Vegetating

Veggies out of the poly-tunnel and garden

Today I've been doing what I like doing best - working in the poly-tunnel and picking and digging. The wet, cold weather earlier in the year has made everything late. A couple of the apple trees are loaded, the rest of them have hardly got a leaf between them, let alone any fruit.  I've not seen any wasps buzzing around either, perhaps the blossom didn't get pollinated this year and the buds just dropped off - I don't know.  The first  sowing of runner beans outside was a complete disaster. They either rotted in the ground or the slugs polished them off just as they came through. I sowed a second lot of beans in June and they're just coming into their own. Bagged a few for the freezer. The tomatoes are ripening at long last. I saved some seed from a beefsteak plant last year and pretty near every one of them germinated so I've got loads of great big funny shaped tomatoes, but they don't half taste great. And they didn't cost anything.  I tried growing some Kohl Rabbi this year too. Never eaten Kohl Rabbi, so will cook some for dinner tomorrow. The slugs obviously like it - they've bitten a smiley face all along the bottom - durr.

There's an artichoke growing in the front border.

I wish I could have had a slow motion video camera to watch it opening.

The electric blue flower today is gorgeous.

I took this picture today. Compare it with the header - same hill, same trees, same hedges, same fields - that was last week, but it can't ever be the same because now everything's moved on.

Some You Win, Some You Lose

My Other Half went to a farm sale yesterday. He scratched his head and found that he had bought twenty economy size, galvanize chicken feeders and an assortment of poultry water troughs. WE HAVEN'T GOT ANY CHICKENS.
Ever been had?

Onslow Bank Steam Rally 2012

Vintage cars lining up to go into the ring

Bank Holiday Monday (yesterday) we went to the Onslow Bank Steam Rally. It's held over two days. Sunday, weather wise was a a beautiful day, warm, dry, everything. Monday was forecast as heavy rain, gales ... you name it. Anyway we went early Monday morning. It's only ten/twelve miles away from where we live and a good day out so what's a drop of rain and a bit of wind. A lot of people stayed away because of the Monday weather which was a bit of a shame, because it was a fantastic day. There was a lot going on - the razmataz of vintage - acrid smoke, hooting, chuffing and banging of the steam engines. They converge here from all over the country. The  A458 is a nightmare when they all arrive on a Friday night and a Saturday.

One of the vintage push bike collection

I loved this bike - the day job and the leisure tennis racket for after work.

Love this motorbike too.  Could almost picture Steve McQueen in 633 Squadron ploughing through that rolled up barb wire on something similar.

The Old Guilsfield Bus

This bus belonged to 'John the Bus'. The story collated by Mrs Marie Jones goes : - 'John was a war victim of the 1st World War, having his leg amputated in France at the age of 23. On returning back home he started his bus business, conveying passengers. To do this the bus was adapted to suit his driving capabilities...'  Inside the bus, near the gear stick, there's a compartment where he used to store his artificial leg. Neat!

The old Crosville bus leading the procession 

I can remember catching one of those buses when I went to school. Nostalgia.

Vintage tractors make their début

Lawley Bros from Churchstoke using steam power to split  through tree trunks

The Association of Pole Lathe Workers at work

I came across my long time friend Jane at Levant there and we agreed to share picures - Check her site - she's got some great pics.
There's a link to my Flickr site if you've got the time - sorry about the repeats - I'm still practising.

One Small Step - RIP Neil Armstrong

Just heard on the news - Neil Armstrong - first man on the moon died today aged 82. I can remember staying up all night watching him on our old black and white telly. Wasn't that just amazing and isn't it mind blowing how technology has moved on since then. It's a privilege to be born in this era to witness it all. May he rest in peace.

Photo Test

River over at Drifting Through Life is having problems  uploading photos in Blogger - mine seems to upload OK (I think) Is anybody else having trouble uploading  pictures?

Happens To the Best Of Us

'Look on the bright side'

D'you ever have one of those days? We had to go into Welshpool yesterday. O/H wanted a new tin of paint to repaint his concrete mixer. Well actually, he'd only bought a new half litre tin of bright orange a few days earlier. Puts the tin down on his work bench and comes in for a cup of tea and a sandwich.  Unfortunately the exact place where he put the tin, had a nail sticking up. The nail pierces the base of the tin and by the time he came to do his painting, the entire contents  had detached itself from it's container, run down the leg of the work bench and was one sticky, gungey mess all over the floor of the garage. Guess who helped him clear it all up.
We called  at the recycling centre on the way in. A woman was emptying a load of grass cuttings into the compost skip. She was very quick. When she had finished she shoved the round, expandable/collapse-able containers into the boot of her car, tapped the lid down and we followed her at a short distance towards the town centre. It was apparent when she had gone through the gate that the lid had not secured properly. As she got nearer into town, the boot was flapping up and down like a demented seagull. Even though O/H tried to attract her attention, the dear lady obviously had more pressing things on her mind and kept going. She just got on to the fairly busy roundabout by Tesco's when the lid shot open and the two bins bounced out boing, boing  across the road like a couple of exuberant Magic Roundabout Zebedees. Fortunately (or unfortunately, which ever way you look at it), a police car followed her round the island. Thankfully, there were no collisions and nobody hurt  ...... but can't life sometimes just be a bitch?

Showers of Gold

Early Morning Mist on Moel-y-golfa

I've never really been one of those sporty types - my sole claim to fame was when (skirt tucked into knickers) I came first in the local primary schools high jump when I was eleven - long time ago. But I can't help watching bits and glitches of the Olympics all the same. Wasn't last night at the Olympic Stadium fantastic! Jess Ennis, Greg Rutherford and Mo Farah giving it their all. Did you see the look of sheer grit on Farah's face as he crossed the finishing line? I had a lump in my throat just watching him go.
It's often crossed my mind how people get good at what they do. There must be a bit of encouragement or quite a lot of it somewhere along the line. I remember years ago, my O/H going abroad on a business trip. He was very taken with the piano playing of one of the musicians in the hotel bar. He told her that she must be gifted to be able to play like that. To which she replied, 'Gifted my a*se! You have to practise for hours and hours to get it right.' And they must have put acres of  hard work into it too.
I got up early this morning. The view across the 'Moel-y'  was just breath taking. The mist drifting across the  lower ground, the tip of the mountain above it and a clear blue sky. It must have rained quite a a bit in the night. When I walked round the garden this morning, the plants were dripping with dew and there was that late summer nip in the air.

Sweet Peas

The sweet peas have been hard work this year. All that rain earlier on caused the roots to die off and the leaves didn't grow like they should. The flowers are just coming into bloom now. I picked a vase full for the house. The perfume is just out of this world.

Gladioli

The gladiolus are out.

And so are the Orange Day Lilies, the blue/purple Veronica  and the white Verbascum

Blue Scabious,  Eryngium (Sea Holly)  and Cosmos

The sun on the poly tunnel silhouetted the sweet corn.

The cobs are just starting to ripen. We've eaten one or two already.

Tomatoes are just starting to turn - never ever thought they would this year.

And later on, when the sun was really bright, I looked up and saw this fabulous cloud formation.
Life's good. Hope you've had a good weekend too.