Welcome

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I am a former magazine editor who left her highly stressed life and came home to tend a garden, some chickens and slowly discover a life free of chemicals based on old-fashioned principles. I work with my son Daniel to run Wendyls and send this newsletter out every Thursday at 3pm (NZ time) and parts of it go onto my website blog.I share recipes, tips, ideas and links to information about living a chemical-free life.

www.wendyls.co.nz

Spring is here

I spent yesterday planting five puriri trees along one of our boundaries. I have always loved the puriri because of the way it spreads out, has wonderful leaves and attracts lots of birds with it's gorgeous pink flowers and berries. They are also reasonably fast growing, so in about 10 years I can see my grandchildren and me having a picnic under them while tui and possibly wood pigeons play above us.
I'm getting very good at planting trees now, having put in six camellias last time I was up north.
Now I just have to find a Liberty apple tree to plant in my orchard and I'm thinking maybe an orange.
Around here, there's always room for another tree.
Today I'm weeding out the flower bed and putting in loads of seeds, including sunflower, aquilegia,chamomile,heartsease,hollyhock and foxgloves. I'm determined to have quite the show down the driveway.
And spring must be here because my first daffodil has popped up. I put the bulbs in front of a row of agapanthus so that the purple will offset the yellow.
How is your garden going? Now's the time to start thinking about raising some tomato seedlings in a sheltered warm spot and ordering in your vege seeds.

Anyone know which bird made this?

I discovered this wonderful nest made like a little hammock in one of my fruit trees. I've tried to find out on the internet what bird made it but with not much luck .
It's very small, so I'm thinking something the size of a waxeye or similar.
If you know could you email me at newsletter@wendylsgreengoddess.co.nz as I'd love to find out.

Spreading the word works

In my Weekend Herald column Wendyl Wants to Know I'm always going on about sugar, and how much there is in so many of our processed foods and drinks. It's really important that we talk about what sugar is doing to us and for anyone who hasn't seen it I really advise watching Dr Robert Lustig's address on why sugar is causing obesity on YouTube here. It does take 1.5 hours but once you've seen it you'll never eat sugar again as he makes a lot of sense.
I was glad to read in The Times that the message on sugar is having an effect, with one in four consumers buying fewer fizzy soft drinks than six months ago in the UK, largely because of recent health warnings about sugar.
Overall, a quarter of adults and a third of 16 to 24-year-olds have cut down. You can read more here.
I can only imagine the disaster this is for soft drink companies who make so much money out of feeding our children sugar. And it is a credit to the power of the media that people will change their lives if the message is out there.

Recipes of the Week

This week you are getting four recipes to encourage you to take the first step towards self-sufficient natural cleaning. We also have our DIY kit for just $80. Everything you need is in it to get started - you just have to add essential oils of your choice.
Spray Cleaner
This is easy to mix up and not only cleans well but fills the air with gorgeous smells. It takes a whole minute to make.
Nearly fill a 1 litre spray bottle with water. Add 1 tsp premium baking soda, a few drops of liquid soap (preferably Dr Bronner's Castile liquid soap, or use Sunlight) and 10 drops of lavender or tea-tree essential oil. Shake together. If you have wooden bench tops, add about 1 tsp of olive oil and shake the bottle every time you use it, to disperse the oil.
You can use other essential oils in the spray cleaner. In the winter I like to use warm oils, like cedarwood, rosemary, clove or even some natural vanilla essence, to give the kitchen a cosy smell. In summer, go for citrus smells, like orange, lemon or lime. And if flies are a problem, use citronella oil which will help deter them.

Glass Cleaner
Fill a 500ml spray bottle with 1/2cup double-strength white vinegar and 1 ½ cups water. Add a few drops of liquid detergent. Spray on to glass and make sure you use scrunched-up newspaper to wipe off. A few drops of lavender oil will make it smell nice.

Laundry Powder
1 cup premum soda ash
1 cup premium baking soda
10ml Dr Bronner’s liquid castile soap
20 drops lavender essential oil
Put the soda ash and baking soda in a food processor and process to combine. Slowly drizzle in the liquid castile soap while the processor is running to create a white powder. Then add the lavender oil and continue to process. Keep it in an airtight container and use 1Tbs for an average load, double if you are washing a big load.
*You can replace the lavender oil with other essential oils of your choice.

Cleaning Paste
A lot of people tell me they want a paste cleaner like Jif to use on their bath and sinks. This is one of the most popular products I make in my Wendyl's range. I've even had people tell me they use it as a shampoo and also as a hand cleaner instead of Swarfega. This will clean up your oven tops, sinks and basins beautifully. If you haven't got any peppermint oil just leave it out. It's just in there to make it smell fresh and clean.

1 cup premium baking soda
1 tbsp cream of tartar
10 ml Dr Bronner’s liquid castile soap (or
dishwashing liquid for a less green option.)
5 ml water.
In a bowl mix together baking soda with cream of tartar. In a jug mix 10 mls of liquid castile soap with the water. Slowly pour into the powders and mix with a fork until you have a paste. Add more water if you need to. Add 1 ml of peppermint essential oil and stir to combine. Store in an airtight container and use to clean kitchen and bathroom sinks, baths and toilets.
*If this dries out over time simply add some more water.

DIY Kit just $80

This kit will give you everything you need to get started making some chemical-free cleaners for your home. For just $80 you’ll get:

1kg Premium Baking Soda
1kg Premium C
1kg Premium Soda Ash
1 kg Premium Oxygen Bleach
1 Litre Double Strength White Vinegar
1 236ml Dr Bronner’s Mild Liquid Castile Soap
10 of my favourite recipes to get you started.

All you need to do is add your favourite essential oils and you can start clearing out those nasty old supermarket cleaners and start making your own. And why not buy one for a friend who is yet to take the plunge into chemical-free living?
Click here to buy now.

New Food App

For those with smartphones and tablets there's a new free food app which gives you the ingredients and nutrition details of supermarket foods. I've had a look and it's still a bit limited but well worth downloading as it means you don't have to get out your magnifying glass to look at the labels.
Here is the website address to go to the app https://itunes.apple.com/nz/app/foodeye/id896037115?mt=8.