Bunting

This morning’s garden maintenance including more pruning, weeding, and digging up of brambles. Coma butterfly on verbena bonarensis

Comma butterflies are still transfixed by the verbena bonarensis.

Here are two views of the work in progress in the rose garden:

Rose garden work in progress 1Rose garden work in progress 2

  The reason for the hose is that each new plant requires four gallons of water daily, and we are not getting any rain. Jackie’s stepping stones can be seen; and also, in the second picture, the first of her brick pillars on which stands a pot including white cosmos under the apple tree.The two bricks in the foreground are the start of another. Four further views are from corners of the Phantom Path. Hollyhocks

The first, through Margery’s hollyhocks takes us across the grass patch to the Brick Path;

View from corner of Phantom Path 1

shifting slightly to the right at this western end gives a different perspective;

View from corner of Phantom Path 2

from the other end, we have two different views looking north, towards the house,

View from corner of Phantom Path 3

then the shed, over the door of which Jackie has hung cloth bunting.

As I set out for another session this afternoon, I was reprieved by a long and enjoyable phone call from Sam, who did his best to maintain a poker voice, as he was also watching the cricket in Perth, Australia, and knew I didn’t want to know what happened until I watched the highlights this evening. My second respite came when Shelly popped in for a visit. Early this evening I attempted an aerial photograph of the garden. We have Everest windows throughout the house. They are not meant to be fully opened, so it is impossible from upstairs to take in the whole picture. This is the best I could manage from our dressing room:Garden aerial view As always, clicking on this image, once, then a second time will enlarge the picture to reveal much more detail. For example the little chair in the rose garden will locate that feature. Stone edging

After this Jackie and I relaid stone edging in a small bed leading to the rose garden.

This evening we dined on Jackie’s tasty cottage pie, carrots, peas, and cabbage. Dessert was apple pie and cream brought to us by Shelly. Jackie drank sparkling water whilst I finished the malbec.

A Cracking Match

Lace cap hydrangea

This morning’s task was to dig a pit I had chickened out of last night. This was for the lace-cap hydrangea alongside the orange shed. Beneath about two inches of poor soil lay an impacted heap of rubble. With pick-axe, fork, and spade, I managed to get through what we hope is enough of it for the plant to find its way. Jackie filled the hole with good multi-purpose compost, and gave it a good watering.

It takes the two of us a couple of hours to irrigate the trillion hanging baskets, window boxes, tubs, chimney pots, and various other plantings that the Head Gardener has stuffed with flowers. This, today had to form the bread in a sandwich, the filling of which was an absolutely cracking Wimbledon ladies final. Despite dropping the opening game in which she served three double faults, Serena Williams recovered her champion’s composure to win in straight sets, over Garbine Muguruza, who was no push-over. Both women thrilled the crowd, and even I was choked up, with tears in my eyes, at the gleeful dance of the unbeatable American, and the reception given, at the presentation ceremony by the crowd, and by Serena herself, to the runner-up. I cannot call Garbine the loser.Serena WilliamsGarbine Muguruza and Venus Williams

She will be back. But this was the serene Miss Williams’s day, which she was generous enough to share.

It was difficult to get my photos in focus, pointing at the TV, from the sofa, in a somewhat emotional condition.

Rose - possibly Aloha

The lost label rose we bought some days ago, has now produced a flower. We think it may be a David Austin Aloha. When it opens out a bit more, we will have a better idea.

Nasturtiums 1Nasturtiums 2

The varieties of nasturtium in the front garden have been multiplied,

Day liliesDay lilies and petunias

as have the day lilies in the main one.

I thought we may have had a visit from an apparently almost extinct butterfly. This, however,  is not the Large Tortoiseshell, but the

Butterfly Large Tortoiseshell on verbena bonarensis

Comma, attracted by verbena bonarensis.

I am grateful to Norma and Laurie Palmer for correcting me.

Bottle Brush flower

The red Bottle Brush bushes are now in flower.

View from Pergola Path

The one above has this view from the pergola path.

Nicotiana

Yellow/green nicotiana has now joined its white neighbour on the patio.

Buddleia

We are aiming for a very scented rose garden, but, just at the moment, our new plants cannot compete with our neighbours’ buddleia draped over our fence.

Clematis Carnaby

Reminiscent of our pink camellias, which turn pleasing shades of ochre, the sepals of the clematis Carnaby have now matured into the texture of parchment.

