Trivial Gardening Thoughts

It was sleeting again first thing this morning but cleared up enough for me to get out and and do more gardening. I'm getting on with the weeding simply because I want to get that job out of the way before I have to start mowing and strimming. Romas did that job for me last year but I doubt if Linas will be so willing to help. I also want to get all the basic maintenance done and over with so that I can spend my time in the scree garden which is my favourite part of the garden. It needs tidying too and then I can complete the building of the steps up from the drive. Both Romas and Linas started the job but gave up when it didn't prove as easy as they thought it would be. By mid-day things had warmed up enough for the frogs to be active. Their croaking sounds like many tiny motorbikes revving up in the pond. I was working nearby weeding the steps up to the terrace. I originally built those steps from large rocks which I had found around the property and over the years the spaces between the rocks had become overgrown. My plan had been to grow alpine thyme between the stones so that they would give off their scent as you walk up the steps. Unfortunately despite putting in plenty of gravel and adding good soil the underlying clay makes conditions too wet and the thyme did not survive. I then tried low growing Corsican mint but that didn't last either. Now that we know we will be selling up eventually I'm just trying to get the garden tidy with the minimum of effort and cost so I'll probably plant some of the Mind-Your-Own- Business which I've already got growing at the top of the garden. It's not scented but should provide green cover. Sitting for several hours digging out weed roots, (I was being thorough and lifting the stones to clear out everything), really makes you focus on little things .... like weed roots ! Today's mix was grass with easily seen and removed runners and yarrow. It's only a small green weed but the roots are the same colour as the soil and are the type that get fatter at the bottom. If you are not careful when you pull them out they break and will grow back from the piece left in the ground. That's where my handy screwdriver came in useful once more. Oh what an exciting life I lead !

After lunch I needed to go and buy some milk. I've been trying to cut back on my frequent trips to the supermarkets and to start using up more of the food already in the house but there was no more milk in the freezer for tea or anything. It annoyed me to be driving out for such a small thing but I took some stuff to the dump as well and collected the recycling box , (the green thing on the grass), before somebody stole it. They're quite useful boxes and I've had several stolen already. You get them free from the council but it takes a few phone calls to get a replacement. They did also hand out wheelie bins, just how did they think I was going to get that up half a mile of hill, and 2 neat caddies with lids for our kitchen waste. As as our food waste goes either to the cats or the hens I didn't need them and gave them to Kate B to keep her guinea pig feed in. When I got to the top of our drive they way was blocked by some workmen who were using it to park in. However I couldn't be too annoyed as they were repairing some of the enormous holes that had appeared in the road after the bad weather. One pair of large pot holes were at least 6" deep with just enough room for a car to drive between them so I'm glad they have been filled in.
There were a few patches of sunshine lighting up the coast and I had planned where I would stop on my way back to take photos but the clouds closed in and the day stayed boringly grey.

No Wax In My Ears.

The pictures are from yesterday, a selection of the many forms and colours to be found at the beach. I could while away the whole day just looking at the natural beauty there and watching the waves.

Slabs of slate in a gully.
Paint splashes of lichen.

The power of water meeting immovable rock.

Streaks of algae glistening on rock.

We had a lot of rain last night and the day started damp and dreary. I had an appointment in the morning for the nurse to syringe my ears . I had tried listening to my MP4 player and thought that one of the ear pieces wasn't working. I even replaced them before realising that it was my ears that were the problem. However when the nurse looked into my ears the drops I had been putting in to soften up the wax had worked so well that my 'deaf' ear was almost totally clear and so she only did the other one. She did recommend that I used olive oil rather than the drops because they have been known to cause eczema in the ears so I poured away the drops and refilled & relabelled the bottle with its handy dropper.

It was dry in the afternoon so I was back outside kneeling in the mud getting grass roots out of a flower bed. I was so tempted to leave it and go and start another job as it takes a long time to clear a small patch but then I won't be able to tick off that job on my list. One more bucket full of roots should suffice for the time being and then I can move onto the next job.

A Gardening Day.

Today is the first day of the half-term holiday. 10 days to really get to grips with the garden. We had spells of sunshine so it was quite pleasant working outside. On of the jobs completed today was cutting back the santolina bushes that grow in the top of the stone wall by the front door. All through the winter they have added interest with their blue grey foliage and sandy button seed heads but now it is time to cut them right back. At the moment they look like a row of spiky hedgehogs but the new growth is already bursting from the buds ready to grow into tidy round bushes.
These celandines are officially wildflowers but I'm happy to let them grow in a rather wet bed providing an early splash of sunshine before the astilbes and alchemilla take over.

