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Past entries |
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08May2019 |
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02April2019 |
Predatory insectsSince arriving at this location in 2009 and allowing it to revert to a more natural way while introducing lots of new biodiversity, we have noticed a continual increase in the numbers and types of insects and other small creatures. There is a whole world of barely noticed activity where spiders and flies, ladybugs and butterflies live out their tiny dramas...Here a preying mantis devours a fly on a pear tree.April 02, 2019 |
23March2019 |
Planting shelvesI grow a lot of plants and trees from seeds. One space saving way that I have come up with is to use the vertical wall space at the back of the house where my nursery is located. Adding these metal 'gutters' as plant growing shelves has given plenty more growing area situated at perfect working height.March 23, 2019 |
11September2018 |
Natural woven flax weed matDetails Here's a simple technique for reducing weeds in a small garden. Biodegradable woven flax mats with seeds or small plants added in the gaps.Date September 11, 2018 |
Monarch butterflies enjoying blossoms in the forest gardenDetails We've had plenty of nice, sunny warm weather and the monarch and red admiral butterflies are getting into the stone fruit blossom, brassica flowers and tagasaste nectar.Date September 11, 2018 |
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05August2018 |
Pig on a leashEver since we got our first kune kune pigs we had imagined tethering them, or using them on a leash to 'mow' grass in various areas where free ranging pigs would be a disaster. Our most recent addition, Potamus, is proving to be very willing and trainable and quickly got the hang of the harness and the resulting reward of visiting fresh pasture.August 05, 2018 |
30March2018 |
Latitude MagazineMarch 30, 2018Feature article profiling blockhill in Canterbury's Latitude magazine.Words by Lucinda Diack, Words and more Photos by Jane Thompson, Pegasus Communications |
13March2018 |
Round wood timber constructionDetails A newly created 'roof' for grapes to climb and better weather protection for the firewood shed.Date March 13, 2018 |
19December2017 |
First internshipAnother first for blockhill, hosting an overseas intern / student for 3 months. Zach joined us in September for a deep immersion permaculture internship and learning experience as part of his agronomy studies. As anticipated he participated in a wide range of activities and events.December 19, 2017 |
04December2017 |
Star tetrahedron rising in KaikouraDetails Constructed from recycled 10mm steel rod as a gift for my mother-in-law.Date December 04, 2017 |
Visit from Tree Crops North CanterburyDetails We enjoyed a hot and sunny afternoon touring 11 people from the North Canterbury Tree Crops group. I think our alternative and rather unorthodox approach and philosophies were quite an eye opener for most of them...Date November 04, 2017 |
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01November2017 |
eco-cabin profiled in Good MagazineOur much loved eco-cabin accommodation has just become a little bit more famous after featuring in a nice write up in the November - December issue of Good Magazine.November 01, 2017 |
   9 years anniversaryDetails Our yearly ritual of dressing in aged wedding attire and making a photo shoot to mark the passing of time. This year we had the assistance of intern, Zach, behind the camera to make things more creative.Date November 01, 2017 |
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25October2017 |
Blockhill features in NZ Hideaways bookOctober 25, 2017Earlier in the year we hosted Sam and Hilary as they made their way around the country, photographing and writing for a book about unique hideaways. Finally the book is ready and we made the cut.www.hideawaysbook.com |
06October2017 |
Early OctoberDetails We've been working flat out with our Intern, Zac, and so it's been a while since our last horn tooting photo update. So here it is, bellbirds, blossoms, native nitrogen fixers and food forest progress. Enjoy and then get out there and invite nature into your bit of the world.Date October 06, 2017 |
09May2017 |
Knowledge toursDetails Students from the Kaikoura Creation Care Study Program spent an afternoon at Blockhill touring and learning about forest gardening, water catchment and other aspects of sustainable land use.Date May 09, 2017 |
18March2017 |
