No. 16

Brellowgirl
Dec 1, 2015
3 min read

11.30.15

I am in an area called Longbush. I say area because it’s not a town(as told by Paul and Alex). I’m on a farm owned by a really lovely couple named Alex and Paul. Alex’s brother, Martyn also lives here. There’s a big flower garden, a big vegetable garden, about 20 sheep and a handful of Scottish highland cattle. I LOVE it here. There are two other workawayers here also-Jamie who is from Germany and Anne is from Holland. Both are extremely nice and working with them has been a lot of fun. I am number 16. The 16th workawayer, that is. Yesterday we brushed a few bulls, fixed some netting for the gooseberry bushes, herded the sheep and lambs, gave some of the lambs their vaccines and figured out what we had to do for the rest of the week.

Alex is a great cook and there are so many fresh vegetables in the garden! She made a delicious hazelnut cake with a black currant compote. The hazelnuts were from their tree outside and so were the black currants. I feel so spoiled being here.

12.1.15

It’s DECEMBER! WHAAAAT?!?!?! This is nuts! Yesterday Paul and Alex left Longbush to go to Wellington for work. Paul came back today but Alex won’t be back until Friday. I spent the day pricking out and potting lettuce, weeding, cleaning up the house and we got to brush some cattle in the evening. The cattle are SO cute but it’s pretty intimidating standing right next to them when they have these giant sharp horns and they’re a couple hundred pounds each. The baby’s name is Cameron, after Paul’s teenage son and he’s so cute. He was licking our legs and trying to eat our clothes while we were brushing the others. The bigger ones make me a little nervous when they walk over. They’re gentle for the most part but there’s a hierarchy and if you brush one out of order, the older cattle will come over and push the one you’re brushing out of the way. A little scary but interesting. Anne cooked dinner yesterday and we roasted a pumpkin that Alex grew last season (yeah, it’s lasted), Anne made an awesome carrot and orange soup and then we also made a couscous with all kinds of yummy things in it including roasted beets from the garden.

Today was pretty cool too. Wags, the neighbor's old lab came to spend the day with us. He followed us around and supervised our work =P We weeded the vegetable garden, I cleared a pathway in the flower garden by pulling out a tree and cutting back a bush and a native flax. We also went to the other paddock and went beyond the fence-line where there are some crawling vines that have taken over some big trees. The vines are beautiful but they’re killing the trees so we’ve been trying to find the roots and paint them with poison. The flower garden here is really beautiful. There is something new and exciting every corner you turn and there are hidden gems all throughout. There are some really gorgeous orangey red lillies that will probably be in full bloom tomorrow, peonies that I know were gorgeous in their season, the reddest raspberries, aquilegia (columbine), artichokes, snap peas, sweeet smelling sweet peas and so much more. It was my turn for dinner so I made some stroganoff and sautéed a whole bunch of beet greens from the garden with garlic, onions and roasted almonds. Jamie was a hero and made the yummiest, fluffiest cinnamon buns with sultanas in them. SO GOOD. I found out that Paul hates green vegetables and loves sweets so I think I’ll make a NY cheesecake for the fam later this week.

I want to write more so badly but I’m pooped and tomorrow we’re up early to bottle elderflower champagne that Paul has been brewing!! I’ve tasted it twice and it’s delicious. I love how it tastes just as sweet as the flower smells but with bubbles. It’s really something special and I can’t wait to help bottle!

Much love,

Cas