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LATEST BRYMBO NEWS
This page will give irregular updates on what is happening at Brymbo. Most of the news will be about the inhabitants of the garden and around.
A little background:
We have 3 dogs, all Flatcoated Retrievers with very large personalities. If any of our guests are concerned about meeting them, we will restrict them from the front garden and parking area.
They are Barney (10), Fergus (6) and Monty (6 months). We also have a black and white cat called Henri (13), numerous visiting wild birds which eat us out of house and home in the gardens and a garden pond containing frogs, variously coloured "goldfish" and other wildlife which changes throughout the year.
Monday 21 March 2005
For our first "update", the weather has recently changed from very cold with snow 2 weeks ago, to the last few days of very warm, sunny Spring days. The snowdrops in the garden are over, but the daffodils and crocuses are fully open, with anemones and violets hidden under the shrubs.
The sun has brought the pond to life again, the fish are taking all the food thrown to them, and the frogs are basking in the warm shallower water.
In the field behind us, the brightly coloured male pheasants which were scratching for food together last week, are today challenging each other. They want to prove who is better able to protect the 5 or 6 hen pheasants who are still perching on our bird tables - an easy source of food, but depriving the small birds for whom the seed is intended.
Saturday 26 March 2005
Another warm sunny day has encouraged the frogs, who were in full "frog chorus" last night. There are several large patches of frog spawn in the pond, and the frogs seem to be protecting it. It is very unusual to see any frogs during the day, but there are 6 or 8 with their heads above water, each stationed on the edge of a patch of spawn, looking as if they are guarding their own.
There is a Blue Tit working in the nesting box on the Ash tree in the back garden, blackbirds are building nests in the front hedges and a female pheasant was examining underneath our honeysuckle shrub outside the Information room back window.
All three dogs have been enjoying the sunshine, stretched out on the back lawn.
Monday 28 March 2005
The weather today is beautiful - for a Bank Holiday almost unheard of ! However, the glorious weather is overshadowed by the disappearance of the fish in our pond. One of our guests disturbed a big bird with large wings yesterday morning early, and there is no sign of any of the fish in the pond. The bird was almost certainly a heron, and we now have to wait to see whether any of the fish re-appear. They might be so frightened that they have gone to the bottom of the pond - or they might all have been eaten. We covered the pond with netting to protect the fish, after thinning out the water plants last autumn. We removed some of the netting over the weekend, but left it where we thought a heron might try his luck. Unfortunately, the heron chose a narrow gap between the rockery and a bush, and managed, at the very least, to scare the fish very badly. We have reinstated the netting, and now just hope they are all OK and will regain their confidence.
The birds in the garden are fluttering and flittering about, showing off their plumage and trying to attract a mate - it is so funny to watch them chasing away rivals in between their sessions of showing-off. One Blue Tit was trying desperately to attract his mate into the nest box, flying and hopping around the tree, when another male landed on the box roof - the first male flew at the second one, and chased him several times around the garden.
The female had flown off by this time, so the first male will have to start again.
Friday 1 April 2005
Barry has seen several terrified goldfish swimming frantically to the bottom when he approached the pond. Thankfully the heron did not get them all, but we have been unable to count those left. Hopefully they will not regain their confidence until the pond plants have grown and given them good cover. In the meantime, the netting has been replaced - not the prettiest sight at the moment, but if it keeps the heron from fishing, it will be worth it.
I found a young newt by the front of the house this morning - I thought he was dead, but he moved slightly when Barry carried him towards the pond. He must have got lost searching for the pond in all the rain we've had. When we put him in the bog garden, I noticed our primroses are flowering - I have been trying to grow them from seed for years without success, so Sally, who tries to keep the garden under control, brought some from her garden last year. They look so fragile, I hope they survive and spread.
Monty has been gardening again - he has an addiction to the roots of plants in my pots, taking the pot into the kennel, pulling out the plant and the soil, and chewing the roots. When he has finished, anything surviving is spread amongst compost, drainage stones and the broken pot. As soon as I realise what he has done, we have a serious discussion "nose to nose" and he runs off to his bed, looking so sorry - but apparently not sorry for the plant. A few weeks ago he had de-potted all 12 plants on the staging; Sally managed to save and repot some of them, and we thought he had lost interest - apparently not.
