Summertime ~~~ and the snails think it's easy!

Gentle Reader ~~~ Summer is now a few days old and Wimbledon is upon us again; I make no secret that I am relieved, for I would rather watch proverbial paint dry than watch the World Cup these days {remember, this is a one time 'wouldn't miss a game' 'dyed in the wool' soccer fan speaking, but these days Wimbledon, with strawberries and cream, and Pimm's or champagne is more for me}

We are basking each day in glorious, gentle, warm sunshine, tempered by {slightly irritating} stiff breezes which are whizzing and whipping things around the garden, and as I sit here I can hear the stiff rustling of trees full of dry leaves that are calling for rain.  The winds make it comfortable if you do not like the scorching, baking~hot days, but towards the end of this week there is a low pressure system currently journeying across the Atlantic towards Britain, bringing with it predicted thunderstorms and a lot of much needed rain, but also a substantial unseasonable dip in temperatures too.  Just as I have planted things out ~~~ I guess that means I am to blame?

Over the weekend I was given two tomato plants!  What a lovely thing to receive.  They already have fruit, and were in desperate need of potting on, so I cut open a grow bag {which will give feed for up to six weeks} and planted them, giving them good staking too, to keep them upright and sturdy against the winds while they settle in and put out new roots.  I put one on each end, and being the constantly thrifty person that I am I put a catch crop of mixed leaves that I brought on from seed a few weeks ago, I think it was May 26th I sowed them in a tray of cells.

Here are my two tomato plants with the catch crop of leaves in the middle ~~~

and the mixed leaves, which in a couple of weeks will be cutting and cropping for about six weeks into August ~~~

I think it was about June 2nd I sowed my soaked runner bean seeds and two germinated in the direct bin sowing, four in the cells, so yesterday afternoon I potted the cell grown ones in with the bin grown ones ~~~ the bin is wrapped with double layered bubble wrap to try and compensate for the wind chill factor ~~~

So, you can imagine my utter horror this very morning when I came out to four plants eaten {by something, probably slugs} overnight down to almost all but the growing tip {so that is something to be thankful for!} and two relatively intact plants ~~~ Garden Emergency Services to the rescue immediately!  I cut the bottoms off my stash of 2 litre water bottles and they are now placed securely over each individual plant in the hopes they will recover {as I said, the growing tips are still intact} very soon ~~~ I raised the bubble wrap blanket a little higher too, giving more protection and hopefully keep them better insulated to help them recover ~~~

Remember these guys?  Such pretty, but voracious devourers of my mullein {verbascum} plants?  Well, another horror story!  My lovely dwarf pink verbascum {below} has hardly any leaves and all the new flower buds are almost all eaten.  I came out to find the plant covered in these white, black, and yellow caterpillars merrily munching their way through all the juicy leaves and tasty buds ~~~ what to do now?  I cannot kill anything {I think the caterpillars, slugs, and snails all know this} nor do I use pesticides, so ~~~

 

 

I picked them off, one by one, and put them all down on the path hoping they would move on to some other garden ~~~ no sooner done than Mrs Blackbird arrived and promptly started to scoop up the offending bugs in her beak to flit off with a tasty feed for her hungry brood of chicks!  We helped each other out! ~~~

This is one corner of my garden, with a thousand shades of green ~~~ the rosemary {almost out of shot on the top left} I bought in 1995 and it moved house with me three times!  I have taken many cuttings over the years.  The oregano I bought at the same time and that has grown and seeded everywhere ~~~ it is in nooks and crannies, growing among the paving stones as it would in it's native Mediterranean habitat, and I use it in small tussie mussies along with other small, suitable flowers and foliage plants to give to friends.  See the lavender spikes pushing up in between the green?  I love to let things mingle and mix like this, softening each other and complimenting other plants ~~~

My sage is in full flower ~~~ beautiful, purple spikes on one of my favourite herbs {I love roasted sage leaves!}

Now, earlier in the year I said there would be departures, so, Gentle Reader, this is my first foray into sharing a simple recipe.  As a vegetarian I eat eggs, and I have a supply of lovely, fresh, organic, free range eggs available to me.  I do so long to have hens of my own, one day I will but for now I have to buy them.  Here is my recipe for a very simple egg salad ~~~ it is what this gardener loves to eat!  All measures are approximate and you can adjust everything according to your preference ~~~

