My Sunday Photo...Baby Robin

Sometimes when you least expect it... up pops a wonderful surprise.

Take yesterday for instance, whilst being a contortionist crouching under our curly hazel tree to pull up weeds, a little baby robin hopped right in front of me. 

I quickly went inside to get my camera thinking that it was probably going to be a waste of time.

The robin would have moved on, but he was still there when I returned.

He wasn't in the least bit bothered by me being so close to him.

He was obviously a very switched on robin as he watched whilst I pulled and dug he waited for some tasty treats to appear. 

He wasn't in the least bit timid...I'd go so far as to say he enjoyed watching me working.

Obviously, he's not street wise yet, with being so young and as you can see from his plumage, he hasn't got all of his red waistcoat feathers yet. 

He's still a little fluffy and dishevelled.

I also don't think he's found his voice yet either....but we'll be in for a treat when he does.

As you can see he was watching me closely.

Gorgeous isn't he? 

With him being this friendly I may well manage to feed him some treats from my hand. 

Now that would be something to share.

I'm linking up with My Sunday Photo over at Photalife

and Image-in-ing.blogspot.co.uk
Please feel free to pop across to see lots more photographs by clicking here

Have a great weekend and thanks for popping over to my place.

The Veggie Plot Update

With summer well underway here in the UK and temperatures soaring, I thought it was time to give you a little update on our new veggie plot.

(It's not quite tropical for us up here, in the North East of Scotland...but still it's very nice, thank you) 

The plot is coming along nicely, especially when I look back at the first photo's that I took in back in February.

We're not quite self-sufficient in fresh produce yet, but we're getting there.

The raised beds are doing well...housing onions, garlic, fennel, carrots, and brassicas (cabbage, sprouts, broccoli) .

The only failure so far has been our cauliflower...or lack of.

The seedlings didn't stand a chance with the early temperatures. 

We've made a note that we shouldn't sew them so early next year.

The tatties (or potatoes) are doing really well with six different varieties. 

They are flowering now so we won't have long to wait to lift them and see just what we have.

The fennel has also been a huge success. 

We have far too many and will have to be inventive in how to use them all.

I'm happy to report that our cabbage, sprouts and broccoli are another success.

Here's the parsnips still in their toilet roll holders... hopefully they aren't being restricted and we have prime specimens underneath the soil.

The peas and runner beans are also starting to flower. 

I can't wait for the snap of the pea pod being opened and the juicy sweet jewels held within.

Once these flowers die off we can start to lift our potatoes...well hopefully we'll have a reasonable crop. We have staggered the planting, so that we have a steady supply to harvest.
I sound so confident that there's something lying there, don't I?

We have quite a few beetroots so if you have any tips on how to use them I'd appreciate it.
I'm not sure other than to slice into a salad or to pickle them.
I was rather delighted to find that the broccoli are sprouting too and there's a couple of sprouts appeared within the cabbages!
Obviously, someone's organisational skills at the seedling stage went slightly awry.

We also have herbs, lettuce, artichoke, blueberries and strawberries.
Growing blueberries is completely new to us and we're hoping that they actually can survive up here with these temperatures. We have three small bushes that are located in the Tardis (small plastic greenhouse) and one has flowered, so I'm hoping the berries will follow.
Here's our first strawberries.
I feel we should have a strawberry ceremony...perhaps including ice-cream, meringue or maybe I'll just pop one straight in my mouth!

We should be well set ready for the start of Wimbledon if these beauties are anything to go by.
How do you prefer to eat your strawberries?
Have a great week...if you're in the middle of these record temperatures then stay cool and know that it will pass... plus there are some that would love a few more degrees up on the thermometer.
Thanks for stopping by and I hope to see you again soon.

My Sunday Photo...The Garden Awakes.

The Easter Holiday is renowned for being the biggest gardening weekend of the year, so I thought I'd show you a little of our garden.

There are lots of activities in other parts of the garden, work in progress as they say, but thankfully this is my little bit of sanctuary.

(It's a pity that the sun wasn't shining today...typical...but it did try)

As usual I'm going to link up with My Sunday Photo over at Photalife.com

I hope you are having a fabulous long weekend... I know I will once I find those chocolate eggs!

Happy Easter to those that celebrate this holiday and for anyone else I wish you a fantastic weekend.

Thanks for visiting my place and I hope to see you again soon.

If you entered into my Giveaway draw for the Mother and Baby Giraffe watercolour print...you might like to see Muffin pick out the winning name...click the link below.

Thank you to all who entered... I'm just sorry that you all couldn't win.

Denise Allan Art

The Birth of the Veggie Plot

We have been back in Scotland for nearly four years now and we've always thought that at some stage, we would like a vegetable plot. 

Finally in the last few weeks, the work has started.

