Undressing Almonds

The weekend was a hive of activity in the garden with the feeding and mulching of the rosarium and vegetable beds. Cleaning the herb garden and composting the beds. The compost from the compost bin near the mint forest was like black gold, rich in earth-worms and ideal for improving the soil for the new seeds.

Figs and almonds

With the Cape Bulbul chicks out of the nest I could venture to the bottom corner of the orchard where they had been nesting.  I avoid the nesting areas of the birds because they tend to become very nervous when I get near and I do not wish them to abandon their nests. This means that there are always areas of the garden that can surprise me after a couple of weeks when I am allowed to re-visit them.

Undressing almond

I noticed that the almonds were taking off their ‘jackets’ like a group of church elders after a church service on a hot summer’s day. They were clearly ready to be picked and were trying to undress in the heat, basically the way I felt after a hot day in the sun.

Harvesting the almonds I noticed that the birds had left me some figs and I picked some to put in the fridge for a cool snack on Sunday morning.

While the Yard Long and Rattlesnake beans are nearing the end of the season and I am leaving the last ones for seed production, the Mexican Black beans are producing a healthy crop. The Mexican Black beans will not be harvested as green beans but will be left to be harvested as dried beans.

Aubergine plants

I have decided to plant my own black beans after struggling to find dried black beans for particular dishes. When I did find some they were very expensive.

Beetroot

The beds of aubergine, cucumbers, beetroot and courgettes are coming into production and I really enjoy seeing the vegetable garden like this. It seems to be filled with the promise of exploration and discovery. Through the cookbooks in my library it is the exploration of new ways of preparing the fruit, vegetables and herbs, and the discovery of the new recipes and flavours of other cultures and countries.

Cucumbers

Courgettes

My garden allows me to travel the world through the meals prepared with its produce. In the morning I never know which country I shall visit on my plate until I have gone to pick my basket of vegetables in season. 

Birds of a Feather Eat Figs Together

A selection of figs from the garden

On Sunday morning the excited twitter of the Cape White-eyes in the new fig tree drew my attention to the orchard. I found the figs ripe and a couple already full of holes where the White-eyes had enjoyed the sweetness of the figs for their breakfast.

The Olive Thrush in the fig tree

I decided to investigate the ripeness of the figs in two other fig trees. There were some ripe purple figs that were untouched by my feathered friends, but the fig tree near the kitchen was a commotion of birds feasting on the White Genoa figs. There were Mouse-birds, White-eyes, Sparrows and an Olive Thrush all enjoying the bounty of the garden. The fruit resembled succulent-like flowers left on short stems with most of the flesh eaten away.

The Olive Thrush's mate being very hot sitting on the nest

My first instinct was to chase them away but remembering the Olive Thrush’s mate suffering in the heat on their nest in the oak tree I decided to let them be and rescue the figs that could still be eaten.

I noticed the whole Bulbul family in the tree with the parents feeding the two hungry chicks that were clumsily hopping from branch to branch. Whenever they saw their parents the chicks would start vibrating their wings and open their beaks. The parents looked exhausted and must have been glad that they could still fly away without the chicks following them.

Purple fig

White Genoa fig

I headed back to the kitchen with my harvest of figs leaving the half eaten figs on the tree for the feathered folk to finish.

Walking past the butternut vine in the orchard I noticed some healthy mature butternuts and decided that I might as well pick them while I was busy rescuing fruit. 

The Line of Beauty

I arrived home on Friday in the dark after a 5 hour drive home owing to delays caused by big veld fires alongside the N1 motorway. The white walls around the property reminded me of somebody’s teeth that was smiling in the dark. They were a brilliant white glow in the dark.

The Line of Beauty

As I got out of the Bakkie I could smell the familiar smell of whitewash (limewash) and a lot of happy memories came back to me. I remembered my grandmother’s whitewashed thatched cottage next to the leivoor (irrigation furrow) in Barrydale. The clean savour of the freshly whitewashed house mixed with the fragrance of ripe apricots in the orchard near the kitchen.

Before Christmas the house and ‘werfmure’ (boundary walls) would be whitewashed giving the house the look of a ‘marzipan cottage’. All these smells bring back happy and nostalgic memories of my childhood. That was the familiar bouquet that greeted me as I stepped out of the bakkie on Friday night and although I was very tired it still evoked a happy contentment.

Going down the steps of the parking terrace I looked to the right, down the path that stretches past the orchard to where the boundary wall was shining brilliantly white in the dark. The line of beauty between the two pillars creates a liveliness and relief in the otherwise straight wall. The serpentine line in the wall is accentuated by the plaster capping formed by a master craftsman.

