Reading

I had a small harvest today, the potatoes,  carrots and runner beans we had for lunch, the raspberries we ate with ice cream. Tomatoes were chopped and frozen. My cut flowers bags suffered in the hot summer, I'm surprised to have any to cut.

Another book in the DCI Pat Lennon team, a young teenager is murdered, then a second girl is found, they are linked but how? A clever plot into a world the police and myself did not know, no super heroic stuff, just peeling away layers, I do enjoy these characters created in these books. Book 71 read this year. 

Two timelines, one where she is recovering from a head wound after a suspected burglary, she is in a rehab centre, trying to peirce things together, and her story up to the shooting, I always love this author. Book 72 read this year.

This story is happening around the village of cheddar, including the world famous gorge, sheep are slaughtered, a man attacked and a girl abducted, are they linked and how, a realistic plot of police work, how things can be missed, how breaks happen with the smallest of information. Book 73 read this year.

Another new author for me, set in Stoke on Trent, not a place I have visited, a clever plot along side her own story, I guessed just before half way one one the twist, and later the murderer, neither spoilt the plot, the ending is open, there are other books in this series.  Book 74 read this year.

Second book in the series, whilst investigating a double murder, Kate is also hunting dirty police, officers with higher rank than her, again I guessed the first twist, it did not spoil the plot. Book 75 read this year. 

Saturday was another grey day, we had rain again overnight, I popped to sit with Will and George whilst Molly went to a birthday party, Will told me about his recent school trip, a couple of days away, he missed home at bedtime but enjoyed the rest. Daughter has had more alarms added to her house, alerts on the front door and Georges bedroom window, George is very quick to escape if he can, he can now already master the dead lock previously fitted to her door. There are flood alerts under the sinks in each of the bathrooms, he has a fascination with water and has flooded the family bathroom a few times.

Later we went out for a meal with daughter to celebrate our 40 year anniversary and her recent birthday, we ate at a local Thai restaurant, it was our first time, daughter had been before, we caught the bus in and taxi home, we were back just before 10pm.

We needed to tidy our spare room, and empty the wardrobe space, we have a visitor later this week, it is good to sort inside the wardrobe as it had become a dumping ground for bits, they have now found homes or will be sent to charity shop. I did put the new Christmas tree together to ensure it was all OK, it's now packed into the attic.

It's really good to see everyone's post on my feed again, the side bar on my blog is not updating, I can live with that, plenty of catching up to do.

Red warnings

The yellow roses are blooming, these I purchased 16 years ago, they are pure sunshine, the climber by the garage has slowed down, it will pick up again once the temperature drops. There are buds on my red rose in the big grey pot.

I have allums in 3 spots in the garden all blue, they are just starting to open, for a while I did focus on just white or blue plants.

Another bunch of sweet-peas, again popped into the bathroom, their scent fills the room.

Lilly is still outside more often, she is not keen on our tower fans, this spot behind the high raised bed is always in shadow, and cool, I often find her here, she is drinking loads, I check her throughout the day, we are not concerned about her. Every day I change the water for the birds, we have different spots around the garden, I often see Lilly drinking there.

I have read this author before, another good plot, your daughter goes missing on a shopping trip, is it linked to your husband's past, the focus is on the adults until the middle of the book when the daughters plight is revealed. Book 44 read this year

Some unwanted excitement in our village on Thursday morning, we missed it all, our local facebook page is full of it as is the local newspaper. 

We spent Wednesday and Thursday hibernating inside, in this heat the sunroom is unusable after 10am, if there is a breeze we can sit under our parasol, we did nothing, went nowhere. Housework was ignored as are other little jobs, all can wait, we are eating loads of salads, drinking pints of cold water. I am watering pots and edibles most nights, the flower beds have dence planting so there is less evaporation, having less bedding plants does help. Our hedgehog has been visiting again, Lilly now ignores it, it can get to water, I'm not feeding it, hopefully it's eating slugs and snails.

Daughter kept her three home on Wednesday, Molly's eczema is flaring, George can't cope with the heat, and Will is exhausted, the schools shut on Thursday, all sensible, they stayed cool and avoided the boiling car journeys, Friday they have a half day, so they can play in paddling pool all afternoon,  it's in a good shady spot.

