Posts by Leigh Russell
Last ←Newer Page 1 2 3 4 5 Older→ First
-
And now for a little look at a place next to where I lived in Christchurch. It was a stream bank which the Council contractors occasionally cleared and which I decided to adopt. Over the space of a couple of years it changed from being a mass of weeds and overgrowth which included most of the plants on the Council's weed list, to being a small green sanctuary. In monetary terms it didn't cost me anything.
It proved to be an inspiration to our neighbours, which I was delighted about - until they took their chainsaw to practically all the trees in the corresponding strip next to their place. I asked them what they planned instead. They had no plans but supposed the trees they had cut down would 'grow back'. Since then I have always been nervous of providing inspiration for anyone!
I inspired myself to much better effect, I'm pleased to say, and the success of that project was a motivator in a lengthy set of articles I wrote about creating all sorts of gardens for next to nothing, which you can find listed here
Anyway, the point I want to make is that it's possible to do wonderfully 'greening' things for next to nothing and which are then a joy to all.
-
Capture: Ans Westra - Ngā Tau ki Muri…, in reply to Islander,
I know lots about ANZ clans of both.
Yes indeed! And sleep well. :-)
-
I wanted to get the person who did this and bang their head against that wall. How could they be so stupid. They probably thought they were tidying the place up a bit. At the very least I hope they regretted it.
-
Some weeks or months later, I can’t remember exactly, I went for a walk to be confronted by the tree’s devastation – and the exposure of what must surely be one of the ugliest walls in creation. Yes, that's it dead centre - to coin a phrase...
-
I got some lovely close-up shots of it at the same time as I took the photograph above…
-
And then there is this tree - another apple tree. I don't recall seeing fruit on it, but it was a very restful and pleasing concealer of a particularly ugly wall along the road not far from my place. The insects loved it, and I'm sure the birds did too (birds eat insects, remember).
-
I can't tell you how many jars of preserves my sister and I made, and the number of bags full that we gave away. My recipe for preserving apples can be found here: Preserved apples ~ a good fruit sugar and water ratio Learn how to do it and enjoy the bounty! It's not difficult.
-
That tree had worked so hard. Here it is. Isn’t it beautiful! The owner of the property, an energetic man, didn't use the apples at all and was happy for us to take them all. If we hadn't taken them he would just have mowed over the top of them. He said his friends had suggested he take the tree out. "They what?" I spluttered. "You won't will you - you can't, surely?" No, he replied soothingly, but he would let a friend prune it. "Is he trained?" I quizzed him, trying not to look menacing. He assured me he was. And so it was. The tree didn't bear much fruit this year as a result, but in the long run the tree's health and well-being will be enhances I am sure. Trees need looking after - by people who know what they are doing.
-
My sister and I picked and picked and picked. You can see a small portion of the wonderful harvest we reaped…
-
That tree was loaded!