   Earthquake repairsDetails Another project that can finally be crossed off the to-do list. The earthquake in November 2016 caused cracking in the brick wall behind our fireplace. While it was still standing and looked ok we were not happy about having this unstable stack of bricks there waiting to come down. I decided to remove most of them before another quake brought them down and caused damage to the hot water pipes that passed through to the log burner. It also allowed for the insulation of these pipes which had foolishly never been done in the first place.The project required carefully chiselling the bricks apart and reducing he height of the wall to a satisfactory level. Than a concrete bond beam was poured, encasing the top layer of bricks, locking it all together. Finally, after adding some additional timber framing the opening was covered by mini corrugated sheet metal.Date March 18, 2017 |
09March2017 |
Banjo is her nameDetails It seemed like a good idea (at the time) to get a puppy. Banjo is fox terrier / jack russell cross and bursting with energy and an insatiable need to chew on things.Date March 09, 2017 |
28February2017 |
February 2017Details Ah summer, so hot and dry... Well it has been a good year for fruit, considering the ongoing drought. I spend a lot of time moving hoses around, delivering precious water to young trees, tending vegetables and propagating new plants from seed and cuttings. Several 'construction' projects are under way including an 'upgrade' to roof water distribution and shipping container bunk house. More about these in due course.Date February 28, 2017 |
31January2017 |
January 2017Details It's been a hot, dry summer (again). Despite the ongoing drought things are looking fairly good. Most of the trees have a decent amount of fruit set with apricots already harvested and drying. There are lots of flowers buzzing madly with insects. Guest numbers have picked up again post earthquake and now all we could wish for is a drop of rain.Date January 31, 2017 |
14November2016 |
Blockhill survives 7.8 earthquake with off-grid resilienceWe were shaken violently awake around midnight on the 14th of November as a series of massive earthquakes rocked the region causing widespread damage. Fortunately we (and the guests who were staying) were not hurt and all buildings and infrastructure at blockhill came through virtually unscathed. Lots of broken plates, jars and bottles but with a freezer full of food and a functioning solar backup system and hot water heating array we are living comfortably. The garden is supplying more salad and beans than we can eat and the chooks are laying a steady stream of eggs.Electricity was restored on the evening of the 15th but there is no indication of when water pumping will resume. Fortunately we have a big water tank and a couple of rainwater tanks just in case. Aftershocks continue to roll in but things have quieted down considerably. Despite the poor access over cracked and slipping road, we have had a number of locales pop in to make sure things are ok here. Since there is so much damage to the coastal Kaikoura road there is a focus on opening up the inland route, which connects to our road, so we are seeing a lot of heavy machinery heading through that way.November 14, 2016 |
01November2016 |
8 Years Wedding AnniversaryDetails So we made it eight years so far and the traditional gifts are either bronze or salt.Date November 01, 2016 |
17September2016 |
Food Forests, Permaculture & Water HarvestingOlmec will show you how he and his wife Melisa designed permaculture-style food systems by nurturing and enhancing the natural features of their land. Together they have created a diverse, beautiful and bountiful environment.During a tour of the property, you'll learn about planning an integrated system that includes plants and animals, natural methods of fertilising and soil conservation. Olmec will also demonstrate how to drought-proof your property using swales; that is, earth-shaping to harvest water. Contribution: 2 time-bank credits or $10 suggested fee To register contact: Belinda Meares, 03 314 3406, tbhlearningexchange@gmail.com (Car-pooling can be arranged).September 17, 2016 |
14August2016 |
Garden working-beeA group of us gathered to help install a new vegetable garden for Heidi and Nuk out at Gore Bay. Many hands made things progress quite quickly and we were able to create and plant an area directly beside the house for easy access as well as a new contour garden mound in what was lawn.August 14, 2016 |
07March2016 |
Land improvements for water retention and forest gardening presentation @ Lincoln BHUOnce again I will be presenting to students at the BHU organic training College in Lincoln. The 2 hour talk will cover rainwater collection via land shaping (swales, terraces and hugelkultur), soil conditioning for improved water holding capacity (PDF download) as well as forest gardening (PDF download).www.bhu.org.nzMarch 07, 2016 |
