Plants!

 

I popped out to Dobbies today to get ericaceous compost (to replant a blueberry bush into a bigger pot) and saw they were clearing out a ton of plants.  I saw these cute dwarf Sansevierias (Snake plant) in wee ceramic pots.  Reduced from £9.99 to £1.99!!! I got one for myself and one for my DIL who loves indoor plants.  They were definitely clearing space to put out new seasonal stuff.  If anyone is looking to get inexpensive gifts ahead of 🎄there were loads of different ones to suit all tastes.  Plus fancy plant pots and containers, propagators etc all half price or less.  Maybe check out any garden centres in your area if you don't have a Dobbies.  

I got £84.93 worth of plants for £15.23!!!  2 echinacea plants, a salvia, pansies and violas (they were each 39p a tray!!) to put in my front garden.  Although technically they were all free as I'm still using the amazing gift card my colleagues gave me when I retired! 

Taking the garden with me

 

You're not supposed to dig up and take your plants with you when you move unless you have already agreed with the new owners.  I did say to my buyers that I would be digging up a memorial rose and a bit of lavender but everything else I'd leave.  They were happy with that as they're not gardeners.  Although I have been taking 'bits' of some of my aquilegias and potting them up.  I think they are so pretty and delicate!

I have 6 different and distinct 'varieties' so I hope they all survive.  I don't think they'll be in seed by the end of the month so I'm taking a chance they'll make it to the new garden.  The back bit of my garden is very dense and erm, wild so you can't see where I've dug up wee bits of things like greater knapweed too.  Some people think they're weeds any way.

It was only when I looked at all my pots I realised I've dug up only pink, purple and blue plants!  Maybe my new garden will be just pink, purple and blue flowers 🩷💜🩵

I have a lot of plants in pots especially in the front garden so they'll all be coming with me too!  From what I remember the new garden had no plants.  Just grass (mud) and a huge deck area.

So I'll have some colour for the Summer while I decide how I'm going to design the space 😊

Less than 3 weeks to go now!!

Where's my asparagus?

 

Breakfast 8th April 2021

Twice in the last week I've had a memory pop up on FB about my asparagus being ready to pick and eat.  I've been checking it regularly and today went out to the garden to tidy up the raised bed it's in.  There's absolutely no sign of it at all!  I have 5 crowns that I planted in 2020 so they're well established by now.  I wonder if it's been too wet these last few months and it's rotted? 😟  I do hope not!

I did a Tesco shop this morning and didn't get very much.  But I spent £36.99 for a whole chicken, vegetables (fresh and frozen,) laundry liquid, toilet roll, eggs, cheese, bread flour, stock powder and black bin bags.  I'm really struggling to keep within my supermarket target of £25 a week. And I'm even more worried as I haven't planted a single seed yet for the allotment.  Normally by now I've at least got tomatoes well established and a few other things started.  I've not even planted my seed potatoes yet!

I need to give seed planting some thought as it will be disastrous to my annual food budget if I don't grow anything to eat!!

Luna and leeks

As you can see Luna is very well and has loads of energy!!  We've got an appt at the vet school today so hopefully she'll get signed off and we can get her vaccinations sorted out.  Her litter mates are all out and about going for walks.  Poor Emma doesn't get much peace so they're kept apart most of the time to give an old lady Lab a break.

She really is a wee sun worshipper, loves lying on the floor level windowsill watching the world go by!  Soon she'll be too big to lie on it!  You can just see my leeks in the blue raised bed on the right and courgettes and newly planted red kale in the one on the left!

Those leeks made a very delicious chicken and leek pie!! I just sauteed them in the chicken fat before adding some flour and stock.  It made the most amazing sauce for the chicken.

Yesterday's lunch was leftover pie and a baked potato.  Leeks and potatoes are home grown! 😋

Rhubarb and strawberry crumble using home grown fruit from the freezer.  I really need to sort out my freezer, again.  I know what's in there but it's all a big jumble!!  I think I've still got one more bag of last year's plums to use up.  I should really check to see what is left from last year before I start using this year's produce.  Chest freezers are fantastic but I've yet to find a way to keep on top of using up stuff in rotation.

