Hello and welcome back to this small corner, or indeed welcome if it is your first visit here. It is lovely that you are visiting.
This week, like many other parts of the UK, it has been so, so hot. By midday, it had been impossible to be outside until late in the evening, and even then, restful and comfortable sleep was difficult. However, being true to British weather, the coming week looks much cooler with the possibility of a few showers. ๐
Monday was probably the coolest day of the week, and hubby decided it was time to trim most of our hedge. He had started it a few days earlier, but there was quite a lot to deal with. Normally, we can fill at least two enormous rubble sacks with stones and sand delivered by the builders' merchant. There is always the problem of what to do with all the cuttings, and there is far too much to keep in the garden.
We used to have a shredder, but it wasn't very good and didn't do much to reduce the debris. The question was whether to buy a bigger, more powerful, and, of course, more expensive shredder. Then I had a light-bulb moment and a flashback to something I had read about dealing with hedge pruning. I suggested to hubby that he spread out the cuttings across the lawn, then use the lawn mower to chop them and vacuum up the debris. It worked a treat and left us with the equivalent of less than half a bag of chopped leaves. We are using the leaves as a mulch around the rest of the garden.
No waste and no trip to the tip - happy days!
Now that we have finished picking the rhubarb for the year, it has been gooseberry-picking time. I have one very old bush that belonged to my dad, and it has produced tons of fruit. The only problem is that it fights back with thorns, and I have sore fingers to prove who won the battle. Still, it was worth it for the fruit. I managed to pick the fruit late in the day, after the sun had grown less intense.
Yesterday we travelled down to Devon, not far from Taunton, for some 60th birthday celebrations for my sister-in-Law. We had a wonderful afternoon outside, with plenty of shade. There was an abundance of food, drink, laughter and happy memories shared. The house looks out onto fields and hills beyond its boundaries, and the garden is a real picture.
While it has mostly been too hot to be outside for long, these two puzzles have been completed. My favourite is the butterfly one, but the other is lovely too.
Wherever you are in the world, I hope the next week is a good one for you and that you remain safe and well.
Bev