Saturday 2 April 2005
During breakfast this morning, Fergus appeared at the backdoor and put down - a baby rabbit which promptly hopped off behind the shed. The dogs' mouths are so gentle, he hadn't hurt the rabbit at all, so Barry managed to reach it, and took it back to its burrow, with it squealing loudly all the way.
We thought the sunshine today might encourage the fish to swim about, but there were only 3 seen by one of the guests. The frog spawn in the pond is now wriggling frantically, so we should soon have some tadpoles hatching out.
Monday 18 April 2005
We have had some wonderful sunny days, and all the tadpoles have hatched - at first they congregated in a large, dense mass in the middle of the frog spawn, with all their tails wriggling frantically. After a couple of days they dispersed, and are now spread around the pond amongst the plants, their tails disturbing the water surface just enough to give them away. On sunny days they like to position themselves all around the rim of the pond, tails toward the centre and heads against the edge, like the petals of a flower.
I have seen 3 gold fish, but still none of the large black ones, although all the fish food we throw in, disappears when no one is watching.
Monty has found a new occupation - eating out on the compost heap! When he was a few weeks old I gave him a small piece of banana, which he loved. He was found yesterday on top of the compost heap licking the inside of the banana skins, and I later found orange peel and onion skin on the lawn, obviously not to his liking.
Thursday 21 April 2005
Yesterday was a miserable day, chilly with drizzly rain, but today the sun has come out. Sally is working in the garden, with Fergus and Monty "helping" by dropping a ball or lump of wood just where she is working so she has to throw it and they can chase it. I have tried over the years to teach all the dogs to weed the garden, but somehow they just can't understand the difference between the ones to pull out and the ones to leave.
Barry's daughter Phillipa, her husband Chris and their 2 boys Oliver and Charlie came over yesterday with their Flatcoat puppy Finly - he is brown instead of back, and was born at Christmas, so is 4 months younger than Monty. The older dogs sit and watch, very aloof, whilst Monty and Finly chased each other around the garden. Monty is not used to another dog being smaller than him, so he keeps putting his paws on Finly's head, and then rolling him over as if to say "I'm bigger than you and this is my garden so you have to do what I say". When his family goes on holiday, Finly and their spaniel Jaffa will come to stay with us, so Barry (and any guest who can cope) has 5 dogs to take out for a walk across the fields.
Saturday 23rd April 2005
Monty had an adventure this morning - we noticed him running down the field after the male pheasant (we've christened him Cocky) who took refuge in the brambles, at which point Monty decided it was not worth risking a "pricked" nose to follow. When he realised he had never been so far from the house on his own before, he barked to let anyone who might be interested, know that HE wasn't frightened, and then ran hell-for-leather back up the field with his tail between his legs!
His next escapade got him into serious trouble however. None of our other dogs has ever stolen anything, but Monty is always grabbing rags and rubbish out of the workshop and running off with it, so at times our back garden looks like the local rubbish tip! Until now it hasn't been a problem, but yesterday afternoon he had the remains of the lads' lunch they'd left in the workshop kitchen. Alex (Barry's son) saw Monty run out of the workshop with part of the loaf of bread, and when he went to investigate, he discovered the rest of the ham had gone as well. So Monty was told in no uncertain terms that he was not allowed to steal, and promptly banned to the kennel for a couple of hours. There will have to be a serious lesson in not stealing if he hasn't learned.
When Fergus heard all the noise, he disappeared out of the way, just in case he got dragged into it all !
Sunday 24th April 2005
This morning is warm and sunny, a balmy spring day, and the male pheasant is chaperoning his females down the bottom of the field, watched by everyone at the breakfast table, so he's none the worse for his experience with Monty yesterday.
Earlier Barney was lying by the patio window, and robin hopped along the patio searching for bird seed thrown out from the feeders, to within 4 inches of Barney, who took no notice of him whatsoever. The robin pecked about a bit and then wandered across to search between the plant pots for any choice insects for dessert.
The fish are becoming a little braver; I saw 4 gold and 3 black adults when I threw the food in for them, but they are not coming to the surface as soon as they see any movement beside the pond, like they used to.
