WHAT TO DO IN THE GARDEN THIS WEEK

Scary headlines about the cost of buying fresh veges are all too common. s gardeners, we re in a privileged position. any of us grow a few veges and know we could grow more if it became a necessity. ood waste is another hot topic. Shameful amounts of edible crops are wasted at all stages of commercial production from farm to supermarket to kitchen. here s waste in our own gardens too veges gone to seed before they re harvested and fruit left lying on the ground.

he least we can do is eat what we ve grown and find good uses for the surplus.

Five ways gardeners can avoid food waste

Eat it all leaf to root Just as chefs plan snout to tail recipes so no part of a butchered carcass is wasted, you can do the same by eating all of your veges leaves, stalks, flowers, pods, fruit, peels, seeds and roots. Do your research first. Some parts of some veges areto icifeateninlargeamounts,fore amplethe leaves of rhubarb, tomatoes and potatoes. ut sometimes the bits we routinely throw away are not only edible, they re delicious. Just ask my sons who loved eating crisp raw cabbage cores and gobbled up fritters made of silverbeet stalks when they were toddlers. Explore new recipes and cooking techniques

uisines from around the world teach us how to use parts of veges in ways that we may not have considered. Kūmara and broad bean leaves are useful additions to stir-fries and so are the growing tips and tendrils of pea plants.

Presenting food in different ways can trick fussy eaters into trying a once spurned vegetable again. If randma s slimy, boiled silverbeet stalks in white sauce once filled you with horror, try them Italianstyle and you ll be pleasantly surprised.

Pop veges in a pie, wrap or taco simmer in a curry, hotpot or stew grate into fritters or whi them raw in smoothies the possibilities are endless. Grow what you (and your family) like to eat in

manageable quantities here s no point in growing rows of perfect broad beans or kohlrabi if no-one eats them. y all means try new things each season, but if they all end up in the compost try something else instead.

Plant in succession, a few of each crop every couple of weeks, so there is something to harvest every day without an oversupply going to waste.

Pick and preserve arvest crops when they re at their best to save for later. earn about free ing, bottling, dehydrating, pickling and fermenting and which methods are suitable for each crop.

Share your surplus hances are there is somebody near you who wouldappreciatethee tracrops you can t cope with. Share with friends, family and neighbours and reach out to community groups organising food banks. ou may be able to arrange a swap for crops you don t grow yourself.

ow do you make the most of your harvests and reduce food waste? Share your tips by emailing inbo getgrowing.co.n .

Sow and plant cabbages

hese hardy veges take up a fair bit of space, but can feed you for up to a week per plant and you can harvest a second crop of mini cabbages after the first head has been picked more about that later). abbages take between - days to produce a compact head, so pop in a punnet or a couple of seedlings every fortnight. r sow seeds in trays they ll be ready to transplant outdoors by the first week of July, which means they ll be ready to harvest in mid-spring.

hat might seem like a long time to wait, but aside from laying a little slug bait and in warmer areas covering with mesh to keep off the white butterflies, you can ignore them until then.

Purple, green, savoy and small space-savingcabbagesplusmi ed brassica seedlings including various combinations of cabbages, cauliflowers, broccoli and kale) are available now in punnets.

So, how do you get si or more cabbages from one plant? When harvesting, just cut off the edible portion of the head. ut a cross into the top of the remaining stem and leave it and the lower leaves) still in the soil. Within a couple of months, you ll have small side-sprouting cabbages

nother harvesting tip for small families or if you re cooking for one, is to just cut a wedge the si e you need for a single meal and leave the rest. he remaining cabbage will stay fresher in the

garden than in your fridge.

Free leaves for composting

Seaweed isn t the only gardeners gold free for the taking. Public parks and roadside berms are full of trees that drop thousands of leaves each autumn, creating mess, blocked gutters and unsightly sodden heaps. ather than a curse, such leaves should be viewed as a boon to any gardener. eaves in public parks are easier to collect than seaweed from the beach and nobody will accuse you of stealing from mother nature . lthough not overly useful for composting on their own, dry leaves make a superb carbon base for mi ing with wetter materials such as grass clippings and manure. lternatively, they can be slowly rotted down in heaps or if you are lucky enough to have chickens tipped into the hen run. hickens quickly stomp and shred the stuff into line, and over the course of several months, convert it to a rich, black compost that s ready in spring.