22January2016 |
Video tour - January 2016Details A quick new year tour in January. Things look a little dry after 18 months of drought.Date January 22, 2016 |
09October2015 |
Blockhill on Radio NZ Country Life program with CosmoWe recently had a visit from Cosmo Kentish-Barnes. He interviewed us and toured the property for his show 'Country Life' on Radio New Zealand. We chat about our lifestyle, water harvesting systems, pigs and more.October 09, 2015http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/progr... country-life-radioNZ.mp3 |
19September2015 |
Digging with a diggerThere's always digging to be done and much as I love moving earth about it is hard, tiring work. Sometimes it pays to get a machine to help. A little bit of diesel goes a long way and having an efficient operator helps also.This year we did some more terracing, created a large catchment pond, some additional swales and a flat area for a future natural building. All in a days work at blockhill.September 19, 2015 |
13September2015 |
Plum tree blossoms at nightDate September 13, 2015 |
12September2015 |
Drought proof edible landscaping - presentationAs part of the Cheviot Spring Festival, Olmec will be explaining how to create a water wise forest garden. Learn how to outsmart drought and develop lush landscapes full of edible plants.The talk will be held at 10am and 3pm at the school community roomSeptember 12, 2015 |
24August2015 |
    Garage improvement - 3 years laterDetails Secret swale at west end of workshop. Planted with bulbs, tagasaste for nitrogen and quick frost canopy over lemon and climbing kiwifruit. Ground cover of oregano and alpine strawberries.Date August 24, 2015 |
31July2015 |
Shed upgradeDetails Progress has been made on the upgrade of our chook and pig shed. The overall objective is to reconfigure the north facing side of the building as under cover growing space that we can rotate the chooks through.Date July 31, 2015 |
08March2015 |
Food forest gardening site visit, tour and workshopWe enjoyed showing our garden and emerging food forest to a group of curious individual from the greater Hurunui district. About 20 people made the journey out to Blockhill to learn more about our version of food forest gardening. The event was organised as part of the Hurunui Time Bank Learning Exchange ProgramMarch 08, 2015 |
02March2015 |
Food Forest Gardening - Visual slides and audio MP3Audio from a talk given to public gathering organised by Food For Thought at Amberley Library. Audio quality is fair, considering it was recorded on a mobile phone. If you want better quality, contact me to come and speak directly to you or your group!PDF version of slideshow presentation covering food forest gardeningMarch 02, 2015 forest gardening food for... |
15January2015 |
Food forest video tourDetails A short video exploring the emerging food forst in summerDate January 15, 2015 |
23December2014 |
GreenhouseDetails A well designed, large greenhouse is great way to grow plants that otherwise would have a limited season or not be possible to grow at all. Here we are growing (from left to right) tomatoes, purple passion fruit, thai ginger (galangal) and babaco (mountain pawpaw)Date December 23, 2014 |
03December2014 |
Freshly created swaleDetails It's never too late to add another swale, it's just a matter of squeezing it in amongst the existing plantings, fences and other obstacles.The swales not only do a fantastic job of capturing and infiltrating surface runoff during rainy times but also break up the land in interesting and attractive ways.Date December 03, 2014 |
27November2014 |
3 years old food forestDetails This photos shows a young area of planting where pigs and chickens roam free. Largest trees are tagasaste, alder and almond at around 3m. An assortment of fruit trees about 2-3 meters including peach, apricot, apple, cherry. Some black currants and an assortment of flowers and herbs. Additional wind protection and nitrogen fixation from acacia (tasmanian black wood) and cape broom.Date November 27, 2014 |
Area of new developmentDetails Recently constructed wood filled mounds on contour with preliminary plantings of fruit, nuts and berries with some shelter trees.Date November 27, 2014 |
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Wide open area, under developmentDetails Here is quite exposed to the wind but has water nearby and with the addition of some swales and several years of cover cropping things are starting to improve. Many young trees have been planted here including walnut, butternut, hazelnut, gevuina, soap nut, tagasaste, alder, acacia, cape broom, flax, persimmon, fejoa, apricot, bamboo, pear, peach, loquat, dogwood, pomegranate, gooseberry, raspberry, rhubarb, asparagus, green tea, kiwifruit and many more.Date November 27, 2014 |