Thursday 28th April 2005
Some time ago Barry made a narrow gap in the fence so the dogs could get through to the yard. This morning David, one of our American guests, was playing with all 3 dogs in the garden, throwing a stick over the fence. Fergus retrieved it and headed for the gap, but the stick was too wide and he just could not work out why he couldn't get through. ~Eventually Monty went to help him, grabbing one end of the stick and they managed to get through slightly at an angle. The next time, Fergus still had the same problem, he just could not understand - he put the stick down, looked at the gap, picked up the stick and "jam" it went against the sides of the gap again and again. In the end, he unintentionally picked it up off centre, and got through. It was so funny to watch his perplexed expression, and we all laughed so much watching him trying to get his thin but long stick to go where he never had any trouble without it!
For the last 2 days, Bob and Mark from the village have been painting the outside of the house, occasionally interrupted by the dogs who think they're here to play, not work. This afternoon we gained 2 "yellow blotched" dogs - Monty was watching the men painting the wall, and decided to lean against the wet paint, so he now has a flecked-yellow ear and thigh. Not satisfied with those effects, he showed how he likes to stick his nose where it shouldn't be, and put it into the tin of paint, gaining a yellow flash across his nose from the side of the tin. Not to be outdone, Fergus got too close to the wall with his tail, wagging as usual, and now has a tail which looks as if it was used as a paintbrush, with all the feathering picked out in yellow. So we now have 2 dogs which tastefully match the house. Barney was the only sensible one who kept well out of the way, primarily because he was ready to retrieve anything which might be thrown for him.
Monday 2nd May 2005
We have a beautiful morning, particularly remarkable because it is a Bank Holiday. Barry's son Alex and his family have cycled from Honeybourne on their new bikes,calling here to rest. Whilst sitting by the pond they noticed a lot of activity in the water. It appears the fish have lost their fear of the heron and anything else in the vicinity, whilst chasing each other through the reeds and under the lily pads. We think there are about 20 fish, and it appears about a third are females - we summise this from the way some of them are fighting and chasing away others, whilst following certain fish very closely! They are definitely not interested in food, only in each other - it's strange how hormones overcome fear.
Barry and I are going for a short drive in the Morgan this morning, and will come back to finish the rooms - it's too beautiful a day not to go for a drive with the top down.
Tuesday 3rd May 2005
We had a wonderful drive to Burford yesterday, on small country lanes tunnelled by trees sprouting pale green leaves - I wish I'd taken the camera. The best byways are so narrow they have grass growing along the middle; unfortunately the Morgan is not too happy with the clearance, but travelling slowly meant we could hear the birds singing, so the sunshine, the birds and the scents of the countryside all combined to make a perfect run out to visit my parents in Burford. We were extremely lucky on the way back, because although the weather had turned showery, we managed to be "just after" or "just before" the rain, watching the heavier showers crossing the next hill, but leaving us dry all the way home. Of course, we then had to work very fast to get all the bedrooms cleaned and finished in time, but it had been worth it.
Today we have had rain since before breakfast, so three very wet dogs appear at the backdoor looking very sorry for themselves - you would never know they had 3 kennels to keep them dry. Sally came to go some garden control between the showers, helped by Fergus and Monty Of course, the rain clouds cleared just when she went home - and now the sun is trying to come through.
Monty is growing so quickly, he will soon be as big as the others. He loves to "lick" people, but not in the normal way, his tongue doesn't make contact with you, he just keeps "air licking" in the way some people "air kiss" so you get the love without having to go and wash afterwards.
Sunday 8th May 2005
We have extra house (or rather garden) guests this weekend - Phillipa and Chris's 2 dogs, Fin and Jaffa. Barney has just ignored them, Fergus keeps telling them he doesn't want to play at the moment, and Monty is having a whale of a time, grabbing anything he thinks they might want and racing all around the garden with Fin and Jaffa in hot pursuit - they all have a "mad 10 minutes" chasing around and then wrestle with the other 2 on top of Monty, and loads of teeth showing. Phillipa, Chris and the boys have gone to support Cheltenham Town football team at an away match and decided to make a weekend of it.