Put garden beds that won t be in use over winter to sleep under a thick layer of autumn leaves, garden debris and prunings. s they rot down they ll protect the soil from leaching or washing away during winter storms.

Stop wayward leaves blowing away by corralling them within an enclosure of chicken wire held in place with a couple of waratah stakes. In time, they ll turn into humus-rich leaf mould.

Avoid root and collar rot

utdoor plants can easily succumb to root and collar rot over winter. his is because they neither grow nor transpire well at low temperatures. his means that wet, airless soil stays that way until sun and wind can dry it out again. touch of companion planting can work wonders. asturtiums work well as they have large leaves for rapid transpiration, meaning they quickly and steadily pull water from the soil. Simply press a few seeds around vulnerable plants or buy seedlings) then pull them out in mid-spring. Did you know the leaves and flowers are delicious in pesto, smoothies and salads? hoose the compact topflowering nasturtium varieties to avoid smothering the plants you re trying to protect. his trick works especially well for overwintering summer bulbs.

Pest patrol

Down south where there s been a nip or two of frost, take some comfort in the knowledge that many a garden pest will by now have kicked the bucket, so to speak.

he upper orth Island s warm, sunny autumn seems to have slid towards cooler, wetter weather, but there are still troublemakers, including cabbage white butterflies sniffing around my brassicas.

Whitefly, which are usually thin on the ground by now, and aphids still proliferate, due perhaps not just to warmer than usual temperatures, but the resulting glut of tender plant growth too. phids can be very destructive but are easily and most importantly) effectively controlled by way of largely non-to ic means.

last them loose with the garden hose and follow up a few days later with a targeted spray with soapy water.

couple of rainy days has got the snails out in force too. o on an evening snail hunt before the marauding molluscs chew all your pea and broad bean seedlings down to stumps.

Passionfruit growers should keep an eye out for snails over autumn and winter. While these slimy plunderers clearly enjoy carving their initials into passionfruit leaves, their fondness for the bark is of greater concern. Snails can and do completely ringbark long-established runners, or worse, the entire plant at ground level.

WIN! A $50 GIFT CARD

A $50 gift card goes to the first correct entry opened for Barbara Brown’s Weekend Prize Crossword. Email answers to cryptic@stuff.co.nz. The competition closes at noon on Friday and the solution will be published next week.

WINNER

of the $50 voucher for crossword 710 on May 14 is Roger Kilkelly from Wellington. Congratulations, Roger.

CROSSWORD SOLUTION 711

Across: 9 Connive, 10 Martini, 11 Magenta, 12 Cascade, 13 Stationed, 15 Point, 16 Tedious, 19 Battery, 20 Realm, 21 Hitch-hike, 25 Special, 26 Impasse, 28 Midterm, 29 Burgles.

Down: 1 Scamps, 2 Enigma, 3 Sign, 4 Detain, 5 Smack-dab, 6 Crosspatch, 7 Finalise, 8 Silently, 14 Iron maiden, 16 Tiresome, 17 Dead ends, 18 So help me, 22 Trilby, 23 Insult, 24 Even so, 27 Porn.

// ACROSS

8 Teeny-weeny moment (6) 9 Chief supporter, a guy admitting one visit (8) 10 Funny perhaps holding a role for the little corporal (9) 11 The goddess ignores some of the odd parts in the first issue (4)

12 Start to deny it’s not rural in South Africa (6)

15 Lack of footwear holding the right label (8) 16 Dismissal of her Uncle Sam at last in front of the UK cricket ground (7)

17 Can’t see so much of the cracker performance? (7) 21 Remove the tail left perhaps in the harbour area (8) 24 Private eye could hustle about (6)

25 Takes it easy at last with the eastern infection (4) 26 Killers right away get the horses’ disease (9) 29 Commodities obtained by multiplication? (8) 30 Annoying one king after another (6)