Poorly puppy

 

Luna is still a poorly puppy.  After her meds finished last week she got a UTI so we had a weekend of drama which included an overnight stay in the vet hospital where she needed IV fluids.  We're stuck in the cycle of her having an immature immune system so she's picking up all the nasties.  And because she's been poorly the vet can't give her the vaccines against the nasties!!  It's all been rather stressful and we're not quite out of danger yet.  She's on yet more antibiotics so fingers crossed they work to get her stable enough for the vaccines.

I managed to visit the allotment for a few hours.  My polytunnel was a riot with blackfly so I picked all the tomatoes and pulled up all the plants.  The green tomatoes should ripen on my windowsill.  I've left a few cucumber plants and nasturtiums that were ok so we'll see if they produce any more.  

I brought home my chilli plant so I could watch it ripen here in case I don't get back to the plot often enough.  This one is Apache.  Apparently they are mild when green but rather hot when red!!  I might pick and use a green one to gauge the heat level.

As expected the weeds were having a field day so I cleared the path and entrance at my gate.  Rabbits and pigeons have eaten my carrots, pumpkins and my recently planted purple sprouting broccoli.  My fault as I didn't net them!! They've not touched my onions or potatoes though!  And I picked some of my thornless brambles (blackberries) to add to the freezer fruit collection!

Since I'm still confined to the kitchen areas with Luna (laminate floors clean easier!) I've been cooking.  I pulled these lamb steaks out the freezer and did a basic slow cooker stew.

Red onions were from the plot and the potatoes (Pink Fir Apple) were from pots in the back garden.  It was delicious and did 2 full meals 😋

I've got a sourdough starter on the go using organic white flour.  I've been using the 'discard' to make sourdough pancakes.  They're delicious with jam and I've had no issues with the gluten content (so far!) I've cut out all processed foods and now eat my big meal of the day at lunch time.  This seems to be helping my digestive system as I really haven't had any 'issues' for weeks now.  My trousers are a bit looser so I think I'm starting to shift some weight.  I'm still reading Ultra Processed People to keep me motivated!  I need to be fit and healthy to get the most out of retirement!! 😊

Going, going, gone!

 

When Tuppence died, I knew I'd have to remove Fort Klux for any future buyers of this house.  I also knew it would be a big job!!

Basically, brute force was needed to get most of it down.  And as I don't have any, it took me quite a few weeks to get it all down.  Chicken wire is vicious and I have the scratches to prove it!

But finally, it's gone!  I managed to get all the rotten wood, chicken wire and Perspex roofing to the recycling centre/tip this morning.  I loaded up with free compost while I was there.  My poor car is a mess!  I've reused some of the fence posts to create 2 beds to grow some Winter veg.  As the soil is so fertile (8 years of chickens pooping!) the weeds are loving it so I need to do some more weeding.  But I'm burst today so it'll have to wait.  It's safe enough and tidy enough for a puppy now! 🐕

There are still 2 posts that are very well concreted in.  I just can't get them out so I'm leaving them in.  I'd like to put a bird box on them and maybe a big pot at the bottom with something colourful climbing up the post.  I'm definitely putting in some Spring bulbs along the front of the beds so there's some colour in the garden when the house goes on sale.

This how my I want my next chicken coop to look.  It's actually a goose house that a FB friend has built on her farm.  I'll need to get someone in to build it for me but it looks rather predator proof to me! 

My blue beds

 

I'm pleased to see that while I was away the raised beds in my front garden are thriving.  This bed is the one the tulips were in.  Once they'd died back I removed all the brown leaves and topped it up with a bag of compost from B&Q.  The bulbs are still in place for next year.  I transplanted the remaining leeks (the other half are on the plot) and sowed some mixed lettuce bowl seeds.  My blue beds are south facing so are in direct sun most of the day.  These leeks are twice the size of the ones on my plot!