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25November2014 |
Transformation of existing orchardDetails Five years ago this was short cut open grass with a scattering of apple, plum, pear and almond trees. Over the years we have been converting it into a multi functional zone with mixed under story of beneficial herbaceous plants, paths, clearings and swales. Some new shrubs and small trees such as cranberry, black current and citrus have been included also.Date November 25, 2014 |
18September2014 |
Friendly kereru regularly visit the orchardDetails Seen sitting here in one of the older plum trees, one of the local wood pidgin helps thin blossoms before flying heavily to the next tree.Date September 18, 2014 |
12September2014 |
Garden toursDetails As part of the local Cheviot Spring Festival we opened our garden to the public. Being so far out of town we didn't expect a lot of interest but were pleasantly surprised. Friday was a beautiful day and we showed a steady stream of interested people around the garden and food forest areas. Saturday was grey and a little damp but a few adventurous people made the journey and took the time to explore and learn. All up we must have shown 20 people through, many more than I had expected.Date September 12, 2014 |
25July2014 |
Raised woody swale / hugelkultur constructionDetails We used the opportunity of having a small excavator on site recently to construct 5 wood filed raised growing mounds on contour.This technique is often called hugelkultur and exploits the ability of rotten wood to absorb and hold amazing quantities of water which is later made available to plants growing nearby. The end result was 5 mounds about 7 meters long and half a meter high, each packed with a full trailer load of rotten willow logs and a wheel barrow of pig manure. An assortment of fruit trees and berry shrubs has been planted along side in various locations to capitalise on the moisture, slow release of minerals and micro-climate effects of wind, shelter, sun and shade.Date July 25, 2014 |
13July2014 |
Swale talk (mp3)Audio from a 27 minute presentation that I gave to Canterbury Organics AGM 2014 at the Lincoln BHU. This was only my second time delivering this information. Sorry about the low audio qualityJuly 13, 2014 swale talk.mp3 |
06July2014 |
Silver wattle growing madlyPlanted in 2010, this silver wattle has but put on an impressive amount of height since this photo in mid 2012. Nature only needs the slightest nudge to send it down a path of productivity and abundance.I noticed fantails use the wattle trees as 'stepping stones' or islands to travel across the open expanse of paddock. In 2014 the tree is now large enough for an 8 year old to climb.July 06, 2014 |
26April2014 |
Solar PV BackupFinally, after much discussion, deliberation and procrastination I have purchased and installed a small solar PV (photovoltaic) array and battery bank. At this stage I have 4 x 200 watt panels charging a 225 amp hour 24 volt battery bank with the option to double the number of panels given the available roof space.My primary motivation at this point is having a robust backup power source for the freezer, solar hot water pump and drinking water pump for when the grid is down. This seems to happen a couple of times per year and when it does fail (often from strong winds) it can take several days for it to be repaired.April 26, 2014 |
24April2014 |
Grubba, the ginger pigSomeone nearby was giving away pigs so we went to check them out and fell in love with this little guy. Having 2 female pigs already we decided to take this little boys manhood away for every ones sake.April 24, 2014 |
30March2014 |
4 years of 'development'Human muscles coupled with hand tools, powered by home grown fruit and vegetables is reshaping the land and nudging nature in a direction that reinforces positive feedbacks while providing a useful surplus.In 2009, when we first moved to the land, it had been extensively grazed by sheep for an extended period of time. This, combined with encroaching weedy growth (barberry and blackberry) resulted in a fairly sterile biological situation. During the intervening years we have carried out extensive planting along with careful contour earth works. These simple actions have allowed us to create very obvious improvements in a fairly short time at next to no cost. March 30, 2014 |
13March2014 |
Collecting rainwaterFinally, after much waiting on transport, we have our concrete water tank. I was pleased to find one for sale close by but was dependant on availability of heavy machinery to get it moved.This will be setup to collect water from the roof of the house as a backup drinking supply.March 13, 2014 |
