Hello from another Kiwi!

[Doreen]

Well, not exactly Kiwi, I'm Yorkshire born and bred, but have lived in South Island, New Zealand for the last 11 years. My name's Doreen Mear (a.k.a. Hinchliffe in a previous avatar) and I garden on the proverbial Kiwi quarter acre surrounded by lake and mountains in the rain shadow of the Southern Alps. Don't have a greenhouse so everything has to take its chance outside. Summer's hot and dry, winter's cold and dry, and the soil pure glacial moraine which alpines love but meconopsis and primulas hate.

Love travelling to see alpines in the wild, trying to photograph them, then trying to grow them from seed. My neighbours think I'm nuts - probably right!

Sorry, Jandals, still can't stand Vegemite, give me Marmite any day!

P.S. Hi Toolie!

[Booker]

Welcome Doreen,
We knew that you would get here eventually!   We've been keeping a bottle in the cooler for your arrival.
Hope all is well in glorious New Zealand?

[Hoy]

Hello Doreen!

Seems to be very common gardening down there

Glacial moraine isn't that bad - I could use a lot in my garden which has only a very thin layer of peat soil on hard rock - and I do not mean the music

[Doreen]

Hello, Buttercup, thanks for the welcome! Hoping to be back to the UK for a visit in April (Harrogate Show maybe) so keep that bottle cold! Yes, life's pretty good in NZ, she says, sitting here in shorts and Factor 30 suncream. Bit chilly today though, only 22 degrees 

Hello, Trond, good to "meet" you. Yes, I thought when I arrived here I could bag up the soil and sell it to alpine growers back home, they would pay good money for it (it's the Yorkshire ancestry coming out!). Plenty of hard rock too in our Southern Alps, but have to admit, I rarely get up into the mountains, not having a 4WD, I leave that to Dave and Jandals, and grow the gaudy exotic stuff!

[RickR]

Welcome, Doreen!

Glad to see you here. 

[Doreen]

Thanks, Rick! Just been experimenting and posted my first photo (on the Lewisia thread); fingers crossed it's worked!

[Toole]

Thanks, Rick! Just been experimenting and posted my first photo (on the Lewisia thread); fingers crossed it's worked!

What a stunner it is too.......

Hello to you Doreen .

Jandels and i hope to be up your way ,(or nearly there), this Saturday --planning on having a look at the southern end of The Old Man Range and i might on Sunday try for the Pisa Range .

Here's a gaudy    plant currently in bloom--Saponaria x olivana ........

Cheers Dave.

[Doreen]

Hello Dave

I had that saponaria once upon a time but it never looked half as good as that (and is long since deceased).

Have a good weekend down the road; stop by for a cup of tea if you've time in passing (no whisky to be had in the house, sorry!)

[deesen]

Hi Doreen. Who would do the missionary work if we Yorkies didn't do it?

[Doreen]

Hi David. Too right! I now have a nephew, his wife and 4 kiddies here as well - we're recolonising the place (and teaching them to speak proper ...)   

[Jandals]

Sorry, Jandals, still can't stand Vegemite, give me Marmite any day!

Hi Doreen . Nice to see you and your plants here . Late reply as my computery thing was at the shop ( The old - too many belgian biscuit crumbs in the keyboard trick ) . I will know when you have settled in proper - "Hey Jandals , vegemite rocks " . May see you over the summer with T00lie and Kiwi

[Doreen]

Sorry, Jandals, still can't stand Vegemite, give me Marmite any day!

Hi Doreen . Nice to see you and your plants here . Late reply as my computery thing was at the shop ( The old - too many belgian biscuit crumbs in the keyboard trick ) . I will know when you have settled in proper - "Hey Jandals , vegemite rocks " .

Don't hold your breath!