Sizzling Sunny June

June

What an incredible summer we have been having and the wonderful weather from May continued straight into June with no let up in the gorgeous hot and sunny days.

M took advantage of the good weather to mow the orchard, around the edge of the woods and some of the paths though the woods.

The main veg bed was beginning to fill out with potatoes, peas and french beans on one side. 

Next to the peas was the large area dedicated to onions. We really didn't mean to plant this many but when you order the onion sets they do only come in large packs. Hopefully we will get them dried thoroughly so that they store well.

In the next veg bed were the broad beans, two different varieties this year. The brassicas at the top of the bed were protected from birds and butterflies with mesh cloches.

For the first time since moving we have had to deal with exceptionally dry ground. I took a hoe out to weed between the broad beans and had to give up as I couldn't break the surface of the soil.

We had an abundance of Astilbe plants taken for one plant we purchased last year so thought we would plant them along the side of a path in the woods. They seemed to like the light shade and were indeed thriving.

Sadly the next day the Astilbes looked like this. Yes, the deer apparently like them. We put some wire around what was left in the hope that they may recover, only time will tell.

Before we moved I collected some acorns from my favourite woods where I used to walk Jess and Finn. Now, 3 years on, we actually have some little oak tree saplings. They are still protected from the deer for now and are looking great.

Finn often pootles off into the woods on his own for a wonder around. A while ago he started to bring out these eggs. Unfortunately we had no idea where he was getting them from but he managed to collect about 4. They looked like duck eggs and M examined them to check for life but they didn't appear to have been fertilised.

The greenhouse shading was definitely worth the time and effort with the daytime temperatures regularly reaching over 40⁰C.

The tomato and pepper plants were thriving and enjoying the unexpected heat.

One sad moment was the discovery that the 250 bluebell bulbs planted in the spring appeared to be Spanish bluebells and not the English variety I had expected. I contacted the seller (and sent photos) and they agreed that they looked suspiciously like the Spanish bluebell. Kindly they offered to replace these bulbs with a new batch of English bulbs.

One day later and I had successfully removed the majority of the bulbs. I must admit I was feeling pretty deflated by this as most of the bulbs had grown and produced 2 or 3 baby bulbs. Not only did this mean that we will probably have Spanish bluebells poking up for a few years but also That we have lost a whole seasons growth. Looking on the bright side I hope the new bulbs will be more successful next year.

One veg calamity this year has been some of the garlic crop. As the tops had turned brown we planned to lift one batch out of the baths. Sadly the bulbs were small and mostly covered in a white fluffy fungus which M correctly diagnosed as Onion White Rot.

It appears that the dry weather can exacerbate the problem and this batch were destined for the bin. Hopefully it will only be one of the baths and if need be we can remove the soil, disinfect the bath and refill for use next year.

Thankfully the Fig was loving the heat and had doubled in size since we bought it last year, with one little fig growing bigger by the day.

After much discussion we decided this would be the last year for growbag tomatoes and peppers in the polytunnel. They were nowhere near as good or healthy as the plants in the greenhouse so we will only have some hanging baskets with tumbling toms next year.

Keeping everything watered was the biggest challenge during June as the high temperatures seem to evaporate the water almost before the plants even got a drink. The water butts were emptied and our rain dances increased. Some plants died and others flourished so lately we've been learning to make the most of what we have and not dwell on those that weren't meant to be.

With all the good weather we were spoiling ourselves by finishing work in the early afternoon and relaxing in the garden. We had an old gazebo which we used when camping and it proved to be ideal in the garden as Jess and Finn were able to join us in the shade. (Looks like the weeds in the lawn were the best draught survivors and sadly the only photo I have of the Gazebo was when the sun went in briefly). With the radio we were also able to keep up with the football scores while reading magazines, doing sudoku, knitting and chilling. Bliss!

It has been wonderful to see the garden filling with colour as the pots and beds have come alive.

The wall troughs were full to bursting and the bees have been joining us in enjoying all the flowers.

Days Out

Sometimes we get so busy on the smallholding that we forget to get out and about to investigate and enjoy our surroundings. We are blessed to live in a picturesque part of the world with so much to see and do, especially when the weather is kind.

Blair Estate

By chance we saw some signs for one of the Scottish Gardens open days near us. So on a very sunny afternoon we set off to investigate the gardens and grounds of Blair Estate.

