening vegetation! |
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| The cabins, sparse and not a pot plant in sight. |
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| The mighty Tongariro River |
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The one I had to leave behind............
I did bring 5 small ones home with me for hot rock therapy. |
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The rocks, oh the rocks! Thousands of beautiful smooth rocks
of every size and shape! |
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I fossicked on the lakeside, collecting bits of driftwood and pumice
to create these garden sculptures upon our return. |
Sometimes you have to leave home to realize how good you have it! We came home to these wonderful outbursts of colour in the garden:
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| The sunflowers stand at over 2 meters tall! |
So with inclement weather setting in, I shall take this wonderful time to do indoorsy activities like read, sew, create, make and bake. Bliss.
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