Alex Hallatt 2/8/19 Alex Hallatt 2/8/19

New Zealand Garden Diary: Butternut Squash, Possums and Trapping Goodnaturedly

I’m very concerned that the possums we see and hear around our house are going to lay into my fruit, veggies and young trees (they often ring bark them, which kills them).

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But then I found out that the Summit Road Society lends out possum traps in the Lyttelton area. You can borrow one for 3 months and buy them at a subsidised rate.

So I installed one on Waitangi Day (see earlier post), which seemed appropriate, since possums are not native to New Zealand, having been introduced here from Australia for the fur trade. By the 1980s, they had spread the length and breadth of the country, devastating local flora and fauna in the process.

It should have been fairly easy to install the trap. I selected a pear tree at the top of our section, far away from the house (though they are not shy about coming right up to our front steps).

Initially I thought that the gnarly pear tree trunk was making it hard to install the trap

Then I realised I should have had my reading glasses on to read the instructions and put the tree mount the correct way round.

It was then easy to slide the main device onto the mount

This is the possum bait. It is not attractive to cats (I wouldn’t want to trap the neighbours’ ones!).

After unscrewing the cap, you push on the bitey thing.

Then you either squeeze the bottle or tap the bottle against the tree to charge it, wiping off any excess (I smeared this on the tree below the trap).

You insert the bite cartridge into the trap at the top.

Then you remove the black cap from the gas cartridge.

And screw it in at the bottom of the trap. You will hear a slight hiss as the gas canister opens and charges the trap.

Hopefully the possum will climb the tree and head towards the bait putting his head in here, being killed very quickly.

You can also attach a counter, as the gas canister is good for 12 possums, but sometimes the carcasses can disappear… I had to press the counter to zero it.

Okay possums, my pear tree is ready for you!

Alex Hallatt 2/7/19 Alex Hallatt 2/7/19

New Zealand Garden Diary: Kale Grows Like a Weed

I grew this kale from seeds I planted out last autumn, once the last of the cabbage whites (which can make any leaves of the cabbage family look like lacework) had disappeared. It provides leaves for stir fries and stews and Diana Henry’s great pasta dish with hazelnuts. So I’m delighted it has kept growing and I’m wondering whether the new lot I’ve planted will grow by the time this bunch has gone to seed.

Alex Hallatt 2/6/19 Alex Hallatt 2/6/19

New Zealand Garden Diary: Fiona the Feijoa Update - Growing Well

This feijoa is only one of the young trees I have growing in our steep back section. She has survived some brutal winds and I’m glad to see she is fruiting, but I do hope the possums don’t go for her.

Alex Hallatt 2/6/19 Alex Hallatt 2/6/19

Living in New Zealand: Things to do on Waitangi Day: Weaving Māori Baskets

Waitangi Day (6th February) celebrates the day when Māori and Pakeha signed the treaty of Waitangi. The agreement was flawed, but at least here there was motivation from white (mainly British) settlers to treat the local caretakers of the land more equitably than they had in other places of the world (notably our neighbour, Australia). Normally, like other public holidays, I work, but today I did something different.

I made a basket for potatoes from harakeke (flax). I met up with a great bunch of other women in Lyttelton and we learned from Jackie, Trixi and Catherine, who have been learning themselves. I’m inspired to try more, as we have whakariki (mountain flax) growing in the garden.