I have cabbages and courgettes in this bed.  The cabbages were small plants my Lovely Mum gifted me and the courgettes I grew from seed!  I'll need to remove a couple if they get much bigger 😮

Look!  I have a flower and it's a female one so my first courgette is on it's way 🎉 I laugh when I see and hear people complaining they have too many.  I never have enough!!!

I picked my first blueberries 😋  My son and DIL netted the pots while I was away so none were lost to the birds this year! 🐦

I had picked some of my lavender to dry on a sunny window.  I took the dried buds off and the smell was amazing!

I put it in a jar with olive oil and it's sitting on a sunny windowsill.  This is the solar extraction method. You could leave it in a dark cupboard for longer or warm it in a pan over a low heat.   It takes a week and hopefully I'll have a lavender scented oil to make a salve.

When I was a wee girl I loved making potions with rose petals and flowers or grass to make 'perfume' 😂  I guess this is the grown up version 😊

Overgrown!!

 

This is what my plot looks like after 3 weeks of being away unexpectedly.  It's rained heavily but the temperature has been in the high teens so it's a tad wild and overgrown!!! 😱 But thanks to my lovely plot neighbours watering my polytunnel for me, my tomatoes and cucumbers have survived.  Hooray!  The cucumbers are getting a bit unruly but as I've never successfully got any to this stage before I've no idea if they need staked.  Any tips welcome!!

I picked just over a kilo of raspberries!  Some had gone over but there are still loads left to ripen.  It's a lottery getting to them before the rain makes them soggy and inedible.  When I got home I put them straight into the dehydrator.  The smell is amazing!  I've not done this before so it's a bit of an experiment to find new ways to preserve my fruit instead of jam.  I'll report back on how successful they are (or not!)

Lots of 'stuff' is flowering so all is good.  The daisies have just popped up by themselves but I'm happy to leave them.  Not sure what kind they are (they're about 40cm tall) or if they have any culinary or herbal uses.  Everything needs to have a purpose to earn their place!  Let me know if you know!

My garden is similarly wild and overgrown.  In this bed there are sweet peas, sweetcorn, squash, runner beans (I'm doing the Three Sisters method), Jerusalem artichokes and peas.  I'm going to have to sort them out somehow or none of it will be able to produce anything to eat.  

One of the things I did while I was staying at mum's house in between hospital stuff, was stitching some more of my sock yarn squares onto my blanket.  I added the bottom 2 rows so it's now 12 squares by 13 squares.  This is it laid out on a double bed.  I still need to decide how big I want it to be.  I've certainly got enough leftover sock yarn to make it double this size!!  But as it's taken me (on and off) about 10 years to get to this size, it's starting to feel like a never ending project! 🧶

Home for a break

 

I'm back home for a few days.  I need a break from all the 'stuff' so I'm letting my sister step up a bit.  Mum is still in hospital although she got out very briefly.  Unfortunately she had to be blue lighted back to A&E and is still being investigated.  Thanks to all to the scans she's had we have a very clear picture of some other issues going on so she'll be in and out hospital for a wee while in the near future.  We are so lucky to have the NHS and I've seen first hand how stretched resources and staff are on a daily basis.  Although having to spend 23 hours on a trolley in corridor wasn't nice for mum.  Bed shortages are appalling!

As I had to leave the house quickly I left instructions for my DIL to deal with my drying/dried rose petals and applemint.  She did a great job.  I think I'm getting her rather hooked on growing and preserving! 😂

It was a dry sunny morning at 8am today so I was out early to pick some of my lavender.  I have a project in mind for it 😉 I discovered last week that my sister and niece can't stand the smell of it.  I love it and it has a lot of herbal properties!

The lemon basil I grew from seed is thriving.  I haven't decided how I'll use it yet but it smells delicious 😋 It likes the sunny window in the living room.

