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Summer holidays and Road Trips

Hi everybody, I hope you are well and enjoying the run-up to the end of the year.

I have been continuing with my road-tripping. I have been catching up with customers; talking to new people about the joys and benefits of medicinal cannabis; and taking bookings for workshops. Watch this space in the New Year for information about:

Garden-to-table workshops and cooking classes

Medicinal cannabis workshops and cooking classes

I am available to speak to groups as well, eg health professionals / practitioners; current medicinal cbd users; people who would like to know more about medicinal cbd. 

I have just returned from Christchurch. It was amazing to see the difference in plants, climate, and culture, across the country. I find that, for the most part, cities are the same wherever I go, but I really enjoy seeing the variation in nature, which tells me that I am in a different place. 

I visited the Botanical Gardens, as always, and I was surprised to see a lot of variegation in plants where I had never seen variegation before, for example, roses and kawakawa. 

I visited Te Houhou Roko, the New Zealand World Peace Bell, which was gifted to New Zealand for its long standing commitment to peace. According to world peace bell.nz, the bell carries the hope of worldwide peace and nuclear disarmament. The planting around the bell includes a camphor propagated from a tree that survived the atomic bombing of Nagasaki on World War II. There are also flowering cherries and rhododendrons. 

Below the Peace Bell is Ira Atua Tane, a ponamu-greenstone, gifted by Ngai Tahu. A piece of this stone, called Ira Atua Wahine, rests under Te Korowai Rangimarie Cloak of Peace in the Nagasaki Peace Park in Japan. When the bell is rung, the pounamu resonates between the two countries. This is so beautiful! And of course, I rang the bell. 

According to world peacebell.nz, Christchurch has a rich peace heritage. Examples of peaceful action include:

Opposition to conscription

Conscientious objection to war

Strong anti-nuclear movement 

First nuclear-free city in New Zealand (March 1982)

NZ’s First Peace City (2002)

The Kawakawa Mystery has extended to Christchurch - I noticed again that there were heaps of beautiful, glossy looking kawakawa trees, but none of them had any holes in. I am now hot on the trail of this answer….. 🥸🦹🏼‍♀️

I visited the Riverside Market, which is a great central place to stop and refuel. There are all kinds of stalls, stocking all kinds of fresh and pre-prepared foods, juices and smoothies, bakery goods. You can stock up your pantry on gourmet items, or get a cuppa and wander out onto the outside upstairs deck to watch the world go by. They have very nice toilets, which is always helpful! 

It was very good to find healthy, delicious foods which are suitable for allergy-friendly diets, and also a variety of food choices, eg vegan. I had green smoothies, a toasted sheep’s cheese and caramelised onion sandwich on gluten free bread, and a potato salad with avocado and chicken tenders.

I especially enjoyed a fresh garden salad, with jackfruit and avocado. I have not eaten jackfruit before, it is a species of the fig, mulberry and breadfruit family and generally grown in tropical regions ie India, Bangladesh, and the rainforests of the Phillipines and Indonesia (wikipedia.com

Jackfruit is becoming more popular in the plant-based diet movement, as it is mild in flavour, and has a meat-like texture - often called ‘vegetable meat’. It can be eaten ripe and unripe, and it can be available in cans or frozen. It is a healthy choice for a meal, as it contains many key nutrients such as fibre, protein, vitamin C, B vitamins and potassium. Jackfruit is helpful in maintains healthy weight and blood sugar levels (everyday health.com).

If you would like to give jackfruit a try, you can incorporate it into your festive season recipes.

Try using ripe jackfruit pulp to your Christmas pavlova, and put a dollop into your smoothies. 

You can use unripe jackfruit in savoury meals - try it as a substitute for mince in tacos. 

Let me know how you get on!

Christchurch city is looking tastefully festive, and I really liked how they incorporated nature into the decorations. It still makes me laugh that here in the Southern Hemisphere we celebrate Christmas with icons of snow, frost, winter plants and winter lights - when it is stinking hot and sunny and bright until 9pm! So it was nice to see festive decorations that were just “festive”, not wintery. I love seeing pohutakawas blooming at this time of year, and it was cool to see a huge pohutakawa amongst the festive decorations.

This Sunday, 15 December, is the last day for postal orders. My last posting day is Monday 16 December. If you would like to make an order, please contact me at:

hello@harmonygardens.co.nz

The phone consultation service has become extremely popular, and I am fully booked for the rest of the year. At this stage, my next available appointment is Monday 20 January 2025. Appointments fill up extremely quickly, so if you are wanting to explore medicinal cannabis for your health and wellbeing, please get in touch: hello@harmonygardens.co.nz 

I will be closed from Friday 20 December - Monday 6 January 2025. 

Stay well, safe and festive,

Louisa at Harmony Gardens 🧚‍♀️