I have got my mojo back

After months of feeling below par I have appeared suddenly to regained my former vigour. H and I went up to Manchester on Saturday to do a job for my Dad. Poor Miss L had to work in the evening so she could not come with us. However she did have her friend over for the day. I finished the job very quickly so I suggested we all went up to the market at Bury. The market was very busy. It was good to be at market that was so busy. The market had all kinds of traders. The Fish and Meat Hall was heaving with people and the stalls were packed with good looking produce. I bagged a nice piece of Salmon and a piece of smoked Haddock. We also sought out the Black Pudding stall. I had a take out Black Pudding just to keep me going. We discovered an Italian Deli which was glorious. H loved the market. The cheese counter had the most delicious Lancashire cheese, both crumbly and creamy. We just had to have some, well quite a lot.

It chucked it down most of the night so I thought lottie work would be out of the question. H wanted a Cabbage so I had to go there later in the day. However after a breakfast of Black pudding I went to the lottie. The paths were soaking but my plot was not too bad. I have not had much time spare for the lottie over the winter so some plants are in need of clearing out. I tackled a row of Celery which were clearly past their best. When I shook the soil off off the roots and raked out the soil it was moist but friable. I threw a barrow load of manure onto the row I just cleared, turned the manure in and then planted the row with Garlic. Things were going well so I dug over the first ten foot of the pea bed. I dropped four barrow loads of manure on the prepared bed and spread it about. The Broad Beans can be planted in a few weeks.

I had a rummage under the wormery and found the bird netting. My neighbours compost bin lid had cut a big hole in the side netting during the high recent winds. It was just a question of cutting a patch for the hole from the spare roll and "sewing" it on. That done I selected a couple the cabbages for home. I went round the plot and picked up all the dead cabbage leaves.

The jobs were taking no time at all so I set about weeding the Asparagus bed. All weeds came away quite easily except for the Nettles which seem to have invaded the whole bed. The bed was dressed at the end of summer with compost made at the lottie during the previous year. With the weed cleared the soil was black and loose. The Asparagus bed is raised so it never gets really wets and I hope that now the black soil is exposed the sun will heat it up. This year we get to have few spears so roll on Easter.

If that was not enough for the day. I went to Burton to see if I could get plastic or acrylic to fix the greenhouse roof. I found what I wanted but it was too big to go in H's car. We dropped in at our favorite garden centre and got a couple of Rhubarb plants, they were even in the sale. When we got home I made tea, fish pie. To round the day off did my blog.

Nights are drawing out

This weekend I had two trip to the lottie. Both were an antidote it having to put in some extra hours at the office. I do not do extra hours and especially not at the weekend but this is an extra special case. Saturday afternoon I went up to the lottie after work. Steve had put up the pallets to rebuild the muck corral. I banged in the posts and tied the pallets to the post with wire. I then fixed plastic the back wall the of muck bin and put paving slabs to hold the covering down.

However on taking down the old corral we were left with four steel poles stinking out of the ground in what is to be the car park. Since we could not get them out we decided to cut the pipe off low and bang the reminder of the pole into the ground and that is just what we did. I could only manage two before I ran out of steam. It is dark by quarter past five and pitch black by five thirty. The wind was getting up as well. It was all persuasion I needed to send me go home. However Steve and I had a chat about we do to the next day. Steve's chickens are getting busy so he had half a dozen eggs for me. H had a couple for Sunday breakfast along with her homemade bread and jam.



H is making the most of her food processor she got from Santa. Fresh baked Bread most weekend and this weekend H's famous cherry cake too. All very nice. Sunday dawned clear but I has work work to do. I got away mid afternoon and after a quick stop at home for a sup of Tea and a sarny, I went to the lottie. I had to stop off at home to pick up the peelings bin for the worms as well. The lottie was blown inside out from the overnight gales. My neighbour's compost bin lid cut a big hole through my bird netting. So there is another job to do. Steve and I measured and set out the new lottie. This was very satisfying. We were able to set out the new mini-veg plots. This is cunning plan. If we put up the mini-veg plots we can fill them up with the spare soil that is taking up the car park. So next job for the lottie is a couple of mini-veg beds and some paths. They turned out to be quite big beds at 1.5 x 8.5 meters, about 25 x 5 foot in old money. We finished off cutting down the poles and used the offcuts to bolster the muck bin. Just in case we had not done enough we knocked up some compost bins against he back of the muck bin. The area looks very much better. Once the soil is shifted the carpark will be over twice the size it was. Soil shifting is a job for a work party. I don't have the patience for wheelbarrowing long distances.

My new bins for the greenhouse came this week so if a can get some free time perhaps I can set up the greenhouse for spring. I still have to fix the broken pane. I also have to tidy up the back garden. Nothing but work which ever way you look at it.

Changeable Weather

I went to bed on Saturday evening with a bright moon and a thick layer of frost on the car and woke up to a howling gale. With the high winds came a warmer air temperature. That was my cue to go to the lottie to the wheelbarrow manure onto the plot. Twenty wheelbarrow loads later the job was done. I still have to manure the Pea bed but that going to have to wait a while.

Despite the high winds it was not too cold. I had a few minutes on my hands so did that job which has been outstanding for ages, namely tying in the Grape vines. I put in a new stake to carry the main stem and tied the laterals to the horizontal wires I put up last year. I snipped off all the extra side shoots so the vines are ready for the spring.

I dug up and prepped about half of the Leeks I had standing. H wants to make Leek and Potato soup. With it being freezing yesterday H and I went to Derby to Lakeland plastics to buy some freezer soup bags and some freezer veggie bags. Everything was on sale so that was handy and we were in and out in 30 minutes - result. Perhaps my shopping technique is rubbing off on H. Now we have something to contain the soups we can make from whatever remains on the lottie.

Back to work Monday. Deep joy!

Its a New Year

It has been ages since I blogged. A bunch of things have happened since the last blog but mostly Christmas and New Year. I had a important task to do for one of my clients which was not resolved until New Years eve which was something of a cloud on me. We had folks staying, coming and going all over the Christmas period. H did a very fine job of looking after us all. It was nice to see everyone and we had a particularly good time with a one set of neighbours. There has been a cold snap which means the ground has been frozen solid so that has put paid to any digging, weeding or manuring for the past week.

I did go to the lottie and put up some bird feeders. I sussed out the support for the step-over Apple. I have banged in two posts four foot either side of the plant's truck. I then stretched a wire back and forth between the posts giving me a double strand. I zip tied the wires together and then tied the Apple tree to the stands. It looks quite good. I just have to prune the beggars now. I also have to find time to prune the neighbours Apples and Pear trees and see Gloria to sort her's out too.

I was so short of things to do I even tidied up the garage and re-arranged the contents. I then had a go at the shed. I checked the veg, chucked out the dodgy stuff and re-arranged the potato trays. I tried the remains of last year's cider. I still do not like it but it gave me a head buzz after just a couple of mouthfuls. After a cup of tea a trip to the tip with the recycleables. I am on a health kick at the moment. I put too much weight on over Christmas and my work has become more sedentary so I am walking to work each day and eating less. The "eating less" bit is not too hard since I am busy with work which takes my mind off my belly. I was never more than three foot away from a morsel over the festive period. It has been very cold but it nice being outside on the walk to work. There have been some glorious sunrises over the snow covered countryside. It does not look like the weather will be any warmer at the weekend so no lottie work. What will I do?

Happy New Year and I hope you achieve your goals for 2009.