Occasional sunny spells on a clouded morning developed into bright sunshine by the time we drove into the forest this afternoon.
Jackie spent some time collecting cuttings with which to populate the
greenhouse pots.
The orange poppies that last just a day don’t normally emerge from the soil until spring. We have several clumps now. These, incongruously beside more seasonal asters, are in the Cryptomeria Bed
which also houses hot lips
still attracting bees.
The cryptomeria itself can be seen beyond the cordeline Australis lending its name to the Palm Bed;
it stands beside the laurel on the far right of the Phantom Path.
The deep red climbing rose soaring over its arch spanning the Shady Path also doesn’t know it is autumn,
although the Weeping Birch clearly has an inkling.
Elizabeth’s Bed
and the patio planting continue to flourish.
Pelargoniums still hang in baskets.
Nugget, this morning patrolled his fences. This fellow, I think, is a rival displaying discretion. I did see our own robin dive-bomb another which immediately scarpered, but he was too quick for me.
These autumn colours brighten Sway Road;
others burnished the landscape beside the A35,
and glowed beneath
an unnamed lane off Cadnam Lane,
along which clusters of mushrooms burst from the moss coating of a fallen log,
and bracket fungus clutched a living tree.
Pheasants, both cocks and hens, dared anyone actually to drive at the 40 m.p.h. limit.
On one side of Tiptoe Road a pair of ponies cropped the verge outside The Old Bakery;
several more slaked their thirst on a winterbourne pool on the opposite side.
A mare led her foal along the road
to add to the chaos caused by a broken down car.
Returning home along Roger Penny Way we were treated to a display of cervine elegance as a young stag stepped on pointe across the road in front of us.
This evening we dined on Jackie’s tasty and wholesome liver and bacon casserole (for recipe see Jackie’s comment below); roast potatoes and butternut squash; crunchy orange carrots, and bright green firm Brussels sprouts, with she drank Hoegaarden and I drank Saint-Chinian 2017.
I’m a tad disappointed in young Nugget’s cavalier attitude to sharing any part of his large kingdom. I am forced to ask how many teapots does one slightly rotund robin actually need? It’s nice to pheasants and young stags out and about and I do rather wonder how Tiptoe Road got its name ……
I’ve tried unsuccessfully to find out the origin of the name of this local village, Tiptoe, Pauline. We think another robin has claimed the Back Drive. Thanks very much.
Lovely to see the orange poppies and does J have a recipe for the liver and bacon casserole? Mmm we are trying to way more liver these days….
Thanks very much, Yvette. Jackie doesn’t really use recipes, but here is one of quite a few on Google: https://www.hairybikers.com/recipes/view/liver-and-bacon-with-onion-gravy
Oh well thanks (and I could have looked it up too – although because google changed their algorithms for some healthy stuff I might just use bing or duck duck go for some recipes – jk jk)
But was just wondering if she had a quick recipe – and you know – if she has a bunch of them in her head maybe she should get them written down to pass on to future generations – or not….
You will see by now that Jackie has answered you herself 🙂
thanks D (I am offline a lot right now and sorry to be so late in my reply)
No problem
Do you and Jackie watch The Hairy Bikers? My husband and I are big fans.
We don’t actually watch any cookery programmes 🙂
The Hairy Bikers add humor, pubs, and local history into the mix. They’re very entertaining!
Dear Yvette, I cooked the pigs liver in the pressure cooker with 2 pork stock cubes, to make sure the liver is soft.- while that was happening, I fried the onions and the bacon (I can buy bacon pieces, off cuts for cooking very cheaply in our local supermarket.). When the liver is cooked I thicken the liquid (cornflour) add the fried onions and well cooked bacon, stir and bubble this for a little while, and serve! I like to cook the onions and bacon separately to keep them slightly ‘crisper’ than the liver. I like to add plenty of bacon almost as much bacon as liver, because of the salt in the bacon and stock cubes no further salt is added, just a bit of black pepper, sometimes I put in mushrooms and/or peppers as well. Hope this helps.
please tell Jackie THANKS SO MUCH for the recipe – yeah baby – going to modify it a little with cassava flour (or coconut flour)
and esp like the tip to keep the bacon crispy
🙂
Will do.
The pheasants and the ribbon road are my favorites. What a fine fall day you had!
Thank you very much, Cindy
Beautiful photographs, especially the horses and stag.
x
Thanks very much, Melanie X
Most welcome.
x
Was Nugget giving us the brush off today? The Cadnam Lane is beautiful, Derrick. Is that a palm in your garden?
A cordeline is not actually a palm, but we named the bed before we identified it. Nugget was fending off interlopers and a bit too quick for me. Thanks very much, Jill
You must have been quick on the uptake to get such a good shot of the stag, Derrick! Jackie’s greenhouse must be almost full to bursting with all her cuttings and delicate plants. The deep red climbing rose is such a gorgeous colour!
Thank you very much, Clare. I wasn’t quick enough for the first one, but when one crosses there is usually a follower. 🙂
🙂
Jackie never rests it seems. Lovely shot of the stag. I love the name ‘Tiptoe Road’.
