We are still somewhat sweltering in the late summer heat. Evenings of light rain have lessened the stress on the plants a little, but it hasn’t really penetrated and a few centimetres down it is still dry and earthenstone hard. After a burst of enthusiasm getting four of the new peonies in, taking some “insurance”Continue reading “Dropsy”
Category Archives: walking
As ye reap..
As summer ends I find myself jealously collecting in the fruits of all our labours in the garden for the winter. All my saved seed has been decanted into envelopes and labelled (hopefully correctly) and the summer’s dried flowers and herbs are sorted, tied and (mostly) bagged. It is, therefore, finally possible to walk acrossContinue reading “As ye reap..”
The Dog Days are over
Since coming back from Glenelg we have been gently crisping. The Dog Days of Summer had definitely arrived and the heat has been intense, settling on the garden like a lambent halo by mid morning and intensifying relentlessly to a late afternoon inferno. With the help of mum and auntie Lois we managed (just) someContinue reading “The Dog Days are over”
Corran and the drove road
On Sunday, we decided to retrospectively justify the night before’s dinner at the Pub with a walk up the glen from Corran, with the objective of following the river as far as we could go leaving enough time get back in time for last cake orders at Sheena’s Tea Hut. The drive up to CorranContinue reading “Corran and the drove road”
Unspooling
We have been in Glenelg for four days now and the threads that bind me to things to do have unravelled into a tangled heap on the bedroom floor alongside the running kit and crumpled shorts I pull on most days. The carefully curated holiday wardrobe lies tidily in the drawers and seems likely toContinue reading “Unspooling”
Summer’s survivors
I’ve had a few days out and about on wildlife patrol with Lyra, now freed from the post op “no scratchy” T shirt, recently (ably assisted by Keith and Mum, respectively, as side kicks) so thought I’d submit my late summer report. The heat of the last few days has turned the wheat to gold,Continue reading “Summer’s survivors”
The midsummer narrows
We hurtled to midsummer this year and nature has been running ahead of us all the way, reclaiming its territory. In the Hirsel woods the paths between the ferns have dwindled to the narrowest strip, brambles swarming across, ready to tug at unwary ankles. In places, the nettles have reached shoulder height. Mum and IContinue reading “The midsummer narrows”
What remains
Today Lachlan took Lyra and me to the Ford Moss nature reserve, just over the border in Northumberland. We saw an old friend on the approach. The Cheviot sits smack bang in the middle of the view from the front of our house and it was slightly strange seeing him from a different angle asContinue reading “What remains”
Along the riverbank
Having endured trench foot all day yesterday after a walk through the long grass around the fields (yes I could have changed my shoes, but somehow it was a chore too far..) today we took the riverside walk, where the kind folks who look after the fishing have mowed many paths meandering through the longContinue reading “Along the riverbank”
New month, new routine
Well perhaps…As the days lengthen to the craziness of midsummer I am waking earlier and earlier (our bedroom faces south and west and fills with light at about 4 am). Usually I lie and find something to fret about for an hour or so then drift back into a weird dream filled sleep, which leavesContinue reading “New month, new routine”