Green all round

 

It's sweet pea time again, I adore these blooms, I did not plant as many as last year, probably a mistake, still they keep our downstairs bathroom scented, and look good in this tiny bottle.

I thought after the heatwave and then the cold spell my cucumber plant looked poorly, I took off all the tiny sprouting cucumbers to help the plant, now I have loads of lovely new growth, the tomatoes behind are doing well, just a bit slowly, soon we will have our first tiny harvest. The second veg bed has runner beans growing up the poles and some lupins, I am hoping will grow. 

My salad bed here in the tall raised bed is producing, we have been eating various lettuce for weeks, any messy bits go to our neighbours chickens. My radishes and spring onions are not doing well, they were old seeds, lesson learnt, I will get new seeds and resow.

My blueberry plant has loads of new growth, I did cut it back hard, the berries grow on second years stems, so fingers crossed for next year, it does love this spot, it has more room here, still not quiet enough, but I will work with the space I have.. 

I had a sleepover on Thursday night, both little ones were happy for me to do their bedtime routines, giving mummy a restful evening, on Friday daughter and I popped to IKEA, nothing much required, we both just got a few bits and pieces, we then went to Whitley for lunch at M&S, then we popped into our favourite shop, again just a few bits purchased.

Saturday is a day at home, it is cloudy, much cooler to start with and a dampness in the air, I'm not complaining, I watered the garden last night, I expect the rain is falling to the north of our area. I've no plans, just let the day roll, housework should be done, but won't get done, it's not dirty here just dusty. We are preparing for a BBQ tomorrow, little people have booked their menu, including sausages on a stick.

Washed out

 The weather is horrible, high winds, thunderstorms, hailstones, our garden has been battered, we have had a few coffee mornings in our sunroom with the doors shut, Lilly has often sat inside with us. It's very still and quiet inside, really enjoyable, the garden has not been damaged, just petals blown off roses and poppies. 

I pick strawberries every other day, the tiny bags protect the fruit, as does not growing them on the ground, there are enough uncovered for the bugs and small birds and mice. Another cucumber, again not full size, the plant seams very happy outside as does both my tomato plants. A few more sweet-peas, these are growing faster. We used the berries in an Eaton Mess, it was yummy. 

Last year I purchased 3 gaura plants, the white one planted in my side bed has not come back this year and one of the pink ones is looking iffy, I already have a cutting growing taken last year it's already in a pot, I'm not sure of these  colours, they just in water are growing strong roots, hopefully more plants. I adore these plants and their tiny flowers and hope to have more in other beds.

It's been a week at home, just too wet to go anywhere, Monday I did more pottery painting with daughter and her three, they all had an inset day off from school. Thursday we had our dental checks, we had planned to go into town, but just too wet.

Friday we planned a day out, we were both getting stir crazy from being inside so much, we did not stay out too long, neither of us get any delight in cruising arounds shops just having a look, it was a dry day. We decided not to hang around to have lunch out, later we sat in our summerhouse, lovely sunshine, out of the wind.

Our plans this weekend has changed, we were going home to Somerset, but my tummy issues have gotten really bad, I have a doctors appointment early next to week. My brother who we always stay with is also ill, which helped shape our decision, neither of us wanted to put on him or even get his bugs. My sister is getting married to her long term partner, she is not happy with me but it can't be helped, the journey is 3 hours each way and I'm just not up to it.

Some you win

 First pickings of strawberries, they were very sweet, there are loads more to come, the little net bags are working, I do leave berries on lower level open for the wildlife. 

First of my sweet-peas, all the same colour, I have everything crossed for another good year, the sweetwilliamsare home grown as well.

Just to balance things, my poor hostas, a dining area for snails I keep looking for them, I have given in this season, I will clear the top of the tub later in the year, clearing out as many as I can.

I have ripped out my broad-beans they were covered in blackfly, they are infected every year, for some reason this season they overwhelmed the plants, we did get one meal from them, none in freezer. I could get new plants but I fear the blackfly would come back.

