Yawn Yawn Wakey Wakey 2025

Good morning, well our 50:50 forecast was downgraded to 36%. A little bit of mizzle was all we got, another few drops early evening, plus a little bit more overnight nowhere near enough.
Didn't do a lot yesterday still tired from the previous day. I need to get to the plots today to water again.
We have a family of young Jays flitting about at the moment one was down drinking near the patio steps , it then hopped up to a plant on the wall and proceeded to steal several small stones off the top of one of the pots. I had heard that birds take stones & grit for their crop, but never seen them do it before.
The heat is set to build again over the weekend. Stay safe all.

 

Thank you everyone for your good wishes, I am still feeling pants and frustrated I cannot do anything, however, my daughter looked in for a hug, cuppa, and to discuss the idea of her reading something at my sister's burial this weekend, as suggested by my niece. I had forgotten having several poems printed moons ago. I dug out the books and found one that my daughter and I feel would be appropriate. She is also going to take a small bunch of sweetpeas from her garden, to tuck into the family tribute my niece has organised. We put sweetpeas in my mother's coffin so a sort of family tradition.
Thank goodness I decided not to try and make the 6-7 hour journey to the Isle of Wight. My daughter is stepping up and going as our side of the family representative. It is her birthday on Sat. and the ceremony will be on Sunday, so a bitter sweet occasion. She and my son in law have booked themselves a gypsy caravan to stay in for the 3 nights they are on the island so it is not all bad!

Thank you lizzie27 for the lovely pics., of your myrtle. So thoughtful. I love the variegation in the leaves of yours, I didn't come across it during my hunt for a plant or I am sure it would have been a strong contender. I have my fingers crossed my plant may have a flower or two in the next few weeks. Yours looks exactly what I was looking for size, year round interest, speed of growth etc.
It is correct, all royal brides now have a sprig of myrtle in their wedding bouquet. Started by Queen Victoria I believe. The Victorians were heavily into the language of flowers.

My son is having a lovely fishing weekend. Their nightly accommodation is in a cabin with their own chef! How the other half live. They have been successful with their fishing, everyone should have some trophy edibles to take home, filleted, packed and frozen for them! The weather has been wonderful, a mill pond sea, sunshine, no need for the Kalms.

It is going to be intruiging to research my military belt. It is very small, a boy soldier? and "pretty", ceremonial uniform? No military symbolism on it. When I showed it to an auction house valuer several years ago he did comment it is very unusual to still have the belt, woven gilt thread. Loads of uniform buckles still around. He said not to sell it for less than £80.00 but it is the history behind it which is so fascinating. My grandfather ran away from home at the age of 12 nd signed up as a boy soldier with the Artillery, he served in both world wars as did his father so I feel there is a bit of a connection prompting me to find out more.

 

I slept so well last night, I didn't know where I was this morning and was surprised to find I was at the van and it was 9am!
I have the chiropodist at 12, but will leave hub and dogs at the van. No other plans for the weekend.
Thank you all for being my virtual companions; i feel as if I know you all and look forward to our daily chats!

 

Good morning. Cool-ish and mostly cloudy here and set to get to a "feels like" 29C. The weekend will get to 40C so lots of factor 50 for garden visiting on Sunday and plenty of water.

Weekly shop for me today and on my own as OH is out for a golf lunch. It'll take a bit longer as I won't have a runner to send off as I go round but fewer spontaneous indulgences will land in the trolley so that's OK.

Later on I need to un-bury a wood pile. OH has carefully mounded up all the smaller stones we dug out of my new bed to cover the old tree stump and other chunks of wood I left for boring insects and critters so any babies hatching won't be able to get out. I'll just transfer them to the poplar we had cut down to the ground last winter and which is now shooting. Don't want any of that coming back!

I like your myrtle too @lizzie27 and will probably buy one. I'm also looking for purple foliage shrubs to set off the bright green foliage of my cotinus Golden Lady. I have a purple cotinus in another bed and colourful acers in a shady bed and need something that copes with full sun.

I hope all aches, pains, fatigue and injuries feel better today.

Anyone know a good rain dance for those of us with thirsty gardens?

 

Oh my dear @Goldenlily26 you have really been in the wars recently haven't you? It is so saddening to read about your sister but what lovely plans have been made for her funeral. The sweetpeas are such a nice tradition.
Thank you, by the way, for letting me know that I wasn't wrong about the myrtle in Royal brides bouquet. I did a little research and discovered it was a German tradition originally and it started with the wedding of one of Victoria's daughters - also called Victoria - where Osbourne myrtle, representing the innocence of the bride, was included in her flowers and so the tradition continues today.
Glad you slept well @Penny_Forthem - now hop it!

