Tag: Philadelphus

Sweltering

Published on by Catherine25 Comments

It’s just a quick post from me today as I’m heading out to a Family History Event. It’s been a hectic week, and tomorrow my daughter and her family from Aberdeenshire will be arriving for their annual July visit. I know they are hoping for better weather than we had last year, but I think there might be rain from Monday onwards. Today, it’s going to be hot, or perhaps ‘sweltering’ might be a more descriptive word; perhaps it’s best that I’m going to be indoors for much of the day!

Before I have to rush off, here’s this week’s Six on Saturday!

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We Abandoned the Garden

Published on by Catherine29 Comments

It’s been a better week of weather for us here on the west coast of Scotland, with the best day being Monday and great for gardening – we had a lot to do. We unexpectedly had Littlest Grandson with us on that day (school summer holidays) and he gamely helped in the garden during the morning. At lunchtime, we asked him if he’d like to go to the beach. We knew the answer well before his face lit up with delight. We live only a few minutes from the beach but Monday was the first day where we felt it was warm enough to let him dig in the sand, paddle in the sea and of course, get an ice cream from the van.

So off we went with folding chairs for gran & grandad, a mat that we knew he wouldn’t sit on, a bucket & spade, and other paraphernalia that is needed for a couple of hours on the sand. It was the first beach day, but I hope it won’t be the last. Gardening duties were simply abandoned and it was worth it.

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Summer Go-Slow

Published on by Catherine23 Comments

The garden’s growth has been a bit sluggish lately. The recent weather has been cold and lacking sunlight, which is quite different from what I captured in my photos at this time last year. Back then, many plants, including the roses, were in full bloom. At that time, everyone here was basking (melting!) in the heat. This year has been different and I’ve been impatient for the garden to burst into glorious colour.

But I have to ask myself – why am I in such a hurry? The roses have plenty of buds, and perennials and annuals will flower soon. When they do, temperatures will have risen enough to be able to sit out and simply enjoy the garden, its colour, its perfume and the warmth of summer. Perhaps the plants are wiser than me. They’re patiently waiting for the right moment.

My apologies for missing all your blogs last week, I’ve been a bit under the weather for a couple of weeks, but on the mend and back working (gently) in the garden. My other half is the real workhorse in our garden now, and I’m mostly the one who points and says, ‘Dig this out’ or ‘plant this here’. It’s a pity he doesn’t love the garden, but I’m working on that! 😉

However, I’ve been around the garden with the camera and found plenty of prettiness to capture for this week’s Six on Saturday.

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Garden Blunders

Published on by Catherine15 Comments

We’ve all made them at one time or another. If you haven’t then you deserve a medal – or a very large trophy to sit on your mantlepiece.

This is a story about an old but lovely Philadelphus, that starts with a garden shed.

When we had to replace the garden shed, it turned into one of those stories where one job leads to another…and another. I’m sure you’ve all been there – you have a good idea to redecorate a room, go out, buy the paint and everything else you need. Then you realise that you must empty the room first, but where do you put everything that is moving out? The only available room can’t quite accommodate all the incoming contents, so you have to move some items elsewhere. And so it goes, a simple paint job turns into an overwhelming project.

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Six on Saturday 2020 04-07

Published on by Catherine35 Comments

It’s been another week of mixed weather, but by Tuesday morning after several days of heavy rain, I couldn’t bare looking out of the window at my sad, bedraggled roses any longer and I grabbed my jacket, wellies and waterproof hat and went out to deadhead and tidy everything up.

It dried up after lunch, and so did I, and by evening the plants had lifted their heads (or what was left of them) and began to straighten up. I’m always pleasantly Continue reading “Six on Saturday 2020 04-07” →