It's not often I show the mishaps in the garden, I do tell you about them, I am OK with things going wrong, plants never returning, I never use chemicals, I'm hopeful as the years pass the eco system in the garden is balanced enough to save most things.

Water is always an issue, often we have long periods of dry weather, I do collect rain water but it's never enough, so I water often. Last year we missed the hose pipe ban, our local water supplier Portsmouth Water is good at amassing vast amounts of water. Yesterday the storms came, so gardens are now soaked and water butts are full again. 

Having a cat keeps other cats away, I do pick up after Lilly most days, locally foxes are a problem, hubby has blocked most entrance points, they can climb over fences luckily they don't here. We rarely see hedgehogs any more, occasionally mice, again luckily we not seen a rat in ages. Pigeons are a pain, I do net my veg beds.

Just being in the garden is so rewarding for both of us, these days there is less work to be done, so we practice the art of sitting and watching.

New life

My pomegranate is coming back to life, I love the colours of these new leaves, hopefully I may get a few flowers on it this summer, I moved the pot last summer and it does seam happy, no signs of any distress, before I kept it trimmed to a lower height, now I will let it grow, it will make a nice backdrop for the seating area, along with my herbs. This plant I grew from a seed, started back in 2017.

I mixed loads of flower seeds and sprinkled them into these two bags, I used these for cut flowers last year, I also have freesias in here as well, most of the seeds should do well it's a warm sunny spot. This for me is proving a successful way to start seeds, the bags protect them from the worse of the weather and snails.

I removed six lupins seedlings from the above bags, I love to grow them, sadly they never return after their first year, these will be useful to fill gaps. The tray at the bottom of photo I have completely forgot what seeds I have sown, I checked with Lens, it can't make it's mind up, could be forget-me-nots or cornflowers, its a case of wait and see.

I also planted some bulbs, liatris spicata, they have tiny flowers on stalks, I put two packs in the back of my square bed last year and nothing grew, so once these are bigger they can go out.

My hubby purchased a plant for our garden, it was market day on Wednesday, the plant stall is good. I made comment I loved these bottlebrush plants and one would go in my pot, which is in a sunny sheltered spot, I had just popped my astilbe in it, but I can place it elsewhere in the garden. As I was deciding hubby paid the man, I'm happy with my latest addition. 

I have been out most days looking for snails, I know where they hide, catching them early helps my crops, I do have beer traps I can use, for now I search by hand, there are not many weeds, I have them under control for the moment. My cucumber plants is growing well, I have 4 tomato plants, hoping for a good harvest this year and loads of lettuce plants at various stages.

I have also purchased another astrantia, it's a pink flower, I do love these plants, I want to dig out my penstemon, it's too big for the spot, plus last year there were hardly any blooms, I also got 20 french marigold plants from B&Q, my own seeds failed germinate. It's truly naughty to purchase more plants, I have plenty growing in the greenhouse. 

It's been a quiet few days, I have hurt my left shoulder, I've had problems since 2010, when an operation left me with nerve damage and a weakness, all I can do is rest, which is not so bad with the sunshine, I do wish the very cool wind would drop, it's nice to work outside but still cool to sit for too long. Today they have promised the wind will disappear, I have high hopes, I have a few jobs to sort in the square flower bed.

Thank you for your kind comments regarding our garden, whilst I do most of the work these days, it's a space for both of us, our refit back in 2023, was the final stage, ensuring its a much easier after 17 years we have done all the hard work, we know what grows here, I am an organic gardener, I use no chemicals anywhere, watching the wildlife gives us as much pleasure as seeing the blooms. I don't regard anything here as work, I'm happiest with a set of snipps in my hand, either deadheading or keeping things in shape.

Spring Blooms

This fruit bed in my veg section is at it's flowering best in spring, I can see the left hand side from my chair in the house, the striking difference between the red hellebores and the yellow of the primroses shine out. There is a small dark hellebore in front of the strawberry tower hopefully it will fill that area.

Further along this bed, the wildlife pond is pretty, I purchased a few pots of small daffodils last year, they had gone over, just 50p per pot of four, they have all flowered again this year. The grasses are all loving this area. 

My reduced hellebore has flowered, lovely white blooms, the second plant at the end of the raspberry bed I have had for a few years. I can't wait for the white blooming plant to get to a bigger size. 

