Friday allotment and beers.

I spent a few hours at the W allotment, the first visit for a fortnight, and there's been a few changes, largely down to the cold weather and then heavy rain. It was still possible to pick spinach and chard, a cabbage head, parsley and rosemary but the courgettes have been eaten by rabbits and the things thriving most are the weeds and grass.

The strimmer made short work of tidying things up and having done a bit of harvesting, I started to tackle the compost. The large plastic bin was easy to move and I spread the compost, such as it was, over the beds I weeded. The bigger job was the main compost heap and that did take some moving things around. However, I was pleased with the results and can start to focus on allowing one lot to decompose further and another to begin. 

There are a few beds yet to tackle but they won't take more than a few hours and then I can more or less forget things for a few months, the broad beans and garlic will take care of themselves, and I can just pop in to pick some greens now and again.

In the afternoon Juno and I popped out for a walk and finished at Drusillas before visiting the golf course brewery for a pint. Nice to see their Christmas things up. Almost time to enjoy the winter and getting the decorations up.

Flooding

Getting around yesterday was a tricky affair with one road completely shut and the others all affected to some degree by the huge puddles of water lying on the roads, the drains and run offs all already saturated. The river running through Potterne is usually accessed by a four foot bank to a little bit of shore but in the photo the water level is at the top of the bank. Very squelchy underfoot all over Potterne.

On the way to collect Maria from dance I stopped at the WM allotment and picked some coriander and three leeks which I will use of soup later. The garlic and broad beans are coming on well and there are leeks to pick over the next months. The beds have largely been manured or had compost added already but there is more to do yet, especially on the far beds where the bean roots have been left in to allow the nitrogegn they produce to be added to the soil benefitting next year's produce.

Healing in nature

It can be overwhelming, just getting through each day, and goodness knows life throws up so many challenges, so I am always grateful that I can largely choose what I want to do each day and have the physical capacity to go out and do it. It is a privilege I am very grateful for and it does help when the going gets tough. 

I walked across Crane Valley golf course down to Verwood this morning with Juno and enjoyed the blue skies, the late autumn chill and the mist rising over the pond as we passed on our way. Once home I did a three mile run taking me through Remedy Oak golf course and the sun was streaming low through the trees, casting lengthy shadows and highlighting the rich greens of the firs. Therapy in nature.

Storm Bert

It was a wet weekend but fun with the girls staying for a sleepover on Friday into Saturday. The wood burner got lit again, this time to dry off rather than keep warm and we all gathered round to enjoy the cosiness of the newly spruced up utility room. Alison has done curtains for the windows and I have been looking to block draughts and sort the room out so it is more inviting.

Maria wore her new Liverpool top whilst we watched the game v Southampton. Exciting to be going to St Marys for the next visit by Liverpool, this time in the Carabo Cup.

The end of the cold snap is on its way

I went for a lovely 30 minute run yesterday afternoon and stopped to take a photo of the blue skies and low, low sun on the golf course. Beautiful. The woodburner did a sterling job all day and it was still warmer in the utility room than usual when I went in this morning.#

I took Maria to college and stopped at the WM allotment to collect a couple of leeks which are cooking away in a potato and leek soup to counter the cold weather. Juno came for the ride and a walk around the trail area having already had her morning walk amongst the leaves of Boys Wood which I felt merited a photo as a record. Such colours and absolutely carpeting the ground.

You will see the garlic and broad beans in the photos, both happy to overwinter despite the frost and snow.

Just back from a bike ride down to Morrisons for a little shopping and quite pleased I managed to do it in my shorts without feeling too cold!

November snow

We beat the snow on our morning dog walk but it is starting to get going now. Snow at this time of year seems very unusual to me, much more likely later in the winter or early spring. Looks lovely now but the poor birds are desperate for food. Just filled the peanuts, nijer seed, general seed, sunflower hearts and fat balls up. Lots of blue tits and great tits, as well as blackbirds, starlings, chaffinch and great spotted woodpecker so far. The house sparrows are there in number too, of course, the most numerous of all our birds, closely followed by the goldfinches.

Brrrrrr

Juno and I enjoyed a zero degree walk down to Verwood this morning. Alison took the car to work so we walked down to collect it before I then did a 30 minute run around the goat farm. It was brisk but sunny, perfect for getting out and about.

