Garden – derrickjknight

Behind The Shed

In preparation for the winter quarters of her potted plants Jackie has spent time tidying the greenhouse where she will now perch on her shower seat recently acquired from Efford Recycling Centre.

The area behind the adjacent garden shed had become a dumping ground for various artefacts no longer in use, for forgotten trays of bulbs such as tête-à-têtes, and for a now collapsed table, all standing on uneven ground harbouring twisting tree roots and prolific stinging nettles. Jackie has also cleared this, uprooting the nettles and having suffered a number of painful stings in the process.

Martin, this morning, opened up the area around the bay and holly trees by lopping branches in order to lift the canopies of these, thus revealing ornaments like dragons which have been obscured for a couple of years.

Between them our two proper gardeners have filled many more bags of refuse to add to those of mine.

Later I read more of ‘The People’s Act of Love’.

Giles had been admitted to Lymington Hospital following a fall last Wednesday. We therefore visited him early this evening. He is out of bed and mobile.

Afterwards we dined on Mr Pink’s first class fish and chips with baby plum tomatoes and cold baked beans, with which I drank more of the Cabernet Sauvignon.

Finishing Off (For Now)

Now that the fierce winds have eased off the day was warm enough for T-shirts and bees; although the autumn crocuses have taken a battering Rosa Siluetta Lavender, grateful for the rain, continues its rapid climb up the Weeping Birch trunk.

Jackie was able to clear the Cordyline leaves, brambles, and stinging nettles from behind the Australian tree this morning and leave them for me to bag up this afternoon,

along with a few clippings in a trug.

I filled five and a half bags then swept up the debris.

After drafting this I received a most helpful call from Natalie, one of the nurses in the Southampton General Hospital urology department. She was very friendly and clear in her explanation of the reason for, the procedure, the follow up and the after effects of the BCG vaccine installation, confirming that I would be sent a letter with relevant dates. Interestingly she had the results of my recent blood test which she told me was normal, and that the symptoms I have been continuing post-procedure are quite usual, clarifying why.

This evening we dined on spicy peri-peri chicken (milder than last time); Jackie’s colourful savoury rice; carrots, cauliflower, spinach, and broccoli, with which I drank more of the Cabernet Sauvignon.

Cordyline Australis Leaves

We have three large Cordyline Australis trees in our garden. This one is in what we call the Palm Bed from the days when we didn’t know the name of the tree.

Especially when beset by the fiercely blustering winds we are still experiencing, these antipodean arboreal specimens shed their leaves littering the garden with powerfully woody material more suitable for the Efford Recycling Centre than for our compost so that is where we take them. I tackled these in two stints each in excess of an hour – one in the morning and one after a good lunchtime rest, including dozing over The Antiques Road Show.

Their concentrations are on the beds containing them and the adjacent paths.

I couldn’t quite reach every piece on the West Bed, but, by sitting on the bench visible in the second picture in this gallery and stretching across with a grabber I did clear the Cryptomeria Bed.

I cleared the Brick Path;

the gravel path beside the tree in the first picture above;

and the footpath leading into its eponymous bed.

They filled four bags which I added to the growing pile for the next dump run.

This evening we dined on Jackie’s wholesome shepherd’s pie (always better on the second day); potato slices roasted in olive oil; pure white cauliflower; crunchy carrots; and firm broccoli – vegetables fresh from Ferndene Farm Shop are always in perfect, full flavoured, condition. I drank Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon 2022.

Real Recycling

On a warm cloud-gloom morning, we transported another collection of garden refuse to Efford Recycling Centre.

We returned with a shower stool and a marble topped table both of which will now be used in the garden, until, like the other broken metal items, they return to from whence they came. That is real recycling.

Fortunately the rain kept off while we were doing our dump run, but set in thereafter for the day. I therefore began reading ‘The High Path’ by Ted Walker.

This evening we dined on Jackie’s wholesome chicken stewp with fresh bread. Hacienda Uvanis Garnacha Old Vines 2020 accompanied my portion.

Garden, Pigs, And Ponies

This morning I read more of ‘The Berlin Diaries’.

By mid-afternoon, with the warm sun vying with the cotton clouds for dominance of the skies,

I wandered round the garden with my camera. The Virginia creeper has reddened up beautifully in the last 48 hours. Each of the images bears a title in the gallery.

