March 1925

Sunday 1st    It was a fine day.  There was no service here today.  In the afternoon I walked round to Mr Whitakers,  staid tea there.  In my absence Alf Dunning had driven their car to Pats bringing his father & mother, young Archie & Charlina.
Mr & Mrs Dunning came up here to see me, I was sorry I missed them, they went up to see my garden and were surprized to see everything looking so green,  Jane gave them afternoon tea.  Pat & Dolly were here when I came home, & staid for tea.

Monday 2nd   There was a heavy shower in the morning, the remainder of the day was fine.  Eddie Grigg called in the morning, on his return from Warkworth where he had been holding services yesterday for Revd Thornley at Dome Valley, Mullet Point & Warkworth,  he went up to see my garden and staid for dinner.  I was weeding for Dolly in the afternoon.

Tuesday 3rd    It was a very hot day.  I wrote a letter to Jessie Wyatt enclosing £3 as a wedding present as she is to be married to Trevor Gravatt on the 10th of this month.  I gave the letter to Chas Gravatt to deliver, as he passed bringing the mail from Matakana.  I was weeding at Dolly s when he passed.
Willie Dunning was passing in his car & stopped to speak to me, he had in his car besides his wife a Mr & Mrs Wilson which he introduced to me, they have bought Willies farm , they seem very nice people.  In the afternoon we had a lot of visitors here, Mrs Evans & children, her sister & Mrs Dunning and Charlina.  The cricketers had a practice on the Domain in the pm, young Archie D staid there, but came up here for tea with Charlina, after tea Jim & Jane went down with them to Pats, the men folk went out flat fishing with a lantern and they brought 14 fish.

Wednesday 4th   There was a shower early in the morning, the remainder of the day was fine.  I wrote a long letter to my son Jack.
In the afternoon Jane, Jean & Dolly went to Harry Ashtons and bottled 24 bottles of Peaches Mabel is in Auckland having undergone an operation in the Public Hospital.

Thursday 5th   It was a fine day.  I planted out 25 Leek plants.

Friday 6th   It was a fine day.  In the morning I called at Whitakers and then went on to Birdsalls where I had dinner,  On my way back I borrowed a slasher and cut 28 bean sticks in the Domain.

Saturday 7th   It was very dull in the morning and had every appearance of rain.  There was a cricket match at Matakana for the possession of the Walker Shield , Rodney is the present holder and  Auckland Suburban Club the challenger.  Unfortunately Suburban won the match, so Rodney who have held the shield for several years will now have to give it up.  Jim, Jane & the children went to the match in Bob Wyatt’s lorry.  I staid at home as I am not very well.  About 11 am it came on a misty rain and in the afternoon there was a heavy shower.  I carried the bean sticks from the Domain that I cut yesterday & I sharpened them.

Sunday 8th   It was a fine day.  No service.  I was not very well and did not eat anything until the evening.  Spent the day reading.

Monday 9th   It was fine in the morning ‘tho dull.  In the afternoon it came on a misty rain.  I re-stuck the White Dutch Beans with longer sticks that I got at the Domain on Saturday.  In the pm Jane & Dolly went to Harry Ashtons to make some jam for him as Mabel is away.
Mr & Mrs Stewart called in the afternoon to give Hector & Jean some home lessons, Jean made them afternoon tea.  I gave them some Homestead Beans.

Tuesday 10th   It was a very fine day.  Wind  SW.  I sowed a long row of Swede Turnips.
Jessie Wyatt & Trevor Gravatt were to be married in the Church Leigh at 7 pm this evening.  I was invited to be present and Jack Walden was to take me over in his car, but I was not very well so did not go, but Jane went with Jack to witness the ceremony in the Church and stay the night at the Stewarts.

Wednesday 11th   It was a fine day.  I pricked out 21 young Pansy plants and 5 Phlox plants in a box, also planted out 7 Pansy plants in a border.  Dug a little of the hard ground below the rubbish heap. Jane returned from Leigh in the morning in Bob Wyatts butcher’s lorry.  In the evening Jim, Jane & Dolly drove round to the store, it is their late night there as the steamer is alongside of the wharf discharging.

Thursday 12th   It was a fine day.  I weeded and tidied up in the flower garden and then continued digging the hard ground below the rubbish heap.

Friday 13th   It was a fine day.  Having written a report of Jessie & Trevor’s wedding for the Rodney Times I took it down to give to the mailman to post, while waiting I did some weeding for Dolly, afterwards I set fire to a rubbish heap there.
In the afternoon I continued digging below the rubbish heap.

