Victory Garden

How Lockdown has changed our lives... Part 1

I am a huge fan of the Wartime home front and how women and children survived at home while their beloved men were away at war.

This is a time shortly before my mum and dad were born, when both sets of my grandparents were young adults and my grandads were away at war.

Both of my nana's became young wives shortly after the war and for many years life was hard as they both raised large families on farms. From here I have learnt many make do and mend ways of how to live, including how to preserve, sew and bake from my mum. My dad always had and still does have, a large vegetable garden and as a child I used to enjoy talking with him while he was working away tending to his vegetables. 

A day before our lockdown here in New Zealand we finally were blessed with the long awaited chooks that I had dreamt of having for years. They are a joy and a delight to all my family and we love our daily eggs.

Our girls on the first day we got them, a temporary home on the hill behind our house where the
vegetable gardens are.

Eggs are in abundance at the moment and after eggs for breakfast, plenty for baking,
we have been able to give a few away to neighbours and family. ( After lockdown of course! )

Feijoa's from our small tree. I have been able to make feijoa and pear chutney, feijoa jam,
bliss balls, a loaf and I bottled one jar. ( Photos below )

On our suburban property we have a feijoa, pear, lemon and apple tree plus four olive trees. We have a strawberry patch which does quite well, raspberries and red currents that haven't done so well this year plus a greenhouse and vegetable gardens.

We are still learning, even though we have had vegetable gardens for years, but I love being able to pick our own vegetables and fruit and now our hens laying eggs. Definitely a slice of country life in the city. In these changing times it is reassuring to know I can feed my family from what we grow.

I hope this space will be an inspiration to you to follow your dreams of living off the land even in a city backyard or to embrace old fashioned ways of living that bring about more simplicity and slowness to our days. A slowing down is something we have all enjoyed as a family over the last couple of months and we hope to continue as much as we can.

Blessings,
Fiona

"God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear". 
Psalm 46: 1-2a