First, hard boil four eggs ~~~

Peel them, and while still hot ~~~

Crush them in a ricer ~~~

This gives a really fine texture without any mashing around with a fork and stops them from going too mushy as they might in a processor ~~~

Working quickly, while the eggs are still warm, add 1oz unsalted butter, 1/2 oz butter spread {such as Flora or Utterly Butterly} 1 tablesp Heinz Salad Cream, season to taste with salt and pepper {I like lots of pepper as you can see, and I use Steenbergs Organic Four colour peppercorn mix }

Blend it all together and chill until ready to use.  It will keep overnight if you wish.  I love it on thick slices of home made bread and butter as an open sandwich, with a small salad of tomatoes and onions ~~~ or piled into lettuce leaf 'dishes' ~~~ Cos or Little Gem work well, I've even used it to fill cherry tomatoes ~~~

There, that wasn't so bad, was it?  How did I do?  Who knows, maybe next time I'll do cake! ~~~ of course, you can do more and adjust everything accordingly!  I've made it with finely chopped celery and onion too ~~~ but very finely chopped, and about a tablespoon of each ~~~ I hate to overpower the delicious organic eggs ~~~

Would you like to see some flowers now?  I thought you might, so here we are ~~~

I bought these Argyranthemums and crimson, highly scented dianthus in the local independent plant centre.  I will be potting up tomorrow ~~~

Can you imagine the fragrance from this David Austin rambling rose Frances E Lester?  It greets me every morning as I awake, for it is planted very near my bedroom window and the fragrance flood fills the cottage all Summer long ~~~ as well as the garden! ~~~ it is totally intoxicating ~~~

A pink osteospermum with a tiny, seeded grass ~~~

My dwarf clematis is not doing very well this year, hardly any flowers, they are much smaller than last year's flowering, which was quite magnificent.  They are also much more grey and the stripe is more defined I think. I am wondering if this is some sort of balance, after last year's all out effort ~~~

The herb Feverfew {in the background} is growing madly and I'm sure there will be much weeding and transplanting of seedlings next Spring, for it is prolific ~~~

Buttercups and Daisies are full the lawn ~~~ I have not mowed for three weeks, can't you tell?  I will be doing this job, which I really do not like, tomorrow evening as it is long overdue and with rain coming in towards the end of the week it is a job that needs to be out of the way ~~~

Here is a tiny jewel of a treat ~~~ an alpine strawberry ~~~ I have many hundreds of these plants that I have allowed to run through the borders as they please, for they are a great ground cover and weed suppressor and a tasty treat for the gardener going about her jobs, to find a tiny red morsel of sweet delight ~~~

The raspberries are nearly ready, in fact I picked my first one today and promptly ate it, forgetting to take a photograph to share ~~~ it was slightly under~ripe, but I could not help myself!  The few blackcurrants that have come this year may yield enough for one pie, which saddens me that there will not be jam for the Winter, for I value it for it's Vitamin C content as it makes a delicious warming and comforting drink with lemon and whisky if I catch a cold.  The gooseberries, too, are very nearly ready, almost ripe enough to pick so I shall check them daily now.  Things are moving as Summer days are with us, but remember that ~~~

 ~~~A Gardener's Work Is Never Done~~~

 

 

Just Sayin'

Gentle Reader~~from a cold and windy west Wales this morning, where white clouds scud across a blue sky, and grey clouds with threats of impending downpours roll in from the Atlantic.  My coffee is hot and strong and I am slowly waking up!

I am considering a few changes to this blog. I might even modify the title.  Don't be alarmed!  You see, over on Facebook land, I write passages of prose quite frequently and those of you who are not over there cannot read what I am writing.  My FB friends and followers all seem to like what I do, and I would like to share it with you.  I also enjoy sharing recipes ~for I am a self confessed foodie~ although my recipes are of the hit and miss ilk that go 'a handful of this, a pinch of that' it is still fun; I also enjoy crafting and sharing some of my simple makes.  I started out here with the good intentions of a gardening blog, but find myself wandering, wondering, and pondering too, further away from wanting to blog about just gardening.

Some of you visit my other two blogs linked here, my primary blog Tales From A Celtic Heart and my fun teddy blog  The Adventures of Treasure Bear and Other Animals both of which are now equally neglected from my blogland identity crisis!

I've had a few technical problems, and I know some of you have had the same, issues like not being able to put up your photographs, which I must admit has stopped me from posting.  My computer is also slow, sometimes quick, sometimes slow, sometimes nothing at all as it freezes more solid than an Arctic Winter!

I tried setting up a new blog, consolidating all three blogs on to one new page but Wordpress is hard work for my computer and I have decided to stay put.  Goodness only knows the changes in the last few months that Google has made have left me spinning more than the tin top I played with as a child~~~and that did some spinning!

So, I think it is time to just go with the flow, blog what I want to blog and not try to be so purist, when being purist means all I get to do sometime is re~hash the same things as last year.   There will still be a lot of gardening, and way too many pictures {but I do so love photography} but more variety, and I hope more regular posting and everything will always be a work in progress!

There you have it!  I dashed out this morning to get a couple of shots of things before the rain comes in, a lovely white foxglove {which is confusing me, but more on that next time} and the return of my lovely dwarf verbascum! 

I hope you will stay with me as I make these changes, and who knows, maybe a few more will join us in the Garden in The Shire?

Until next time ~~~