Another reason I came home was that I missed Emma!  She's well looked after by my son and DIL but she's missed me.  This was her face when I told her I've bought something very expensive for my retirement that she might like.  Although she might not... 😂😂😂

Very Berry!

 

It's been very wet the last few days which is good for my parched garden and plot.  I popped down yesterday to pick my berries only to discover that the birds had got to my blackcurrants 😱  And they'd broken 2 big branches by standing on them.  I did have netting on that bed but it had blown off and I'd never got round to replacing it.  Heyho, my own fault! You'll see in the video how many I got!! 😂

I decided to make gooseberry gin liqueur with a bottle of gin my Lovely Mum had opened and not used in ages.  Neither of us are keen on this one.  I froze the gooseberries to soften the skin (like you do with sloes) so I didn't need to prick each one!!  I'll let it sit for a few months to infuse then make jam with the gooseberries when I strain them off.  Flavoured gin and jam from the same berries 😋

I've been picking strawberries from my garden each morning.  I eat some and freeze the rest.  I've been saving the tops too as I've seen a few ideas to use them to make syrup or a flavoured vinegar.  The initial recipe I saw said pick off the green bits but a few others showed the tops still on.  So I'll just freeze the whole top from now on as it saves time.

I've been drying some rose petals on my sunny window so I can make a rosemary and rose infused oil to make a salve later in the Summer.  I'm definitely going to be making more lotions and potions with my garden produce.  These petals came from the rose Very Berry which is growing abundantly in my front garden in one of the raised beds 🌹

Gorgeous and has a lovely rose scent!

P.S.  Just one more day until I retire!! 🎈🎉🎊

After the party's over

 

I don't think I mentioned that one of my colleague's husband has set up a wee photography business.  He's very good so I asked him to take photos of my party.  Just informal ones and a few posed.  He sent 171 photos today!  Here are my work besties who organised it all for me.

One of my favourite photos! 💕

Another favourite one of my Lovely Mum, 2 of my sons, my DIL and my future DIL 💕

I'm not crying, I'm laughing so hard as they're singing to me!  They changed the words from "I will survive" to "I will retire" and included all the things I've done at school.  It was hilarious!!! 😂

And my gorgeous Emma who was the star of the show 💕

I went to the Leavers Assembly this afternoon where I was presented with a lovely peace lily in a blue pot which will go nicely in my bedroom.  I cleared out the last of my personal belongings from my classroom, hugged all my kids and handed back my key fob.  I'm officially done with school 🎉

I picked some strawberries from the garden tonight and thought yep, I'm looking forward to my retirement now 😊

Frankly, I'm glad it's all over

 

My retirement garden party was yesterday.  I had mixed feelings about it beforehand.  My work besties organised everything so I genuinely knew nothing about it.

My gifts from the staff were specially made balloons, flowers, Prosecco, non alcoholic gin and a Dobbies voucher for £250!!!  Some people brought a 'hostess' gift too.

It was a bring your own bottle arrangement but I set up a bar area and provided some drinks too.  People said nice things and they made me feel very special.

Then most people got completely trashed (not me, I was sober!) They sang and danced loudly then pretty much refused to leave.  That's the heavily edited account!  I was rather disappointed with their behaviour.  I felt the need to apologise to my neighbours this morning who were very gracious.

Frankly, I'm glad it's all over and I can move on now.  School finishes on Friday.  I'm going in on Tuesday afternoon to the leavers' assembly as I taught most of the kids who are moving on to high school in August.  And that's it.  I'll stay in touch with some folk but there are a few I doubt I'll ever see again.  And I'm good with that.

Miscellaneous few days

 

First roses of the year - Very Berry

My not very happy Old John rose in it's new pot 😔

Lemon Basil, smells delicious already

Old apple tree removal

Weeds from under old apple tree

Currently on the needles

Kitchen wall painting has begun, colour Dulux Heartwood

A new herbal remedy started

ETA:  Jan asked what is an oxymel.  Good explanation HERE if anyone is interested 😊

ETA:  Oxymel recipe for Rachael HERE 😊