Tiptoe and Sway are two neighbouring villages 🙂 Thanks very much, Sylvia
Love those names. 🤣
The pheasants are so captivating…in style and colors! Maybe they were sent out to be Pleasant Pheasant Police to traffic the traffic. ??? 😉
I would just HAVE TO tiptoe down Tiptoe Road! 😀
Love the climbing roses, the hanging leaves, the fungi, and the yellow leave-ed trees! Gorgeous! Your photos are alive and popping with color, details, texture, nature, and beautiful creatures! 🙂
Jackie inspires us all with her amazing abilities and her loving-care of the garden! Please make sure she gets some time to rest! 🙂
Nugget is trying so hard to protect his home and property! 🙂
I love your descriptions of the food Jackie prepares! The other day I saw orange, red, purple, and yellow carrots used in a savor tart…it was so pretty!
HUGS!!! 🙂
PS…Thank you for a new word…cervine…to add to my vocabulary!
PPS…And apologies for my l-o-n-g verbose comments.
There is never any need to apologise for such fulsome comments, Carolyn. You might also care to sway along Sway road. 🙂 Thank you very much.
HA! I would have to sway along Sway Road!
When we were growing up there was a road in our state called Roller Coaster Road and we’d get my dad to drive on it as fast as he would/could. Ha. 🙂
And another favorite street in my life is Lombard Street. 🙂
🙂
I liked the shot of the serious gardener in the serious greenhouse.
Thanks very much, Tootlepedal
My favorite of this group is the gray-blue sky against the pale gold trees above the light green grass.
Thanks very much, Liz. I was pleased with that one
I said you had good taste! 😉
Thank you! 🙂
🙂
Love the photo of sunlight on a tree trunk off Cadnam Lane.
Thanks very much, Rosaliene
The weeping birch is beautiful. I didn’t know the word ‘cervine,’ and when I went searching for a definition, I misspelled it. While ‘cervine’ applies to deer, I now know that ‘corvine’ applies to crows.
An easy confusion, Linda. 20 years setting cryptic crosswords has helped me. Thanks very much.
That is certainly a meticulously preserved neighbourhood. Freely roaming stags testify to the commitment of the community. Beautiful photographs, as always.
Thanks very much, Uma. The deer remain most timid.
All this in one day? What a profusion of autumn beauty!
Yes, indeed, Nikki. And while I was drafting the post, Jackie took another set with the evening light which I shall probably feature today.
Things look so beautiful there, Derrick and Jackie! I love the pheasants, too. We see them wander across our farm from time to time. Mostly what we see are California quail as part of the regular cast of birds.
Thanks very much, Lavinia. Our pheasants specialise in playing chicken with the traffic
I want to go on a drive with you.
What photos we would make between us. Thanks very much, Cindy
Lovely photographs again, Derrick. Under the stag photograph, you’ve written “corvine” not “cervine”. Please feel free to delete this comment if you wish.
Not at all, John. I’m pleased to have been alerted and will amend. WP also changed the title and I had to correct it. I didn’t notice that one. Many thanks
Absolutely beautiful shots til the end 🙂
Thanks very much, Rupali
I have peeped at your posts now and then and am now hooked – your garden is a beautiful contrast to the drought-stricken one we have in South Africa. I shall return to yours regularly now as balm for my soul.
Thank you very much indeed, Anne.
So much gorgeous fauna you managed to capture in close company with cars and civilians today! 🙂
But i think my favourite shot was of the ‘woodland forest’ of mushrooms where surely some fairies must wander at eventime?
Love those orange poppies also, and to think only recently, you told me the poppies would not likely last till Armistice Day? it’s looking a little more likely now, I’ll wager? 🙂
It is, indeed. Thanks very much, Bob
That young stag is quite elegant. So many wonderful shots–the unnamed lane, the burnished landscape, the mushrooms. . .
I hope there won’t be a serious robin turf war. I agree with comments above about Tiptoe Road–it would make me want to tiptoe, too. 🙂
🙂 Thanks very much, Merril
Your garden repeatedly gives us surprises – and beautiful ones at that!! Can’t get enough of the horses, but the stag was a pleasure as well!!
Thanks very much, GP. One of my luckiest shots
I have enjoyed the lovely autumn feel of your post Derrick, and the beauty of your photos. 🙂
Thank you very much, Agnes
That stag is magnificent. Must have been a great pleasure to see him.
It was indeed. They do not hang around. Thanks very much, Laurie
Thanks again Derrick for taking me through your lovely countryside.
And thanks for coming along, Jerry.
Plants and insects that ignore the seasons always amaze me!
Yes. Mind you, I was in the garden in shirtsleeves today. Thanks very much, Andrew.
I read a book to a three-year-old on Sunday at church that spoke of orange poppies, with a drawing of such. I doubted it, as I’d only seen the red sort. You are right on time as always 🙂 though it seems that they think it is spring!
So much colour in these photos. Love it–I haven’t seen pheasants since my last zoo trip
Thanks very much, Pleasant. I’m pleased to be on time 🙂
I’m always amazed by your garden. I think it is really beautiful.
Great animal pictures as well.
Thank you very much, Rabirius
Looks like a lovely day.
How are you?
Well, thanks, More. Just need fully functioning knees 🙂 And you?
I’m doing good. Many blessings to you and your family
This drove me mad. I know what cervine means and I just couldn’t call it to mind. Most annoying! I think my decline has started…
Oh deer
Ha!
A fabulous shot of a single red rose jumping out at the viewer from the center of picture.
My compliments to the Culinary Queen for a great recipe!
Many thanks, Dolly. The Culinary Queen says “Wow. Wow”
You are very welcome, Derrick