The house/castle itself dates back to around 1203 (although some areas may be older) and has recently undergone extensive refurbishment.

It is a stunning building from all sides and was looking spectacular on this bright sunny day.

Many of the walls are adorned with climbers, some roses and wisteria; they were indeed beautiful.

The house is set in about 250 acres of landscaped gardens and woodland which we were able to wonder around and investigate.

The house was impressive from every angle and we couldn't help but take lots of pictures.

We were absolutely astounded by the size of the Gunneras around the grounds. There were so many of them and all were huge.

We even tried to take a picture with me in it so we could show just how big they were.

Through the garden there was a little stream with pretty wild plants protruding along the edges. Off to the side there were also larger areas planted up with numerous Azaleas and Rhododendrons.

The Redwoods were glorious, tall, straight and undoubtedly very very old.

    

Again we attempted to get some scale into the pictures.

Returning to the hose we had another little look at the cottage style beds, I feel there is so much to learn by looking at other planting and colour schemes.

We weren't the only people enjoying a day out in the sunshine, hopefully they made plenty of money for the charities.

I had to take a picture of this strange tree, it looked like it had been around for decades, if not centuries.

We were fortunate to be allowed a look around the coach house garden and were privileged to have a long chat with the owners. They were so knowledgeable about plants and flowers that I think we could easily have stayed in their company for a few hours. They inspired us to look for some climbers too.

The smells of these roses gave us the incentive to go out the very next day and search for some beautiful scented blooms for our garden.

One last photo of the house before we headed home. 

Beaches

Recently the days have been extremely hot and we had to get up and out early so we could walk the dogs before the heat became unbearable for them. The beaches were as always stunning and great for the dogs to run around, they loved running in the sea. (Arran in the early morning mist.)

My beautiful girl, Jess 

It was even warm enough for a paddle, well, just for M and the dogs!!

Local History

Having taken the car in for a service we ventured out for a little drive along the coast. We were able to park next to the sea and walk along the coastal path.

Here we came across an amazing old castle built in the 14th century. Sadly, as it was closed, we weren't able to go inside for a look but it did look incredible.

A little further along the coast we came across the old castle harbour with a great view back to the castle.

What a beautiful sunny day. We met a couple of very friendly cyclists who chatted to us about the great cycle network in this area. In fact we were so impressed that we decided it was time to get ourselves a couple of bicycles so we could really enjoy the countryside.

About a week later we returned to the coast and set about test riding our new hybrid bikes.

The cycle network means that the majority of the routes are off road, either on country paths or on cycle paths. This suits me fine as I no longer have the courage to cycle in traffic.

The scenery was stunning and it was the best re-introduction to cycling we could have hoped for. Now we just need to investigate the rest of the country.

One last little selfie just to prove we were both there although I'm not sure it's possible to look good in a cycle helmet! Since this ride we have discovered a few more cycle paths nearby, this time with coffee shops en route. We have found it to be such an enjoyable way to explore the local area and getting some exercise is an added bonus.

Flower Photos

In order to capture the best of our garden throughout spring and summer I've tried to continue to develop my fledgling photography skills. So here's another little post full of the colour and splendour of nature.

Cactus

     

26 June                                               9 July 

After our visit to the Blair Estate open garden day we decided we needed to have more scent in the garden. We were inspired by the beautiful roses we saw and smelled during our visit and set out the very next day to find a climbing rose for the front of the house. This is 'The Pilgrim' which seems to have settled in very nicely and has produced large white flowers with a delicate scent.

      

Rose 'The Pilgrim' flower buds

and the open flower

Mimulas

Mimulas

    

Hosta Flower spike and open flower

Primula Vivali 

    

Sweet Williams 

Red rose flower 

Calibrachoa 

    

Beautiful Lillies 

Trollius Gold Queen 

Delphinium Alba 

Our new Clematis 'Madame Le Coultre' 

The Clematis after the flower petals have dropped. 

Nasturtium flowers to encourage pollination in the polytunnel. 

Echinacea flower buds 

    

Berkheya Purpurea (The thistle that thinks it's a sunflower) 

Cosmos 

Brachycome 

New shrub rose St Richard of Chichester 

Massive flowers with the most beautiful scent

Amberboa

As the summer continues there are so many more flowers to come, some new to us this year and others which we hope have survived the winter to return again. No doubt I'll have a few more photos to share from the garden before autumn arrives.