FULL STOP!

   So what excuses can I make for not doing much over the last week or so? My youngest daughter was out for a couple of days, the weather (nope!), shopping, short days? Anything else? Cannot think of anything. Must just be lazy.

    What has been done? Well, I mowed grass. I picked pumpkins with the grand children. I pulled some beetroot, cooked and pickled it. I moved Mr Jumper (a ram that has an inclination to jump fences!) well away from the ewes. I cleaned out the duck coop. Mucky critters these ducks. There was a good frost. Finished off the sweet peppers, aubergines and haricot. Cleared some of the pine tree that I had had cut down. There is a lot of it!

    I am having trouble finding a couple of pictures too! Dear oh dear. Must get back into doing stuff. There is plenty to do.
    On the animal front the chickens are still on strike. One egg, every other day! Not good enough I say but they just cluck and wander about. The new hens, the buff Orpingtons, have grown and are now confident enough to come out and wander their pen. They are still weary of Mr. Ixworth, the cockerel. Sheep are being sheep. Ducks are being ducks.
     Here is a picture of the ducks have a snooze and another of the moon rise on the third of November. 

Moon rise 3rd November 2017

Slow down

   What can I say? I just do not know where the last two weeks has gone. Cannot say I have been particularly busy but the short days seem to make time go quicker. So it has been two weeks since the last blog. Apologies for missing a week but looking at the gardening log there has not been much activity in the garden.
   A reasonable number of nice looking butternut and blue squash harvested. The grand children enjoyed picking the pumpkins for Halloween. One nice big one and several small but useful sized ones harvested. Quite pleased with them considering that all I did this year was put seeds directly in the ground instead of starting them off in pots.I have sowed some peas in the poly tunnel. You never know! My nice crop of lettuce had grown to the size of small footballs and have been fed to the chickens. They loved them. There are still some sweet peppers and chili's and I guess they will continue until the first frost. Plenty of beetroot, swede, carrots and spinach! The very last Gardeners Delight (Champeau) were picked and put in the freezer. The garlic planted two weeks ago is up and going well.
  On the animal front all are fine. Herr Jumper ram is being a pest but I have constructed Stalag III and that seems to be containing him for the time being. Plan is to move him out of site of the ewes. The chickens are not laying well and I guess that is partly due to the short days and the fact that they are coming out of their annual molt. 
  I have read that the grass will keep growing until it regularly below six degrees C. Could be mowing grass well into November then! Lots of weeding to do but I sometimes wonder if it is really worth it at this time of year as there is nothing to sow or plant and they will only grow again!
  Below is a picture of the end result of forking ground, sowing, weeding, digging up, drying, peeling and pickling shallots!

Blue squash

Pickled onions

New arrivals

New arrivals pair of Buff Orpingtons

      Starting this week with the animals. New arrivals at Watermeadows. A pair of Buff Orpington hens bought mainly because Mr. Ixworth needed more female company! Another reason was to get some fresh hens in and up the egg count which lately has not been exceptional at all! The sickly lamb looks very much on the mend after her worm dose and we are hopeful that she will fully recover. Ducks are being ducks and it looks like Mrs. Runner has finished laying for this year. 
      In the garden more weeding, more gathering of mini and normal sweet peppers, aubergine, lettuce, chili's, cauliflower and the start of harvesting the squash. I did not know that I had sowed blue squash. I think I must have mixed up some seed somehow. Still, they have done well. The sun has been shinning and for several hours of the day and the weather has been just like summer. Just to remind me that it is not summer there was one morning where there was a frost. A hint of winter? Well, maybe and anyway I bought some garlic bulbs and divided up the bulbs and planted the cloves. I am hoping for a better harvest than this season just about gone. Sprouts! Yes I have sprouts. First time in years whether in the UK or in France. The winter crops are loving the mild weather and are growing well. Cabbage, swede, carrots all going great guns. Here is hoping.

Garlic bed

Weeded squash bed

Chili, aubergines and sweet peppers

Blue squash

Autumn rain and sun rain and sun....