~~~A Gardener's Work Is Never Done~~~

Some Very Good News

Gentle Reader~I have been absent for a while, three weeks, and I am sorry. You must think I have forgotten you.  I have not, but I have been keeping up with bits and bobs over on Facebook, on A Garden In The Shire page, but have neglected my blog ~~ I think the reason is that, as things slow down there is not much to write about.  I have been distracted by family matters, and I am also not wanting to do too much in the way of heavy work until I am certain my back is up to it. Also, my computer is struggling to cope, and I fear it will now be a while before I can replace it. Anyway, this will bring you a little update.

As the blog title suggests, there is some very good news, but I am going to hold that back until the very last moment! Oh! I am such a tease, but there we are! On with other news first~~~

There have been bags and bags of leaves to sweep up!  Oh, my have there been leaves.  These are all swept up into big bin liners, holes poked in the bottom for drainage and left in a corner where in a year or so they will have metamorphosed into beautiful, rich, crumbly leaf mould for the garden.  At the moment though, there is a slight problem.  We have a badger who is tearing the bags apart, presumably in a search for worms.  Not only that, but he, or she, is digging big holes in the lawn!  I shall have to work out what to do, but no harm will come to the badgers, I would rather put up with the holes in the lawn than hurt those lovely creatures.

I have started taking pictures of the sky again, from time to time, especially when something catches my eye, like this big, squiggly shaped cloud ~~

Or, yesterday evening, when after the greyest of grey days the rays of the setting sun set fire to the sky above and we were treated to one of nature's brilliant, bright displays~~

But I also like to see the paler skies too~~

Earlier in the week, I played a little magic trick on my Facebook page with these two photographs~~now you see it, now you don't~~for these were the two views from the bottom of my muddy lane looking out across The Shire~~isn't nature wonderful, perfectly hiding the rocky outcrop in mist, as if erased by some giant hand from above, only to put it back a short while later~~

There have been quite a few sunny days, and surprisingly the butterflies, which have been absent most of the summer, arrived in force.  Here are some lovely Red Admirals sunning themselves, making the most of the last warm days of the year before they hibernate until Spring~~

Here is a close up of this quite beautiful British butterfly~~

 

 The days have been sprinkled with dew, making chains of gossamer beads across the webs that scatter across the garden, and this one is a pretty backdrop to a spray of rose hips.  The Frances E Lester rambler has now set it's seed, and the hips are swelling and ripening well.  I hope the entire bush will soon be covered in such clusters, for that will make a very pretty picture.  Here, for now, is one such cluster~~

Late last year, I discovered, growing in between some paving stones, what looked like a small rose seedling.  Now, I have never seen a rose growing from a seed, but sure enough, earlier this year I found it again, only this time much bigger.  I resolved to move it, for it cannot be left to grow where it is, partly because I do not know how big it would grow, and partly because it is on the path. Before I had the chance to move it I hurt my back and could not bend, so the rose has grown much bigger. 