I have six different blooms from hellebores, I have only grown them in the past few years, they are a firm favourite in my section of the garden, I have another 2 plants growing in the flowerbeds, and 2 more smaller babies, I am hoping hubby might like them in his garden. 

The crocus are beginning to go over, it was nice to see early colour, I have just one clump of snowdrops blooming, I do have another clump which as yet has not bloomed. 

I have cut some damage daffodils, I prefer to see them outside, once the stems are damaged they suffer and the blooms lay on the soil.

Tuesday and Wednesday I spent a few hours outside, just pottering, working in the greenhouse and enjoying dry days, we have had more dry time than rain this week. I sorted my first early potatoes, they are planted in two bags, I have some second earlies to chit, and some shallots, all to be grown in bags. My two bags for cut flowers are ready, I will sow a few mixed seeds in each, in hope they all grow. In the veg beds, my leeks are still small I will leave them a bit longer, my broad beans are starting to flower I always grow an early variety, I have a few cabbages doing well, and my Japanese onions are looking good. We had our last portion of last year's runner beans with our tea, I hope to be able to freeze more things this summer. 

I opened all the windows today, good to have fresh air circulating around the house, our laundry on the line dried. Lilly is spending all her time outside, today a fox on our neighbours sunhouse roof snarled at Lilly, I was close by, it dissappeared when I shouted at it, Lilly did not run away, its a worry, hopefully she will learn to avoid that part of the fence.

Enjoy the weather this week, it's our first sign of spring, gardeners call it fools spring, still far too early to plant out anything.

I get instant cheer from working outside, this winter has been hard on me, so many bugs and absolutely no energy, I am fed up with looking at the rain through our windows. I should not complain, we have had no snow and we are safe from flooding, our home is warm and safe, March can be a hard month here along the south coast, I have everything crossed it will be mild and dry. 

Flowering

 Just one last bloom, stunning. 

More buds on plant in bathroom. 

Homegrown daffodils, 

 these from the front garden, the wind and rain had battered them.

A sneaky purchase at Tesco.

I have read this author before, the plot was very deliberately slow, it took me longer to read, the plot opened up the life of a recluse artist after her death, there wasn't a dramatic twist, everything was revealed throughout the plot. Book 14 read this year.   

Another author I like, set in Ireland, a boy is dead, another charged with his murder, the dead boys friends are all sticking to the same story, DCI Reynolds is asked to have a second look. I enjoyed the plot, nice twist at the end. Book 15 read this year.

Friday turned into a good day, car passed MOT with no issues, it was dry whilst we were in town, I had previously sorted my jewellery box, I have so much I don't wear and daughter did not want any of it, so I took some to a pawn shop, £360 for gold, £35 for silver.

Saturday was dry, so an hour outside in the garden, I had to redo the netting on one veg bed, Lilly had found a way in, did a bit of cutting back, and a general tidy around, as always it felt so good to be outside. The automatic greenhouse window opened for the first time this year, it was warm inside. I've a couple of huge pots which are empty, I would like to use them in the front flower section of the garden, I have enough plants for them, I hope to swap out a few smaller pots, they have been increasing over the winter. 

We got some Chinese dishes from Tesco which we heated at home for our tea, opened a bottle of prosecco, again we re-used our cards, it's the 5th year, no flowers or gifts to each other. We did get red tulips and a card for the little ones to give their mum, daughter was happy.  We read most of the evening, only watching The 1% club on TV, which we love.

Sunday back to rain, it was dark and grey from the start, it did not stop raining, so a day inside, I did some more on my 2025 book, a bit of knitting and more reading. It's half term here, so we will have days with children, all three have separate hospital check ups on different days, so mummy will drop the others here on the way. 

Weekend

 Daughter and children sneaked into the house on Friday and decorated for our home coming on Saturday, it was a lovely surprise, the last time I had balloons was 10 years ago, we took a few to their house so they could play with them. The '70' balloons are in our office Lilly was getting herself tied up in the strings. 

I did get a lovely bunch of flowers, I've not received fresh flowers in ages, they do brighten up the sitting room, I stopped buying fresh flowers a few years ago, the cost and the fact they are not grown in UK, being the main factors. 

