Garden Surprises

At last the weather has cooled and the garden has slaked its thirst! Some things have suffered despite our efforts but hopefully they will revive and continue to give us pleasure.

One of the things I love about a garden is that it’s full of surprises. You never know what’s going to crop up.

This weekend we discovered that a branch of one of the pear trees had broken with the weight of the fruit. The tree was top-heavy with branches that splay and laden with swelling pears. The burden was just too much and the branch had almost snapped off. Allan sawed it off and put the pears in a bucket. They’re not fully grown but I’m hoping they just might ripen and be useable.

Another surprise was a field poppy blooming in the corner of one of the polytunnels! Not sure how that arrived in there. Very pretty though, so it’s forgiven.

After a long absence I spotted a hedgehog in the garden. A very welcome visitor. I thought they could no longer find a way into the garden after our neighbours installed some fencing. So it was a lovely surprise to see one snuffling about. I hope it will polish off the pesky slugs.

The evening light was lovely after those hot days. I tried to capture the way it lit up bits of the garden.

The setting sun coloured the clouds in a beautiful way.

The phlox are flowering now and their delicate perfume fills the evening air. The mauve and pink colours are so lovely, vibrant and yet not gaudy.

Not so many flowers this year, sadly. I think the weather has affected the garden and some plants need replacing or rejuvenating. Here are some little glimpses of what I can enjoy right now.

The veggies are yielding up their treasure and we’re spoiled for choice. Yellow french beans, runner beans, kohlrabi and carrots to enjoy. Purple beans are on their way and lovely little cucumbers are forming.

I grow an outdoor cucumber called “Marketmore”. It’s an old variety which is reliable in our local climate and I think it tastes far better than greenhouse cucumbers. The knobbly peel is bitter but once that’s removed the flesh is deliciously juicy and sweet with that lovely cucumber tang. Also brilliant for my pickles and chutney.

Allan snapped me coming up the garden with tasty treats for a meal. Kohl rabi, carrots and beans. I’d forgotten to take my trug so I was struggling to hold them.

Kohl rabi are a lovely alternative to turnips. Much sweeter and tender enough to eat raw in a salad. I grated one into a bowl with thinly sliced onion, bits of apple and celery and tiny florets of raw cauliflower. Sprinkled a little salt and pepper and drizzled some freshly made french dressing over and mixed together. Absolutely delicious.

The Cabbage White butterflies have started fluttering about, searching for my sprouts and kale. Although I love butterflies these are not welcome visitors. I have netting over the plants but the little devils find any available entrance and lay eggs through the top of the mesh if the plants are in contact. All part of gardening’s challenge though. Nature at its best doesn’t always comply with our plans.

For the last two years we used a moth trap in the summer. Don’t be alarmed, this isn’t a harmful thing. It’s just a large box with a light ledged on top which attracts moths during the night. In the morning we take photos and let them fly away. We haven’t used it this year.

I have missed the moths. It’s thrilling opening the box each morning and finding beautiful creatures which we don’t see by day. Here are some of those we discovered.

So many lovely moths. We were amazed to see the exciting colours and shapes. I bought a couple of books to identify them and kept a notebook to record the finds as well as the photos I took each morning.

I hope you find many interesting things in your own gardens. Bye for now. With you again next week.