Worst Weather Work!

The replacement fence......... in sunshine!

Little wonder we Brits bang on about the weather.  Friday was perfectly springlike, but as for yesterday.....! The temperatures had plummeted and the driving drizzle, low cloud and freezing mist and mizzle made fencing repairs a total misery despite, 3 pairs of socks, 3 jackets, waterproof over trousers and thick winter weight gloves. My hands were painfully cold. Work didn't go very well as our replacement posts turned out to be totally unsound. I was all for calling a halt to proceedings until Chris pointed out that he had some new (and far superior) posts going begging. He kindly went to collect them and work progressed .........slowly. Working in a thorny hedge, in amongst barbed wire, briars and  wire netting was an absolute pain! We couldn't evenly space the posts because of the Hawthorn trees and their roots made digging post holes even more difficult.

Finishing touches waiting for next week

What should have taken an hour and a half took ALL afternoon. At 4pm, numb with cold and after 2 (medicinal) cherry brandies and 5 minutes draped over the Aga, it was back to work. Within no time, it was too dark to see what we were doing.

Achingly cold!

Time to call it a day and have a bonfire in the wind and drizzle. We eventually went inside at 7:30pm. Sometimes I really wonder why I like garden work!!

Where there's a wall, there's a way!

Chris's wall behind the garage with its row of little black witches' hats is looking so good, we trimmed the hedge behind it sloping it back to allow in more light. I'm hoping that if Chris reads this post, he won't ask why we didn't do it beforehand and make his job much easier! We love the piers at each end of the wall but, most importantly is the curve which means that the path is wider and there'll be no more scraped knuckles when wheeling barrows past the dreaded metal boiler vent! Dave has placed in wiring ready for lighting so when we're lugging barrows full of logs, we'll even be able to see where we're going - BONUS!! When we first moved here, there was no path as it completely obstructed by overgrown hedge against the wall. 

Woodland Awakenings

A rare mild sunny day and I couldn't wait to get to work in the Woodland Border. There I found Aconites, Snowdrops, Pulmonarias and Hellebores all showing their faces. Last year's fronds were cut down and all Hellebore leaves removed. That revealed a Speedwell invasion had taken place so a bit more work there too. Having filled 3 wheelbarrows, I decided to resort to blowing all the dead leaves to the back of the border under the hedge where they can rot down and feed the hedge.

Worth Crowing About!

Going in to lay.

Despite the lack of daylight in one of the darkest months of winter and the cold weather, our little flock of five have really eggcelled themselves by laying 106 eggs this month! Given that their lives are pretty much ruled by daylight; that's pretty amazing - especially as Esmerelda (layer of pale blue eggs) decided to moult before Christmas! Not forgetting the egg success back in September last year when their eggs won first prize in a heavily contested competition!

This morning's  collection.

Their first 1st!

Our girls continue to enjoy a very varied diet with layers' mash for breakfast, fresh green leaves and mixed corn. Depending on the weather, they also have treats of cooked rice, fresh fruit and even spaghetti. They also enjoy the fresh bamboo leaves from the clumps grown for summer shade. We always keep plenty of fresh dry wood chip in their 'Henclosure' rather than leave them to scratch around in cold wet mud over winter. With 106 eggs in the month of January, we must be getting something right!!

Beating the rain!

...& tamed!

Vitis cognetiae - untamed...

The weather wasn't much better this Saturday but we were determined not to be beaten twice. Vine pruning continued as Chris Genever had made some rather natty little hooks and fitted them beneath and between the tiles so it now has something secure to hang on to and Al can drive cars out of the garage without getting hung up on my vine! Well it was a bit much!

New Dahlia border

Much needed was a pretty major clear up following all the work that has been happening at PTC over the past 3 months. Hedges in the creosote Yard and behind the new brick wall were cut back and new Dahlia Border filled with compost. Now, I can't wait to plant out this year's Dahlias!

Lane Widening!

The old brick path...

Spot the stop tap cover.

Our old brick path was a tad lethal when wet as it was so very slippery.  Also its narrow tight curves meant difficulties with wheelbarrow negotiations. Weeds and forget-me-nots used to self seed in all the cracks and crevises as originally the bricks had been laid on sand with (to my discovery!)  dry cement. It needed a bit of a make-over.

The finished path.

This week, Chris and I lifted and stacked all the bricks, widened the path by one brick and relaid them in mortar and pointed them up with more mortar.  Not only does it look really lovely, we know that it's unlikely ever to move and it's MUCH easier and safer! Also, there are no gaps and joints in which weeds can grow. 

Chris widened it a little more near its junction with the Service Path making it even easier for wheelbarrow traffic to swing round. We found a few old  Victorian blues - 2 diamond patterned and I also found an old cast iron stop tap cover which we incorporated into the path. We retained the traditional dog's tooth edging. The following day, we rubbed down all the mortar and it's a HUGE improvement. Guess who's very pleased with her new path!