 

Last week, I managed, with much struggling, to get it out from its comfortable nook and I potted it up in some fresh compost with lots of rooting gel and other root~growth compounds and so far it looks quite happy in its new home.  This is about a week after the transplanting work was done ~~~

 

 

The courgettes have continued to harvest and give up their bounty long after I would have expected this year, and after a late start they have given plenty~~here are the last ones, sizzling in my cast iron griddle pan, in oil.  I later enjoyed them tossed in a delicate sage butter~~

 

 

The big, rosy red hips on the rosa rugosa give a glorious splash of colour, and later in the year they will help to feed the birds too~~ 



 

During the days I have not been clearing and tidying, I took a little walk around the cathedral and wandered into the Secret Garden, the healing garden around the back of the building, half hidden from view, and only known to those that stumble across it, taking the time to turn a corner and look.  There I found this mysterious doorway, half hidden by the planting around the edges and growing across~~

 

 

I love it, the mystery, the magic, the wondering if my grandfather ever stepped through this door during his time as caretaker of the magnificent and ancient building and grounds~~

 

Well, Gentle Reader, I promised some very good news, and here you shall have it!  Do you remember the dreadful state of affairs when my well meaning neighbour cut down my hedge, in particular the Elder trees?  Well, just the other day I found some tiny green shoots, miraculously shooting and regenerating from the stubby remains!  Here they are~~

 

I hope you are as thrilled as I am to see this!  Isn't nature wonderful?  I will monitor their progress carefully now, and make sure no one gets close to them with a machete again!

~~~A Gardener's Work Is Never Done~~~

 

 

Oh! Silly Silly Me ~~~

Gentle Reader~have you missed me?  I am nursing an injured back (again!) and everything is either impossible or painful.  Some of you know I suffer with this from time to time, and about ten days ago I had a warning shot.  Instead of listening and taking things easy, I decided that I, maybe, wasn't feeling that bad after all and was fully capable of transplanting my lettuces.  At this point, strike out 'capable' and insert 'incapable'~~~the rest is history!  Needless to say, I was anything but capable, and after 30 minutes on hands and knees weeding the spot and transplaning the lettuces, complete with mini cloches (aka those large plastic beer glasses you get at functions and parties) for protection from slugs I struggled to get to my feet and hobbled home.  Since then, I have had no choice but to listen to my back as it recovers very slowly and I hobble around on two sticks~~oh! dear!

The weather has changed, our heatwave gone, and temperatures are now in the mid~60's, so much more bearable.  The last few days are more a return to normal with brisk breezes and rain!  In one way I am deeply grateful because the rain is doing the watering for me, for there is no way I could lug a watering can for at least the next few days again as I recover.  As even siting here is not comfortable, I am going to cheat a little and copy and paste some of what I shared on Facebook last week~~~

On August 1st, I wrote~~

 

the day dawned much the same as yesterday, but as Fog seems to be a new, primary feature in today's weather, I will tell you how deeply I miss the sound of the fog horn that used to boom out from the South Bishop's rocks. Technology is a wonderful thing, and I am deeply grateful for much of it, but when GPS and other new~fangled devices replaced the fog horn, some things, in my opinion, are a step too far. There was something deeply comforting with that sound, booming out from the sea fog, letting us know that seafaring men on their ships and their boats had warning of the reef and rocks, which in an instant could bring tragedy. Men manned the Trinity House building, perched precariously upon the rock in the middle of the ocean, and men took responsibility for the safety of other men. It was a part of childhood, of growing up, just as much as my love of gardening took root in my being as I played in safety in the garden that in decades long past was tended by my Great Grandfather~~~fog without a foghorn is like a garden without a gardener.
The only jobs for this gardener today will be a little tidying up, some dead heading, and clearing leaves that have fallen. Fallen not because it is Blissful Autumn, but because they are dried and shrivelled from lack of rain which came too late, so they just gave themselves up to the wind. Now, they litter my lawn and patio, a coverlet of brown, and must be swept up soon into bags to make rich leaf mould for future years.

 

and this is how the sky looked, late one evening, after the fog had lifted

 

 

and on July 30th I wrote~~

 

ah! the wonders of technology, as my laptop languishes in the land of the lost, I found my ancient, trusty Dell which, with a few gentle persuasions, is now functioning and allowing me to be connected to the 21st century while I find someone to attend to the sickly laptop.
The next challenge I face is to attempt to bring the photographs I downloaded yesterday here, for they are of big, wonderful skies that rolled across a wide blue sky, behind distant hills, and away beyond the far horizon. The skies were spectacular, and I do hope to bring them to you soon. I will not give up.
This afternoon, reading ahead on the forecast, I have picked yet more raspberries, an urgent task, for heavy rain is forecast and I do not want to leave ripe berries on the cane. The joy of picking such fragrant, ripe, and delicious jewels from the garden is without compare, and later there will be jam for tea~~~a gentle reminder of the warmth of summer days in the depths of darkest winter. Of course, a few get greedily devoured while the picking happens~~~it wouldn't be fruit picking otherwise!
This evening, the salad was supplemented with two of my favourite garden ingredients~handfuls of fresh, vitamin rich parsley and some peppery nasturtium flowers that add colour as well as flavour. Pudding, as you may have seen on an earlier post, was a dish of home grown, home made gooseberry crumble. Oh! I have waited three years for a decent crop, and this year the reward for patience came at last! I am full and satisified tonight!

 

Here, Gentle Reader, is a photo of a big bowl of that delicious crumble~~~

 

I am afraid dead heading must wait, and the grass is growing on the lawn but that will have to wait too for a mow.  For now, I must be happy that the much hoped for pink Oriental lilies have bloomed.  I do wish they had bloomed before the rain came, or waited until after it had passed, but somethings we cannot manage.  Here they are, I do so love them, and they are well worth waiting for~~~

I am sorry there are no more photographs or words today, but remember that ~~~   

