Projects!

Hello everyone. 

We have had several dry and sunny days this week, which have been very welcome. 

Out in the greenhouse, I have sown more seeds. D has been helping me with the peas, runner beans, and French beans, which are much easier to handle for a novice gardener. Everything else is growing well.

I usually grow my tomato and courgette plants from seeds. However, I cheated a little this year, and I bought a few young plants, which will be perfect for what I need.

The loofahs look good, and I also have started growing some watermelons. Eventually, they will become too big, so I will only use the two strongest plants to grow on in the greenhouse.

This small cherry tree has a temporary home in the greenhouse because I didn't want the flowers to get blown off in the strong winds we have had recently. It seems pretty happy there, with the doors open during the day.

As you can see, we have a much bigger project out in the garden.

This area forms an L-shape around the conservatory and back door area and we constantly use the space. It is the main area for sitting, eating and hanging out the washing.

With all the rain over the last few months, the ground has become a boggy mess, and we often have to wear boots to do anything outside. Our new plan will mean we won’t have to do this!

There is still a lot to be done, but I am looking forward to the planting stage. 

This week, I have also made some progress with the doll house: adding items to some furniture to make them more realistic.

The shelf unit will go in the butler’s office and it contains a few books he enjoys reading, a biscuit barrel and the very important teapot. There are also a couple of small jugs and a picture of the butler’s close relative. 

The other item I have been working on is the coat stand in the lower hall. Here you can see a hat, a scarf, a pair of boots, a walking stick and a black umbrella.

On the table is a book for tradespeople to sign in and out when they bring their goods for the kitchen or other required services.

I hope the sun continues to shine wherever you are.

Have a good week!

B and D

Greenhouse, Rhubarb and a Pumpkin

Hello, and thank you for joining me again this week. 

Over the Summer, there was one significant change to our back garden. My old greenhouse was a lovely place to grow and nurture seedlings and other plants for over thirty years, but we decided to replace it with a new and more suitable model. Although I felt sad when we dismantled the old greenhouse, my sadness was short-lived. We put an advert on a local free-to-collect website, and within an hour, someone wanted to give the old greenhouse a new home, which made me very happy. 

My Old Greenhouse

And so, may I now present our new greenhouse.

My New Greenhouse

My new greenhouse is something that I can enjoy all year round. It is larger than the old one and has some fitted shelves that are just the right height for me to use comfortably. The sliding double doors make manoeuvring a wheelbarrow of compost easier, and the larger opening roof vents allow better air circulation.

The building is big enough to put in a chair and a table, so I can potter even when it is raining and cold outside and enjoy a nice warm cup of coffee and a biscuit. Wonderful!

My hubby and son put the structure together and made it all work, so a huge thank you to both of them! :-)

While there is not much growing in there yet, I have some lettuce and a few herbs that have germinated in the last week. It will be good to get plenty of use in the greenhouse over the Winter.

Now, I know that all the gardening books and many gardeners say we should stop picking rhubarb at the end of the summer, but I have been doing a little rule-breaking this week. I left this rhubarb bed for weeks, and the leaves and crop of stems have just grown. As the branches had not deteriorated, I picked a few of the largest to freeze and a few more to stew for a pudding. There are still lots of stems and leaves that will now die down and feed the plants for next year. It just seemed a shame to waste such a large and good crop.

The stems I used for that pudding were delicious, so I am glad I broke the traditional rules.

Continuing with an Autumn garden theme, I found a lovely free pattern on Ravelry for a knitted pumpkin. It only took a weekend to make, and it would be easy to make a smaller or larger version using different yarn weights and needle sizes. I loved the vine and leaves, which reminds me of a Cinderella pumpkin.

I intend to make more of these and some other Autumn-themed decorations to build up a display to enjoy each year.

As it looks like a warm and dry week ahead, I shall spend more time outside and wish you all a good week wherever you are.

B x