July 30th, 2014 Weeds, Cricket, and Wunder

Rima shows us how to properly weed a native planting.

60.8 F today and forecast to be as warm as 66 F in the next few days.  After being so bundled up for the last few weeks, we felt hot as we got our morning workout helping Rima and Te Ara Kakariki Greenway Canterbury Trust weed the 1,000 native plants planted this past summer.  The trust was established in 2006 to promote native plants and native plant communities in the Canterbury plans.  It is a long term goal of the trust to one day see the return of the Kakariki to the Canterbury plains as well.  So today, we were doing our part by weeding. As Dr. Hos says, "Planting is the sexy part of restoration.  It is the care and maintenance where things get harder."  That being said, it was our pleasure to help Rima and her partner, Paul, out as well as Selwyn Council Member, Peter Hill.  We spent the morning being feeling more "super hero" than sad as we went about investigating which plants survived a very wet June.  Despite the wet conditions in June, it was dryer on the property today and thus, we did not see any mudfish that Rima and Dr. Hos told us about.  About 30% of the native plantings; however, were lost to flooding and conditions being too wet, but 70% were doing well.  It was very exciting finding a planting still alive despite being almost overtaken with grass, uncovering it carefully and then re-staking it out.  The Council will spray the remaining weed grass now that we have weeded the grass from around the native plantings. Rima and Paul even generously brought us tea and cookies out in the field.  What a treat!

Weeding.

The site looking past to a farm next door and the Southern Alps in the distance.

The gang all together.

This afternoon we couldn't resist fish and chips and pies and then a rematch of our Cricket game.  This time the score was a devastating 92 to 27 as The Fantails won handily against the Black Kiwis.

Playing Mafia Card Game at Wunderbar.

Tonight we are out meeting Dean and Colin at Wunderbar in Lyttelton.  Cheers, Meryl