Trimmed

I line-trimmed all the rank grass beneath the wide branches of the walnut tree prior to the nuts ripening and falling. It means I’ll be able to find them easily on the ground each morning, and gives me easier access to grab nuts from the tree - when the green coats open immediately before they drop. All this should reduce the number I lose to the possums and rats.

The extra is a sample of the laden branches. Should I have made it the main?

Elsewhere I line-trimmed beneath the plum trees, for much the same reasons. What I hadn’t banked on were how many plums have already fallen into the long grass. As I wielded the trimmer I splattered myself from head to toe with tiny bits of ripe (and rotten) plum.

By the time I’d finished I was a walking Jackson Pollock, and stripped off on the deck to avoid dripping bits all the way through the recently-cleaned truck.

The weather up north is terrible. Cyclone Gabrielle is making itself felt and the whole of the North Island is under a weather watch or warning. Things look particularly bad tonight and tomorrow.

In contrast we are basking in sunshine and warmth. It’s a tale of two islands at the moment.

I’m still way behind reading your lovely journals. Bear with me…I will catch up soon.