Barry is finding it difficult to check they are all there when he takes them for a walk across the fields - there's no problem when he sets off because they're all desperate to go, it's when he comes back he has to count them regularly to ensure one hasn't gone rabbiting down a burrow.
Certain regular guests will understand completely when I say Jaffa has not lost his voice yet, unfortunately - whenever they go for a walk and the bigger dogs get ahead he runs and barks whilst trying to catch up - he seems to think that if he can't keep up physically he'll do it vocally.
Tuesday 10th May 2005
Monty can now get out of the back garden - he just followed Barney and jumped the fence as if it wasn't there. He has been watching Barney for while, must have decided he'd grown enough and just sailed over. Unfortunately for Jaffa, when he tried it at the weekend, he headbutted the top rail - his legs aren't long enough - but he was none the worst and just raced even faster, the long round around the fence. He is never still, if he isn't running about, his tail is going 19 to the dozen with his rear end wagging as well.
The weather forecast tonight is for frost, and Barry had the bright idea to cover the wisteria along the boundary wall with the old netting which used to cover the top of the lorry trailers - it's often very handy having our lorries next door. Most years we seem to get a sharp frost just as the buds are about to open and instead of a wall covered in long mauve strands of scented flowers, we get dried fists of brown disappointment, which disperse in the breeze. One year I had heard it was possible to save the flowers by spraying the frosted buds with water before the ice melted, so I got out the hose pipe, only to find all the water inside it had frozen solid; in frustration I tried to throw water over the flowers from a large bowl, but ended up wetter than the plant. Hopefully, Barry's solution will work - although watching him walking along the top of the 10 foot high wall pulling the netting into place was quite unnerving.
Saturday 14th May 2005
Barry's brilliant idea worked - I didn't want to say so before because of tempting fate on Friday 13th, so the wisteria still has its flower buds, opening slowly. He nearly fell off the top of the wall when he got his foot caught in a stem of the wisteria, but he was alright. Monty took a dislike to the lorry net and kept barking at it, until I dragged him up to it and he could smell it wasn't threatening anybody.
Barry cut down the daffodil leaves on the side of the road this week, and found a pheasant's nest with 10 pale blue/green eggs. They were all cold so he brought them indoors and "blew" 2 of them for Max to take to school. The eggs had not gone bad, so he broke another and gave one to each of the dogs. Fergus and Barney thought they were wonderful, but Monty didn't like the look of his, so walked off and left it - Fergus soon finished it off.
It's funny what some dogs will eat and others won't touch. Fergus and Monty adore cabbage and cauliflower leaves, so much so that when I prepare one for dinner, Fergus will sit outside the back door and cry for it. Barney will only eat them if they haven't wilted at all, otherwise he will take one look and wander off, at which point Fergus takes advantage and devours it before Barney has a chance to change his mind. Monty would like to get onto the compost heap, but we've managed to block his access. He investigates anything apparently edible, and then drops what he doesn't like (tea bags and onion skins) on the lawn. I just can't get him to clear up after himself.
Sunday 15th May 2005
We have had beautiful sunshine for the last few days, althought there has been a cold wind, so the dogs have been lying out sun bathing as usual. However, the surprise yesterday was Henri, our black and white female cat, was also sunbathing - though not with the dogs because she doesn't trust these "young jumped up puppies who haven't been around very long" because they like to chase her across the garden. Henri is getting to be an old lady, and now spends her time sleeping (in the shed), shouting to be fed or eating. We have not seen her doing anything else for a long time, so when we saw her stretched out in the sun on the lawn we were amazed. She was sheltered from the wind, obviously enjoying the warmth of sun, and her only movement was to wave her tail about if anyone went near, just to make sure she wasn't disturbed.
All the sun is bringing the garden into flower, and many of our shrubs are scented, so the evening air smells wonderful. If the old folklore saying "if the oak is out before the ash, then we shall have a splash, but if the ash is out before the oak, there will be a soak" is true, then this summer should be drier, because the oak trees are well ahead of the ash this year. If it is warm as well, it will be so good to sit in the garden on a warm evening let the scents waft around.
