And so it is Christmas, and what have I done…. Everything!! Things have been manic since my last post. In the first wave of action cakes were iced, cards written and posted, mince pies baked in industrial quantities and force fed to the neighbours and two sides of salmon cured (one beetroot one experimental citrusContinue reading “The quiet before the onslaught”
Tag Archives: garden
Welcome to the 18th century….
(What follows was typed two days ago, and I thought had been lost when the laptop battery expired. However today, after a partial resumption of power (of which more anon) it reappeared so I am leaving it as is as it rather captured the moment. I have though taken the liberty of adding a fewContinue reading “Welcome to the 18th century….”
Seeing the wood and the Trees
I have been out of sorts recently. A sinus infection has gripped me by the temples and, yet again, blown my eardrum. Nothing terribly painful, but hard to sleep and low level headaches and a general, weary ‘not rightness’. So in Pollyanna style I shall write not of my angry bear reaction to all domesticContinue reading “Seeing the wood and the Trees”
A Jungle excursion
It has rained and rained recently. The tax bill remains on the verge of payment, but I did find time to make the first soap and facial scrub batch of the year, clearing out the last of last year’s supplies to make way for a new season of slittery. So we have plum crumble andContinue reading “A Jungle excursion”
Days of wine and roses
The clouds and mist are back, which is nice for the new plants but a bit dreary for everyone else. I feel distinctly short changed given the Met Office 10% chance of rain prediction. I suppose someone locally has to be in the 10%, but I tend to the view that it should most certainlyContinue reading “Days of wine and roses”
An open and shut case
Ruthven has been a hive of activity over the last few weeks as we completed final preparations for our annual open day. Mum came over and, with her usual stakhanovite zeal, sneaked out every morning at 6am and had several hours of weeding under her belt before anyone else surfaced. Our friend Anne came downContinue reading “An open and shut case”
Whirlwind tour
It’s been a while since the last garden round up so here we go…. Late July can be a bit of a gappy time in our garden. The roses are just starting to flag, and the late summer spectaculars are yet to really get into full swing, though the big double hemerocallis have started toContinue reading “Whirlwind tour”
A day of contrasts
It is scorching again. Much too hot to work in the garden. The shade under the pergola was pretty much the only place to be by ten. And what a place, the roses and honeysuckle were in full bloom, the bees buzzing and the swallows swooping overhead. The enforced languor gave everything rather a “holidayContinue reading “A day of contrasts”
Summer Sloth
The bees are very busy in the garden, but I am still mainly in stocktaking mode (a job that can be pleasingly completed in a lounger, coffee and a cake to hand, whilst watching the swallows and housemartins dive-bomb the pond). I had been planning to have a serious go at the clover by theContinue reading “Summer Sloth”
Thinking season
It has been too hot for gardening. The clay soil has baked brick hard and the paths are dry and dusty. I pootle around weeding at the edges in a desultory fashion, but really this is the time to sit back and see what is working and what is not. Thus far I have earmarkedContinue reading “Thinking season”