You Know It’s Spring When…

Share this post

I really enjoy looking at all the articles published in the northern hemisphere about decorating for each new season. There’s a plethora of leaves as swags, in vases and on mantels, there’s seasonally colour framed quotes, buckets full of flowers, wreaths and especially decorated front porches. And now, all the American articles are about pumpkins and Halloween. Apart from flowers, most of my changes for spring seem to revolve around food!

SMALL, SWEET STRAWBERRIES

Spring means strawberries! They are small, aromatic and very sweet. Tart Greek sheeps’ yoghurt dolloped on dark red, sweet strawberries is a wonderful way to start the day!

CUT FLOWERS IN THE HOUSE

So many vases of fresh flowers in the house, just as I like it!

The roses have recovered from last seasons chilli thrip.

I collected the roses off the tables at Mum’s birthday lunch and reused them. Such pretty colours.

FLOWERS, FLoWERS, FLOWERS!

The garden is full of colour from tiny wood violets to blowsy roses, red and white hippiastras, Big Red geraniums, pelagoniums, nasturtiums and lavenders. The long lasting alstromerias are blooming, too.

Nothing says spring like flowers! There’s masses of flowers. After a dreadful season battling chilli thrip attacks on the roses all the bushes have all bounced back and are covered in gorgeous blooms. The garden is loud with busy bees.

FLORALS EVERYWHERE

Walk through the shopping centre and the displays of floral clothing are everywhere. Open any decorator magazine and the fabrics and wallpapers are all botanical themes. Everything from toile to eye poppingly bright florals. Pretty, fresh and such a change after the dark colours of winter.

Wallpaper with botanical prints.

Floral bed linen.

Pretty floral dresses.

Bedlinen, dresses, cushions, flowers on everything this year.

CONSTANTLY CONTROLLING WEEDS

Metropolitan Perth, where we live, has had the second wettest July on record. The weeds are thriving! I’ve experimented with a few non-toxic weed killers and have found this one works (here) Weed killing is an ongoing process. August and September were unseasonally wet, too, and we continue to have some rainy days and warm, sunny spring days in October. The weeds love this weather

THE WILLY WAG TAILS ARE NESTING OUT THE BACK

For years the willy wag tails have built nests in the back garden. Sometimes we know where they are and other years we can’t see them. If we get too near their nest they swoop close to your face. A sudden stripe of black and white and the flap of little wings and you know to move away!

I was digging in the garden a few years ago and something bit me on the heel. Looked down to see a defiant willy wag tail furiously wagging his tail at me. I think he hoped for worms as he began pecking at the newly dug soil when I stepped back.

We know when the nest are under construction as we see the willy wag tails tearing coir from the mat at the French doors. They pluck parts bare! I’ve found discarded nests in an olive tree and in roses over an arch and the coir is carefully integrated with small twigs. The tiny nests are lined with softer materials like leaves and hair from our dog

there’s fresh local asparagus

Suddenly the green grocers have bundles of fresh, locally grown asparagus. It is a perennial, so it comes up again every year. Traditionally harvested by a hand held knife some European countries are experimenting with harvesting machinery. To maintain peak freshness, asparagus is harvested at night. Asparagus is best eaten soon after picking.

I try to buy the thin ones as thicker asparagus can be a bit tough. Our favourite way to eat them is trim the ends, steam the asparagus, place it on the plate, drizzle with butter or Hollandaise sauce and top with a poached egg, parsley, salt and ground pepper. Quick lunch or dinner.

I microwave the asparagus now! I know, I took a while to try it, too, but now it’s the only way to go. Trim the spears, moisten a length of four sheets of paper towel folded in half, lay the spears in a single layer and roll the paper up to make a cylinder. Microwave for 2 minutes, check, you may have to do a minute more for thicker spears. I poach the egg in the microwave, too. (here) Actually, I made the Hollandaise sauce there, as well, but that’s a bit trickier.

other spring things

I’ve taken out the rye sourdough starter/mother and fed it. Left it in a warm place for a day. It bubbled and smelt yeasty, so I’ve made the sponge to start two loaves of sourdough rye bread. I’ve been buying bread as it’s been very wet and cold, but now it’s warmer. It takes two days to make the bread. Why do I bother? This dense loaf is very filling and has only natural ingredients. It also tastes wonderful although it may be an acquired taste!

The starter is added to flour, water, molasses and a pinch of salt to make dense, richly flavoured and very filling bread.

I make two loaves at a time. I slice the loaves and store them in the freezer, just removing what I need each day. Two loaves last 16 days.

A hot sunny day and our thoughts turned to icecreams on sticks! This is a Connoisseur Blood Orange Chocolate Icecream and it was wonderful.

What special things do you do for spring?

Share this post

Home Schooling, Early Spring in the Garden and Rat Proofing Tomatoes

Share this post

HOME SCHOOLING

Early one morning recently I was awake but hesitant to turn on a light and read so scrolled through some blogs. I was particularly interested in one where the mother, entering the third week of lockdown, seemed to be totally responsible for home schooling her two children as there was no reference to sharing this task with the children’s father. Why did this blog catch my attention?

This blogger was not enjoying the constant company of her children. She found their schoolwork tedious and difficult to supervise whilst attending to her own work. Understandably, she was under pressure. She wasn’t enjoying extra time with her kids. In fact, she was furious to be stuck with them. Poor children. She reminded me of the parents who’d arrive with their children the first day of the school year or at the beginning of the school term and express their joy that the holidays are over and their the kids are someone else’s problem for the next seven and a half hours.