 

@Obelix-Vendée you need a team of cricketers. Once they appear on the pitch, the tap controller usually send down a shower or three the moment the whites are spotted. That has often been my experience. With Wimbledon next week we may be lucky there too - it usually rains when that tournament is on.

 

Glastonbury is on @Ladybird4 and that's often drowned in mud but the rain doesn't come this far south. Even the dribble they mentioned for next Friday has gone away!

We have crickets but not cricketers.

 

Afternoon all. I hate to crow but we had rain overnight - quite a bit! I'm so relieved as it was getting to be quite a chore each night and it is forecasted to hit 32c on Monday.

I also slept better last night @Penny_Forthem. I could do with a chiropodist as well but usually just have a pedicure at my beauty salon.

I forgot to mention the beautiful tan coloured bark on the Myrtle so I've been gradually raising the crown so we can see it. I'll see if I have still got the info ticket which should have the correct name on it. Next to it I planted the rose Ghislaine de felingord for a lovely combination with it's peachy/orange/cream flowers. Unfortunately most of it's now gone over because of the heat.

I finished digging out the trough by 6 pm last night to my great relief. Have a garden cart full of stones/old bricks/tiles etc to find a home for now as I want to keep most of the rubble. Curiously right in the front corner at the base, I found roots about 30 cm + long coming out from the mortar. Roots don't grow upwards - do they? It doesn't look like ivy roots. Very strange.

I'm also very appreciative of my virtual friends on here, so thanks everybody for keeping me company.

Enjoy your Friday.

 

Last nights rain was a bit of a let down. The bottom of the rain gauge was wet but probably not even a millimetre. Thankfully the garden is looking fine but I’m. It sure how much longer it can cope

 

Evening folks.

Warmer than forecast despite a keen breeze. Too hot and bovvered after work to enjoy garden so cooling off indoors before thinking about food.

I hope everyone is doing ok.

Anyone expecting Gardener’s World tonight… it was yesterday! On iPlayer though. It’s Glastonbury coverage instead.

 

I decided to pass on going to Canasta as the weather was a little unpredictable, (Nothing new there then) and I used the time to renew my National Trust Membership - I do have to say that their website is one of the most user unfriendly I have ever had to deal with. I was asked several times to sign in and when I did I was told that they already had an account under that name and asked me to go back to sign in. I think someone somewhere had got the Register and Sign in buttons muddled up. Eventually I got it all sorted (swearing works!). I then made the decision that I need to get rid of the bird cherry in my front garden as it has taken hardly any time to get out of bounds and dripping its nectar all over my bin lids making them unpleasantly sticky was the final straw. I am really sad as it is such a lovely tree but in totally the wrong place. After doing my usual researching, I contacted a company to come and give me a quote for removing it and they are coming on Monday about 10ish.

 

@AuntyRach, I was lucky in that @Blue arbour had given me the heads up about the day change so I got to see GW yesterday. I will be enjoying Beechgrove tonight.

 

I am signing out for today. Wishing everyone a pleasant and peaceful evening. See you all tomorrow.

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A cockup at the chiropodist. I was supposed to go last week, but it was changed to today.
Only it wasn't. After a loooong wait and a bit of stern talking to, someone cut my nails for me.
Then we went a garden centre, where I was prepared to spend money. Came away with cress seeds.
Tomorrow is another day.
Hopping off now @Ladybird4

 

Just a quick add onto the Myrtle stats. It looks like mine is Myrtle communis compacta variegata - can't find my original plant label but not surprised as it turns out I might have bought it back in 2011! I stopped off for a coffee/loo stop at a small nursery on a long journey home by myself from Shropshire? and saw it there. 1m x 1m, likes sun, cold hardy only to 5c (but it's survived colder than that here). Can be pruned after flowering.

Hope that helps if folks want one.

I had a nasty surprise earlier. I was sitting in my Egg chair with a glass of wine as is my wont about 6 ish and spotted what I thought was a flying ant hurrying along, through and over the purple slates on the path towards me. When it got really close, I bent down to see what it would do on the decking boards my chair sits on - and a dirty big spider shot out by my bare feet and gobbled up the insect. I was not amused - I have a 'thing' about spiders, especially big ones.
I had to have more wine to get over the shock.

Sorry you've had another tough day @AuntyRach. Will you have to work over the weekend as well?

Hope you have a better day tomorrow @Penny_Forthem and @Ladybird4.