Whenever my sister comes over its a whirlwind of family feasting and visits, so garden time takes a back seat. However that didn't mean I couldn't sneak some gardens in my sister's itinerary while she was here. Starting with an easter egg hunt in the garden, to visiting an old whaling museum and garden property with ancient pohutakawa trees, to the old Kemp mission house up North next to the oldest stone store in Kerikeri, to finding a bargain priced hoya in a citrus nursery.. and the arrival of spring bulbs shipment, there was plenty of plant related holiday time fun. Maybe it's to make up for me being away for two weeks from school where my indoor plants may languish in the dark of the library that only has two outside windows - will they still be alive by the time I get back?
I am not sure, whether the dark and lack of florescent light will kill them or maybe they'll just have two weeks hibernation. It's currently feijoa season and we are still picking up feijoas every day from the ground. We laugh whenever we see them for sale at the shops for $8.99 a kilo. But apparently non-Aucklanders are willing to pay that much for our surplus.
In the Far North (why 'far'? It's not that far...) the main plants I see from the road are toi toi and bamboo thickets, and ugly pinus radiata. I think I saw...ONE kauri tree. Our magnificent Kauri forests are no more, though Transport NZ still insists on naming the region 'Kauri Coast'. What Kauri? The only ones left are chopped up in the Tree Museum or made into chopping boards and wooden spoons and epoxy covered clocks at the Kauri workshop. I am feeling quite dismayed that our national treasure, that had once made fine waka and furniture and houses for Aucklanders has not been replanted and wilding pines have taken over instead, like gnarly overgrown Christmas Trees. But not even NZ Christmas Trees because Pohutakawa COULD grow on those steep hillsides and stop all the landslides but for some strange reason, a fast growing and cheap American import was chosen instead.
The other native that could grow up North is the lovely and shapely manuka, beloved by our imported honey bees, but it seems unloved in favour of gorse and grass. I managed to pay a visit to the Hundertwasser museum again and got out on to the rooftop, which had been planted up in all manner of native plants, and while more urban spaces are getting the green treatment, it's coming at great expense. I'm beginning to wonder why the Brits thought it was a great idea to turn NZ into a giant dairy/sheep farm especially in places that were so ill-suited for pastoral agriculture. I suppose since all the whales had got killed they just had to try something else.
So much for my musings. I often try not to care about things too much because it's not as if I am Prime Minister and run the country and can do anything about it. For some strange reason, every time someone sees a sign that says 'volunteer gardener wanted' somewhere they immediately think that I should do the job for nothing as if it would make me the happiest person in the world. Despite the fact I already have my OWN garden to tend to, and I cannot literally be in three places at once at opposite ends of the country. Instead signs like that make me sad that nobody is looking after the garden, maybe the gardener died or moved away or was just told they weren't allowed to garden anymore, or they had bills to pay and volunteer gardening just doesn't pay them.
I really think the Labour and Green Party, and the National Party should all merge into one and be renamed the National Garden Party. Labour would provide the hands, the Greens, the know-how, and National the funds to show off the gardens. And every year they would have a garden party festival and invite other countries to our gardens and be 'number one' on the 'world stage' of garden parties and win all the medals in the Gardening Olympics for the amazing gardens we have. Could work.
Oh I forgot I am not the Prime Minister. I do know who is the boss in our family though and whenever she visits I am often reminded of the fact. She's going back soon though because her pilea plant is outgrowing its pot.