After a hard day's graft in the garden it was nice to see a touch of gold in the sky before the sun finally set.

Chilly Morning.

It was even colder this morning with a thick layer of frost on the ground.

Once again the pond was frozen over,

... and the early frogspawn has been hit by the cold.

I opted for some active work outside, cutting down a 15ft willow tree that had been left unattended for 2 years, and getting to grips with more brambles. Being mindful of my back I tried to use brains rather than brawn and made use of a fork, prising underneath and levering from every angle before dragging out those prickly fiends. I now have a very large heap of brambles and twigs ready for burning next week if the weather stays dry.

This afternoon I was back at school with my class of 4 year olds. I am beginning to pick up their names and to know which ones to rein in before they get too boisterous. In this age group we are expected to assess them through observing the things they do and say during child initiated activities so even when playing a little board game with one group I was making notes on other children. One little boy was playing 'mums and dads' in the home corner with 2 friends. He came over to me and told me he was the dad and that he was going to do the ironing (which he did), it sounds like he has a good role model at home.

Despite being rather cold it was bright and sunny today. It is so good to see blue skies.

The sunshine wiped the greyness from the countryside and gave it a golden glow instead.

Brambles Fight Back.

It was rather chilly this morning but even so I had the urge to get out into the garden and do something at least for an hour before I had to get ready for school. I chose the very satisfying and warming task of cutting back and pulling up the brambles growing into the blackcurrant bushes and in the little wild woodland area at the top of the garden. The brambles have got their revenge as my back is twinging from too much twisting and pulling.

My first class at school was another reception class, it is the first time I've taught them and there are a few lively ones in that bunch! That was only for an hour and in the afternoon I was back with my regular Year 1 class. I had completely forgotten that most of the afternoon would be taken up with a theatre company coming in to give a performance of 'Pinocchio'. Unfortunately I ended up sitting right under a loudspeaker. And it was very loud, quite a few children cried and several had to be taken out of the hall to the quiet of the office. The actors were miked up which I think is unnecessary in a small hall with 120 kids, it's so much better when they use their voices properly. The majority of the kids enjoyed it as it was loud pantomime style action but it wasn't the best theatre performance I've seen at school. I got dragged out to the front to perform a silly dance with one of the actors which the kids thought was hilarious. Perhaps it was pay back for the fact that I had to go right from the front to the back of the hall to go out and make a phone call from the office to sort out something that had happened between 2 children. Or maybe even though I was the oldest there they thought that someone who has her hair in plaits and wears bright pink crocs is probably up for a laugh. I didn't mind.

There was quite a pretty sunset this evening. I'm still finding it a bit hit and miss with my sky photos so I take a selection and hope that some are clear. The camera has a landscape setting which I presume gives a greater depth of field but I really ought to read the manual that came with the software. It's just that I prefer to look at real booklet, Luddite that I am.

In general the countryside is looking drab in shades of greyish green and greyish brown. The new leaves usually start to appear in the first week of April. A little sunshine wouldn't go amiss.

More Weeding.

Winter flowering jasmine.

Today was a little colder once more. That wasn't such a bad thing because the rain fell as hail and I was able to carry on working outside for the whole day with plenty of layers under my old gardening coat. I finally got the hillside weeded helped by my secret weapon, a heavy duty extra large 12" screw driver. It is handy for digging straight down to get out the tap roots of things like dandelions but its main function today was removing the heads and roots of bracken in between and often far under the big rocks. Bracken looks so delicate when it is a small seedling but leave it a year or two and it turns into a fist sized lump that seems welded to the rocks ready to sprout massive fronds that cover the garden plants.

The cold kept the frogs quiet for the morning but later in the afternoon a few were croaking. When I walked by the pond there were so many that some couldn't get into the mud quickly and had to freeze hoping I wouldn't notice them even though the water was crystal clear. The first mass of frog spawn has appeared, it probably won't survive as we can get cold spells right up till March.

The jackdaws are still hanging around . I 'shot' at them several times so they kept their distance circling around every now and again to see if I was still there, which I was.

No gardening tomorrow as I've got to go into work mid-morning.

A Frog He Would A Wooing Go.