These expressions of relief were always shared whilst the child was within hearing range. Sadly, some of these children were all too aware that they were a burden rather than a joy.

Lockdown supervision has sometimes revealed the true ability of the student to the supervising parent. The child’s attitude to learning or such close contact with the parent may also be of concern. Parents who tended to avoid advice about helping their child learn or become socially more adept can suddenly realise there is a problem.

Is this hostility of being with your own child a result of too many other pressures, of work, of housekeeping, parenting, keeping fit and having a life away from home? I don’t know but I’ve met many children whose parents don’t enjoy their company. The outcomes are usually poor for the children. I hope one of the long term outcomes of this pandemic is families look at their priorities and make changes to create happy, well adjusted lives.

SPRING IN THE GARDEN

Spring has arrived in Perth after the wettest winter in years. We live in quite an old suburb so many people have well established citrus trees which have been heavy with fruit for some months. Our own lime tree is covered in juicy fruit and yet is flowering again.

So fresh lemon or lime with everything! One of the consequences of heavy, frequent rain is a staggering amount of weeds. They’re winning at the moment!

I planted a packet of mixed coloured ranunculus corms but they’re mostly orange. Gorgeous.

Trying to tame the determined nasturtiums. Lots of them are orange, too.

RAT PROOFING THE TOMATOES

Our local council has regular verge pick-ups when they remove either our green waste ( garden waste which is too big for the green bin) or general waste and unwanted household goods. The last pickup was for general waste. I saw this aluminum frame out on the verge across the road when I went for a walk and wondered if I could make a rat proof cage for my self germinating tomatoes.

By the time I got back I knew it would work. I think it was originally the frame for a set of drawers. I liked the height and could see how I would seal it at the bottom to keep the rats out.

Carried the frame home and washed it. While it was drying I unrolled some chicken wire and flattened it out. Recycled frame, recycled chicken wire, self seeded tomatoes. All good.

Then we shaped it around the frame, making sure it reach the bottom and covered the top. We have wily rats! Attached it with gardening wire. I’ve put the tomato plant in the cage so now we’ll wait and see.

ROSY DOCK

I found this plant growing out of rubble during our recent trip to Kalgoorlie. I was delighted when a friend identified it from the photo. It is Rosy Dock (Acetosa vesicana) distinguished by its brightly coloured flowers which are pink through to ruby red. It is a perennial plant growing from underground tubers.

It is not a wild flower! It is native to northern Africa through to western Asia. It thrives in low rainfall areas so was popular with settlers moving into the outback of Australia more than 100 years ago.

Unfortunately, flash flooding spread Rosy Dock far and wide. It now threatens many indigenous plants and animals. Arum lilies, now also considered a weed, were spread the same way. They are both beautiful flowers!

Friday 17th September is CONCUSSION AWARENESS DAY. The impact of concussion may not be evident for many years. Learn the symptoms but mostly be aware of ways to protect yourself from being concussed.

Share this post

Recycled Plastic Labels, Flowers and Books

Share this post

RECYCLED PLASTIC BOTTLES

This hard to read label says, “I used to be a plastic bottle. This label is made from 100% recycled plastic.” My new cardigan is made of 100% cotton except the buttons and has a label made from recycled plastic. Good.

West Australian solo sailor Jon Sanders found on his recent world circumnavigation that nearly every 100 litre of seawater sample collected contained around 300 particles per cubic metre of microplastics. Why is this a problem? The chemicals released from plastics contribute to infertility, immunity disorders and abnormal neurological development in children.

FLOWERS IN THE HOUSE

The Phalaenopsis orchids are showering themselves in glory! Very satisfying, very pretty.

Several vases of early ranunculus. I cut them on short stems as the remaining stems have so many buds.

I read on a gardening site that ranunculus have more flowers if the corms are soaked prior to planting. I’d never done this before so tried it this year. I shared the corms with my Mother who lives further south. Unsurprisingly, mine germinated and bloomed before hers did but they also seem to be stronger plants. From now on I will soak the corms before planting.

I love arum lilies. They are a weed in Western Australia but my lilies are contained within an isolated bed. The lush, thick leaves don’t die off totally in summer as they do in the wild. The flowers start appearing at the end of August. I like to put the beautiful lilies in vases indoors.

The last of the Glamis Castle roses. They’ve all been pruned now.

CHOPSTICK STORAGE

We use chopsticks regularly. They’ve been stored in a cardboard tube for the last twenty plus years. The tube they were stored in was getting tatty. I was about to throw this acrylic chocolate box in the recycling bin when I realised it would make a great storage box for the chopsticks!

It had a brand sticker on the lid. I tore it off slowly and carefully but it left a layer of sticky glue. Tried removing it with hand sanitizer which was within reach. Didn’t work. Sprayed the sticker with Isopropyl alcohol and the residual glue just wiped off. Gave the box a wash in hot soapy water, dried it and now it’s a perfect chopstick box.

READING

Dr Norman Swan is a well known Australian broadcaster and physician. When I saw his latest book, So You Think You Know What’s Good For You? on the XPRESS ( seven day limit on borrowing for very popular books) display at the library, I borrowed it. He answers the health questions he’s asked all the time, based on the latest evidence and with good humour. Easy to flick back and forward following items of interest, this book is full of information and sound advice. You can just avoid the bits that make you nervous!

