Liz and I were indeed ‘serenaded’ by the delightful cuckoo, whilst meandering through the bluebell paths in Standish Woods just a few weeks ago. The bluebells and wild garlic surrounding the valley is quite extraordinary, the smell of wild garlic wafting in through the windows is pretty strong, but I utterly love seeing great carpets of white and then a sea of blue all around up in the woods. My neighbour, Claire took out the hard work of making some pesto for me, which had a wonderful kick to it and was devoured with much appreciation. She supplies fabulous organic cakes to http://www.blackbookcafe.com/index.php and organic breads to order, delicious! Over a weekend she fires up her clay oven in the garden and the smell is divine as you walk up the lane.
The excitement of transforming my cottage this spring commenced with a little 80’s lip-syncing, kindly broadcast by Radio 2 on a fine Saturday afternoon and hugely appreciated as you can see. We endeavored to slap on Earthborne’s beautiful white “extra thick double cream” paint and I have to say were rather pleased with our handywork, hence a few bubbles to celebrate! One coat of paint and no smell either, really amazing but of course you do pay the price for this. The unveiling will be continuing over the next few months, when I can squeeze in the time, though I’m not sure I can reach the eaves upstairs, so a handyman may be called upon, volunteers welcomed (slow roast belly of pork, with delicious crackling could be arranged in return!).
Here are a few updated images of life in the garden. The pear blossom is over now as are the crab-apples, but the apple is going strong and the bees are so busy grabbing every bit of nectar they can, someone very lucky will benefit from all their hard work, just wish they were my bees… one day sometime soon I hope!
Nearly all of my seeds have taken, much to my surprise, so I now have far too many courgette plants and gourds, so goodness knows where I’ll find homes for them. Today I’ve had a delivery of soft pink lily of the valley, just hope they don’t mind sitting on my doorstep for a couple of days, can’t wait to see those perfect little fairy hats all hanging like bells on a delicate lime green stems!
Next time I hope to put up images of the incredible growth of the legumes and of my meadow in the making, though this looks more like an abandoned field at the moment, work in progress, honest!
Isn’t this sunshine heavenly!