Sunday we all went out for a meal to a local pub where George is comfortable, they do a lovely roast dinner, which I had, afterwards we had chocolate birthday cake, daughter got a 'freefrom' dairy so both George and Molly could have some, we left the rest of the cake for them. 

We have done very little since we came home, Lilly behaved at the cattery and came for a cuddle when she saw me, she has been in luxury, there is underfloor heating in the cages, she was snug, I tried to keep her in on Saturday night, there were loads of fireworks, she yowled so hubby let her out, later she slept on my lap for ages.

No plans for the coming week, rest and relax, I have a ton of leaves to pick up, my acer is almost bare and the magnolia is slowly dropping it's huge leaves, the rest of the garden is looking after itself. We are off to Lidl's this morning to fill the fridge, it's raining hard so rest of the day will be inside, probably chatting on the phone with my sister. Laundry is all done, cases are packed away, it's just memories now, and what great memories I have. 

Family time

 We had all three children on Tuesday, just a few hours, we decided once mummy got here we would have a BBQ, we don't use it so often, it's too big for just the two of us, the little ones loved it. So many toys and laughter, it was a lovely afternoon, we picked raspberries and tomatoes, the raspberries have all been ate.

To give Will and mummy time together, whilst Molly was at pre-school Wednesday and Thursday we had George on a sleep over, Will can have plenty of him time, doing things which is not possible with his siblings. George as always was so good, he loved sleeping in 'Wills' bed, and slept later. We always have loads of watermelon for them to eat, its a healthy treat, George has been very good with his glasses, I'm hopeful he is going to wear them regularly. 

Will has just been given reading glasses, he does not need them all the time, he will also help George wear his more, having said that George is wearing his when using his tablet, he should be OK wearing them at school. Will chose his own frames, they suit him.

More cut flowers from the garden, the asters are now flowering, my two bags of plants are doing well, the only issue I have is keeping water in the soil, so next year I will use two bags to slow the flow. These blooms last of ages, it has been a success for me. 

It's been a lovely week so far, having so many family times makes us both happy, tired but still happy, whilst allowing daughterto relax as well.

George played outside most of the yesterday with Lilly close by, our cat does love the little ones. We got a small set of goal posts, so lots if football, my poor plants took a few hits, he helped in the garden, so therefore ate most of the ripe raspberries. Today we have very few plans, just ensuring George has a good time.

Our plans for tomorrow, we are all meeting at Lee on the Solent, which is a small resort along the south coast, like most resorts its family friendly, with a pebble beach and a gentle water's edge. We aim to have fish and chips for the adults and probably sausage and chips for the youngsters, its should be loads of fun.

Winning and losing

 Back in March I got two packets of these bulbs for the back of the square bed, which should have given me 18 plants, sadly I can only see one bulb growing, it's a common issue in my garden, I plant bulbs and they never appear, some of it will be to do with the clay soil, it does rot bulbs.  

On the plus side I found a sprouting walnut in my raised veg bed, I potted it on in hope it would grow, it's really looking healthy, I will keep it in a pot for as long as I can, then I will pass it on locally, I do love free plants.

This is my first time growing butternut squash, I only have one fruit, there were two but one shrivelled and died. It's growing in a big pot, so probably not enough nutrients to grow loads.

These are my first asters from my grown to cut bag along with a few zinnias, both are growing well, I have loads in my flowerbeds which I don't cut.

My tomatoes in the greenhouse have really failed, I do believe it is the compost primarily, but the heat has not helped, my cucumbers got to set a couple of flowers and died as well. My carrots are slow, and a couple cauliflowers have gone to seed. Having the blueberry tub in with the raspberry bed is just too crowded, I already have a spot to move the tub to.

One of the biggest wins this year are soft fruits, strawberries, raspberries and blackberries are huge and juicy. My rhubarb has given us loads, I stopped pulling it early July. My new gooseberry bush is filling out, so I will let the fruit form next year.

Every year there are mixed results in the garden, our changeable weather is always the biggest issue, so every year there are winners and losers, luckily I get enough wins to keep me happy. What are your results.