Did you hear from anyone in Dunedin or Timaru????

Our best was a measured 35C and we had hail this afternoon.

But the blackberries are good this year and the jam set isn't too bad at all.

Passion fruit also seem to be doing well, I have noticed that the poor old dependable hydrangeas seem to be struggling with the dryness and the flowers are dying off early. Mind you two weeks of heat and I am stuggling as well. Lucky our weather is so fickle!

I can certainly see where I've been mean with the compost. Huge cracks, and garden with the grubber. But I've been adding grit and hope it will deter the clods from gathering again. I'm also contemplating gypsum - while standing on a flat purse.

Have you heard of/used a tool called a clod buster? Made in Christchurch, I think. Any good?

Agree about the Hydrangeas. The older ones aren't too bad, but a couple of new ones Aren't Happy. The Dahlias have also bolted, and the semperflorens Begonias.

To think we were wishing for more sun before Xmas!

No I haven't heard of a clod buster, I am interested in anything that is easier to use than a grubber. My husband has put up a frame to hide the trailor and his truck, so now I am trying to decide which climber to cover it. I would love a climbing or a rambling rose, but common sense says clematis or perhaps a jasmine.

You might want to check out Trachelospermum jasminoides. It's a bit slow to start but it does smell nice and covers well.

Truck and trailer - :) - such a LOT of room to cover! Would it be safe to put a rose or two about half way down from the access? I know it doesn't have any scent, but it doesn't have thorns either - Banksia rose.

And there's always Hydrangea petiolaris, though it is deciduous. Is honeysuckle safe in your area, or a rampant thug?

My grubber (old friend!) is pleasantly light and very easy to work. An energy-saver for me if I'm working compacted soils. Isn't it funny how some tools become firm favourites, and others are seldom used? (Hoes and three tine cultivators are like that for me - probably because I'm not a great vegie gardener.)

I will definitely use the trachelospermum, I can't believe I didn't think of it sooner, thanks. It is only a light truck so not such a large area. My favourite tool is an old wooden handled carving knife. I loose it at least twice a day and end up spending frantic moments searching for it.

I've thought about one of those electronic 'whistle to find it' thingies for my use it and lose it hand tools, but I can't whistle!

I've got the other half of the set! My best weeding tool is the fork from a carving set. Works well in my soil and set up. I've wondered about a knife. The nearest I get is using a paint stripper to deal with the weeds along the gutter.

What's your worst pest weed? Bind weed and couchgrass in this garden - with Hydrocotyle close behind in the shady areas. (Sort of under control...)

The most annoying weed at home is Wandering Jew, I maintain 17 gardens and the most annoying weed is oxalis. I visited my sister in Wellington and from her window saw some really pretty flowers, on closer inspection she had a tub of oxalis, not realising that in the Hutt Valley it is such a pain in the proverbial. The biggest lawn problem here is paspalum, thanks to the City Council not moving quick enough to rid it from their grassed areas.