Barry has just taken a "car enthusiast from Australia" guest for a quick drive round the block in his Morgan - they both clearly enjoyed it, as well as all the discussion about engines and models etc etc etc. The weather is perfect for a drive out today, but I will be doing my stint in the tourist office in Chipping Campden this afternoon, so Barry will have to stay within phone and door bell earshot, and polish the car - again.
Thursday 19th May 2005
We had 2 fluffy baby Robins hopping about on the patio outside the breakfast room this morning. One of our guests had an early breakfast and watched the parents feeding them, until they were frightened off under the rose bush. Later, one of the babies came out again to peck among the plant pots; he looked speckled and fluffy, without any red on his breast yet.
Monty has a new pasttime - he's trying to swim in the dogs' water bowls. Barry fills them with water, turns around and they're empty - Monty puts both feet in and does "doggy paddle", scooping out all the water and leaving a muddy puddle in the bottom of the dish, then moves on to the next one..... Later, he seems very puzzled when there's nothing to drink.....
Saturday 21st May 2005
Last evening, Barry saw the deer which cross the bottom of the field at dusk, stop and graze on their way. They were there for quite a while, until the dogs started to bark and headed off across the field after them. The deer were gone in a flash of course, but it gave the dogs some short sharp exercise.
Just before breakfast this morning, the baby robins were back, a little braver today, pecking on the patio at the bits dropped from the seed feeders by the other birds.
This afternoon we had a tremendous storm - Fergus told me it was heading this way when he sat by the back door crying. As soon as I opened the door, he was in and through to my office where he took up residence and went to sleep until the storm had gone. It's funny how he doesn't mind as long as he's indoors. There was no sign of Barney or Monty, who obviously weren't bothered enough to come looking for protection. There was thunder and lightning, hail stones and rain like a waterfall, worse than stairrods. There was so much rain in a short time that the doormat outside the front door started to float. Barry bravely went out to check the drains were clear, by which time the rain eased off and it all disappeared almost as quickly as it had arrived. We now have beautiful evening sunshine and no sign of all that water.
Thursday 26th May 2005
The Blue Tits have hatched out their eggs in the nest box on the Ash tree, and the parents are kept very busy flying in and out with food. The young Robins have gone from the patio, but we haven't seen them on the bird tables yet. We have to keep 3 tables for the robins, because they will fight each other vicously, if one strays into another's territory. One of our adult robins has perfected "hovering while flapping wings" and taking seed from the hanging feeders, so he must be barred from the table feeders by a resident robin for each.
Barry is trying to prevent Monty chucking all the water out of the dogs' water bowls, by putting water in a large tin, big enough to get their heads in but too small for Monty to get his head and 2 feet at the same time. Unfortunately, Monty just tipped it over and walked off with it.
We had a telephone call from Monty's breeder, John, yesterday to say they'd had another litter. This time half are brown, like Fin, and the others are black as normal. Neither of the parents were brown, so there must be a brown gene in each. John wanted to know whether we would like another puppy - we said Monty is plenty to be going on with !
Friday 27th May 2005
This morning the sun was clear and it was beautiful day; I managed to get most of the washing dry outside. This afternoon is has turned very muggy and humid, with the sun very hazy, and it is quite sticky and warm. Monty and Fergus had a split second fracas over a ball, I saw Fergus wander off with a clump of black fur hanging out of his mouth, so he must have won, but Monty didn't seem to have noticed he was missing anything and wasn't bothered!. Fergus promptly walked passed me, through the back door and into my office where he is currently lying asleep. I am presuming this means there is a thunder storm on the way - there is no sign of it at the moment, but the atmosphere is just right for one, so we will see.
Sunday 29th May 2005
We didn't get the thunder storm Fergus thought was on its way - although occasionally, whilst Fergus was asleep in my office, I wasn't sure whether the rumbling I could hear was distant thunder or Fergus snoring. Eventually he just got up and walked back outside. Monty and Barney hadn't been concerned at all, so next time I'll have to check I'm not being taken for a ride !
The fish in the pond are all now very brave, probably too brave because when we go to feed them they come to the perimeter of the pond, although I am trying to train them to go to the far side, by throwing their food over there. If they don't learn soon they'll be going hungry, although I'm afraid they might eat their own eggs or any tadpoles which haven't grown yet.