Next stop is Cineworld to watch Gladiator 2. I would not usually be that motivated to see the film but having Unlimited encourages me to try different films from my usual.

Autumn and Brighton

We have continued to enjoy beautiful weather for the time of year and walking Juno has been a pleasure. However, we did have to leave her behind this weekend as we headed to Brighton. Maria was seeing Peggy and Fergus who were celebrating their birthdays and so we spent the day and evening out with Julie and Andy, as well as other members of their family.

It was a lovely visit with two good journeys too. Very nice vegan pizzas as well. 

Nice day for a bike ride

Having cut the grass and Alison being out in the garden for the morning, it was clearly a lovely day again and so  a good time for another bike ride, this time over to Horton and up to Drusillas.

The chicken farm where they produce lots and lots of eggs saw quite a nuber of the hens outside and the fields are home to sheep, something that has only happened recently. The rooks have been loving the bonanza of the sheep disturbing the ground and the resulting insects, boosted by the droppings which attract more insects too. 

It was lovely to see a sizeable area given over to wild flowers including sunflowers which have been left to go to seed to support the birds over winter. Great views over to Knowlton Church and to Horton Tower too.

I stopped at Drusillas for a pint before heading home and they had two huge fires blazing in the wood burning stoves. Almost too warm!!

Another day in the sun

It was another lovely day yesterday and Juno and I got out to have a run, a bit further this time, 2.25 miles, before I went to the cinema to watch Small Things Like These which I thought was very good. Cillian Murphy was a great lead and I was so immersed in the film, I was taken by surprise when it ended.

On the way there I stopped at the allotment to cut the grass again and to take a few photos so I can start to plan next steps e.g. sorting out the main compost heap. That's going to be a big job but a vital one in providing the right nutrients for the beds next year. It looks quite messy but a little weeding and clearing will make a big difference before I get onto the actual proper work.

In the evening Alison and I went to Maria's dance to watch her in the Open Evening performances highlighting the course they are all following in college. There were great performances all round and they are only sixth form. Goodness knows what they will be doing in a few years time.

Sunshine bike ride

It has been another gorgeous day of sunshine and after getting my jobs done, including the weekly shopping, dog walking and cleaning, I got on the bike for a 10 mile round trip to Moors Valley and back. It was quiet along the paths and I got good views of jay, robins, tufted ducks, coot, mute swans and a couple of wrens. There was a roe deer in one of the fields and the squirrels were scampering around in the leaves.

There was time for a coffee stop on the way back ahead of a meeting with the Ragwormers to discuss the event management company and ideas for building the business.

Retro time

Alison brought the old music system down from the attic yesterday and we've been enjoying the hits of yesteryear ever since! Obviously I am biased towards the old punk and reggae albums and singles but there is an awful lot of classical from Robin and Joy's collection, turning a blind eye toward the masses of easy listening dross. However, there are records from way back which I am going to check out and see if they have any value. 

The day took on an odd direction when I decided to retune the TV channels due to our having terrible signal in all aspects. It seems to have killed one of the broadband extenders which means the subscription sport is off other than through the firestick, as well as resulting in no freeview channels at all. After a few adjustments and trial and error, we now have nearly 200 TV channels, ones we've never had before and there is a new extender on the way. Happy days.

I have also been for a run, second day in a row, 1.5 miles yesterday and 2 miles today. Getting back on it, as I am definitely feeling less energetic, flexible etc. having stopped for quite some time, just one rub since spring.

W allotment in Nov

It has been a fortnight since I was last at the allotment. Alison and I were heading to the town to do a bit of shopping and tied the two in together. I gave the grass a cut, a very necessary one after some strong growth despite the time of year.

We brought home plenty of greens, spinach, chard and lettuce, parsnips, courgette, carrots and some rosemary and parsley. There will be more harvests to come but it was noticeable that the flowers were still going on several plants. It has been dry and mild in recent weeks, not much rain at all, and the growing season has extended. 

The broad beans are up here as well as in the other allotment. We also collected seed from spinach and runner beans. There is a good deal to do soon in terms of tidying up and getting the manure/compost on to the beds which will lie fallow over winter.