Later, the sun having defeated the clouds, we visited Ferndene Farm shop to buy various food items and three more bags of compost for which I now have to avail myself of the trolleys provided.

We continued into the forest where we tracked a group of young

Tamworth pigs as they left the road for gleeful chomping on heaps of crunchy apples.

Ponies along Forest Road formed an orderly line along a wall in the shade; while

others disrupted the traffic on Tiptoe Road.

After drinks on the patio we dined on Jackie’s tasty liver casserole; boiled new potatoes, carrots, runner beans, and broccoli, with which I drank more of the Malbec.

An Extended Recycling

On 16th March 2016, we transported bags of garden refuge to Efford Recycling Centre in the Modus and returned with this wickerwork chair purchased from the Reuse Shop.

This, of course had to go straight onto the decking, where it stayed for a couple of years until, now unsafe for seating, it became a

plant stand at the corner of the West Bed.

Sadly, even that is now beyond its strength, so it has been broken up and formed part of a further load of spent compost bags and other broken bits of wood and metal which we took back to where it came from this morning – in the Hyundai which has now replaced the Modus.

This afternoon I continued with my draft of ‘The Berlin Diaries’.

The choice between Lal Quilla and Rokali’s as our favourite Indian restaurant is very even, but during the holiday season determined by parking, because it is impossible then to find a spot near Lal Quilla. We aimed to chance it today, but after circling the town twice, we returned to Rokali’s where we enjoyed their usual friendly service and excellent food. Jackie chose Paneer Shashlik and I enjoyed duck Jalfrezi. We shared special rice. She drank Diet Coke and I drank Kingfisher.

Working The Rose Garden

Listening to the tinkle-trickle of the water fountain and the tuneful trilling of a red-breasted robin’s deceptively sweet-sounding war cry delivered from our southern neighbours’ garden, Jackie and I worked together in the Rose Garden this morning dead-heading, weeding, and sweeping in the warmth of the summer-sunshine. With an eye to next spring the Head Gardener also continued planting the vast array of tulips and daffodils she has been collecting from garden centres in recent weeks.

By a now sweltering mid-afternoon, the direct sun having moved around a bit, I photographed some of our results and the

bustling bees still working over the Japanese anemones.

Later I read more of ‘The Berlin Diaries, then watched the next episode of ‘Freddie Flintoff’s Field of Dreams’.

This evening we dined on baked gammon; piquant cauliflower cheese; boiled new potatoes, carrots, and Brussels sprouts, with which I drank Reserva Privada Chilean Malbec 2023.

The West Bed Pathways

This morning, while Martin was working on the West Bed, Jackie and I transported the last nine bags of green refuse and various wooden and metal broken bits to the Efford Recycling Centre.

Martin completed his clearance task, including re-fixing a fallen trellis,

and planting rhubarb.

This afternoon I published

The Berlin Diaries Of Marie Vassiltchikov Part One

This evening we dined on smoked haddock fish cakes; piquant cauliflower cheese; boiled new potatoes; crunchy carrots; firm broccoli; and tender runner beans

Light And Shade

Having realised that strong sunlight, such as we enjoyed today, burns out the colours when photographing flowers I took a walk around the garden today to put to the test my conviction that the best results are found either by backlighting or by shade.

The images above are a mix of backlighting and shade. Each subject bears its title in the gallery. Bees, especially on Japanese anemones, and Small White butterflies, fidgety as ever, enjoyed the warmth.

This afternoon I read more of The Berlin Diaries and continued drafting the review.

Dinner this evening consisted of roast pork and apple sauce, boiled potatoes, Brussels sprouts, broccoli, and carrots, with tasty gravy.

Garden Refuse

On this very warm and sunny morning Jackie and I packed 23 more spent compost bags of green waste into our uncomplaining little i10 Hyundai and transported them to Efford Recycling Centre, formerly the Council Dump.

Later, in the afternoon, we visited Ferndene Farm Shop to purchase various provisions and

three more bags of compost.

I have recently begun reading “The Berlin Diaries of Marie Vassiltchikov” and will be drafting the review, on which I made a start today, as I go along.

This evening we dined on Ferndene’s meaty pork and chives sausages; boiled potatoes; particularly flavoursome mushrooms and Brussels sprouts; firm carrots and cauliflower.