~~~A Gardener's Work Is Never Done~~~

An Image~heavy Day~

Gentle Reader, before I begin, I just want to say Croeso! Welcome, to those of you who follow me here, on my Facebook page, and on Twitter.  I am new to Twitter, and it is all a bit beyond me, but I am giving it a go!

At the moment, the garden is bobbing along as I get through the summer months, but very shortly I hope that some serious moving of plants and organisation or the future of the Garden In The Shire will begin! For now though, I am enjoying looking at all the wonderful blooms I have in my borders and pots. 

The heatwave has ended and the weather returns to comfortable, warm days.  We had rain overnight and some short, sharp showers today.  Some of the more delicate blooms suffered, but I think most will recover in a few days, benefiting from the cleansing, refreshing rain.  The lawn already looks much happier and I am amazed at how quickly the parched ground is sprouting green shoots!  I think the mower will be out for a trip very soon.

Now, as I promised, very few words and an image heavy update.

First, a little corner as it was in Spring~

and then it grew some~

And here is a little video of how it is now~

Frothy Alchemilla Mollis~the alchemist's favourite dew catcher~and an all together useful plant for filling in the borders, smothering weeds, and making a pretty addition to any posy or flower arrangement~

The firework~explosion of an allium Christophii gone to seed~ 

Audrey II ~ or a large, oriental lily bud, depending on your sense of humour~

Bramble flowers, soon there will be blackberries for pies and jelly~

 Three cultivated foxgloves in peachy pink, purple pink and creamy white~

 

Ladybirds are few and far between this year, but here is one on my white lavender angustifolia~

I love the spikes of this white lavender, how it sways in the breeze, a perfect summer plant~

Brightly bold, the oriental lilies make a vibrant splash of colour~

I love the centre, all those tiny grains of pollen giving texture, and fragrance calling to the bees~

A tiny hover fly pecks at pollen fallen on the leaves~

a macro shot makes me think of the work of a favourite artist, Georgia O'Keeffe~

Early morning dew drops~

Bright orange lily, purple stamens, and pink rose~such contrast, such colour~

Early one morning, I was up before the moon had gone to bed~

Considered by many as a weed, but a beautiful weed indeed~Morning Glories in the border~

A favourite of mine, a pair of Mullein thapsus {Great Mullein}

Pretty pansies, everyone's favourite garden bloom~

Look at those little pirate faces~who can resist?

A pink rose grown from a cutting~

and a lovely, fragrant Whetman pink I bought last year~

a small posy of Whetman pinks, with lavender, Alchemilla Mollis, oregano, and a Ruby Wedding rose~

the rosa rugosa is filling out at last~

Ruby Wedding rose  with Alchemilla Mollis~

A late rosebud on the Frances E Lester rambler~

Ruby Wedding rose (taken indoors without a flash)~

Pink roses against a twilight evening sky~

The flowers of Verbena bonariensis are a certain draw for butterflies and bees, and loved by goldfinches for the seeds in winter months~

Gentle Reader~as promised, many images, few words~until next time when I shall tell you of the soft fruits I am cropping~

~~~A Gardener's Work Is Never Done~~~