PLANTING OUT HYDRANGEAS

These ‘sticks’ are from pruning existing hydrangeas. Take a piece with two growth buds, push it into soil and come back a few months later. Roots should have appeared. I will plant these new plants in a very shady place where I planted some last year, as a trial. The plants only grew a little bit but each one produced flowers. I hope in time they reach a height where they will get more dappled light and thrive. I really like their glossy leaves and big, blousey blooms.

PRESSING EARLY SPRING FLOWERS

I collected a hat full of early springs flowers to press. I’ll use them to make some gift tags so I snipped their stems short. If I was planning to use them to make a card or a picture for the wall, I’d leave a longer stem and include more foliage.

I’d already cleaned the dusty press and put four layers of lithograph paper ready for the flowers. I don’t use paper towel as delicate petals can end up with the pattern of the paper towel imprinted on them. I also avoid newspaper as the ink can seep through the paper and stain the flowers during the pressing process.

Arranged the flowers then covered them with another four sheets of litho paper. I used a wooden press as I have one, but heavy books are also effective.

Put the top layer of the press in place and screwed on the wing nuts not really tightening any of them until they were all in place. Then I tightened them until there was no more movement.

I’ll put the press somewhere cool and dry for the next month. It needs to be accessible as I’ll continue tightening the nuts every three or four days for about a month.

TRAVEL JOURNAL PAINTING

Visited Rowles Conservation Park near Ora Banda while we were in Kalgoorlie. This lagoon is very beautiful. I have done a quick water colour painting for my journal.

In Australia and New Zealand, Father’s Day is celebrated on the first Sunday of September, so we will be celebrating this Sunday. This is a lovely opportunity to get together with family members but it may not be possible for all families due to ongoing lock downs in New South Wales and Victoria. Wishing all Fathers, where ever they are, a lovely day. Happy Father’s Day!

Share this post

Mid Winter Week

Share this post

COLOGNE

A few weeks ago I wrote about buying 4711 Acqua Colonia Blood Orange and Basil because my Grandfather used 4711 and I really liked the scent. As a cologne it didn’t last long or overpower but every now and then I’d get a whiff of the fresh citrusy scent. Then I read about a project the Rijksmuseum Amsterdam called ‘In Search Of Lost Scents’. Perfumers were asked to create scents to match works from the Rijksmuseum collection.

The Battle of Waterloo

Jan Willem Pieneman ‘The Battle of Waterloo’, Rijksmuseum Amsterdam

One of the scents was created by perfumer Birgit Sijbrands, inspired by Jan Willem Pieneman’s 1824 painting ‘ The Battle of Waterloo’. The scents she selected were intended to reflect Napoleon’s anxiety fleeing the battlefield, plus thousands of horses and the leather of saddles, bridles and boots. Another layer represented the muddy earth as it had been raining for days, and sweat and gunpowder.

www. Pixabay

There was also a surprising layer to the created scent; fresh citrus. The former Emperor and many of the soldiers were fans of 4711 Eau de Cologne, then called ‘Aqua Mirabilis’, miracle water. It was considered a medicine plus a fragrance. 4711 claims to be the oldest cologne still being made in the world. It is produced in Cologne, famous for its colognes, hence the word ‘cologne’. Made by Mäurer & Witz, it is a secret combination of lemon, orange, bergamot, lavender, rosemary, neroli, petitgrain*, roses and sandalwood oil. It still smells wonderful.

Pixabay

*Petitgrain is derived from the bitter orange tree. I’d never heard of it before but apparently is commonly used in medicinal oils.

A NEW LAPTOP

My laptop had been dropped once too often and not always by me! After a discussion with my son, Techno Help, a new one was ordered. Years ago I had a glossy red laptop which was attractive and easy to find in a pile of others things on the table. Now my choices were graphite, graphite or graphite. Bit like slowly replacing all the lovely white electrical appliances in the kitchen with stainless steel. So, I ordered sticker which was a picture of roses. It arrived quickly, was easy to apply and I love it.

What’s in the large envelope? A sticker for my new laptop.

BALD AS A BADGER

Pixabay

My Mother used the expression “As bald as a badger”. We couldn’t visualise a bald badger! Turns out, the expression was “As bald as a badger’s bum”. Badgers were trapped and the coarse, thick hairs from their rear ends were plucked to make shaving brushes. After plucking the bristles the badgers were released. Eventually the hair grew back but it was common to see badgers with bald backsides!Pixabay

There’s a common Australian expression “As blind as a bandicoot” probably because they live underground. There’s a long history of expressions making comparisons with animals, such a ‘ as blind as a bat’, ‘as slow as a snail’ and ‘ slippery as a snake.”

Pixabay

PLASTIC FREE JULY

I was interested to read that pressure from the children of CEOs is resulting in change around the over use of plastics. Many brands admit they are changing their polices and practices due to pressure from their own children.

Unfortunately, birds starving because their stomachs are full of plastics is becoming more common, according to recent research in the UK. WWF also claims we each consume a credit card size amount of plastic every week. Also in the UK The Rivers Trust (www.theriverstrust.org/stop-flushing-wipes) tells us that 93% of sewer blockages are caused by flushing wipes down the toilet. Probably similar statistics in Australia. Let’s focus on cleaner water.

ROSES

My roses are finally recovering from the plague, AKA chili thrip. Healthy green leaves and buds are appearing just in time for pruning. I am hoping they recover fully and return to their vigorous state of well being next season. Meanwhile we took my Mother home this week and her roses are still blooming happily. As a result, I have two vases of beautiful roses, which makes me very happy.

