Category: Weather
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Persevering flowers
High up on the fellside of Sparty Lea, you’ve got to be tough to survive. That adage is true for birds, animals, plants and even humans. But if you do manage to withstand the constant wind, the lowered temperatures that altitude brings, and the frozen winters, then you may find, like these persevering plants, that […]
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Good morning, blue sky
It’s no wonder that the seeresses of old used a crystal ball to peer into the future. The reflection of the blue sky beyond the clouds in our glass conservatory table this morning seems to offer a new perspective to the dawn. New perspectives seem to be an incredible stimulus. I know one writer who […]
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Very wet today . . . lovely!
A couple days ago I clocked a column headline that gave me pause, and this morning I returned to Ian Jack’s piece and read it carefully. He explains, with some precision, why we need a new story about the ‘glorious’ weather construct that we put on sunny days. To which I would add, after a […]
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Oh we do love to be beside the seaside . . .
Early Monday morning, everyone is struggling to wake up and pack up for the off, after a delightful weekend of fish and chips, pizzas, and then a complete Sunday dinner. Food and drinks have been in copious supply, just like the sunshine. It seems the whole country was filled with sunshine, actually, as the reports […]
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More things to do . . .
I keep forgetting that work around a big garden is never done. Much as I’d like to pretend that we’re keeping some borders wild and free (folks in New Galloway are very keen on the new ‘ark‘ concept of gardening, in which Acts of Restorative Kindness are brought to bear on domestic gardens that have […]
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After the move . . .
I can’t say ‘job done’ yet because it’s not; there’s the small matter of the biosecurity netting, which has the additional advantage of protecting the chicken feed from the jackdaws and pheasants. But that’s a task for this morning, with any luck. Meanwhile, with the chickens ensconced (apparently happily, but really, who knows for chickens?) […]
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Return of the European goldfinch
We’ve missed them, these brightly coloured little birds, though chaffinches, sparrows, dunnocks and the blackbirds have been here throughout the winter. I kept them nourished from the feeders that are designed to keep jackdaws and rats out, though the unwanted creatures are getting better at filleting out morsels even so. But late yesterday morning two […]
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A never-ending story of fertiliser
The potato patch is moving towards readiness to receive this year’s offerings. The clement, dry weather was such a delight this weekend; it was looking possible, at last, that the horse poos out in the field might be dry enough to be blown into the big collection bags. And indeed, the first swathe of mower-harvested, […]
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Late afternoon blessings
The sun’s been shining all day, and the field is drying. In the late afternoon, from the mouldering clothes drying area I cleared a bit of debris left over after an abandoned construction effort (the new generator shelter was finessed better with treated boards and hinges). This simple effort opened the way for me to […]
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That stinging sensation
After the bright morning, while it was still calm, I put my John Deere overalls on, my new Christmas wellies, my normal work gloves and then the long leather gauntlets to protect my wrists, and headed out for a bit of hedge trimming. I was happily snip-snipping along (I’ve eschewed the petrol strimmer for super-light […]
Roads to Joy 