// DOWN

1 Starts to lay into the doctor with a branch (4)

2 It’s down to reject and it’s back to retreat (4)

3 Animal that’s florid and found in a Maori settlement (3,5) 4 Inspire awe at the claim to be a reporter? (7)

5 Enjoys duck in this manner (4,2)

6 Co-operation gets the fool one position (10) 7 Treatment in a beauty salon is increasing (6)

13 Take advantage of crocuses in part (3)

14 Stupid people stop the bosses (10)

18 Becoming angry at missing information technology (6,2) 19 Some of the odd characters in Fremantle scoff (3)

20 The closest are in a tree home (7)

22 The scream after the umpire’s call causes a protest (6)

23 Bug I scent out (6) 27 Blokish admitting a god (4) 28 Say the coin is dispatched (4)

Major reductions in transport are critical to achieving New Zealand s commitment of being carbon neutral by 2050 – with 42 percent of our carbon dioxide emissions attributed to vehicles. or most New Zealanders, fossil-fuelled vehicles are the biggest source of our individual emissions, with nearly 0 percent of all transport C 2 emissions coming from cars, Vs, utes, vans and light trucks.

tatistics show 4,000 tonnes of carbon emissions each year could be avoided if just one-fifth of those who usually travel to work by car worked at home at least one day a week.

ut with more New Zealanders returning to their workplaces in recent weeks – for those of us ready to reduce our energy use and make more climatefriendly transport choices, what are our options

Become a one car household

or a start, it could be time to ditch that second car. New Zealand has one of the highest rates of car ownership in the world. n 2020 there were about four million registered light vehicles in New Zealand and percent of those were petrol or diesel-powered – adding significantly to our carbon emissions.

Plug-in to a new way of thinking

or an increasing number of New Zealanders, especially those with specific commuter or transport needs, going electric is helping them reduce transport emissions.

Latest figures from EECA (the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority) showed 44 percent of New Zealanders are likely to consider an electric or plug-in electric vehicle as their next purchase.

New rebates available to anyone purchasing a Electric Vehicle (EV) or plug-in hybrid EV – up to

, 25fornewvehiclesandupto 3,450forused, is also something to consider when weighing your options.

ut new cost savings are not the only reason New Zealanders are switching. Low-emission vehicles are proven to be cleaner, uieter, and cheaper to run.

hey re also proving convenient – given you can charge your vehicle at home, and now for longer trips there are public chargers nearly every 5 km on most of the state highway network.

Choosing more active transport options

A high-impact way to reduce individual carbon footprints for many New Zealanders is to choose alternatives to driving that work for your lifestyle such as public transport. Right now, it s also more achievable, particularly for those in urban centres with access to public transport options. Public transport fares are currently half price and major cities have increased bus and train routes.

EECA research shows that 55 percent of people would like to walk or cycle more and around twothirds of our vehicle trips are less than km – a manageable distance by bike or e-bike. Additionally, cycling is getting easier, safer and more accessible. According to Waka Kotahi, there are now about 3400 km of cycleways across Aotearoa.

Hybrid vehicles can be a stepping stone

Around 11,000 new and used plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) have been registered in New Zealand since 2012, and around 10 times as many conventional petrol hybrids (which have a small battery but do not plug in to charge). PHEVs are very fuel-efficient, but even a conventional hybrid is more fuel-efficient than a comparable petrol car and produces fewer carbon emissions.

any are also eligible for the Clean Car Discount.

Making a start

Researching is a good first step. Explore all your transport options at

or information on the cost comparisons between ero and low-emission cars, and regular vehicles, en Less s Vehicle otal Cost of

wnership calculator will help you work out how much money and emissions you will save by buying and running an EV, compared to a petrol or diesel vehicle.

ou can calculate your own carbon footprint by completing a uture it.n survey.

A new website by Drive Electric – a not-forprofit group supporting the uptake of e-mobility – enables users to search and compare all new EVs on the market. or anyone interested in a new or used electric vehicle, whether for home or business, the site is a useful place to visit to support decisionmaking.

