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Sunday 9 August 2020

And it begins.

The challenge of the Tunnel.
It is going to be hot but Michael assures me that we will be finished before the temperature soars.
Herbie has had his walk before anybody else was abroad, we still had to stick to the shady side though.

Herbie loves water, puddles, streams, rivers, he has tried to jump in the bath once or twice.
Soooo, we bought a dog safe paddling pool, filled it up once it was sited in a semi shaded spot.
Did he love it?
He had a look, walked round it and walked away. I stepped in it and he followed, walked round, had a drink and got out.
We will leave it in place for a few days and if he still ignores it I will pass it on.

Men!

On a happier note there was a myriad of insects dropping down for a drink. I have a couple of unused containers in the top part of the garden and I think that they will be sunk into the ground and filled with rainwater. Some stones and a bit of wood to allow perching spots, ingress and egress and obviously out of reach of the dogs should be a good addition.
My neighbour has a fish pond with a few fish and now has a visiting lizard. How cool is that, Revi and Poppy have seen it but after an initial bark and bounce session have treated it with distain.

This weather has had mixed effccts on the garden, the blueberries are in full production and I am struggling to keep up with them. The plums are swelling and splitting due to the rain and more have rotted than picked to use. The apples are so loaded that even after thinning I am having to pick some early and prop some branches up.
Courgettes are picked and used at finger size or they rot on the plant and tomatoes vary from huge growth and few fruit to so loaded that I worry they can hold the weight. The cucumbers are full of baby fruits and flowers but slow to produce full size fruits, I see lots of pickles in my future.

The apples that I had to pick will be bottled, canned in the US, tomorrow along with the plums that I rescued. Blueberries are in the freezer ready to make Purple Porridge in the winter. Along with a few fluffy pancakes and the odd muffin or three.

The blueberry bushes have put on so much growth over the past year that I plan on taking cuttings. Soft wood ones from this years growth with no flowers or fruit and some hardwood ones once the plants go into the dormant state. They are Patriot and the fruits are large, sweet and juicy with a wonderful flavour. I hope to have plants to gift next year.

Right, the Time has Come, the walrus said. This time has nothing to do with Lewis Carroll and everything to do with wrestling metal into a sturdy structure.

Keep safe.

                           TTFN                               Pam

PS I may have gone slightly mad on the Fibre Hut website. There could be half a sheeps worth of fibre coming my way. A rainbow of dyed Merino and fibres from a selection of various breed of sheep for me to play with. I also plan on dying some fo my own fleece.
I had a touch of the "greedy mcgreedies", or maybe I am just planning ahead.

10 comments:

  1. It's so lovely to be catching up on your blog I seem to have missed so much, love that you are fostering dogs and I hope all goes well for you I must admit to being green with envy at your garden not having one myself and I miss it so much am hoping to move in the future but as I am still recovering from a stroke am in shelterd accommodation at mo lol, good luck with the poly tunnel and good wishes to you all. xx

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    1. I hope that your recovery is speedy and that all turns out well regarding your proposed move. I would be lost without my garden, it is not large but I can manage it comfortably.

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  2. We put our greenhouse up in June on the hottest day a few years ago, so I feel your pain. You can never have too much stash, well you can, but I'm sure you have not reached that point yet.

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    1. We have the frame up and the door is assembled and attached. Moost of the hot spot tape is on but we ran out. My bad, more is on the way. As for the stash, I have been working steadily through it. This is all fibre though and apart from my fleece I only have a small amount of Jacobs in cream and grey/brown. It is lovely to spin with but I want to try other breeds as well.

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  3. Wow, its sounds like you're having a bumper year regarding your home grown produce. We seriously need rain on the Essex coast.

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    1. Some things are just growing like triffids, others are not so well. It is the same thoughout the village. The cucumbers are covered with small fruit so hopefully I will be bottling pickle eventually. We have had lots of rain but dig down about 9 inches and it's dry, my garden is pretty free draining loam with the odd patch of clay.

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  4. Winter is on the way, as it always is so all your beautiful fleece will be a joy in the nasty cold weather.

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    1. I hope to end up with a rug that can sere as an extra warm blanket or even a bedrunner for the inevitable cold feet nights

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  5. It all sounds wonderful and I am envious of your rain - we need some substantial rainfalls down here.
    xx

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    1. We have had more rain today but the little river is no fuller than yesterday, we may have more on the way.

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