Wednesday 1st June 2005
Barry has found a large, deep, straight sided plastic bucket which had garden compost fertisiler in it, and has put it out full of water to try and beat Monty's passion for throwing all the water out. Monty managed to get both feet in, but then couldn't reach the water to "bite it", so he had to take out one foot and "bite" at the water, but this wasn't as effective at making a wet mess, so he tried to grab the side of the bucket and tip it over, but it was too heavy, so he spent the next few minutes "biting and throwing" the water, until he got fed up. There was some water still in the bucket, so Barry had achieved something. However, it was is muddy and didn't look very appetising but it didn't seem to bother the other 2 dogs who just drank most of what was left.
Thursday 2nd June 2005
Barry's son Alex is on holiday with his wife Jackie and the children Livy and Max, so life is little hectic at the moment, because Barry is running the Transport business as well as helping with the B and B as usual - breakfast can be a little fraught when the telephone rings with a transport problem, just as we're putting the fresh breakfast on the plates ! Jackie helps with the B and B as well, so we would be short handed if Michelle, who used to help us years ago, had not agreed to come in and help with the ironing. She doesn't seem to have been away, and it has all worked out - usually I'm trying to do the ironing whilst dealing with something else as well, and the sheets can be under threat of scorching.
Michelle has always teased the dogs, but today she threw an old rubber ring for them and it unintentionally landed in a tree. It was so funny to watch all three dogs sitting immediately under the ring, willing it to drop to the ground. Monty got bored first, and wandered off, but Fergus and Barney just sat there for about 20 minutes, desperate for it to fall. Eventually I took pity on them, got it down and threw it into the field. There was an almighty BANG as Monty and Fergus tried to get through the one-dog-wide gap in the fence at the same time. Fergus, being bigger and stronger, won which meant he also got to the ring first, and came back so pround of himself. Barney just let them get on with it, he seems to know when it's not worth making an effort, but ensures he gets somewhere first if he has a good chance.
After several days of throwing the fish food across the pond, most of the fish seem to have the idea and go straight over, as soon as I get to the pond's edge, before I even throw anything.
Saturday 4th June 2005
Barney has an exceptionally long tongue, and today he put it to very good use. Barry gave the dogs some small dog treats this morning. Monty and Fergus were prancing about on their toes as soon as they realised what was on offer, but Barney was lying flat-out by the patio windows, totally disinterested, so Barry threw him a couple of biscuits which landed about 3 inches from his nose. He took no notice, but then Monty ventured towards them. Without getting up or moving his head, Barney's tongue shot out and he had eaten them in a flash, much to Monty's amazement and frustration.
Each of the dogs catches any titbits we throw, differently, even ignoring Barney's own particular system! Fergus stands on tiptoe, desperate not to miss out, so when you throw anything he lunges forward and snaps his teeth shut like a trap - loud and with precision, unfortunately he is often too eager and the trap springs shut before the treat lands inside, so it bounces off his nose and he has to scrabble about on the patio to locate it before Monty gets to it. Monty just stands and as you throw it he opens his mouth, but he makes no attempt to move to catch it, so if your aim is no good, he justs looked crestfallen because you have deprived him of his treat. When Barney does get up, he is very quiet, just stands and watches carefully so he doesn't miss anything when it's sent in his direction.
The Blue Tits are very busy today, dashing in and out of the nest box feeding their young, who can be heard squawking loudy whenever they haven't got anything in their beaks, and the blackbird has been sitting in the plum tree singing his heart out.
Thursday 9th June 2005
Monty has just had a "mad half hour" racing round and round the garden table, the washing line, the bushes and the fruit trees, swerving to avoid Fergus who was waiting to grab him at a strategic spot. Fergus can't be bothered to race around as well, so he just waits for Monty to come back passed him. When Fergus loses interest Monty lies on the grass just out of Fergus's reach with a piece of ball or rag enticingly hanging out of his mouth. The moment Fergus lunges forward Monty is off, round and round the garden again. A few minutes after he had finished his antics, Monty appeared at the back door, with his head and front legs soaked - he's been chucking the water out of their water bowl again, so the patio was swimming, he was saturated and there was no water to drink! Of course, Monty has that innocent "I've done nothing" look on his face.