All week long, as I've been working outside , the frogs have been croaking away in the pond. As soon I wander over to have a look they disappear into the mud with a great flurry of amphibian limbs. Today I crept up the steps and got some photos of them ........ doing what frogs do in the spring. As well as their croaking the air has been full of the sound of bird song; the high pitched chinking of finches, the melodious song of the blackbird and many others & of course the mad quacking of the call duck. My constant presence outside is annoying the jackdaws who keep moving from one side of the house to another but keeping a safe distance so they won't be 'shot'. Once in a while a scout would fly over but there I was , on my hands and knees, weeding on the hillside. How long I wonder before they decide to go and nest somewhere else? It's been another sunny day so I got plenty of work done. In order to motivate myself I wrote a list on my kitchen whiteboard, of all the various tasks that need doing in the garden. By the time I had finished I wasn't so much motivated as horrified by the length of the list. Perhaps it'll be better when a few more things have been ticked off. In general I like lists especially when I can work my way through them. I have this desire to get things DONE but I am very easily diverted from the task in hand so having that goal in front of me does help. Looking forward to an evening of easy tv by a nice wood fire.

One annoying thing today. Along with our letters the postman delivered a card from the Post Office. This card tells us that a letter could not be delivered because it did not have sufficient postage paid. I have to pay the excess on line before they will deliver the letter. The fee for this is £1. And the underpayment was ....... 8p, someone must be a real 'job's worth' to hold a letter back for such a nominal ammount.

A Gardening Day.

It has been sunny and warm today, 10C ! I've spent most of the day gardening and have managed to finish weeding all the heather banks. I'm giving myself a pat on the back for that as I was tempted to work down by the stream in the lovely sunshine rather than on the north-facing hillside. But I resisted and got on with the job in hand. At least I was able to look at blue skies and the sun lighting up the winter foliage in other parts of the garden.

A good thing that I stuck with the job as the early heathers are covered in almost open flowers. Now I will be able to enjoy the full glory of the swathes of purple and white along the hillside. Before we came here I wasn't keen on heathers at all apart from out on the moors but in our wet, soil-less clay conditions they are ideal and I'm so happy to have planted them. They also fit the local conditions as they are not affected by the legions of slugs that inhabit our garden. The rain that had been forecast for the afternoon finally arrived at 5.30, about 5 mins after I had finished for the day.

While I was feeding the hens this morning I saw my neighbour in the next-door meadow by the lake. They have been given another call duck by some people who live about a mile away. Apparently it spent most of yesterday trying to walk home up the hill but today it was at least swimming on the lake with the very noisy call duck and a few wild ducks.

Snow ?

We woke this morning to see the garden white with the hail that had fallen in the night but by the afternoon most of it had melted away.

Up in the hen run this little sparrow waited in one of the apples trees for me to leave so that he could share the corn I had thrown on the ground for the hens. It didn't feel too cold out as there was no wind at all and the sun was shining. It took me a while to get organised to work outside and then I kept getting diverted from my original task of finishing the pond and weeding the heather banks. First I went to put up a new fat ball for the wild birds. This hangs alongside the nut feeder over the stream to stop the squirrel from raiding all the birds' food. Each time I've been out there I've meant to remove some brambles that have appeared and today I finally got round to doing so. Then I carried on and cut back and cleared more brambles growing on the far side of the stream. It's not our land but as it's so close to the house I do have permission to cut back the trees and undergrowth there.

There are several clumps of daffodils there that began flowering at the end of Dec, I can see these ones through the window by my piano in the sitting room. Having cleared most of the brambles that were growing down to the stream I then cut down a 20ft branch of a cob nut tree that was growing picturesquely over the stream but almost reaching the house, (that was with my trusty bow saw).

As I walked around in the stream I was most surprised to see some frogspawn in the flowing water. I expect it had been washed down from one of the small pools higher up the valley. I released it from the stone where it had been caught and let it carry on its journey down to my neighbour's lake. That reminded me that I had planned to do more work at the pond, actually I took my camera to see if there was anything happening up there. No frog or toad spawn but looking down through the clear water there were suspicious movements and bubbles under the pond plants.

There was a thin film of ice over the pond and some clear reflections of the surrounding trees.


I finished off my outdoor work by bringing down and cutting up enough wood for a fire tonight and then doing a bit of weeding before the light started to fade.

Birds.

This morning's weeding session saw the last bit of the pond path cleared of weeds. There is still some grass growing in the water to be pulled out but that will be it for now. In a few weeks I'll cut back the rest of last year's growth from the marginal plants. The alchemilla is a lovely plant but seeds easily so there have been quite a few seedlings to pull out. It always amazes me that a little plant only a cm across will have several inches of roots. I used to look around the local garden centres once in a while for unusual plants and I had to laugh once when I saw pots of alchemilla on sale at £4.50 each.2 eggs today, that's 100% increase in production. At least I should soon be able to stop buying eggs. I could never bring myself to buy battery eggs but free range eggs are not so expensive these days, probably due to increased demand. My hens are such gluttons. Even when their crops are full of corn they wait at the bottom corner of their run to see if I'm coming up with any scraps. When we first moved here I had a little flock that roamed free and they often hung around the front door waiting for us to come out. I have a photo of one hen happily laying an egg in a box just inside the porch.