RESTORING

Running up and down the stairs many times a day recently, I saw the frame of one of the mirrors hanging there was chipped. The frames are classic timber with plaster decorative finishes. I’ve repaired chips in the frames before, so set about restoring this one.

I removed the mirror from the wall and dusted and wiped it clean, before mixing a paste of Polyfilla.

Mixed the Polyfilla using an old knife. I’m sure there’s purpose made palette knives for this job but I like the long blade on this old one for applying and smoothing the plaster.

2. Smeared the Polyfilla carefully into the cracked ornate plaster veneer, over filling it slightly.

BEFORE

AFTER

3. After it had cured for two days I used sandpaper to smooth the surface to look like the rest of the frame.

4. Using a small paintbrush, I stippled gold and copper paint onto the repair to imitate the existing old gold until it looked like the original finish. Added some black water colour paint to mimic the frame’s faint black stripe when the gold was dry then re-hung the mirror. Pleased with the repair.

Brisbane, the capital of Queensland, has just won the rights to host the 2032 Olympic Games. By then we should be CV-19 free!

Share this post

Making, Cooking, Eating, Reading

Share this post

MAKING

I have painted every day for the last two months, sometimes just quick works, sometimes intricate paintings and sometimes following Zoom sessions. During this time I become interested in painting blue and white china. I sorted all my blue paints and tested each to decide which were closest in colour to the blue on my many pieces of blue and white china.

I found making a reference sheet of test colours really useful and did something I should have done years ago: I drew up a grid and painted a rectangle showing the colour of every tube of paint I have and wrote their names, too. I have no idea why I didn’t do this before, but it is very useful!

Then my son gave me a Moleskin Watercolour Album. It is gorgeous and the texture of the cold pressed cotton (25%) blend, acid free pages is very good. The next day I drew up and replicated the colour grid inside the front of the journal. Great reference, just needs some great paintings, now.

COOKING CABBAGE SOUP!

The greengrocer has a range of cabbages. I buy them all, the reds ones, the Savoy ones, the Chinese (wombok), the black and the common green drumhead ones. I had run out of ideas for preparing cabbage! I looked up “cabbage soup” online. A nostalgic moment. You see, the majority of recipes for cabbage soup are for the Cabbage Soup Diet!

When we lived overseas most foreigners lived in a compound. Christmas wasn’t celebrated there and there was no holiday except at the school. Most of the wives and children returned to their home countries for a few weeks to celebrate Christmas and have a holiday. This meant mass dieting for weeks before hand and the diet of choice was the Cabbage Soup Diet. I don’t think it was very successful but seeing so many entries for it online was nostalgic, not necessarily in a good way. Boiled cabbage smells bad.

Next time I’ll grind fresh spices instead of using powdered ones.

Under all that was a recipe from a site called Simply Good for Cabbage Soup, (here). The reviews were enthusiastic and there were lots of them, so I made Cabbage Soup. I had all the ingredients. It was easy, healthy and very good. I will make it again.

EATING AND COLD WEATHER

It’s the middle of winter in the Southern hemisphere. We have had more rain than I remember since I was a child. The dams and even the aquifers must be full by now. Wet and cold days seem to require carbohydrates, so I’m quick to oblige. When our son came down from Kalgoorlie for the weekend, we had bagels and paninis for lunch and a roast beef dinner with roasted vegetables and luscious gravy.

The next morning we had yum cha, delicious little bites with warming spicy dipping sauces. The yum cha restaurant is always crowded and noisy. There’s large round tables where big groups enjoy the food and company, smaller tables and then tables for four. The servers come past with trolleys you choose from or trays with specialties and you can order your favourites, too.

Small but diabolical chocolate muffins.

I’d made chocolate chip muffins. They have amazing powers to fight cold weather

My Mother has been staying, too, after some surgery for melanomas on her face and hand. She really feels the cold, so has an electric blanket on her bed and now, an electric throw. It was recommended to me by a friend and endorsed enthusiastically by another friend, so off I went to buy her one. The first two shops had sold out, but the third shop had one left. They had unpacked ten that morning and told me I was lucky to get the last one.

She thinks it’s very warm!

READING

I’m a fan of Irish writer Marion Keyes books. She is funny and sharply observant. She writes fiction and nonfiction. I always checked to see if she had for a new book available when we were traveling. Remember plane trips? When I finished the book I’d leave it in the hotel for someone else to enjoy.

Thoroughly enjoyed ” Making It Up As I Go Along”. Published in 2016 this is a collection of columns and articles she wrote for various newspapers, travel magazines and other magazines. We learn about her nail polish museum, her many trips overseas and Himself, her saint like husband plus her passion for rugby.

I borrowed this book from the library to balance out my other selections, serious garden tomes on treating pest invasions naturally, re-espaliering fruit trees ( mine has shot upwards, seeking sunlight as the neighbours’ trees have grown and block the sun) and small garden design requiring little water, except their idea of a small garden is big compared to mine. Interesting and informative, but very serious so some droll observations from Marion Keyes were very welcome.

How are you going with Plastic Free July? Aldi has a set of four fruit and vegetable bags. Two are made of calico, two are woven cotton. Light, easy to wash and reusable. Four less plastic bags every week. You can use the paper bags intended for mushrooms if you forget to take reusable fruit and vegetable bags shopping.

