Monday 5 June 2017

Before the tummy bug

For the last half of May I was super ill with a terrible doubt of gastroenteritis. Really the realities of it are too gross to talk about but needless to say I was sofa bound for just over a week and it took 3 days before I could eat more than a cracker. I'm better now, that's what matters.

Before that mess we had a lovely, sunny afternoon at both plots for the last time. We've now officially said goodbye to 14b and even got a little refund as we'd recently paid for another year, we had 2 weeks to clear out what we wanted...
Plum Poppy - www.growourown.blogspot.com
Plum poppy looking great bar all the weeds and dead daffodil stems :)
But the first thing I saw on arrival at 14b were the poppies, god I love poppies and my Patty Plum had one in bloom and many to come. The oriental poppy is always a little behind but so many buds 😊. The roses never did well and looked quite dead, bar one that was struggling to produce 2 blooms.

Saved from the plot before the new owners come (wonder when that will be?):
  • Posts, fencing, wooden edging boards,  
  • hardcore gravel and paving slabs, 
  • comfrey plant, my wee red geum (Mrs Bradshaw) and 2 huge box balls, 
  • our sanity!
But we had to say goodbye to our:
  • blackberries, new happy blackthorn hedge
  • cherry tree, damson tree and pear tree?, 
  • rhubarb (maybe we could save some?) 
  • poppies and rudbeckia (Goldsturm) , two of my favourite plants ever. 
Not to mention all the other bits and pieces. We couldn't lift them or a lot of other plants as we simply had no where to put them and silly emotional me had a wee cry. Though I have been promised a wee flower area on the back patio.

rhubarb, buttercups and blackberries - www.growourown.blogspot.com
Blackberries alive with bees, rhubarb past it's best and some lovely weeds
One more thing - some damned brute had broken part of our cool artisan 14b sign. Andrew had made it with glass test tubes and they were super sturdy and we liked it...and ggrrr. Well we won't be needing it now anyway, I guess but it's the principal.
damaged sign - www.growourown.blogspot.com
grrr
It's all about 24a from now on.

24a plot signs - www.growourown.blogspot.com
My mosaic number, beautiful bought tiles and an 'A' etched by Andrew on slate
I spent my time weeding 24a whilst Andrew did all the heavy lifting and moving from 14b. The poor plot had been a little neglected in the choking weed department and it's what I'm comfortable with at the moment. For a goodly while now I simply haven't had the confidence to plant things - my anxiety disorder is winning these days - boo hiss.
24a plot signs - www.growourown.blogspot.com
Blueberries, gooseberries and apples
Weeding in and around the blueberries and gooseberries I was amazed to find so many well developed berries - we need to get them netted as the birds are pesky pilferers and can strip all the bushes in a day! The apples either side of the fruit arch are also doing really good.

I do wish we had of got rid of the gooseberries over the redcurrant bush (as I actually like redcurrants) but Andrew has plans for a raspberry bed, though maybe it ought to be a rhubarb bed... I'm just thinking out loud.
chocolate chip shortbread squares - www.growourown.blogspot.com
oh yes, don't mind if I do
All this work was making us hungry and Andrew went up to the community centre and got two of these, yum! Dark chocolate chip shortbread squares, oh my, they were delicious.

More next time, hugs,
Carrie

15 comments:

  1. Great to hear from you Carrie, glad you're feeling a bit better now. BTW I just noticed you like Yoga with Adriene, so do I! :) Lauran x

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    1. Yes I am eating again, hurrah, thank you Lauran! I have practised with Adriene with 3 or so years - I just love her :)

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  2. Welcome back Carrie - glad you're feeling better. You seem to have the perfect partnership with Andrew, rather like me with my hubby, where one of you plants and the other weeds - because you certainly need to do both. My Alan is never happier than planning a project and he LOVES moving things around, especially hard landscaping. Me, I'm like a duck, nose down, bum in the air fingers deep in the earth with an ever filling weed bucket near by. However, it works. Loving those poppies and berries - enjoy both. Mary

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    1. I call it 'constructive destruction', the old weeding and I tackle bugs too. It's super important as most of our weeds are thistles, dandelions, nettles and grasses - let them get a hold and you're in trouble! Andrew has all the gardening confidence and ideas so he just goes for it. I used to sow and plant, I am aiming to get back there :) We are important undergardeners though with our bums in the air! xx

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  3. Oh and I'd try to find room for both raspberries AND rhubarb!

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  4. Great to have you back :-) xx Mamma G

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  5. Let's hope before long new tenants will enjoy 14b and you can scrounge some of the fruit that you had to leave behind.

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    1. I really hope for new tenants quickly though I do pity them, the plots either side and in front are simply wild and blow so many weeds onto 14b. But if they only have that plot I'm sure we have left them a pretty good start.
      (You have read my mind - I was going to try and scrump away, hahaha) x

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  6. I'm sorry to read that that you've not been feeling well and hope that you're better now.
    I'm sure that you'll soon get used to just one plot and grow what you really what to on it.
    Those shortbread squares look delicious. Take care. xx

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    1. I'm fine now, thank you sweet Flighty. I know we have done the right thing by focusing on only one plot; we have such love for hiking now and travel etc that it just wasn't working.
      I wish I could buy a big tray of those shortbread squares and share them with all my allotment/gardening friends - everyone deserves that level of delicious biscuit refreshment xx

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  7. Hope you are feeling better, I had that many years ago & never been right since.

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  8. Sad about your handcrafted sign - but - a bit like a Viking going out in a blaze of glory!

    We have both been in the garden all day. COLD with snow on the mountains.

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  9. Awww sorry to hear you were unwell, hope you are feeling loads better now, don't know how I managed to miss this blog but great that I get to read two in a row now and not have to wait for a next blog. I tell you what, whoever gets 14b are very lucky to get what is left behind ;-) now get that plan sorted for the back patio sounds like a super idea :-D xxx

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