Awful weather - typical Brits talk

Farway

Nice warm day forecast here, blue sky & sunshine

Dusty said Our DD2 and GS were unwell with lurgy, picked up at nursery. So, as on Sunday, Mrs Dusty fetched GS, and we had him, all runny eyes and nose. It's lingering, mine came back yesterday evening, I'd had a good day pottering in the sun, fit as I'll ever be, then mid evening I started sneezing and within the hour I was shivering away. So tablet starting with P and into warm bed. Still a bit weak this morning but the shivers have stopped.

2P, Farway a robin makes a good pet. Doesn't need walking, doesn't take over your chair and cheep in food. I see what you did there 😁I was thinking about getting something to entice him but not encourage rats, glad I bought the half fatty coconuts for them this year, paying off now. he seems tame & unfazed and I think has nest quite close by, hopefully he will be on aphid patrol later in the year

looking like a nice Hog summer ahead for you, and DGC, Dusty

YBE, nice looking toms, bit further ahead than my main ones. My runners on damp paper are looking sorry, a few more days to either rot or grow. I have others should this lot fail

Pre lurgy relapse I cleared some troughs of weeds and fed with BFB. Cunning pan was look in Home Bargains this week when I go for my prescription and see if any thing takes my fancy, apart from some square tubs. The lurgy repeat may change my plans.

The sun is bringing all the blossom on now, apples are pink buds and just waiting to go, the other pears have opened, get pollinating you bees, and last, good old Sunburst is out.

Dustyevsky

Here's hoping the sudden lurgy is already behind you, Farway. 😀Today's going to be scorchio, and perhaps we'll all get out there doing those gardening jobs that have slipped down the list. 😏 Without the incessant wind, there might even be a barbecue at day's end! 🤩

Yesterday, GS sitting put paid to Mrs Dusty's gardening for the 3rd day in a row.😕It also meant me stepping-up to do Mrs Dusty's jobs, though I slunk off to do 'essential' work. 😉 That somehow included washing down a lower section of stream that had become silted-up, thanks to Mr Canute's dam. I had to do it, because the natural water supply is drying-up now, and a hose isn't sufficient on its own. Now the mud by the dam's hardened, I could reach it without sinking, and remove enough debris to get a flow going again.😜

Seeing your pear blossom, reminds me, our plum tree didn't lose all its flowers in the fierce winds, as expected. 😊 I've never seen it bloom so well, either. Could cutting it back somewhat last summer have stimulated it?

The latest hedgehog news isn't very exciting.😔 For a second night, it seems all three hogs refused to leave their houses, though we had a visiting hog, or hogs, on several occasions through the night. 😟 Mrs D will examine the photos in more detail later. With cooking dinner for everyone, we were late out to set the camera and feeding box up, but a bonus was seeing we'd pinched wort's fabulous sunset! 🤣

twopenny

Hope the sneezing shivers have been kick in to touch Farway. Very annoying in good weather. And I love your photo of cherry blossom. You do it much better than me.😛

Good weather for mucking about in streams Dusty. Does your annoying neighbour not care that the stream blocks up? Is he trying to encourage beavers or setting up a fishing pond?

Very envious of the sunsets, rises people have. Despite the glorious weather the most we've had is a wishy washy pink cloud.

Bluey I don't think the jeyes helped. I was overrun with ants climbing the walls and trying to get in the house through the air vents in the patio doors 😵‍💫 it was desperate measures. I sprayed powder over everything and no idea what happened but ended with a mass of dead ants all over the patio. I don't like doing that but you wonder if they have memory because they had eaten their way through mortar and cement and were in the living room the first two years I'd bought the house. So there's all that to clear up.

The plants potted are all suffering the 25c in the garden for several days so they need watering. I've already had the hose out in April!!

But I collected my new trolley I had made at the local men's shed and I love it. Didn't have time to do it myself with my bits all falling apart.

I love it ♥️ I can pour jugs of water into the bucket from the kitchen and pull it round to the front. Pots can go on, bags of compost etc. so less personal damage trying to lift or drag stuff.

🌱 Seedlings are showing a bit of growth watering with feed but definitely not how they should be. Thinking of getting a mini shredder and really working on making more of my own compost.

Anyway better get up and at it before the tourists get out. We've already had an accident of two going hard into each other on a straight road and someone drove so hard across a tiny junction they've taken out the front of a house.

Farway

Joining Dusty in Scorchio weather today, blue sky & sunshine, plus another Snap! With 2P, just had my hose out this morning, my rhubarb wilting and a foxglove very limp

My lurgy has been frightened off, so far so good, bit of a cough last night but never came to anything, hope it stays that way

Dusty said Seeing your pear blossom, reminds me, our plum tree didn't lose all its flowers in the fierce winds, as expected. 😊 I've never seen it bloom so well, either. Could cutting it back somewhat last summer have stimulated it? Funny enough I was just thinking the same about my blossom, with sunshine and dry weather it's holding it's own. Most years it rains, windy and a wash out. Plus, if you recall, my tree had a near death experience and had I been fitter it would be on the tip by now. A long way to go to actual plums, but here's hoping

Love the water trolley 2P, so much easier for you. Thinking of getting a mini shredder and really working on making more of my own compost.I had a shredder, but found it PIA, trouble was the darn thing kept clogging up and needed constant clearing the innards out. There may be some far better, but mine was carp, just a warning to double check and seek out personal reviews beforehand

My runner beans on damp paper have gone mouldy 😩, I'll get some more going, new packet, later today

I hope to pot up the few purple mange toots that have sprouted, about six, and plant out the last of the green mange toots, these ones were the laggards and I have been waiting for them to catch up

Today is my umpteenth birthday, and following Royal precedents I commissioned a Birthday portrait. I think it captures me nicely

Dustyevsky

2p:Good weather for mucking about in streams Dusty. Does your annoying neighbour not care that the stream blocks up? Is he trying to encourage beavers or setting up a fishing pond?

