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.

On the move

 This is an important time of the year, jobs which are completed now will make a huge difference next summer, I'm not talking about closing the garden for winter, that is still weeks away. Just general plant care, noting bare patches, overgrown plants which needs cutting back into their space, generally ensuring things are where they should be. It's also a great time to buy another plant and find a space for it, this is my 3rd Gaura, I have fallen in love with them this year 

 

I follow Dave_the_plantman on Instagram, he is very good with tips and plant identification. He suggested to remove the seed heads from agapanthus, something I have never done before, so I have cleared the seed heads from two areas and left the third. It does make sense as I always stop seed heads forming on my spring bulbs. 

I have moved my pomegranate in the big square tub, its now behind my seating area, it has space to grow taller, and provide a green backdrop. The mint has been moved into the lower old water tub, it sits better here now, I have cut it all down, it will grow back, I have also popped my parsley in the pot, it should sit above the mint, I have protected the base of the pot so mint roots can't get inside. Most of the herb pots are beside the back door. 

This corner now has the red rose in this pot, which had the mint in, I have given the pot a good scrub, I have popped a couple low plants in and some spring bulbs. At the moment it is not looking it's best, but next summer should be as I want, the rose behind I will cut back, so it blooms lower again. The new gaura is planted in the back by the wall, with another recent new plant, Snow Blizzard, both white flowers.

We have a water feature, we had both seen it in The Range, but was not sure, later on our local facebook marketplace, this one was for sale at less than half price, the seller had ordered it online and thought it was too small. Initially we were going to find a feature for the other side of the garage door, but we settled on this one, it does look good from our seating area. The water trickles around the sphere and does not spill, there are lights where the water pumps out.

I have not managed to remove any more pots, I know I still have too many, this 4th heat wave is telling on how long it takes me to water the pots. I have no huge plans forming for next year, just a few tweaks, most of which we will sort in the coming months.

My flower beds are full of colour mainly zinnias and asters, the roses are having a second bloom, the fleabane daisies look good, I've cut them back a couple of times to keep them low. The forsythia is looking good after the move, I'm really pleased with my late summer garden, I'm not a fan of dahlias, so I'm always looking for different later flowering plants.

It's been another few lazy days, mainly with cloudy starts, which has helped to keep the temperatures lower and life bearable, later when the sunshine shines through it's nice to sit in the shade, our garden has become our perfect spot. Yesterday we had no sunshine, hopefully the heatwave is behind us.

Quiet time

 Claire's story, she was abducted at the age of 15, and escaped 10 years later, the story follows two time lines, at the beginning and up to date, sounds horrendous but it's told in a positive way, I really enjoyed this book. Leah is a sequel, 3 years has passed, Claire witness a car crash, and saves the children, therefore becoming involved in the unfolding story, it's not as good as the first book, I still enjoyed it. Book's 57 and 58 read this year.

Another new author to me, it was a good plot but I did not truly enjoy, giving someone a special sight took away so much from the plot, it just wasn't great. Book 59 read this year.

A new author for me, I have seen loads of good things said about this book, once I started I was worried it centered around Peter Sutcliffe, The Yorkshire Ripper, but that soon became a backdrop and not the main story. I loved this book ordinary people living their lives, what goes on behind closed doors. A great book I did not want to put it down. Book 60 read this year.

We were given another 6 eggs this week, as a thank you I pulled a cauliflower which was going to seed for her chickens, the ladies enjoyed their treat, it's nice to be able to return kindness.

It's been a lazy week, hubby has worn various monitors this week, so many appointments to apply and remove them, thank you for your comments, his health is always on my mind, but we do try and get on with things, my main worry is to ensure he does not overdo things. I have been aching most of the week, all those lifts and cuddles with small people takes it toll, I'm not young anymore. 

Wednesday stayed cloudy all day, it got very muggy in the afternoon, we had a thunder storm, not much rain, it did not clear the air. Thursday was a cloudy start, then the blue skies returned, later I went to a local WI meeting, we have two groups in our village, I had been on the waiting list for a while, it was an enjoyable evening, first of many.

Friday we popped to The Range, not been there for a while, hubby is looking for an electric water feature, his barrel is OK, but he's not happy, nothing there we liked so the search continues. We had arranged to meet daughter and children at local beach for fish and chip supper, but it was too hot, so we postponed it until next week, in hope it will be cooler, we enjoyed fish and chips at home. Saturday was cloudy all day with a light breeze, so I spent time outside, I have photos in my next post.

Most evenings have been cooler, we do love to sit outside, by the evening we are in natural shade, whilst the sun still shines on the other side of the garden, often we can smell a BBQ or hear music, sometimes raised happy voices, neighbours enjoying their space, we don't have many young children close by, just the occasional sound of grandchildren visiting. 

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.