Saturday 14th   It was a fine day.  We heard today that Joseph Greenwood of Henderson had died suddenly of heart failure.  I had known him from boyhood  as he came to Omaha when he was quite young, and had made a nice farm which he had sold several years ago and had bought an orchard at Henderson.  Ray Harper had taken Mrs Handby & Mrs John Greenwood in his car to Warkworth this morning to go to Auckland by steamer.  Dolly went up to her old home in the butchers lorry until her mother returns home.
I was digging in the morning where I left off yesterday and in the afternoon I went down to Pat’s place and planted a row of Leeks and did some digging.
There was a Cricket match at Warkworth between Omaha & the local team.  Jim went.
Warkworth  1st innings      made     81   runs       ⌉     Total
            ”               2nd  innings         ”      119  runs        ⌋       200
Omaha           One innings                                                         352

Sunday 15th   It was a very fine day, but a bit cold as the wind is SW.
Revd Rouprecht held service in the hall in the morning, there were 14 present.
He brought 2 Mrs Meiklejohns with him, and he went back with them for lunch.
In the evening I took some books down to Pat.

Monday 16th    It was a very fine day.  As the schools have not reopened after the Xmas holidays on account of infantile paralysis, Mr Stewart has been giving the children sums to do, so Jane drove them to Ti Point school where Mr Stewart met them to look at their work.  The Government Dentist  should have been there to look at the childrens  [teeth] ,  so Jane took Mildred, however the Dentist did not put in an appearance, so they all came back in here for lunch.
I continued digging below the rubbish heap.

Tuesday 17th   It was a fine day.  I finished digging the piece of ground I was at, and was not sorry as it was very hard.  Jim took Jean & Mildred to Ti Point school to the Dentist, but will have to take Mildred again tomorrow.
Jane was making Tomato Sauce.

Wednesday 18th   It was a very fine day.  The last planted double row of Homestead beans seem to be suffering for the want of rain, I gave them a good watering .  The steamer made a round trip today leaving the top wharf at 1 pm , Jim took the eggs round to the store, and when he came back ho took Jean & Mildred to Ti Point school to the Dentist and Mildred had 6 teeth out.

Thursday 19th   It was a fine day.  I went down to Pats after breakfast to get the score book, made a report of the last cricket match and posted it to the R & O Times.  Dug round some vegetable marrows.  Was not very well, did not do much outside.

Friday 20th   It was a fine day.  Jim drove Jean to Matakana to see the Dentist.  First picking of Canadian Wonder Beans planted Jany 14th.   I pricked out some Cauliflower plants in a pot.

Saturday 21st   It was a very fine day.  Laddie Whitaker was burning fern on their land at the back of Jims place.  Mr & Mrs Stewart  & their brother in law Mr McCallum came to spend the day,  they went down to the Domain in the afternoon to play bowls with Mr Wilson Senr.   Gus Neely called in the evening to get my signature. There was a meeting of the  Domain board, Jim & Gus went.

Sunday 22rd   It was a fine day.  Mr Milligan held service in the hall in the morning, Jim, Jane & I went, there were 16 present.  Collection 9/- .  Jim & Elva drove over and dined here and had a look at my garden.

Monday 23th   It was a fine day.  I took the seed out of 5 Apple Cucumbers.  Went down to Pats in the afternoon to do some gardening.

Tuesday 24th   It was a fine day.  I took some more seeds out of Apple Cucumbers.  Jane, Jean & Mildred took the sulky round to Evans’ and brought home some fruit jars that Mrs E had got for her.

Wednesday 25th   It was a fine day.  Mrs Gravatt came in the butcher’s lorry,  she came here for dinner and returned home in the same conveyance.

Thursday 26th   It was a fine day.  Jim brought me home from the store yesterday a benzine can, so I sawed it down & made two shallow seed boxes.  In the afternoon I was working in Pat’s garden.

Friday 27th   It was a fine day, but a heavy shower in the afternoon.
I sent a lot of beans and beet & Jane a marrow over to Mrs A. Dunning.
Minnie and Agnes came in the morning and staid for dinner, I was working in the afternoon down at Pats, had to shelter while it rained.

Saturday 28th   It was a fine day.  I planted out 14 Cauliflower plants also replanted a few red beet .  Went down to Pats place in the pm , got rid of the heap of shells at the wash house door.  It rained in the evening.

Sunday 29th  It rained pretty heavy last night, which will freshen things up a bit, but it turned out a fine day.  There was no service here.  Wrote a letter to Mr Wallace.

Monday 30th   It was a fine day.  In the morning I took seeds out of Tomatoes.  (Burwood Prize  &  Peach).  In the pm planted 4 rows of Potatoes down at Pats.

Tuesday 31st   It was a fine day.  In the afternoon I was digging down at Pats.

The rainfall for March as recorded by the  P.M  at Warkworth was  1.10  inches.