Our house is situated on land that was once a farm cottage. 

I've mentioned in the past that when digging in our garden, we've surprisingly found cobblestones under flower boarders. 

Both delightful, but at the same time terribly hard work.

There's also the ruined barn (the folly) and an old outbuilding that we use for a wood store.

So it was with extreme trepidation that my hubby started excavating the new proposed veggie site.

I thankfully was only recruited to keep a photographic record... which was fine by me. 

Don't worry the fields behind have had a farmer with his plough to work them and not my hubby.

They're not on our plot!

I thought it might be a good idea to perhaps ask the farmer, if he could swing his tractor with the digger attachment in through our gate. 

I would provide fresh baking and copious cuppa's, but apparently there might be a gas pipe running along this plot, so it's gently gently for now.

So far he hasn't found any cobblestones...
just huge granite boulders!
Like this one...











Hubby has had to devise and engineer a solution to be able to lift them....
























An old scaffolding tube came in handy as a lever... plus a lot of huffing and puffing












There's a saying that gardening is a matter of your enthusiasm holding up until your back gets used to it.

I'm wondering how long hubby will enjoy spending his days digging, now that he's retired.

It's certainly different from what he used to do.

It's hard manual labour, but so far so good... he's enjoying it.

I've always thought he had a touch of OCD and seeing the way in which he's working the plot does nothing to alleviate this thought.

There's still such a long way to go, but as long as the weather isn't too bad we'll hopefully get there.

The tatties (potatoes) are apparently in the post, so the pressure is on.

I'll be sure to give you a progress report when there's something more exciting to report.

In the meantime... enjoy getting outdoors and having fun.
I'm linking up with Image-in-ing.blogspot.co.uk and Our World Tuesday

Thanks for visiting and I hope to see you again soon.

Wordless Wednesday - Aquilegia

RHS Flower Show Tatton Park

A few weeks ago I had a little trip to the RHS Flower Show at Tatton Park in Cheshire.

I've been visiting quite a few of the big Garden Shows since I returned to the UK.

If you've been following my blog then you might remember my trip to Chelsea Flower Show 

(click here if you missed it or would like to revisit Chelsea)

Unfortunately,the weather didn't really treat us kindly but it wasn't so bad that it stopped us from wandering around and enjoying all of the exhibits. 

I've visited Tatton Park a few years ago, but I didn't remember it being so big or having so much to see and do back then. It might have expanded over the years with growing popularity, or maybe we just missed some that year, but this year I was really pleasantly surprised. 

In order to save you time looking over masses of my photographs

 (especially if you are taking a peek over a coffee/tea break) 

I've collated some of them into collages to just give you a flavour. 

There's no way that I can do justice to the horticulturist heaven of a garden show, with it's masses of incredible variety of plants, enthusiastic experts on hand to give helpful advice and guidance if needed, and products to be seen and obviously bought whilst visiting the show plus what's available to eat and drink. 

I mean how can you convey the sheer volume of perfume that wafts and gently envelopes you 

as you enter the Floral Marquee. 

It just can't be done.

It's a busy day culminating in using all of your senses to the maximum and you certainly know you've had a good workout by the time you stagger through the exit heavily laden with all of your beautiful new treasures.

 Thankfully they provide a free courtesy car service to carry you and your wares back to your car. 

It's a brilliant service for numerous reasons... one if your like me and finding your car a huge challenge especially when you've just left it in a field... or in a deer park in this case. They also help load your car boot for you (which at this stage of the day could be your undoing) plus saving you traipsing through the deer park with your wheelie trolley dodging lots of presents left by the deer along the way!

For anyone who would like a 'she shed' or thinks they need to give their shed a lick of paint then this next collage is for you.

How fantastic are these little beauties?

It's a pity that the sun wasn't shining at this point (it was drizzling slightly) because the photo's don't do justice to all the work and effort in their designs. 

They were amazing.

One of the things that we've been mulling over is whether to become bee keepers. 

We have a fantastic area that is far enough away from the house but near the floral part of the garden plus lots (I mean LOTS) of wild flowers and grasses around our property before the farmland begins.

I think it would be a great hobby for my hubby as he loves honey.

In fact, we all do and I have to buy so much weekly that to produce our own would not only be interesting and possibly be a great new challenge, but it would also save money. 

And finally because the sun's shining and I want to get outside... 

here's my favourite purchase from that day.

I've wanted a weather vane for years and couldn't resist this beauty.

It was difficult to choose what design initially, but I think the pheasant feels right, especially as I hear and see them daily wandering around the fields nearby.

Oh I know whether the wind is blowing in from the North or from the South but I find the weather vane fascinating. Okay small things eh?

I'm easily pleased... bless.

Thanks to my son for modelling the weather vein so well by the way.

So I think that's about enough for today.

