Frosted squash leaves
Silent Sunday
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Six on Saturday – 26th September 2020
Today we woke to the first frost of the season, with more forecast for tonight. So it is the end of the runner beans, courgettes and no more opportunity for the world’s smallest pumpkin to get any bigger for Halloween! It about the size of my fist. It was just not warm enough for the squashees and pumpkins this year.
2. I thought I might be able to salvage some of the remaining runner beans but they were soft and not very appetizing. There are a few dwarf ones left in the greenhouse.
3. Plenty brassicas to keep us fed though and the leaves of the kale were looking rather good in the frost.
4. We didn’t get many blueberries either this year but the last remaining berry and the reddening leaves also looked nice in the frost.
5. A self-seeded fennel, also with frost crystals.
6. And finally this week some parsnip seeds, looking very autumnal.
Wild Atlantic waves
Inspiration comes from so many places. For me though nature is my muse. It can be wild flora or fauna or just wild places. A couple of weekends ago we had to opportunity to visit the coast on a very windy day. While it wasn’t cold the strong wind meant warm hats were required and raincoats, to keep the worst of the chill out. The waves were awe inspiring. The power of them electrifying. I could have stood there and watched them all day.
The gulls appear almost to be playing in the wind – enjoying it’s strength and force as much as we were.
These small sanderling (photo below) were just looking for their dinner though, and seemed oblivious to the waves thundering around them.
And the greatest surprise of all was this frog. A stream, swelled with recent rainwater and therefore gushing down the strand had obviously swept this poor hapless amphibian onto the shore. Needless to say we rescued it – for it would surely have become dinner for a hungry gull or at least been washed into the sea by the next big wave. And we returned it hopefully to the safety of the dunes further up shore.
An awe-inspiring day. And humbling to see the power of nature.
Silent Sunday
Six on Saturday – 19 September 2020
Here we had a lovely warm sunny day, better that most of the days we had in August. The warmer temperatures the last week have finally brought out the asters which were stubbornly refusing to flower.
- The first is a pink one. Not many flowers but the poor thing is living in a pot waiting for a nice bed to find a home in. I think I have the place now – not sure if it would be best planted out once it has finshed flowering or to wait till the spring.
2. A purple aster with smaller flowers. This one at least is in a flower bed.
3. Next this week is a late flowering opium poppy with a common carder bee.
4. A bit of a caterpillar infestation on the ragged jack kale!
5. A marrow that will hopefully make its way to be chutney with some of the green tomatoes in the greenhouse.
6. And finally this week I just liked this pattern on a beetroot we had for dinner so I thought I would share it.
Thank you to The Propagator for hosting Six On Saturday.
Wildlife Wednesday
Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #114 – Negative Space
This week Amy asks us to share images of negative space in photography. This is a new concept for me, but I like the idea. So here are some shots that I hope fit the challenge.
Wildlife Wednesday
Silent Sunday
Six on Saturday – 5th September 2020
Yes it is definitely feeling autumnal now. So first this week some apples.
- Crab apples. This tree was packed with blossom earlier in the year and we have some fruits but not as much as other years. They are also a bit scaby.
2. Another apple – this time an eater – a Bardsey. Again very few fruit but one of the few which has fruited this year (we had a very late frost).
3. Chilli peppers in the greenhouse. I just had one plant, but it has a good crop so I will probably dry them.
4. Caterpillar damage on the brassicas – mostly in the polytunnel. The netted beds outside are generally okay.
5. Now this one is puzzling. This is purple sprouting broccoli which isn’t relay supposed to produce broccoli till spring – so is it just very confused or did I plant it too early? I shouldn’t complain though as I will enjoy eating it.
6. And finally two of our seven chicks . They are growing quick.
