Awful weather - typical Brits talk

-taff

Yesterday I just sweated, watered some plants last night..Today in anticipation of more plastering we have moving of furniture and wallpaper stripping…wish OH had said no, leave it till next week..I did jetwash the birdbath free of green gunk and restock it though. There are two sparrows who are fascinated by the greenhouse and keep popping in and out of it [ I've taken some glass out so it's more open so they don't get stuck]

That's a lovely sitooterie, so green and cool looking, I even forgive the ribald erigerwotsit. I have finally cracked nastutium, since one of them has gone and may continue to go mental…already too hot to bother with anything..

The cram it all in bed until the herbs establsh, nasturtium and sunflower :)

[I think my camera phone is giving up the ghost a bit, I may have dropped it too many times hence rubbish pics, or at least that's my excuse]

Dustyevsky

The thermometer on our smoke alarm read 25c here overnight too , but it's optimistic at other times, so I suspect it was 23c. Neither of us feels uncomfortable on the north side of the bungalow. Guests get the south facing bedroom! 😉 Mostly, that's the best side, but not now, or when the south westerlies are lashing us!

Got a meeting this morning. By the time that's over we shall be forced into more dom non! 😢

Here's another sitooterie, this time from the garden visited on Monday. No Erigwhatits. 😀

greenbee

It's actually cooler here now than it was at 5am when we went out for a walk (on of the cats decided to empty toys on the bedroom floor and play loudly until I got out of bed). Since then I've opened windows and put the fan on, and upstairs is down to 21C - downstairs is still about 24C, but will benefit from shade at the front for longer (also I forgot to open the downstairs south-facing windows earlier). Not helped by the fact that the stupid aluminium windows in the kitchen a. frequently stick in hot weather and b. don't actually stay open particularly well.

Most of downstairs only has privacy/light-filtering blinds (although roman blinds are on order for the sitting room) and these normally do the job and keep things cool. However, the heat from the west has been intense, so I've rigged up some curtain wire and old sheets to cut the glare.

Outside I've dug out two old sails (looks like two Salcombe Yawl jibs) and am trying to work out how I can use them for shade.

I think the baby magnolia suffered from either wind or morning sun, so I've (probably too late) found some wind/shade netting, some fencing pins, and some netting staples, and made a shelter round it. Gave it some water, and am hoping it will recover. If not, I at least have it set up for whatever goes in there next.

More squash and tomatoes planted when I did the watering this morning (greenhouse, as I still haven't completely sorted the dripper system, and the stuff I planted over the weekend in the beds). There are now four assorted squash round the based of the dead apple tree. I'm hoping to get a squash-and-pumpkin tree :) There are also lots elsewhere. I'll try to get more beds cleared gradually (there's one with spinach in and another with broad beans to do, plus all the onions/garlic/shallots must be ready for harvesting under the calendula and opium poppies by now) and put the remaining plants in where I can, building whatever supports I can cobble together with a selection of hazel and bamboo. And I still haven't planted beans… or sowed a lot of the other stuff I'd intended to.

Farway

I'm melting, it never cooled down at all overnight, so a restless & hot night. Thank heavens for the shower, at least I had some respite for an hour or so once I'd washed the muck off me, but it's burning down now.

DD is coming home from hols, in Tenby area, early due to the heat. She is now discovering a drawback with dogs, you cannot take them everywhere, like into a cool museum, so stuck with the baking beach & too hot for walking / exploring.

Well done on cracking nasturtiums Taff, they'll hopefully be with you forever now. Love the sunflower, I've yet to crack them, slugs get them first.

I had to water wall baskets at the back first thing, droopy foliage, a daily job in the heat.

Taff There are two sparrows who are fascinated by the greenhouse and keep popping in and out of it [ I've taken some glass out so it's more open so they don't get stuck] Could they have a nest in there? Or eating you stash of aphids

Dusty Your buddleia is way ahead of ours, Farway. We still have that new aphid attacking and disfiguring them. 🤨 I agree, the Buzz series are good for the mid-border and restricted spaces, but we need a few thugs in the wilder spots. I did have three, different colours, but Vine Weevils had the White & the Pinky one. The ones I have now are from poke a stick in ground cuttings when pruning.

I have Shasta daisies just opening up nearby, which i think will make a nice contrast with the purple, if I can get a decent photo I will

Sampled the Boysenberry yesterday, a success, the berries are about Loganberry size, longer & larger than blackberries. Black / purple, very juicy & squishy, which I guess is why the commercial failure, just don't travel well.

I had about a handful, with loads more to come. Taste is sort of "perfumed", not as sharp as a loganberry, or sweet as some blackberries. If I had to choose one berry I'd stick with Merton blackberry, but for added longer season the Boysenberry would be useful, and I bet it makes good jam & crumbles. Certainly seems easy to grow IME.

Photo to follow once I can get a good one. meanwhile here is Rose Campion, I class as Wild Flower, but descriptions may differ.

wort

I hope you are all enjoying your gardens, from a nice shady spot 😉

wort

Not a cloud in the sky here, hot but a nice cooling breeze..sitting in the shade with a book. Washed my sofa throw, and done a quick hoover and mop through downstairs. I watered the front and pots at the back, really need to get hose out and water more tonight.

Yesterday was horrible hot, sticky and no breeze. I had to walk for bloods done, so when I got back that was me done for the day.

Dusty that's far too much work in this heat 🥵

Taff I prefer the sunflower you have to the regular one, well done on nastutium, I don't envy you having building work done.

wort

I can just make out the crocosmia buds. I always think they are an autumn plant for some reason.