I hope you enjoyed our whistle stop tour of the RHS Tatton Park Gardening Show... 

but if you can manage to visit one show in your local area, I'm sure you won't be disappointed. 

It really is good to get outside and enjoy all that nature has to offer and even better if you can add a little something as a reminder of the day to your own garden space at home. 

Have fun and Happy Monday to you all.

I'm linking up with the following...

Blue Monday and Mosaic Monday

Grateful thanks to all of the hosts.

Tuesday's treasures

If I told you that today I did a little gardening you'd probably think I was a little crazy... 

(maybe just a little more than usual) but I did! 

Even with a snow flurry forecast I still went out into the garden.

I was dressed up like a Michelin man with so many layers on that I could hardly move... but I went out.

(For those of you that are of a certain young age, you'll probably not know about the Michelin man or what on earth I'm on about, but suffice to say I was well wrapped up).  

But it was all worthwhile... because look what I found...

A brave rose blooming in January!

There were a few more brave blooms which made me smile.

The photo below shows one of the two flower pots that are on my doorstep. 

It's also full of bulbs in layers that will appear from spring through to summer which I also can't wait to see. 

Talking of which...(bulbs I mean) I've finally put the last few into the ground... 

These particular one's are tulips as shown on the packet.

Thankfully the ground wasn't too frozen for me.

It's wonderful to see new growth with the promise that spring will be coming soon (she says hopefully)

even though we'll probably have a few more snow flurries and gales before we're done.

Here's some daffodils putting on a brave face... 

Buds and shoots sprouting everywhere...

Even plants that have only been in the garden from last summer seem to approve of their new home and are coming along nicely.

I've a dilemma though... I've been thinking it over for some time now...

Do I leave the ivy growing over the wall which has become so thick there's a possibility of it could pull some of the wall down? 

It definitely needs sorting in some way, but I think it's sanctuary for lots of birds. 

I'm thinking that I will cut it back now, but they need shelter from the winter weather... but before long they'll be nesting in it too...hmm what to do?

I also found something else which I didn't expect to find... this huge nail...

Looking at the photo below it doesn't really show how big it actually is. 

It's over six inches long! 

Thinking about it now I should have perhaps held the nail, so that it would give a better indication of it's size. 

I think it must have come from one of the old cow barns that are in and along side our garden.

And who do you think lives here?

And finally three of my favourite daily visitors.

They appear each morning and land on the roof waiting for me to feed them. 

I've actually had them feed out of my hand, but it's difficult taking a selfie (in focus) whilst feeding them.

If I manage it one day I'll be sure to post it.
So there we are... that's Tuesday done and dusted.
I hope you're having a great week and possibly find some treasures too.

Gardening forever... housework whenever

This sign was given to me by my sister a few years ago. 

As you can see it's had a life! 

In fact it's a very well travelled sign, having covered three continents. 

It did have a stake, so it could be stuck into a pot, but somewhere along the way it fell off. I've always been fond of it, not only because it was a wee gift from my sister, but the sentiment is spot on as far as I'm concerned. 

I'd much rather be outside (weather permitting) instead of ironing, cleaning bathrooms or moving dust from pillar to post. 

So imagine my delight when I received some lovely happy post this week from Twinkletoes2day with the same saying....

'Gardening forever... Housework whenever'

... AND a  very special Toby Poby drawing!

Now if that doesn't make you smile flying through letterbox I don't know what would? 

Whilst I'm mentioning gardening, I thought it might be an appropriate time to show you a little produce.

(little being the operative word here) 

I've not organised the area where I'll have a beautiful huge greenhouse, raised beds, chooks and bee hives. Ha! All in my head of course or possibly in about Phase 15 of our renovation plans. 

(We're only onto Phase 2... but anyway I digress) 

I did have a little play though and for the first time I have grown courgettes... with some success. 

We had the four shown above and my word I have to say they were delicious. 

There are still some growing, so we might be lucky and have another meal soon. 

I love the beautiful flowers but so far I haven't eaten one. 

But then with success there were a few disappointments... my french beans to name but one. 

I had big plans for them but unfortunately so did the snails!

Don't laugh if I tell you that I harvested two... YES TWO... that's not a typo.

Here they are...

But they are stunning specimens if I say so myself. 

(I can hear you laughing...but there's more)

I cooked these two and cut them in half so that we each could taste them. Again, they were delicious and just reinforced that we will grow them next year, but be ready for the slug invasion.

I think my best results though, came from two old compost bags... I planted tatties (potatoes) in them and was rewarded with 2 kilos!

I'm about to plant more so we can have our own for that special day in December.

I'll leave you with a few pics of a beautiful visitor to our plot...

Remember 'if a garden is finished... then it's dead'

Thanks for visiting.

I hope to see you again soon!