Foul Weather Stops Play

Invisible hills!

Spot the Cyclamen on the right!

Cyclamen hederifolium

It's not very often that we call off Saturday garden work but, today we most definitely did - unanimously! It was raining, sleeting and snowing on and off all day long with glacially low temperatures. The cloud base was so low, we lost sight of Martley Hillside which meant that Woodbury Hill stood no chance at all of being seen. The entire garden was sopping wet and soggy.  Such conditions meant: no emptying the compost bay and top dressing or back filling borders and definitely no digging over the vegetable patch.   We togged up in waterproofs and took a walk around. The only real floral colour found in the entire garden were some Cyclamens (courtesy of Chris!) planted in November down by the conifer. The Snowdrops and Hellebores were only just emerging and I felt like telling them to stay put until the weather improves!

Time to go back indoors light the wood burner and peruse seed catalogues again!

I wish....

The Great Wall of Witton Hill!

The previous upturned concrete slabs

Hey presto! (Spot the dreaded vent!)

Despite all the recent freezing temperatures, Chris Genever has very busy behind the garage. Before he commenced operations, we had a narrow slabbed path and concrete slabs on end used to retain the hedge bank. As this path is the main wheelbarrow access to the top of the garden, we hated its narrow width and we hated even more scraping our knuckles against a metal vet protruding from the garage wall at exactly hand height when pushing a barrow! 

'Tile creasing'

Perfection.

In no time at all the old concrete retaining slabs disappeared only to be replaced with a really pretty brick wall with a slight curve which now widens the path at the site of the dreaded metal vent. 

Check out the mortar colour!

Abandoning Chris with his new uncapped wall for a trip to Birmingham, imagine my surprise to find that he had capped the top of the wall in its entirety with the prettiest little blue triangular Victorian capping bricks in the whole world! He even dyed the mortar to blend in and capped the piers with proportionately larger sized matching bricks. The gate post which had rotted off at ground level is now securely fixed to the side of the pier and it all looks really lovely and a huge improvement. Thanks very much indeed Chris - you're a star!

Barking up the Bright Tree!

Betula utilis jacquemontii

Betula utilis jaquemontii

Betula utilis Snow Queen

Just when we're desperate for something to brighten up the garden on a long winter's day, Mother Nature comes up with a solution! In this case, it's good old fullproof/growanywhere/tolerateallweathers silver birches! However, they do have a downside. They are without doubt the messiest trees in the garden. They drop huge quantities seeds everywhere and those dropped seeds germinate everywhere - pots, gutters, cracks and crevices - you name it. The wind blows great mounds of seeds by the tool shed and they also drop twigs everywhere. These faults are tolerated for their bark colour, their catkins in spring, their buttery golden yellow leaves in autumn and their graceful habit.

Betula pendula

As well as having several of the common European Betula pendula in the garden, we also have a Betula utilis jaquemontii and a Betula utilis Snow Queen. The advantage of these newer varieties is that they are faster growing and their bark turns a more silvery white at a much earlier age then the older common European versions.  Others have a brown bark which only turns silver at 10 years plus.  At our age we need instantaneous bark colour!!

Beaky Bulletin

A very indignant Marigold!

Things have been a tad quiet on the chicken front lately so, here's a little update.

Firstly, I have to ask a question. Why would a chicken choose the coldest snowiest weather to moult? Throughout the very coldest weather, Miss Esmereld, our only layer of blue eggs, looked very sorry for herself. Stray feathers on the ground everywhere and not a single tail feather left - hardly surprising there's been no sign of her little blue eggs for ages and ages. Three months to be precise. Poor thing, there were more missing feathers than remaining ones. I was secretly thinking duvets!

Anyway this morning, I went down to feed the chickens and collect any eggs. To my horror; where there should by 5, there were only 2 girls!! Despite all the fortifications and the electric fence still ticking away, all sorts of alarm bells rang in my head! At any hint of food, they all come rushing to the gate.  Putting down the trough containing their breakfast of mash,  I opened the back door of the 'House for Hens, only to find the missing 3 all piled in to a single nest box in total silence, Esmerelda being one of the three, Marigold and Beatrice being the other two!  With high hopes of a blue egg, I carried Beatrice into the Hennery House nest box leaving the other two to lay in peace. It worked! Today's total was 4 and one them a blue egg. Now Esmerelda has a full compliment of feathers once again, her plumage is looking immaculate. Maybe 'fine feathers do make  fine birds after all!  Hopefully, there'll be more blue eggs in evidence and on a more regular basis.

From the left: Esmerelda,Tosca, Wilhelmina, Beatrice & Marigold.