Share this post

Some Sewing, Watching, ZOOM Painting and Chilli Thrip

Share this post

SEWING

Are you a home sewer? I had my sewing machine serviced this week. It was the first time in 34 years, so I thought it was due. Actually, I’d tried to mend my husband’s pyjamas and the machine made it clear things had to change. Off to the repair shop. Now it hums along happily. Mostly I mend and modify things, so nothing fancy, just practical.

Home sewing is experiencing a huge boom! Last year the UK recorded a 300% increase in sewing machines sales. Thought to be influenced by a program on television called “Great British Sewing Bee” and CV-19 resulting in more time at home, there’s also a move towards greater sustainability in clothing and a continuing reluctance to shop.

Not only has there been an explosion in the popularity of home sewing, but also knitting and crocheting are wildly popular, too. The UK Craft and Hobby Trade Association estimates over one million people have begun sewing for themselves in the past 3 years.

Sewing machine sales in Sweden have also increased more than 10 fold in the past year. A spokesman for Swiss sewing machine manufacturer, Bernina, says sales figures have literally exploded. (The West Australian newspaper 10/05/2021) Sales of knitting and crocheting materials have increased by eightfold. Availability of Australian grown and manufactured wool has increased enormously and can be found online or in craft suppliers. Good. In the past we sent most of it overseas.

So, is overt consumerism declining? Environmental concerns, a focus on individuality and the pleasure of creating all contribute to the increase in sewing, knitting and crocheting. Interestingly, many bloggers comment on the cost of these activities.

Once seen as thrifty, sewing machines and fabrics are quite expensive and mostly imported into Australia. Others suggest that having invested so much time, energy and money into making clothing or household pieces, they will take more care of them and keep them for much longer. It will be interesting to see if sewing clothes at home will continue.

WATCHING

I hate to admit it, but Jeremy Clarkson's farming show is really good TV | Television & radio | The Guardian The Guardian.UK

I enjoyed “Our Yorkshire Farm” and “Escape To The Farm With Katie Humble” but it all became a bit repetitive. Neither of these programs prepared me for ” Clarkson’s Farm”. Jeremy Clarkson has 1 000 acres in Oxfordshire. Fairly clueless, but with great enthusiasm and elan, he farms his 1000 acres. He employs a variety of advisors, farm hands and general contractors in typical Clarkson style.

Of course he buys a huge Lamborghini tractor which doesn’t fit in his shed and really requires an interpreter to keep it working. The pressures of getting jobs done in between rain results in him inventing his own, unsuccessful, methods. Very funny. Especially when his efforts are inspected by 21 year old contractor Kaleb who doesn’t hold back when he critiques Clarkson’s cultivating. The sometimes pointless but remnant EU rules baffle and annoy him, as did six weeks of non-stop rain. More rain than the UK had seen in a century. His farm becomes a quagmire.

So very funny and interesting, peppered with typical Clarkson observations and antics. All accompanied on a cool Saturday morning with a mug of Fridge Soup. In other words, all the vegetables that needed to be used up in the fridge, plus some meaty stock I had and curry paste. Bamixed, pasta added, left to cook some more, then ladled out and enjoyed. There we were, cuddled up with Louis the dog, comfortable and cosy on a cold morning, cackling at Clarkson. (Amazon Prime)

PAINTING

I really enjoy Amy Stewart’s painting tutorials on ZOOM. She delivers one each month. I’d signed up for a session painting monarch butterflies, so a few days before the lesson I found some images, studied the characteristics and painted one on my rose painting.

The monarch butterflies we painted were based on very quick, directed drawings. The focus was on impressions of butterflies, not so much on accuracy. After we’d drawn the shapes we applied a lot of water to each shape and then dropped paint into it. Unpredictable but colourful results. When the paint was dry we used felt and paint pens to add definition and detail. Very different from how I usually paint, but a wonderful opportunity to try other techniques.

Influenced by Amy Stewart’s use of felt pen to add definition and clarity, I completed this poppy painting by adding some pen drawing, too.

CHILLI THRIP

Continuing the war against chilli thrip. Some roses have responded well, others still look dire.

Some of the roses in the back garden have responded well to bi-weekly sprays, plant oil and Seasol. I have been picking the last flush of roses and there’s no sign of chilli thrip. At the end of July all the roses will be pruned right back. I hope they will be healthy next year! I will replace the top layer of soil where the thrip apparently breed with a fresh mix.

Roses out the front have not recovered at all. They had the same treatment as those in the back garden. Less sunlight?

The lime tree, on the other hand, next to the roses out the front, is covered in healthy, delicious fruit!

It’s International Men’s Health week focusing on the well being of all men. For more information www.menshealthweek.org.au/

Share this post

Flowers, Cavolo Nero, Painting and Reading

Share this post

CHANGE OF PLANS

I have been working on this blog well ahead of intended publication day as I was going to Canberra for two days and then Melbourne for three days. I’d done lots of research about the three exhibitions we’d booked tickets to see and had a list of other things I planned doing while I was in both Canberra and Melbourne. Then an outbreak of CV-19 changed our plans! Melbourne is in lockdown again. This must be very difficult for them. Anyway, I’m staying safely in Western Australia, at home and my son, who I was travelling East with is going to Darwin for four days instead. Bit sad about missing Botticelli to Van Gogh in Canberra and She-Oak and Sunlight, Australian Impressionism plus French Impressionism from the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, in Melbourne.

FLOWERS

Do you like fresh flowers in the house? Me, too. Not surprising, really, as my Grandmother always had flowers on the table and my Mother has at least one vase of flowers on her table, too. I like to grow most of our cut flowers. It’s hard to find out where bought flowers come from but apparently most roses come from overseas. I enjoy gardening and these flowers are so freshly cut they last longer.

