Garden bursting into Summer.

Well it was a long time coming, but the garden has erupted while I have been away. A few flowers here and there, but mostly the promise of much to come.

The Pearl d'Azur clematis has taken well and I can't wait until the time that it eventually climbs over the whole archway with it's sky blue flowers.

This is what i call the Azalea bed, even though there is only one azalea in it - the tall thing in the middle. Remember last year it had mildew, well this year, so far, it is as healthy as a vegetarian athlete. The azelea was the first ever thing to go into this new bed last year (hence the name) and I bought it after flowering time, so I still have no idea what colour it is. Some people may thing this is an odd thing to look forward to, but I can't wait until it bursts forth with it's wonderful flowers. Also in this bed are delphiniums, alliums, wallflowers, sweetpeas, Shasta daisies, mint and forget-me-nots (I think) and a bright red old fashioned rambling rose on the right, ready to go over the wooden archway.

This potted azelea is about to come out in flower too. It was another one I didn't know the colour of and it promises deep pink flowers soon.

The central bed is all planted up now (canes in the middle are to deter the pooing cat). Sweet peas, lavender, nasturtiums, sweet william, foxgloves, delphiniums, hollyhocks, lupins, iris and something I forgot to label! haha. It's like a chorus of Percy Grainger.

The decking pots are all coming along nicely, I love it on here, it is a complete jumble of sweetpeas, clematis, tomatoes, fruit bushes, geraniums and loads more.

The other side. The lovely standard baytree was a 40th birthday gift from a friend.

Sometimes a gamble ends up being a wonderful surprise. I bought this plant from B and Q last year, 10p because it was finished and unlabeled. It clung on like a small dried up weed over winter and then this happened! It is so pretty. I think it is nemesia but someone may like to put me right on that. A 10p bargain indeed.

The raised vegetable bed now has sown into it leeks, spring onions, runner beans, broad beans, lettuce, rocket, carrots and purple sprouting broccoli. Some are looking better than others (I have never had much success with leeks and carrots are a first for me)

The Tess of the d'Urbevilles rose is beginning it's climb up the obelisk. I planted a potato plant (the purple flowers) alongside it to hopefully entangle itself in there too.

While I was away I bought this tin bath, I though it would be perfect for something in the garden.

I have drilled holes in the base and added plenty of crocks. Next spring I thought it would look good absolutely filled with one colour of tulips, but for now, I have filled it with 22 bright red geraniums.

It should looks stunning when they all come out.

Not much left in seed trays now. There are some pots with fresia in, some with gladioli. Some night scented stock and some cornflowers, all in their seedling stage, but most things are looking good. Weirdly the worst thing that I tried to grow from seed this year was the lobelia. I tried two sorts and neither have come to much. Well, you live and learn.

Nice to be missed and a weekend in Brighton

Hello everyone. Big apologies for most of May being missed on my blog, I have pretty much been away since my last post, but had a lovely time. Plenty to blog about. I don't seem to have lost any followers but sorry for the massive gap.

Rather than drive home every weekend, I had a gorgeous long weekend in Brighton with a very good friend, visiting the open art houses which are part of the Brighton festival. For those of you who don't know, Brighton is a very artistic city and hundreds of artists open their houses up for the public to wander into every weekend in May and admire their artwork (and nose around the houses, fingering their dusty knick-knacks). I didn't buy anything, as most of it was very expensive but we had a lot of fun, admiring skill and sniggering at the people who are not so skilled but still think their artwork deserves £400 price tags.

Some people go to town decorating the front of their houses.

And some exhibits want to to kill you.

I have never really been to this city and it was good to be shown around by someone local and  knowledgeable. We visited the lanes, which are full of interesting shops that sell everything you could never want. Anyone for some dolls of pure evil?

It was perfect weather and the Pavillion looked lovely in the sunshine, as did we, of course.

and then a quick trip down the pier.

We went to lots of coffee shops and had fun just wandering around the museum and an old Regency house (with some very dubious art installations films of fish swimming backwards) inexplicable to my mind, but good for a laugh. The house itself was a wonderful example, although in the middle of renovation.

For a city break, this was a charming place and so much nicer a city to visit than London. I recommend it very highly. It gave me a much needed boost in the middle of a difficult few weeks away.

And many thanks to Adrian for a lovely weekend and very good photos (as you can see, they are a cut above my usual photographic offerings).