The detail in the plasterwork was all made by hand and looking at it now I am glad that we did not consider using prefabricated capping on the pillars. Watching the builder’s craftsman-father sculpt the plaster detail on the walls and pillars was a privilege. The reconstructed walls are real works of art.  Authenticity of detail adds that visual simplicity that lifts the architecture of these beautiful old buildings.

I have to agree with William Hogarth’s (18^th century English painter, satirist and writer) theory of aesthetics that the S-shaped curved line excites the attention of the viewer. 

Rainbow Tomatoes

The tomatoes are ripening and look amazing. The colours are less dramatic than I thought they would be. The black tomatoes are more a dark purple then black. The green tomatoes are a bit confusing because how does one know when a green tomato is ripe.

I enjoy making a mixed tomato salad playing with layers and colours. I prefer using basil and parmesan cheese with the tomatoes because there is something about basil that just lifts the flavour of the tomatoes. The rich umami flavours of the Parmesan complements the tomatoes that are also rich in umami flavour.

I am not really a desert fan but I just love a savoury taste, so give me umami any day. My one weakness is also Parmigiano-Reggiano and I always make sure that I have a wedge in the fridge. The tomato is rich in vitamin A and C and low in fat and cholesterol. That makes my organic rainbow tomato salad very healthy and refreshing on a hot summer’s day.

With a salad that healthy I could indulge myself by adding some cold slices of Karoo leg of lamb to my lunch.

Country Walks

The warm days of summer calls for a reduction of midday outdoor activities. One can still work between 5 and 9 in the morning until it starts getting hot. During the day one needs to stay occupied indoors until 4 in the afternoon when it is more comfortable to resume outdoor activity.

Country road

The Spanish have the best solution for such a climate, a siesta. This is what is needed on the hot summer days of Africa.  We open up the house at night to cool down and in the mornings we close the shutters and curtains against the heat. The house stays dark and cool all day long and becomes a haven against the extreme heat.

A refreshing ginger and rose drink

The oaks provide a welcome shade, but 40°C in the shade is still 40°C. One might not have to endure the hot sun rays but the heat of the day makes your body feel as though it is glowing, even when in the shade. Iced tea, homemade lemonade and refreshing herbal and fruit drinks with lots of ice, is a must during the day if one is to stay hydrated.

Dam and canal along the country road

Early evening calls for a refreshing walk in the country and we are fortunate that the vineyards and agricultural fields lie hard against Towerwater. The Bonnievale countryside is beautiful and the vistas of the cool green fields and vineyards on our walks are refreshing after a hot day.

The long summer days means that it is still light after 9 at night and nothing is better on a hot summer’s evening than to relax on the lawn with a cold gin and tonic after a refreshing walk.

Towerwater at dusk

On a moonlit night, it is a treat to take a midnight walk in the countryside when the landscape takes on a completely different and enchanted character with guinea fowl squeaking in the tall blue-gum trees along the road. 

Vineyards at dusk

The nights in the country come alive with a different energy. Sometimes it seems like the croaking of the frogs and the chirping of the crickets make the night air vibrate with a symphony of mating calls.

Birds on a wire

The night birds can be heard calling adding their unique sounds to the symphony of the night.

My Groot Geel Hoed

Vroeg Saterdag oggend lê ek in die bed en kyk uit oor die boord tot waar die bougainvillea soos ‘n geel en rooi waterval oor die heining val. Die diep blou lug is ‘n aanduiding dat dit ‘n mooi maar warm dag gaan wees.

Die angstige tjirp-tjirp van die Kaapse Tiptol in die peerboom lat my opstaan. Deur die venster sien ek waar die Tiptol paar in die peerboom sit en waarskuwend tjirp-tjirp terwyl hulle stip na die pit paadjie onder die venster kyk. Toe die Jan Frederik by hulle aansluit besluit ek maar om te gaan kyk wat fout is.

Die Kaapse Tiptol  met sy vraagteken gesiggie

Deur na die voëls in die tuin te luister kan mens weet waneer daar fout is. Veral in die broeiseisoen is hulle baie waaksaam en ek weet gewoontlik waar die bure se kat in die tuin loop deur net na die voëls se geluide te luister. Hulle waarsku mekaar die heel tyd. Toe ‘n kat in die Vioolhout boom klim waar ‘n nes was, was die hele boom oortrek met kwetterende voëls wat die kat heeltemal ontsenu het.

Ek het die kat uit die boom gejaag want ons probeer ons tuin so voël vriendelik te maak as moontlik en ongenooide katte is nie welkom in ons tuin nie.

Die drama in die boord was meer kommerwekkend omdat daar nog ‘n groot slang iewers in die tuin kon wees.