Kitty Brown, 42, (Kāi Tahu) is the co-creator of Reo Pēpi, which produces bilingual books in te reo and English for children and has just published Matariki. She is married to Dan Parker, 39, a builder/stay-at-home father to the couple’s children Tama Taituha, 10, and daughter Kuini, 3. They live in Portobello, Dunedin.

KITTY: I was 23 when I met Dan. I’d just broken up with the man I thought was the love of my life and had been pretty badly burned. I was broken hearted and definitely wasn’t looking for another relationship.

I’d been working in Dunedin when I saw a Mikey Havoc TV programme about the Coromandel. I’d never been there and thought it looked beautiful, so I moved to Whitianga.

I’d already booked my flights to London when I met Dan. A mutual friend gave us a lift to a party and I thought Dan was hilarious. But we were heading in separate directions – I was going on my OE and he was giving up his career as a chef to start a building apprenticeship in Taranaki.

We’d only known each other a short time but when I went to the UK I really missed him. He flew over after three months and we moved in together in Cornwall where I was working for Rick Stein’s Seafood Restaurant.

We eventually came back to Dunedin. Before my mother died, she took me to Tītī/Muttonbird Islands. Mum wanted to leave me her muttonbird rights, which I wasn’t that keen on because I was vegetarian. But Dan couldn’t come with me to the island unless we were married because you have to have the whakapapa right to visit.

So one morning in bed I asked Dan if he wanted to get married. My decision, while initiated by my island conundrum, was ultimately based on a deep knowledge that I wanted him to be the one I continued my whakapapa line with.

Dan didn’t grow up with a father but he’s grown into a fantastic father and provider himself. He also still makes me laugh every day. I’ve watched him change and figure out his direction in life. He’s very focused and self directed in learning new things.

Dan’s only downside, if you can call it that, is that he is really resistant to sickness. Maybe he sees it as a weakness but if he’s sick he won’t stop, which might be interesting if he’s in denial in our old age.

The central ethos of our relationship is that we are still our own people. We’ve retained our identities and continue to grow as individuals. That means having our own interests – for Dan that’s surfing, and yoga for me.

But during lockdown we started doing things like online parenting courses together. We’re committed to learning together and are also doing personal development courses about decolonisation. We’ve also done a permaculture course because we’re growing a food forest.

I guess we’re pretty lucky with our relationship. But it still takes work, all relationships do.

DAN: I grew up in Christchurch and got into surfing at a young age. I wasn’t really focused on school and mum’s biggest fear was that I’d end up a beach bum.

I fell into cooking and eventually moved to Whitianga where I surfed during the day and cooked at night. I was 23 and a bit of a ladies man.

When I met Kitty I had finally got my career path together and landed a building apprenticeship in Taranaki. I was focused on that rather than having a relationship.

But Kitty appealed to me because she was different. So many of the women I met in hospo circles were overdone and plastic – you know, too much makeup. But Kitty was down to earth and had a real sense of purpose about her. She also has a way of talking to people that’s engaging and kind.

Before Kitty flew to the UK we had a weekend together in Taranaki, which was really nice. I was happy with the direction my life was going in so wasn’t in a hurry to change it. And I worried about the risk of giving up my apprenticeship and spending all the money I had getting to the other side of the world to be with someone I had only known a short time. It could all have turned to custard and I would have had to catch the next plane home.

But I kept thinking, ‘why not give this a try?’ So I headed over three months after Kitty left and even though she was late picking me up from Heathrow, on the drive to Cornwall I knew I’d done the right thing. It felt comfortable and easy between us.

We got married in 2010. I grew up with a single mother so marriage wasn’t something I saw for myself. But when Kitty said to me, ‘why don’t we get married’, it felt right. It wasn’t the most romantic proposal, but it got the job done!

We try to share the workload and parenting as much as possible. Kitty earns more money than I do, which is sometimes hard and I battle with that because society tells us that men should earn the money, especially in a masculine profession like the building trade. I’ve had to learn to let go of my ego.

Kitty gives me the space to do things like go surfing. As any partner of a surfer knows, it can eat up a fair few hours. But she accepts me following my needs and passions.

One of our big focuses is to slow down the busyness of our lives, become more minimalist and focus on what’s really important to us.