Right now we are waging war on the jackdaws who plan on building nests in the chimney and loft. The first year it was only one nest, then some of them nested in the lofts (very noisy,) and this year there are at least 12 birds hanging around. One pair build a nest in this chimney (we'll have to warn future owners of this place to sweep the chimney if they plan on using the kitchen fireplace,) and the rest head into the loft. We will put some netting up to block the hole into the loft and we are also gaily taking potshots at them with the boys' air-rifles. We don't actually aim at the birds and it is only plastic pellets that ping off the trees but we hope that they will scare away the jackdaws. Jackdaws are quite clever and now they fly away as soon as we raise a gun to our shoulder. Hopefully they will get the message soon and find somewhere else.
On my way home from school this evening I had another frustrating time trying to get a good photo of a buzzard. I was taking photos through the car windscreen and trying to move a bit closer, first the buzzard flew down the fence and eventually it flew away.

So this was my final photo.

Frosty Morning.

It was rather frosty this morning but as there wasn't any wind it didn't feel that cold. However I did don 2 pairs of joggers and a warm jumper under my gardening coat for my 2 hours of weeding around the pond. I'm pleased with my progress as I've got 3/4 of the way around weeding the path and the edging plants. I finished off by getting into the pond and pulling out a lot of the grass that was growing in the pond. Even with rubber gloves it was mighty cold. Also most of the pond is deeper than my boots so I have to be very careful. I was back at school this afternoon and will have to be in tomorrow morning so that will mean feeding the hens in the dark. The forecast this evening was for low temperatures overnight so being the worrier that I am, I left the car at the top of the hill just in case there is any rain and resultant black ice.
I had less than an hour of light left once I'd got back down the hill so I sawed up some wood so we can have a good wood fire in the sitting room tonight. The central heating is keeping the rest of the house nice and warm and I try not to think about the high cost of heating oil. Roll on some warmer weather.

A Guide To The Pond.

As most of my gardening this week has been around the pond I thought I would set the scene and motivate myself by showing some pictures from last year. The pond was initially a rectangular hole dug into the clay that makes up 90% of my garden. Part of the challenge of this garden and one of the reasons I have given up trying to grow vegetables is that when we first moved here the garden had no top soil but was a series of terraces cut into the clay subsoil. I'm not too sure what happened to the top soil but I think it got buried under the large swimming pool on the highest terrace. I love garden design and it has been interesting creating a garden in these difficult circumstances. (Add in little funds, dodgy back and a family completely uninterested in gardening.)

May - The pond is a perfect circle with concentric rings of planting border, stone edging and gravel path. It sits about a foot below the level of the lawn and the wooden 'cushions' can be moved to take advantage of the sun/shade/views. The pond is filled naturally by water which flows out of the hill behind and enters through 2 stone lined rills. There is an overflow land-drain which takes water from the pond and down under the lower lawn into the stream which runs behind the house.

May, 3 weeks later - The plants are mainly white, yellow, orange or red (there is a blue iris which was too beautiful not to buy,) and attract all manner of darters, dragonflies and beetles. The water teems with life as well, toads, frogs, newts and many other mini-beasts. It is very easy to while away the hours on a 'tea-break' watching the wild-life.

Sept - The pond is almost hidden by the marginal plants.

So now I have given myself a reminder of the how the pond will look later in the year I'll be pushing ahead with clearing the weeds so that I can enjoy watching each variety of plant appear and flower. Gardening is very much my passion but there is also a purpose behind the work. We'll be selling this place one day and the state of the garden will be important especially as you drive through the garden to reach the house. So not only am I nourishing my soul by working outside but I am making a real contribution to our future.

Pond Plant List - white water lilies,

king-cups,

double marsh marigolds,

white skunk cabbage,

wild yellow flag iris,

white water iris,

white edged blue iris,

alchemilla,

yellow lychnis,

cowslips,

creeping jenny,

day lillies,

montbretia,

rannunculus,

typha minima,

and other pondy things.

Back To The Beach.

It was grey at home today but once we had driven down to Woolacombe the sun was shining. From the hills overlooking the beach what seemed like a flock of exotic birds were on closer inspection people enjoying the sport of parascending. If there had been a microlight amongst that lot the chances were that it would have been a local man who flies with one of his golden eagles free-flying alongside him. No sign of him today. Peter and I have been taking every opportunity to get out for walk as once the Open University term starts Peter will be studying and having deadlines for assignments and that will take priority.