Next time, more on what has been happening in the garden at home, some sourdough delights and lemon curd.

40!

Yep, you guessed it, I'm 40 today. Lordy Lord.

Very Quick Stew

I go away working for 4 weeks tomorrow  (minus weekends) so really didn't want to be cooking much today but still wanted something delicious.
Time for a quick stew in the slow cooker. This recipe was given to me by a friend in Brighton, so if it's good, all credit goes to you Adrian.

A few changes here and there based on what I had in the house.

Brown off some cheap casserole beef in oil with some shallots (didn't have any so added chopped onion instead) cook for a couple of minutes and add a tablespoon or two of flour.

Add some beer. (I got a cheap bottle of beer from Lidl and shoved that in) and a glass of red wine, didn't have any so added a glug of port. Crumble in a beef stock cube and add some button mushrooms  (again, no button mushrooms in Lidl so some chopped up chestnut mushrooms.)

That's it! Bung it in the slow cooker for a few hours.

I did that at 9 this morning and I am not kidding when I say it took me 5 minutes. It took me twice as long to find the bottle opener, this being a virtually tee-total house.
Here's how it looks after 8 hours, the smell is heavenly.

Will serve it later with mashed potatoes and peas and let you know how it is, seconds for lunch tomorrow and then any left will go into the freezer for a portion or two on one of the weekends I am home. I love quick and tasty cooking like this.

Knackered.

Sometimes my wish to be home goes against my better judgement. I did a show in London last night and then drove home listening to my usual selection of radio plays to keep me awake. Got in at 3.20 this morning and my head hit the pillow at 3.30. Of course, being me, I was awake at 6 as usual. I'm good for nothing today - which is a shame as I have to go and do one of my old ladies gardens in a while. Wish me luck - I feel like death.

Upcycling - not to everyone's taste.

I rescued 3 dining chairs from my sister's garden last week. As I have mentioned before she is at the end of a huge remodeling of her house and, me being always on the look out am profiting. Her old oven is already in my house and now I took the three dining chairs that she was about to put on the tip.

They were in a bit of a state, it has to be said. Having brought up 3 children on these chairs they were covered in grubby fingers, crayon and paint and thick with dirt having been out in the garden for a few weeks. I just call that a challenge.

So first thing was to clean and sand them down, no easy task actually because the dirt was matted on. Here is one after the cleaning and sanding (forgot to take a picture before this process)

A traditional looking chair, it wasn't a very nice colour pine varnish finish so I wasn't keeping that.

Next I primed them with a tin of primer I had leftover from a previous project.

Now comes the part when I go off the main track. My intention was to just paint the cream to match the legs of the table, but sometimes, when I get looking at paint colours a strange feeling comes over me and I start wanting to experiment. Not always succesfully. I have a lot of blue and white crockery and love this combination and started wondering about maybe painting them blue. After humming and haaing I thought, what's the worst that can happen? I don't like them and paint them again.

So Swedish Blue was decided upon. Decide for yourself. I'm not sure about the result, but it is growing on me, haha.

Still, a big improvement from a filthy old chair in the garden. I will liven them up with some nice pastel shade cushions and maybe get something blue onto the table to tie them in. If I am fed up with them in 6 months I will paint them a new colour.

What a lot can happen in 12 months.

I missed my blog anniversary! I was 2 on the 10th April. So much has happened in 2 years and I can't really believe that when I started the blog I was still living in a tiny flat in miserable London and only dreaming of a life in the country. Now I can't imagine living anywhere else.

I love my house and I love my town, but the thing I love most - if you hadn't guessed - is my garden.

Today was spent in there pottering about, the grass had it's first mow of the year. I strimmed. I planted some purple sprouting broccoli in the raised bed (currently the rasied bed is home to that, leeks, spring onions and one black Russian tomato.) I have some runner beans and Morning Glory gone in.

Thought I would provide the latest before and after gardening photos, because they are always fun to look at. 1 year ago and today.

1 year ago. I must say the grass was healthier, probably because it had hardly been walked on.

Today. So different.

A year ago. Untouched but so rural and lovely.

By the way, the near bed is so full because I have put pots and stones on it to deter the cats - seems to be working.

Took this just after the doors and windows went in last year.

It is nice to look back and see the difference.

Well who knows what the next 12 months will bring and what the before and after photos will look like then.

Next before and after will be the bathroom - later in the Summer months.