THE VISITOR AND OTHER TALES

So, there was R reading a book on the bed settee in the Wendy House (she said she was doing research!) when she heard a sound. The pond had a visitor. It looked in the door and saw R sitting there a few feet away, flapped its huge wings and lifted off into the sky.
We had had an exploratory visit from a heron.

And, of course I have wrot a pome about this evil eyed birdie.

HERON

The heron concentrates 

down its splinter bill.

Its malevolent eyes burn

like sodium in a grey mist.

Without a ripple

the heron stalks water.

The headlamps of its skull

search the sluggish river

It strikes!  An arching fish 

Heads headfirst down the long throat.

The bulge that still lives

descends into oblivion -

So back to gardening - it is wonderful to have a weedy wife - she has been doing the asparagus today. We did not have much joy with this crop in the spring but it does not look too bad at the moment so we will give it another go next year.

The outdoor tomatoes are late but better than never and we have had a good crop. I have been watering them throughout the drought.

It rained this morning, a little soft rain but still rain. It is cooler with temperatures in the mid to upper teens.

I went to look at the courgettes last night and found I had missed one - it is now well on its way to becoming a marrow.
This is for me as no one else here is partial to marrow whether as jam with ginger or stuffed with mince and baked in the oven. Soup with mint is tolerated.

The two thornless hawthorns we put in last year are well hawed and I am surprised by the size of the fruit. No doubt the thrushes, blackbirds, fieldfares and redwings will not mind in the slightest.

We have definitely developed a case of resident rabbit disease and I see it almost every morning blithely grazing on the upper banking - cheek! 

We have had some butterflies but not a lot which is disappointing, no honey bees worth mentioning but plenty of bumble bees as here on the Sedum spectabile. 

In the spring I carefully staked these and supported each plant with a circle of twine - did it work?

Well not really as the painters stuck their ladders right in the middle!

So the Scots are still in the fold and we are a roughly united kingdom. All the promises from the 'No' side will presumably get lost in interparty political bickering - no way is Labour going to let the English vote on English matters - even if there were a Labour government there would be a Conservative majority in England.

No - NO! I must not talk politics in this blog - it is a gardening blog. It deals with the real world, with the important things in life like Herons and vegetable marrows.

And, D and J, I do not always have a cup of tea when I finish writing this.

(Today I have already made myself one and it is almost gone).