Veg garden update -August 30

Autumn is slowly creeping in and there are glimpses of flame coloured Blackberry leaves appearing here and there in the hedgerows. Glistening Blackberries and Elderberries to fill  our foraging baskets .
  The Blackbirds  have disappeared for three weeks now , though I sometimes  hear one singing . They keep hidden in the bushes while they moult and grow new feathers. I am missing my Blackbirdie  girl who is usually close by whilst I work in the garden and comes in for grapes .

    The Swallows are gathering in the sky overhead , preparing for their long journey back to Africa .

Warm and misty days , the trees are lush and green.. after such a long hot summer Autumn should be a gloriously colourful display this year .

 I dug up the potatoes . I wish I,d bought a larger variety and I will next year .

                               These will be nice with a salad anyway .
 I need to improve this bed and will be boosting it up with layers of newspapers, cardboard , spent compost , seaweed, horse manure  shredded sticks and Autumn  leaves etc  from now through until Spring .
It will be completely covered and so suppressing any weeds too ..the worms can do the work of taking it all deep down and improving the beautiful earth .

Climbing French Beans " Blue Lake " are the good old reliable beans that have done well for me even during this extremely hot summer .

                                                     Delicious too .

The climbing variety of Courgettes were very slow to produce and also very disappointingly slow to climb....I had to help it by pulling up the branches through the pig-wire frame . Was the weather too hot for them ? Or was it a poor variety ?
  I,m going back to the maybe not heritage but the old fashioned , dependable varieties next year .

            I have a stinking rotten cold sore throat and feeling miserable .
Husband will be having his hip replacement op next week and we are trying to get things done before his op , in readiness for the winter ,the big jobs such as him splitting the logs and me wheel-barrowing them and stacking them up in the woodshed . The back door needs painting again urgently ....so do the cottage windows and so off to the hardware store to get the paint  ....we have quite a list of things to do , but will have to give in at some point as he wont be able to drive for a while . The chimney sweep is booked , the oil has been delivered  .
  On a happier note , my sewing machine has been fixed ! I am so happy about this ! I will be making my rag dolls and poppets again !
              Yes ... I'll bid you goodbye on that happier note !