The roses above are mostly from my Mother’s garden. The entire area around where we live has a terrible infestation of chili thrip* which is decimating the roses. The recommended treatments are making very little difference. It’s early to prune the bushes but I’m considering it to try and nurture healthy roses in spring. Any advice about successful treatments would be very welcome!

*Chilli thrip (Scirtothrips dorsalis) feed on roses, all citrus as well as a range of fruit and vegetable hosts. Originally from Asia, chilli thrip is gradually achieving global distribution.

CAVOLO NERO

Common in Italian cuisine, cavolo nero is a blackish cabbage, very similar to kale. I bought it because it looked so interesting. I combined a Maggie Beer recipe with some other general directions and made this BRAISED CAVOLO NERO, which we ate with squid and potatoes.

Rinse the cavolo nero leaves and dry them. I used a bunch to make dinner for two but it would feed four if you were serving other vegetables, too. It tastes better than it looks!

The ingredients are simple. Gather the washed cavolo nero, two cloves of garlic, a lemon ( usually, but I only had fresh limes so that’s what I used and they tasted very good) about five anchovies, because I like the salty, surprising taste when they break up amongst the vegetable. You also need some olive oil for cooking and about half a cup of water.

Fold the cavolo nero leaf in half longways and slice out the stem. I kept the stems to make minestrone! Apparently that’s the typical thing to do in Italy. Then cut the leaves sideways into slices. Put the oil in a heavy based pan and when it’s hot add the garlic and anchovies. The anchovies disintegrate a bit during cooking. Add the leaves, squeeze on the citrus juice and stir them about. The leaves shrink quite a lot. After about five minutes add the water and let it cook until the water has evaporated.

Served with some flash fried squid, a potato and another squeeze of lime. Healthy and fast, although preparing the leaves is a bit of a faff.

I made a very traditional minestrone, including the stems from the cavolo nero this time, but I didn’t add the pasta when I was cooking it. As the soup lasts two of us about three days the pasta becomes mushy after the first day. So I cook a little fresh al dente pasta and put it into the minestrone just before I serve it each day.

PAINTING

I’ve discovered ZOOM painting sessions and have really enjoyed them. I did an Amy Stewart session and painted four birds. This led to me painting a fairy wren, too.

Later I did a session with Marietta Cohen. It began with a guided sketching and painting lesson of cherry blossom, based on a traditional Japanese painting “Fukurokuju Cherry Blossom” created by K Tsunoi, in 1921. Later I sourced the original piece of art and did a full sized painting.

Also did a couple of travel diary paintings on our time down south. I love seeing other peoples sketches and paintings from their trips and am working on doing the same thing. Needs more work!

For some years I have painted botanical paintings. I wanted to try more relaxed casual paintings of flowers. Just realised most of the flowers I’ve painted are pink!

READING

I’ve just read “The Only Street In Paris” written by Elaine Sciolino. First saw this author referred to a on a blog reviewing “Emily In Paris”, then she was mentioned in another review. So I bought the book and I’m so glad I did, too. Of course, I bought it through Book Depository, using the link on the blog side bar! The author, Elaine Sciolino is a contributing writer and former Paris bureau chief for the New York Times. She has lived in Paris with her husband and two daughters since 2002.

“The Only Street In Paris, Life on the Rue des Martyrs” refers to the street in Paris where Sciolino and her family live in an apartment. Published in 2016, this book is the result of detailed research. Located in the ninth arrondissement, Sciolino introduces us to a rich collection of characters in her street. We meet the green grocer, the butcher, the baker, the cheese man, the knife sharpener and even a repairer of antique barometers. There’s a Synagogue, and a famous old church in dire need of restoration, so devout Catholic Sciolino writes to the Pope for assistance. There’s no reply.

There’s cafes, restaurants, bars and night clubs. She writes about famous people who have lived in the street and about the history of the street going back centuries. The buildings in many cases are untouched by progress and many shelter unseen gardens behind their remaining courtyard doors.

The survival of traditional specialist shops in Paris is made possible by legislation protecting them from multi-national and chain stores moving into some of these streets.Sciolino’s acute observations and mulinational cast of shopkeepers, mixed with the history of the area, makes this a compelling read.

Hello WINTER in the Southern Hemisphere, hello SUMMER in the Northern Hemisphere!

Share this post

How to Print Rose Pattern Giftwrap and a New Teapot

Share this post

PRINTING ROSES

Mother’s Day is only days away so I’m printing some gift wrap with a rose pattern. This could be the easiest craft project you ever attempt! The roses will be pink to go with the pink carnation card I have already painted for my Mother.

You need a bunch of celery, a knife for cutting the celery, a palette or plate for paint, sheets of brown paper or any colour you prefer and acrylic paint for printing. I also used some paper towel for dabbing off excess paint from the celery before printing. If you’re mixing paint colours, as I did, you’ll need something to blend the desired colour. I prefer a stiff paint brush as the bristles really massage the paint and combine the colours.

Cut the base from the bunch of celery. (Wash and store the sticks to eat later) Leave the base to dry overnight. When I looked at it in the morning I needed to cut the top flat again.

Prepare your work surface and gather your materials. When I looked closely at the base I thought the four outer remnant sticks were not adding to the rose shape of the others, so I cut them off. You could use a rubber band to secure the cut off sticks and print using them if they look more like roses.