Vroeg die oggend op Gesinsdag bel buurvrou my met die nuus dat plaaswerkers wat op pad dorp toe was ‘n groot slang by die tuin sien inseil het. Ek het die opgewonde stemme in die straat gehoor maar het gedink dit is maar net mense wat die nuus van kersgeskenke, opgewonde met mekaar deel.

Ek is nie bang vir slange nie want ek weet hulle is meer vriend as vyand van die tuin en hulle sal eerder van ‘n mens probeer wegkom as om jou te konfronteer, behalwe as jy hulle verras. So ek het besluit om hom nie te soek nie en vertrou dat hy op sy eie sy pad uit die tuin sal vind.

Die voëls se gekwetter in die boord laat my besef dat dit moontlik die slang kon wees en as hy na twaalf dae nog in die tuin is dan het hy moontlik ingetrek. Dit was tyd om huur ooreenkomste te bespreek of eerder die ontruiming van die perseel deur meneer slang indien hy nog hier is.

Die paadjie in die boord was stil en leeg maar die Tiptol paar het nog steeds in die boom gesit en tjirp. Die enigste plek waar iets kon skuil was in die drein van die badkamers. Ek sou die deksel moes oplig maar dit sou direkte konfrontasie skep met wie ook al daar skuil. Ek kry toe maar ‘n lang riet om die deksel op te lig sodat enige reaksie teen die riet sou wees en nie my kaal hand nie.

Die drein was leeg en ek moes tot die slotsom kom dat dit moontlik ‘n kat was wat hulle ontsenu het. Omdat hul nes in die boord is en dat die kat tenaby was na hulle smaak was hulle getjirp meer intens. Die slang is seker lankal besig om muise te vang iewers in die veld.

Ek besluit om gou aarbeie voor ontbyt te gaan pluk terwyl dit nog koel is. Eers moes ek gou die vensterluike toemaak sodat die nag se koelte in die huis kan bly.  

Ek het ‘n groot geel strooi hoed wat die verpersoonliking van geluk is want as ek my groot geel hoed opsit beteken dit dat ek iets buite gaan doen wat ek geniet of dit tuinwerk, vrugte pluk, groente oes, sommer net in die tuin ontspan of  ‘n wandeling deur die wingerde is.

Na ontbyt gaan pluk ek boontjies, baba mielies en tamaties. Die opslag geel tamaties staan oor die hele tuin en soos weglê hoenders se neste moet ek hulle oral soek. My groot geel hoed hou my gesig en nek in die skadu en waar ek met skottels tamaties en mielies, en ‘n mandjie boontjies kombuis toe stap voel ek soos ‘n provinsiale landheer.

Die koel kombuis het na die sonryp aarbeie geruik wat in die bak op die tafel gestaan het. As ek my oë toe maak kon ek my verbeel ek staan binne 'n groot soet aarbei so oorweldigend was die ruik van die vrugte in die huis.

Jare terug by ‘n kunsgallery in Kaapstad het ek ‘n skildery van Roelie van Heerden  gesien. Die skildery genaamd ‘My groot geel hoed maak my baie gelukkig’ het tot iets binne my gespreek en ek het besluit om dit te koop.

Ek het besef dat daar baie mense is wat geluk vind onder ‘n groot geel hoed en ek is bly ek het my groot geel hoed, eintlik ‘n hele paar in veskillende stadiums van aftrede. Waneer iemand my met my groot geel hoed sien kan hulle verseker weet dat ek volslae vrede en geluk ervaar.

A Basket of Beans

The height of the Thai Gold corn and the runner beans combined with the butterfly flowers in the bottom of the garden makes even me feel small. Walking through the corn that towers above me is so amazing. Where I stand in the middle of the bed of corn looking up at the blue sky through the leaves it looks as if the plants are touching the sky.

Corn touching the sky

Basket of beans

I have to agree with my neighbour, picking beans from a plant where you can stand and pick is definitely kinder to the knees. I am still amazed by the length of some of the yard long beans. The yard long beans are delicious in stir fries with the baby corn. I could even cook them whole and serve them like green ‘spaghetti’.

Bean and baby corn stir fry

Spaghetti beans

The ‘spaghetti ‘beans I served with a ginger and yellow tomato sauce and I found that eastern flavours complement the beans that have a slightly different texture to that of the regular garden beans.

The yellow tomatoes are everywhere and one big plant has decided to use the butterfly flowers as its support. In doing so it created its own arrangement of fruit and flowers.

Baby corn

The garden is in full production and I could harvest beans, tomatoes, baby corn, butternuts and gem squash.

Saturday morning harvest

My meals this weekend were mostly vegetarian and I had to process, pack and preserve to get the most out of the pickings.