We parked above Barricane Beach. We can't wait until that tiny concrete hut opens again as the beach cafe and serves tea in china mugs, (I do dislike paper or plastic cups). In the distance is Morte Point where we walked yesterday.


We went down onto Barricane Beach and picked up a few more shells. The tide was about half-way in so we didn't get a chance to explore the rock pools.

Then we walked over to Combesgate. Right next door to Barricane but very different with pebbles instead of shells and a lot of ground water flowing down off the hills.

Back home I was out in the garden once more. As there is so much to do it is a matter of prioritising. I'd like to get the heather banks sorted as soon as possible. Most of the heathers are winter flowering ones which means that soon the banks will be a mass of colour and it would be a shame to have weeds poking through. But first I have to get the pond tidied up. I like my garden to be fairly natural but although a pond full of rotten last year's foliage might be an ideal habitat for the toads which have already started croaking I do like there to be some element of design and space for my garden plants to show off their flowers. So I had the nasty job of fishing out and cutting the slimy last year's flag iris leaves. And got 1/3 of the path weeded. Hopefully the pond will be done by the end of the week and I can leave it for the wild-life.

Finally, if you're interested in self-sufficiency check out http://www.justofftheonelaneroad.blogspot.com/ . Elora lives on a small farm in West Virginia and grows all her own food as well as making dairy products and has just started blogging.

A Satisfying Day.

The sun has been making a brave attempt to shine today, thank goodness. I've spent the morning working out in the garden. I start every year thinking that it will be the year I do actually manage to get the whole garden weeded before the spring flush of growth and flowers appears but somehow it never quite happens. Last year was especially hard as I was teaching full-time which left me with precious few 'leisure' hours. Today I got to grips with the brambles lurking in the hillside section. Horrible plants brambles, with their habit of rooting each time the shoots touch the ground. It's very satisfying when you pull out an extra long root. I also did some general weeding, raked down the 20 molehills that had appeared on a tiny patch of lawn and dug a ditch down the centre of the drive. Hopefully the rain water that comes down from the road will channel into the ditch and stop washing away the bits we need to drive on.
I thought I heard some clucking from the hen run and when Linas went up to clean out the old wood shavings and put down fresh, a 10 min job he bitterly complained about, he found the first egg of the season. My hens are terribly old and more pets than productive units. If I calculated the cost of all the corn they have eaten this winter this egg probably cost at least £10! Tempted as I was to carry on working outside this afternoon I thought it would be better for my back to do some boring housework and then some work on the pc with the last of the afternoon sun shining through the the full length window that looks out onto the garden.

All Gone.

Last night's torrential rain has cleared away the snow. I walked up the hill to collect the car and there were just a few remaining drifts along the hedgerows in the fields. It was generally quite misty and there was an interesting cloud of mist? rising from the snow at the top of the field. The garden is ringing with the sound of birds, twittering, cawing, whistling etc. Do they think it is spring?
Across the stream at the back of the house the first daffodil which was flowering on the 30th Dec has survived the cold weather. A quick walk around the garden revealed some celandine flowers and a grape hyacinth almost open. Off now to Bristol.

Chocolate With Chilli ?

The few flowers that are left in the garden are looking wet and bedraggled. We're back to the wet and not so cold weather once more. I have finally taken down most of the hanging baskets round the front door as although they haven't been affected by the couple of frosts we've had, there are only a few flowers left on each. Instead I've hung up some windchimes, (bl...y Shagri La mutters Peter when the wind sets them gently chiming).

I got up early, for a Saturday, and Linas and I went into town for a bit of shopping. Instead of heading for the main post office I decided to drive right across town to one of the few sub-post offices left. This was a wise choice as I only had 1 person in front of me in the queue and I know at this time of year the queue in the main post office winds back and forth and is often right out of the door. Despite having made a trip to BF's yesterday Linas persuaded me to drop in again so that he could stock up on his diet lemonade. It is very cheap but I hate buying it because the plastic bottles are heavy and cumbersome.

I did take a few photos inside the store to show the warehouse feel. Nothing like the white gleaming palaces of the big national chains , Tesco's, Sainsburies or even the slightly more downmarket Aldi or Morrison's. I do get a bit nervous taking pictures inside shops because I think that I'll be accused of industrial espionage. If it's a small shop I ask first and only take a few pictures.

These very expensive bars of chocolate have been on display for some time. The exotic flavours, including caramel & sea salt and further along the shelf one with chilli, can't really appeal to the usual BF shopper and the prices at 4 or 5 times even the fanciest chocolate bars would certainly be off putting. If the prices suddenly get slashed I might try some but maybe not the sea salt or the chilli ones.