Mix your preferred colour. I wanted pink to go with the pink carnation card I had painted for my Mother. I made a pale pink and a darker pink. Don’t worry if you haven’t mixed enough paint for your sheet of paper. The paint colour is easily matched to what remains on your palette/plate.

Lay you paper for printing on a protected work surface. Squeeze the paint onto the plate or palette, mixing colours if you want a different shade. I used acrylic paints. Dab the celery in the paint. Tap onto paper towel if you need to, then place on the paper. Press firmly. Repeat, creating a pattern.

Then I experimented with pale pink over printed with darker pink and also did some darker pink roses. Taking the cue from the black outline I added to the carnations on the card I also did black pen outlines on the printed roses. I used a Sharpie. Prefer the paler prints when they’re outlined in black.

When your prints are dry it’s easy to add leaves if you like, using green paint, felt pen, coloured pencils or even glitter pen. I didn’t but if I was doing this super easy activity with children I’d let them decide if they wanted to add leaves.

I printed on brown paper. I salvaged it at Christmas time. It was the packing paper around a large gift. Later I ironed it to make it smoother but didn’t bother making it perfect as I liked the slightly rumpled look! The paper grips the paint well. I have printed on tissue paper but it’s tricky as the paper sticks to the celery and butchers paper, which works well. I think it would look interesting to print the roses on sheets of newspaper, too.

MY NEW TEAPOT

I don’t drink tea although I love the smell of it! I just don’t like the taste. I drink coffee but try to limit the number of cups I have each day. Looking through the drinks menu at a cafe one afternoon I saw a list of Fruit Infusions and ordered a pot of Cranberry Vanilla. Really liked it and ordered it again a few days later then went hunting for it to have at home. It is sold as a loose mix in a packet.

Initially I made it in a cup using an infuser spoon basket. It was fine but bits of the mix escaped the basket and it took a lot of mix to make each cup of tea.

So when I saw this teapot I bought it as it was similar to the teapot used at the cafe. It’s a saucer, cup, pot, stainless steel infusion basket and a lid. And it’s pretty.

Pour the hot water over the infusion basket full of the loose fruit mix, put on the lid, leave a five minutes. Pour into the cup. No floating bits, full flavour and two cups of tea. The second cup stays hot in the pot for ages.

The same amount of tea used in the infusion spoon put in the stainless steel infusion basket makes twice as much tea!

IN THE GARDEN

The hippiastra continue to bloom. These are in flower almost all the time. I have had them for many years. The ranunculus corms I soaked before planting have all germinated as have most of the poppy seeds. Unfortunately, the roses are all under attack from chilli thrip and despite spraying them as recommended all except the icebergs look miserable. Too early to prune so I’ll continue to cut back the affected leaves and flowers and spray regularly. Any clever ways to solve this problem?

Did you know milk cartons take about five years to compost?

Share this post

What I Cooked, Ate, Baked and in the Garden

Share this post

cooking

Beef Bourguignon

Certainly not the usual weather for making slow cooker Beef Bourguignon but we bought fillet steak which was tough! We buy whole pieces of meat and my husband butchers and packs them himself. We found we had a lot of tough, expensive fillet steak. Despite the heat, I knew I’d be turning it into one of our favourite slow cooker recipes, Beef Bourguignon (here)

While my husband turned the steaks into cubes, I cut up red and white potatoes and carrots and put them in the slow cooker. Collected the ingredients for the sauce.

Seared the steak in several batches.

Whisked the sauce ingredients, brought them to the boil then simmered for a few minutes before pouring over the ingredients in the slow cooker, putting on the lid and setting it to HIGH for four hours.

This unctuous, richly flavoured Beef Bourguignon was served the first night with steamed beans. The second night I just made toast to dip into the sauce. Just as good!

Tarte Tatin

Also made tarte tatin. I’ve never made this before but I couldn’t resist some new seasons apples at the grocer so had to use up the six apples I already had. These were pink ladies, not the recommended Granny Smiths. The recipe I used is here.

Made the caramel syrup by dissolving sugar in water over heat then adding butter and cooking until it was slightly caramel in colour. While this was happening I peeled, de-cored and quartered the apples. When the caramel was ready I added the apples and stirred them around in the thick liquid for 10 minutes.

I had already thawed a sheet of pastry. Cut it the size of the pie dish I was using, then adding the apple quarters in a concentric pattern. Poured the left over caramel over the apples and put it in the oven for 50 minutes.

Left it an hour to cool before serving. Absolutely delicious! We only had left over cassata to serve with our tarte tatin but it was wonderful.

EATING

The week after Chinese New Year seemed a good time for us to go to our favourite yum cha restaurant. We arrived before it opened and lined up. When the restaurant doors opened we all scanned our Safe WA Q codes ( so we can be quickly notified if we’ve come into contact with anyone diagnosed with CV-19) and were shown to tables. The restaurant was totally full within minutes and there were still people queued and waiting. The yum cha is very good!

We ate all our favourites, including the black egg pie. All washed down with a few pots of tea. Such a good way to start the day.

Baking

I made sourdough bread for some years and then began making rye sourdough. It is a dense, strongly flavoured bread which I really enjoy. Then I began buying some rye breads and enjoyed the lighter texture of loaves combining rye and white flour. The Germans call this blend of rye flour and white flour a mischbrot, a mixed bread and it makes a lovely loaf.

So I went looking for a recipe to try and settled on this recipe here. I already had a rye mother/starter so simply followed the steps to create an active ‘sponge’, which is not as runny as the usual starter but not as firm as bread dough. This took 20 hours to develop.

