If the conditions are right
However, if you’ve only got a big ride-on mower or a petrol lawnmower, Wyn-Harris recommended waiting until your child was older.
All ages
Get your child involved with decluttering the house by getting them to set aside things they don’t use any more to give away to charity, clearing out the garage and helping with trips to the tip.
All children can lend a hand with sorting, folding and putting away the washing. You can also get them to do any kind of sorting you haven’t had the time to get around to, such as pairing plastic containers with the correct lids, finding odd socks to make pairs and sorting books. back the runners. Lift them off the ground regularly to discourage formation of surface roots which waste energy that could go to tuber formation.
Harvesting
Ku¯ mara take five months from planting to harvest, but if the spring and summer have been cold, tubers may be slow to mature.
Before digging up the bed, after a couple of days of dry weather do some careful bandicooting in a couple of
Storing
Jeremy Wyn-Harris
A fun task to keep the kids outside
If you don’t have already have a tree house, WynHarris suggested spending a day in the backyard with your children to help them build a simple tree house platform. ‘‘It doesn’t have to be very complicated,’’ he said.
‘‘Just help them put it together as a team and secure it a metre or two from the ground in the‘Y’ of a sturdy tree.’’
He said part of the fun was making the platform itself and using the opportunity to bond with your kids. If you already have a tree house, Wyn-Harris said you can ‘‘get them to clear out the tree house, give it a fresh lick of paint and actually make it their own’’. places to see what’s happening underground.
Traditionally, Ma¯ ori used underground pits, called rua ta¯ huhu, for storing ku¯ mara over winter. Dried ku¯ mara could be stored in elevated storehouses called pa¯ taka.
Wiremu told NZ Gardener that medium-sized ku¯ mara are the optimum size for storing. ‘‘Ku¯ mara that are very big don’t store too well, as they contain a lot of moisture. Large and very small ku¯ mara were traditionally dehydrated in the umu [earth oven] and eaten almost like a candy; this is known as ku¯ mara kao and was one of the supplies sent to the Ma¯ ori Battalion during World War II.’’
Avoid putting ku¯ mara in high humidity areas such as your kitchen or laundry. Don’t wash them as they store much better when the skins are dry. Spread them out somewhere cool and airy to dry the skins for a week or so, then store them somewhere dark and dry.
Where is your home and who lives there with you?
We live on a hill on the South Coast [Wellington]. It’s me, my husband, and our two boys Ronnie, 5, and Eddie, 3. There’s also our 15-year-old cat, Borro, and our retired greyhound, Twinkle Princess.
Your favourite area in the house?
I love the dining room table. I love to look out at the ocean: every day the view seems different. We have great chats at the table and I work there too. The sun comes in and it’s just so lovely. My 3-year-old is yet to recognise how great the table is, and spends meal times running around instead of staying seated.
Finish this sentence, once someone came to my door…
I had mastitis so I’d become quite delirious with fever. I thought the delivery guy was my husband getting home and I answered the door crying with no top on. Poor dude was terrified.
Your proudest DIY moment:
When we first came to this place it had this hideous red wall which I called the Red Wall of Anxiety. Our landlord (who luckily is my husband’s mum) let us repaint it. It took eight coats of paint and I didn’t do any of it. My husband almost had a breakdown – but I’m still
Worst thing that’s ever gone wrong while entertaining?
My husband informed our guests that the veges we were eating tasted so delicious because our dead dog was buried underneath where he grew them.
One item I wish I had kept or not got rid of is:
My wedding veil. I would have liked to have hung it on the wall.
Favourite piece of furniture:
Our L-shaped couch. We used to have really bogan black leather recliners. We just bought this proper grown-up adult couch. When I sit on it I feel responsible.
If I had $50k, what I would change about my house is...
My own bathroom! We have just one tiny bathroom and I have to share it with three boys.
Which home habit annoys you the most?
We don’t have a bath so we put our two kids in flexi tubs. They cannot have a bath or shower without getting water everywhere. I am constantly laying towels down – I feel like I wash a load of towels every day.
‘‘A simple tree house platform doesn’t have to be complicated. Just help them put it together as a team and secure it a metre or two from the ground in the ‘Y’ of a sturdy tree.’’
What’s one domestic/ housework/gardening trick you’ve learnt?
I’ve learned to not do too much. Each night we do a five-minute toy tidy up to try to feel like grown-ups and that helps a lot.
Ku¯mara kao (small dehydrated ku¯mara) were eaten almost like a candy and were among the supplies sent to the Ma¯ori Battalion during World War II.