The Swallows - still here !

 

       Still here !

Making a wonderful cheerful sound as they are gathering . 

Early Autumn 🍁🍂🍃My favourite time of the year 🧡

 

 

The Swallows are gathering .......the farewell gathering , before they set off on the long journey to Africa.

How do they know ? It's a wonderful mystery  . 

Where did August go ?  As we drive around here in the far south west of Cornwall we are seeing the leaves on the sycamore trees turning yellow already !

Hopefully we should get more than a few warm and sunny days before Autumn really kicks in .

   Supersweet 100 F1 - meant to be small but strangely smaller than they were last year .I might try another small type variety next year . Any recommendations ? 

In the greenhouse my tomatoes are ripening up nicely now . 

  

            Alicante - the good old reliable one . 

           Roma --- new to me this year  - these are lovely !

Sweet Pepper Corno di toro rosso  - beautiful and will grow again .

I was very mean with the compost as you can see . Maybe I'd have got even more if I'd put them in even bigger pots , but I got five or six peppers from each of my six plants . More than enough for the two of us . 

Cucumbers have been amazing , once again I was very mean with the compost , to see how little I could get away with . I didn't get a photo to show this , maybe I'll take one to show you tomorrow .

It has been very hard work keeping up with the watering though . Thank goodness for my neighbour fixing up two new water-butts on the greenhouse . 

Ricardo made a jar of pickled cucumbers .....very proud of him indeed !

The  climbing French beans "Cobra "are going cropping delightfully now, very pleased as I've had a few years of not doing so well . The X-bean frame worked brilliantly ! 

I spent some time pricking out and potting on Lettuce Winter Density .

Some to bring on in the shed .

And some I planted into the veg-trug .

Ricardo's Canna is looking splendido .....it will soon be time to bring it and my banana plants back under cover for the Winter .

And lastly ..whilst I'm talking about tropical things .... my daughter's friend brought round a wonderful gift ...a big box of goodies ....Echiums (the giant eeks ! 🤣) and three Musschia wollastonii 😃(so rare)💚!!  I will have to see what I can find in my greenhouse for her . Thankyou Jess 💐x

                             🌿 May all be peaceful , happy and safe  🤍🌿     

🌿Todays little harvest 💚

 A nice little harvest of Cobra French Beans . Some we ate fresh and some to freeze away .

More cucumbers on the way . This one went into sandwiches .

Enjoyed walking over at Men-an-Tol .

Saw a beautiful Barn Owl ....it's in the middle of the picture just over the front door of this old derelict cottage. Stop laughing !  I need a more powerful zoom lens !  ....sigh .... but fabulous to see !  

Then on to climb over another (almost impossible) granite style to wander and wonder about  Lanyon Quoit . 

I think Spring is the very best time to visit this place , when the hedgerows are full of pretty wild flowers .  

                                                           🌿💚🌿

🌿Sunday - Rose bud update🌿

 

So there it is ! I think this is at it's very peek of perfection . I think you just can't beat a good old fashioned red rose .🌿

From a cutting that I stuck into the compost around the first week of June .... it has done really well .

                        I am fairly sure that this is Rosa -The Trumpeter  .

                                         🌿  I have fallen in love !🌿

                                                             ❤️

                                                

Bumper Harvest Saturday

   This morning's gatherings .Courgettes , sweet peppers, runner beans , tomatoes and a few peas.

 

Really pleased with the dwarf french beans  and the climbing french beans "cobra" are beginning to produce some really nice beans now .

These are now blanched and being frozen up in the freezer .I'll bag them up tomorrow .

The sun did try to come out , the wind dropped and we enjoyed a barbeque with family .

The Black-Eyed Suzie is beginning to romp away now and the bees are loving it !

                                  It is a joy to watch them !    🐝🐝🐝

                  ................. but the rose-bud still has not fully opened !   

🌿Rose cutting buds update 🌿

 

There was a heavy dew first thing this morning .

The hot sun came out and I really thought the rose bud might open this afternoon ....

 .... but alas no , she is keeping us waiting . Almost 4pm and only two petals opened up .

Rose cutting buds update - nearly !

 

                                     🌿   Maybe tomorrow ! 🌿

Thunbergia alata 🌿Black-eyed Suzie 🌿August update

 

So at last ,the Black-eyed Suzies are beginning to climb . 

Also beginning to flower !

Mum's favourite !  

Behind them is my bed of dinnerplate Dahlias , full of buds . I can't wait to see these again .

Rose cutting update - It has two buds on it . I should probably pull those off , but I can't bring myself to do it . 

I'll let them open , to say hello , then cut them to go in a tiny vase .

I will re-pot this about late Autumn .

Not much time for my embroidery , with visitors and I am kept very busy harvesting , chopping , blanching, slicing , bagging up and getting our home grown vegetables into the freezer .

The Runner-beans took quite a battering by the wind the other night . I'm glad I got these in the day before that . Hopefully they will recover , there are still lots of flowers on them .

Lots of lovely Sugar-snap Peas and more coming .

 You don't see these in the shops ! Well I never have anyway .

Sweetcorn is towering high in the African Keyhole Bed .The cobs are fattening up but not ready yet .

The courgettes are still coming ,we love 'em and the Squash are deep down in there somewhere too . Leeks and Egyptian Walking Onions .....and the bindweed !

My visitors have been gathering blackberries from the hedgerow and these too I have open-frozen and bagged up apart from one lot which my husband surprised us with a delicious crumble and cream .

Purple Sprouting Broccoli for the food gap . Look quite pathetic and a slug has already eaten one .....I have a few spares !     🐌 

    Next to them are Beetroot which I need to thin out with scissors.....and our two carrots . Then is a line of Pak Choi which have bolted already  and the same with the Giant leafed spinach , although I might be able to save some of those hopefully . I think it has been too hot for them .

I have some more seeds ordered . I definitely want to have a supply of lettuce over winter .

And so my lovelies , I must say goodbye and continue to chop beans . 

Through the kitchen window I have a little friend to amuse me on the feeding station .

                Cheeky little thing . Brings me so much joy 🐿️🌿💛

🌿Weather -uncomfortably warm - drifting sea mist ☁️☁️☁️🌤️☁️☁️could do with a nice little thunderstorm to clear the air .🌿