He's doing it to annoy us. We won't give him the reaction he's looking for. 😝

twopenny

Happy Birthday Farway 😄

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ViMkcqvpI3c

🎁🎂🎈🎉🥳

Or https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=sBUerD9QR80

-taff

I watched some of the new back garden progammes 2p and recognised some of his footage from the bee programme. I was quite chuffed with myself. And ok, maybe long grass I can put up with after seeing those. Also loved the may flies dancing about in the air, so much I have no clue about nature wise. Hope you find your six days resotrative..very smart trolley, they did a very upmarket job!

ybe, I may have to install that app. My sister was up the weekend and blithely listing all the birds we heard. She knows her stuff…She also saw a kite mobbing a heron, I missed it, but the bigger birds seem to be on the increase here, which is a good thing? I may have been slightly nawty, and I think I will continue to be slightly nawty as long as the humungous pile of woodchip is still there, because if it's been there for over a month, half of it in the next lump will have started to compost and be useless for filling holes…and that means…free woodchip and free compost! win win for nawtyness :) aww, well done cissie, and I will miss her vicariously too.

Farway, BM had some small versions of plants that will succeed massively when I went in on Monday, so a weigela, a philadelphus and a something else came home with me for a tenner if you need anything like that.. well done on being a dad to peas and toms! well done on avoiding the woodchipper, I see things like that and think, ooo, I could have fun with something like that, forgetting I'd need to source some wood first…I caved also and got a dinner plate dahlia tuber, I did love the white one last year. Interesting about the grapes, I will add it to the memory store. Such a beautiful robin! and so close! high five for that and for shaking off the shivers. Happy Umpteenth Birthday, youre looking very chipper, hope there was a trifle.

gb, I am envious of your solar power. I'd like it here, bit of proofing in my case, but the range of companies and other stuff is confusing to me. How did you ix on the people to do it? And I can't remember, do you have batteries too?

ground cherries sound interesting dusty..and my toma are only on seed leaves and will have to wait for the weekend to be potted on, so no toms for me in June..I am envious of all of your toms which look amazing! perhaps yout hedgehogs are just getting over moving day, they'll probably be partying tonight..

wort, once you pop, you just can't stop…I'd never sown flowers in any quatities before three years ago, now I'm ramping up for all sorts [ not that a lot of them actually make it to adulthood] and it is fun.. fabulous sunset!

Weather is sunny and dry, second day of trying to finish moving stones, interspersed with sowing some more marigolds [ giant african ones, saved seed from one pale yellow one amongst a few lurid yellow ones] and orange cosmoses, potting on some stuff, about to hoik out a sage that isn't happy. Hopefully only two wheelie trolleys of stones left, then the beds can come apart. I've think I've finally decided where the trees are going. The job after those is move a hotbin, drill a hole in the lid of a plastic bin for the side of the greenhouse, drill some holes in a log, and just generally get the fork on with stuff…I'm so behind…

greenbee

@-taff - the electrician was recommended by a friend, and also happens to be a renewables expert. He was clearly MUCH more on the ball than the national companies, the energy companies, and the local 'solar experts'. He does all my electrics (including the very unpleasant work over the last few months of wiring in new septic tank pumps as we've had several failures - two down to the drain man trying to be clever and use a different kind of pump), and has now done work for neighbours. He worked with me to come up with a solar solution that worked for me, which we did in phases - and he's going to install more battery before the winter (I don't exactly need it now) when he can get a good price. You won't be surprised to hear that there's a lot of demand for solar right now (it's usually busy in spring, but every time a certain world leader opens his mouth, demand increases). I suggest you speak to any neighbours who've had solar installed, and see what they think about their installers. Solar panels are pretty much a commodity - inverters and batteries you need to worry more about brand. There are potential ethical issues with chinese panels, and from my perspective, ethical issues with Tesla Powerwalls. I'd say do your research so you can be clear you get what you want. The Green & Ethical board is (mostly) friendly and helpful.

LessImpecunious

Happy Umpteenth Farway…. no Lily Beetles to serenade you in the pic?🐞

PS Halfway through and enjoying the bees in the garden prog 2P - thanks for the recommendation🙂🐝

Too hot today!

twopenny

Glad you're enjoying it Less. I've watched it twice so I remember more about different bees. I knew there were lots of bumbles and a couple of others but I'm noticing more now. The hovering ones I've got in my garden at the moment. Male following protectively around the female.

I was in a cloud last night 🙂 drove up on the hills and there was an inversion. Beautiful and moving around. At the end it was blowing in drifts around us. Fascinating. It moved so quickly, gathered, dispersed that I couldn't get a photo that looked anything other than mist.

Yup, 20c in the house last night 😲 cloudy today but bright and dry.

How's the post birthday Farway. Did you do anything, have a cake? I've stuck a candle in a cupcake before now just to mark the day. If not then you have a day saved to spoil yourself 🙂

I got another pre bought tomato in because the other two seem to be thriving in soil rather than hot pots of carp compost.

Cleaned out the pond. I was going to enlarge it but I haven't seen a frog since I made it and it's hard to clean so on the lookout for another pot pond. More watering then carpet cleaning. Not sure what today holds. 13c inside and out and supposed to brighten up this afternoon.