This evening we dined on cheese-centred haddock fish cakes; sauteed potatoes, onions, mushrooms, and peppers; and crisp cauliflower and carrots. Jackie drank Hoegaarden, and I drank more of the cabernet sauvignon.

The Golden Touch

On the way through the garden this morning, to continue working on the back drive, I paused to admire Jackie’s two new planters, originally candle-holders from Redcliffe Nursery. They display her usual flair. Turning into the drive, I encountered the trail made by a mole. As this stopped at the site of the bonfire, perhaps last night’s embers were still warm enough to deter it from popping its head out.

Jackie soon joined me and she made good progress pruning the conifers along the side of the fence between us and 5 Downton Lane.

Hampered by wire netting through which grew thick brambles and anumber of trees, I, however, taking the whole morning, covered about two yards. Three hours and a couple of feet separate these two photographs. After that we stopped for lunch.

A little further down, some fine hardy fuchsias form a splendid hedge. They blend well with the blackberries, which we are picking as we go along. Butterflies are enjoying our long summer.

A Red Admiral seemed particularly partial to the blackberries, while the broad shiny leaves of trees we cannot identify bore a Comma and a Speckled Wood.
For variety, I took the longer Downton Lane/coast road route to the shingle beneath Hordle cliff, and returned via Shorefield.

A jelly babies wrapper, linaria vulgaris, lichen, and dandelions, one of which attracted a small cricket, lent golden touches to the hedgerows.

Variations on this hue were provided by rust stains running down from the iron hinge of a beach hut, and by

the tennis ball being held up by a gentleman encouraging four spaniels to pose for their photograph.

It was a day for spaniels, one of whom frolicked with a group of four young women.
This evening we dined at Daniel’s in Highcliffe. We each enjoyed haddock and chips, mushy peas, and onion rings. I drank tea, and Jackie drank coffee.

Shane

I spent most of the day almost completing the wall for the compost bins.  Jackie did a great deal of clearing and tidying up in the garden, whilst Elizabeth concentrated on making the house ready for the coming of Malachi, who was bringing his parents with him. Sam and Holly and Malachi were visiting the boat show and came to stay with us afterwards.

An unidentified butterfly visited the garden.  Can anyone identify it?

Almost as soon as Malachi arrived, he asked: ‘have you got any toys?’  This sent Elizabeth on a search.  Fortunately she was able to find a few that Adam had left behind, including a small radio controlled car which went down rather well.  He did, at three and a half, ask her if she had any children’s games downloaded on her i-pad.  It was her attempt to rectify her lack that revealed a flat battery.  He had to make do with his mother’s i-phone.

Whilst eating his favoured green beans with his fingers the poor little chap bit into one.  Finger, not bean.  He really did cry, and eventually recovered on his father’s lap.  Over the meal we got to talking about names.  This arose because Holly is expecting another baby in November.  As with Malachi, she is interested in names from her Irish heritage.  As with Malachi, they are uncertain about which spelling to choose.  He, of course, got the Hebrew version.  Again, the parents have a front-runner as a name, which has several possible spellings.  Holly’s two brothers, Hugh and Shane, are named after ancient Irish kings.  It had been Holly’s mother, Gay, who had told me that Shane had such an origin.  Until then I had thought the name came from the the 1953 film starring Alan Ladd.  One afternoon just before Christmas in that year, Chris, Jacqueline, and I excitedly trotted off with Dad to Mary Jeffrey’s firm’s children’s party.  Mary was a friend of our Auntie Gwen.  A big disappointment awaited us.  We were greeted at the door with the information that there were only two tickets.  My stomach churning, and my lower lip quivering, I said: ‘it’s all right.  I won’t go.  The others can go’.  Dad rewarded me by taking me to see the film, on current release at the cinema.  It has remained my favourite film ever since.  No doubt because of the circumstances rather than the picture itself, good as it is.

When I related this tale Elizabeth told us that the three of us older siblings had once visited the annual fun fair on Wimbledon Common without taking her.  On discovering her sobbing in her bedroom, Dad had taken her to the fair.  He obviously didn’t like to see his children disappointed.

Danni and Andy joined us for our evening meal.  To go with the green beans that Malachi mistook his finger for, Jackie produced a fine array of vegetables and an excellent lamb stew.  The Firs mess followed.  The usual red wines, beers, fizzy water, and orange juice were drunk.