Kneaded the dough until it was elastic and smooth then left it to rise until it had increased in size. Then kneaded and folded it again, creating a boule or ball. Left it to rise while the oven heated. Added a bowl of water to the oven to make a crunchy crust. Baked the bread for 35 minutes. Smelt very good.

Cut into the loaf when it was cool. The texture was light and even and the flavour was great! This will be my new bread recipe. It makes a smaller loaf than my previous recipe but I will make two loaves next time as I slice and freeze the bread, removing a few slices every day for breakfast toast.

The Garden

Autumn has arrived with heavy rain and high humidity. The limes are already developing and will be very welcome. Lurking amongst the limes is the household gargoyle.

This alien looking plant is a haemanthus or blood lily. This is a plant originally from South Africa. When the orange bloom and spotty stems disappear thick, leathery leaves will appear.

The amaryllis belladonna lily or Easter lily is a tough but pretty bulb. Also originally from South Africa, this lily thrives in our harsh climate. Traveling in the country side you can often see where a house used to be by the clump of belladonna lilies growing in the middle of no where.

Did you know the first Thursday in March is World Book Day? We are a family of serious readers and happy to celebrate this event by settling down for a good, long read! Both sides of our family are committed readers and have been for several generations. How will you celebrate?

Share this post

How To Store Food

Share this post

Do you know the best ways to store the food you buy? Planning what you’ll make with what you’ve bought reduces food waste. Appropriate storage is part of this, too. I didn’t really know which fruit and vegetables went into the fridge or not so years ago I researched the best way to store food.

Here’s the basic food storage list. We live in a country with very hot, dry summers, so our storage needs will be different from cooler areas. Consider your climate and make adjustments according to the seasons, too.
Onions shouldn’t be stored in the fridge, nor should avocados, peaches and other stonefruit and melons until they ripen. Once I’ve cut an avocado I wrap the remaining half with the stone still in it in a large silicone wrapper. There’s some clever reusable capsules available for storing cut avocados but I haven’t tried them .

Eggs, carrots, apples and oranges should go in the fridge. The problem here for me is I like the apples and oranges in a fruit bowl where I can see them. I only buy a few at a time so they’re eaten fresh. Garlic should also be kept in the fridge. All berries go in the fridge, too.

Once you’ve opened tomato sauce it should also be stored in the fridge to limit bacteria and mold developing. Same with opened jams, chutneys, mustards and tomato paste. Leftover tomato paste can be frozen in icecube trays then popped into containers and the individual cubes can be quickly thawed when required.
Bread is one of the most wasted foods in many houses. It should be stored in the fridge. It is easy to remove as much as you’ll use in a day and store the rest in the freezer. It takes us ages to use a loaf, so I freeze it and remove a few slices when needed. The more you put in your freezer the more effectively it keeps things frozen. Before you throw leftover bread in the bin, consider making breadcrumbs or croutons which will keep for ages, or a bread and butter pudding.

Leafy greens ( lettuce, cabbage, Brussel sprouts, cauliflower, celery, spinach) should go in the fridge. Years ago I bought (from Tupperware) a celery keeper and a lettuce keeper. Both work really well. Fresh peas and beans, in the fridge too, and beetroot. None of these should be kept for more than a few days. Leftovers make great vegetable soup, risotto or fritattas. Add leftover herbs, too.

Fresh herbs are tricky to keep fresh! Most can be stored in the fridge for two days but you can also put them in a glass of water and they stay fresher long. If you have room, pot up the herbs you use most often and they’ll always be fresh.

Potatoes should be stored in cardboard boxes, wicker trays, or lined drawers, not in plastic and not in the fridge.

There’s so much information online about safe food storage which will help reduce food wastage.

Apart from fresh produce most of us have an array of dried produce stored. I like clear containers so I can see what I have and what needs topping up. For years my favourite canisters have been recycled glass jars. They are a good size, I can see what’s in them and they fit and stack well on the shelf in the pantry. I can wash them in the dishwasher and they’re not so heavy I can’t grab one in one hand in a hurry.

After many years of constant use the labels have become tatty. Went searching for new labels online. I wanted an attractively shaped label with an outline. The design needed to be editable so I could add my own ingredient list as so many of the ones I saw listed things I’d never need.

My first choice was just written food names with no borders. Not what I thought I wanted but they do look fresh and clean. Printed them off and set about transferring them to packing tape to transfer onto the glass. I taped each onto packing tape, burnished each with a soup spoon and dropped them into the water bath, just as directed.

That’s when things went wrong. Was I using the wrong sort of packing tape, didn’t I leave the labels in water long enough? Instead of print staying on the tape when I rubbed off the wet paper, everything came off! After many attempts I accepted the stickers weren’t working, so just wrote the ingredients on tape and stuck it on the jar.

Problem number two: I couldn’t read the label on the jar once I put something dark, like peppercorns or brown lentils, in it! New plan involved printing a new set of labels and photocopying a drawing which I cut in half. Then I glued the food label in the middle. Looked too big, trimmed some off the top and bottom of the image then it looked fine.

Floral image from Shutterstock.

Fiddled about for ages trying to decide on the size I wanted and whether they should have a border.

Meanwhile, I emptied the jars and washed and dried them in the dishwasher. The lids went outside on a tray. It was 38ºC so they dried quickly. Then, labels attached with a rectangle of Contact, ingredients poured in and all back on the shelves in the pantry. Not what I imagined but they do look fresh and clean.

Share this post