Mislaid the camera...

Which is by way of an apology for no photos to post.

We were within a few minutes of seeing the twister that came from Kapiti Island to Raumati, even crossing State Highway 1!! We wondered what was causing the hold up.

And man, if we'd seen it I'd have been mightily miffed that I've mislaid the camera.

In other news, we also missed the tragic mid air collison between a chopper & a light plane. It all happened on K Coast this weekend.

I spent the weekend mowing & digging. As is my lot it seems sometimes. The orchard got mowed & sprayed for weeds - that took half a day! Nuts are already beginning to drop from some of the trees, harvest isn't until July at the earliest.

I also dug up two olive trees that had been planted in a bad spot & replaced them with two weeping pears. Mrs Llew turned the ground underneath these trees from patchy lawn to lily beds, bordered with boxed hedge. (Less to mow :)

I've also been watching a large branch that started to fall from a very tall tree (sounded like machine gun fire) & now hangs over the sleepout & compost bins. One day soon I believe I will find about 2 years worth of firewood sitting on or near the compost. It's a bit high up to think about helping it along.

And I tested my new, improved orchard hook. It looks like a bought one. Except I don't believe anyone makes them to sell. Basically, it's a telescopic pole which extends from 2.5 to 5 metres. I got the telescoping pipes from Ulrich Aluminium, and drilled holes at intervals so that I can insert a pin to hold it in place. I drilled far too many holes at first until I decided it only needs to extend to 2 or three lengths, not dozens of lengths at several centimetres' intervals. So I wound duct tape around my extra holes & it looks like a purpose made handle!

I'd have taken a photo.

And the chestnut & apple trees, including those of the crab variety are groaning under the weight of fruit - I don't think I've ever seen such big chestnuts & they're nowhere near ripe yet. (And as I noted to Mrs Llew yesterday, the chestnut tree itself is a young 'un at 10 metres tall... we can expect it to at least triple in size as the years pass. (then I'll need a 30 metre telescoping orchard hook).

But most impressive of all was the small punnet of home grown strawberries we ate on Saturday. Best of the season. And... I snipped heaps of runners off them & planted them out (some had taken root all by themselves & I just snipped their lifelines). Lots & lots of new, free strawberry plants.