Monday, April 22, 2013

garden + wood











As I look outside I see mist on the mountains. The mornings are beginning to get that chill and so I am in double layers and my favourite ugg boots. Autumn seems to well and truly have arrived in our parts, although it had a few false starts this season. We had some rain over the the past week. Much needed rain. The poplars have turned a brilliant shade of yellow.

We spent most of the weekend out in the garden again. I moved some self-seeded seedlings around, pulled out a few weeds and admired how well everything was growing. Which is not something I've been able to say much in the past year. Fingers crossed, but it looks like rocket, kale, silverbeet, broccoli, radish and mustard salad will be the mainstays of our winter garden.

We lit the fire for the first time on Friday night. Daniel has been busy lately carting wood, which he seems to prefer to do with friends, preferably manly flannel wearing ones. He found an old tank at the local tip, and so we now have some handy storage, closer to the house, for all that wood.  One of the good things about wood is that it is free, as long as we source it off one of our relative's properties. One of the local sayings around here is "there is wood and there is wood". You want the good sort that burns really well. Preferably a tree that has dried out over several seasons (since we are never organized enough to start our wood pile in Spring). This year we found such a tree and so I look forward to a season of easy to start fires, because I have used the other type of wood many times before, and it is not fun on a cold evening to try lighting a fire that does not want to be lit. We reluctantly purchased a brand new chainsaw this year, and Daniel opted for a big Stihl model with a reliable reputation, but eventually it will pay for itself in savings.


So how was your weekend?
Did you feel a change in seasons too?
Did you manage to get out into the garden?
Do you heat with wood too?



22 comments:

  1. Autumn is arriving here too, although I'm sad to say that we have had no need of a fire yet. New ugg boots were purchased the other day, and I can't wait for the chance to wear them!
    Our little vegie patch is looking good now too, with some new lettuce seedlings put in over the weekend.
    I like to call self-seeded plants "volunteers" :-)

    Have a lovely week!
    Sarah x

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  2. Oh, how I long for the warmth of a wood fire. Still haven't figured out how to make that happen here without breaking the bank. In the meantime, I'll pine away over yours ;-)

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  3. We also lit our fire for the first time this year, on the weekend. So nice to snuggle in after such a hot summer.

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  4. We saw our first signs of Autumn here this weekend too with a drop in the mercury and some rain fall..'twas quite lovely and long over due.

    I do miss having a fire and have vowed we will have one installed when we finally buy. Chopping and stacking wood was always a family affair when I was growing up, dad would do the major chopping - with an axe and mum and us kids would stack it all in the shed. During the winter months we kept enough to keep us going for a few days stacked out on the porch, meant we didn't have to dash out in the pouring rain and freezing temps :)

    Happy Monday to you Tania.

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  5. Oh yes, we had a wood fire for a few years, and there is definitely different types of wood to burn. Although it made a big difference after we got the house owner to get it serviced and discovered the flue had been partially blocked for who knew how long... no wonder it took a couple of hours of patient coaxing every night to get started! No fire anymore but I don't miss the creepy crawlie hitch-hikers from the woodpile!

    Autumn has been late coming around these parts, but the trees are finally turning, some slowly, some it seems are changing all their leaves overnight. Although after the first big storm this weekend, there might be a few less leaves around!

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  6. How cool is your wood storage! I love a cosy indoor fire. We have an open fire place in our loungeroom - it looks lovely but does bugger all to be honest. All the heat goes straight up the chimney. We light it purely for ambiance!!!!
    Yes, hints of Autumn here...the mornings are cooler and the days notably shorter. Still wearing shorts and t-shirts though...and we are yet to require a doona on the bed.

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  7. I've had the fire burning at nights and in the mornings for a little while now (oh, I love it!).

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  8. What a great storage idea for your wood. I would love to have a fire here during winter it gets oh so cold and our Queenslander is not exactly perfect for winter nice in summer though:) We had a home day Saturday cleaning the house, mowing the lawn and I tidied up one of the gardens and Sunday it was an out and about day exploring. Have a good week Tania. x

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  9. Your garden is growing well Tania, your greens are looking tasty! We have a wood fire too, it's our only source of heating and it goes 24/7 during the winter. Last year we installed a heat transfer unit so the heat reaches the bedrooms now, warming the whole house. I love a fire and I love the work we do in the summer filling up the woodshed.

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  10. We had our last wood fire for the season last week! This week is deep-down dusting - not worth doing in the winter. Keep warm.

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  11. We like to challenge ourselves to get to May before lighting the fire. It's cool to feel the cold deepening and growing, until we finally get to light the fire!
    I think last year we broke and lit a few days before May, but this year it doesn't feel near cold enough to light the fire yet. Maybe it will hit us this week...?
    :)

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  12. We've had our Nectre fired up the last two nights, too. I'm a big wood scavenger - side of the road, trees chopped down at school or the local park etc., to the point where my husband finds me a bit embarrassing, hehe. Trouble is it needs storing until it's dry enough. I like the old tank solution!

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  13. A chainsaw is on my other halfs wishlist and we dont even have a fireplace.
    The ugg boots here are freshly washed and ready for the cool weather.
    Your garden is looking lovely.x

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  14. Such beautiful shots.
    The fire has been on most nights here too.... and long into the morning :) So cozy!

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  15. I love your beautiful blog It’s exactly what I was looking for!nice job for posting this.

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  16. They say wood warms you twice. Once while you are cutting it up and once when it is being burnt. Yes we lit our slow combustion fire a couple of nights ago and it's 'luverly'.

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  17. Here in the Northeast USA, we are moving into springtime. The daffodils are blooming, the sky is blue, but the air is still chilly.
    Your pictures are so lovely. My favorites were the woodpile one and and the photo of the bottles.

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  18. Your garden looks so healthy and your fire so cosy. I love seeing wood stacked and ready to use. I would love to have a wood stove but Hanno hates them, so I put layer upon layer. I envy your fire. It's getting cooler here too but I'm looking forward to travelling down to the Blue Mountains soon for "real" weather.

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  19. Ah the many uses of the old rain water tanks, when we see them we instantly think garden beds, raised garden beds...fantastic...he might have to keep a look out for another one...!
    All my beds have been hand made from strips of iron fencing, and old rain water tanks...we will be renovating soon and that means the small round tank near the house will be cut into two more garden beds...yippee....

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  20. Love the wood! Always dreamt of having a wood stove/fire... And yes the chill is here albeit in fits and starts in Sydney. The rain has been welcome. The garden is looking lush and there is much to do to get it in readiness for the winter lull.

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  21. Well here on the other side of the World we are entering into Spring and everything is turning lush green. Before we know it we will be complaining about how terribly HOT it has gotten. The sound of mowers, weed eaters and the like have started to fill he days here in our neighborhood.

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  22. We couldn't survive without our fireplace keeping us warm in winter living in the Snowy Mountains. This year we had to buy tree logs but we left it too late in the year so the wood did not get chainsawed in time to be seasoned. As you know this means smoldering logs. Luckily we have been able to find enough seasoned wood around to get by on. Thank you Mother Nature.

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