The shrubs in the garden are growing beautifully, and the scents are wonderful. The pink Roses over the porch have mauve sweet peas climbing through, and the mixed scents greet you at the front door. I have found lots of wild Roses in the garden this year, scrambling up the taller scrubs. The birds must have eaten the Rosehips and dropped the seeds when they sat on the branches, so the new Rose plants grew in the bare soil underneath.
I hate to remove living, growing plants even when they have self-seeded or spread too far, so at the moment there are masses of pink hardy geraniums, another area of the purple ones our Dutch guest Geraldine brought over for us, and lots of Pyracantha (firethorn) which has self-(or bird-)seeded under bushes, grown through over several years, and is now a mass of patches of solid white blossom spread over the top of the shrubs like lace tablecloths. I will have to force myself to transplant them this year or the shrubs they are covering will suffer.
The Mock Orange is flowering with a heavenly scent wafting about as you walk passed, and the Spanish Broom, which I beleived would not survive being cut back when the main stem split, is just about to burst into showers of large yellow pea flowers, from all the new dark green growth which appeared so quickly and amazingly when the top two-thirds were chopped off (whilst I was out !).
The Wisteria was saved by Barry's lorry trailer netting, and the flower fronds hang down so long that the flowers at the top of each stem have died before the ones at the tip have broken open.
Monday 13th June 2005
The weather today is beautiful, the sun has brought out the damsel flies, so we have their gorgeous iridescent turquoise and blue colours shimmering as they flit across the pond, alighting on a leaf or on the water for a short time and then flitting off again. They are all searching for partners, and when they find one their acrobatics and gymnastic positions are so amusing, and however they manage to fly in some positions is amazing.
The fish are making loud "plopping" noises as they rise to grab flies sitting on the surface of the water, and the frogs join in when they jump off the lilypads when a movement disturbs them. Barry says the bright yellow frog is still around; I haven't seen him yet, but we now have a good photograph of him - Julie, a long-time guest, arrived yesterday for a few days and brought 2 frames of photographs her late partner Jeff had taken, one of the dogs and the other of the pond, including a very good picture of the yellow frog.
Thursday 16th June 2005
Julie had decided she did not want to go "sightseeing" and asked to do something useful, so offered to recovered the bed headboards with the material I had had for several years, awaiting a few spare minutes for me to do them! Once she started she didn't want to stop - she has made a very good job of them, and now we have very smart headboards matching the bedspreads and curtains in BOTH the family rooms - one less item on my long list of outstanding jobs.
Monday 20th June 2005
Two guests were sitting by the pond, when they noticed the yellow frog on a lily pad. He sat there for a long time - until they went to get their camera, and suddenly he decided to leave !
Sunday 18th December 2005
So much has been happening here that I haven't had time to keep the news page up to date, so I will fill the gaps later!
This morning the sunshine is bright and beautiful after a sharp frost, so the ground is hard and sparkling. Barry has taken the dogs across the back field before the frost comes out of the ground and the mud reappears. They get so excited walking across the field with Barry - which is strange when they go out there anytime on their own. Fergus is lumbering along, Monty is bouncing in and out of all the corners and hedges, and Barney is trotting along, so proud with his head up carrying a large stick in his mouth. Earlier Monty was stalking a crow across the field - the crow would walk a bit, then jump to keep about 6 feet in front,and Monty just keep following until the crow flew over his head and Monty had to turn around and follow in the opposite direction.
The birds are emptying the feeders and devouring all the cheese we put out at the moment - it is so cold they can't find any insects. They ate most of the berries in the front garden during the week of very cold weather in November, so we'll have to watch them for the rest of the winter.We have plenty of blackbirds and thrushes visiting for the cheese, and the robins are constantly guarding their individual territory, so we put out extra lots of food so more of them get a chance to eat.
Our Christmas lights are all up and working - Barry spent most of last weekend up the ladder in the front fir tree, disentangling the lights where the tree has grown around them, taking them down for the first time in 10 years and repairing them, then putting them all back up. It was very cold work, but the result is a lovely way of saying "Happy Christmas", and the icicle lights we brought back from America 5 years ago give a bright, welcoming display along the front of the house.
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