   The weather has been wet and sunny. What does that mean? Yep! Growing grass! But grass that is too wet to mow and the days are shorter so there is less time for it to dry off enough to allow me to mow it. Also it means that the slugs are on the move and no chickens in the garden to keep them under control. Upside? Yep. Winter brassicas, beetroot, leeks and swede are all growing well. Harvesting continues with aubergines, tomatoes, beetroot, spinach, sweet peppers and chili's all being picked, cut and pulled! More chili's for the freezer. The tomatoes are now really coming to an end with some stragglers hanging on and me with fingers crossed that those tomatoes still on the vine will at least start to ripen. If they start I have a good chance of finishing them off in the house. Fortunately there are not many and the weather is looking favourable over the next few days (warm and sun). I also been  collecting tomato seed. So far Noire Crimee and  Andene Corne have been done with Potiron Ecarlate close behind. These are all french heritage varieties that have done well and we have really enjoyed. I still want to gather some Champeau Gardeners Delight that this year have been exceptional. The pumpkin patch continues to develop and there are various sizes of pumpkins from just formed ones to a nice big one turning a lovely orange.

   On the animal front we have now wormed and trimmed all the sheep's feet. We have a sickly lamb which we believe and hope was being affected by a large worm burden. She certainly has picked up since worming. The female duck is still laying the odd egg but all the fowl have been moulting and growing new feathers. So egg production is very low!

   So onward into autumn and early winter we go!

Pumpkin patch

Ripening pumpkin

Three growing pumpkins

The first pumpkin 

More goodies from the land

   Its been a mixed bag of weather over the last week. As I sit here writing this the sun is shinning and it is very warm, however, first thing it was misty and cool. There has been thunder, lightening and every thing from light to heavy rain. A real mixed bag. Autumn colours are now showing. So, what has this meant for the garden?

     Well for a start cutting, picking and pulling of various vegetables. Aubergines, mini sweet peppers, sweet peppers, cauliflower, lettuce, chilies, carrots, beetroot, haricot buerre and yet more tomatoes of various types. The Gardeners Delight have done well and much to my surprise the French heritage varieties have also done well too. Also the last bed of potatoes has been dug up. A very good crop of Desiree red main crop potatoes. Good size.

Digging up potatoes, the last bed!

    Of course my old friend the grass has been growing with the mild wet and warm weather we have had. Out there mowing again and I dare say that there will be a couple more sessions before winter really kicks in. Oh, I forgot to mention. There were two water melons left to pick. The plant has only just decided enough is enough. Home grown water melon at the end of September. Cannot be bad.
   Winter veg is well established. Cabbage, Brussels sprouts, carrots, beetroot, swede, parsnips and spinach all looking good. I have not yet dug up the tree onions. I am thinking that I may leave them over winter. I am concerned about the poly tunnel soil fertility. I need to think about what I am going to do about that.
   I have a pumpkin patch! There are at least six pumpkins ripening up. Quite amusing really to have a pumpkin patch.
   On the animal front the chickens have been moulting like there no tomorrow. Feathers everywhere. The ducks are being ducks and the sheep are being sheep. Noisy and rams starting to eye up the ewes. We need to keep the rams away from the ewes this year. We do not want lambs next year. With that in mind I have put up some barbed wire on on length of fence. Those rams can be jumpers! 
   Here is hoping for continuing mild weather!

Pumpkin

Autumn gathers pace

  Apologies for the delay in this blog. I returned to the UK for my youngest grand daughters second birthday bash so I was away for a few days. This entry more or less covers the last two weeks. The weather has varied from warm and sunny to cold and wet but stuff is still growing well. Autumn is here, the leaves are turning and falling.
   Lots of pulling, cutting and picking going on. Carrots, sweet peppers, chili's, courgettes which are now finished, haricot buerre, cucumber, tomatoes (various varieties), purple cauliflower, white cauliflower and much to my surprise aubergines. The aubergines had been devastated by Colorado beetle and I was not expecting much from them but they have recovered and are producing a good number of aubergines. Autumn is gathering speed with the squash and pumpkins ripening and the courgettes now finished. I have picked a reasonable crop of haricot buerre  much to my surprise. There is one large water melon that I must pick soon but the plant is only just starting to give up. The tomatoes are coming to an end with just a few hanging on that are very slowly ripening on the vine.Of course the  grass continues to  grow and requires mowing again!
   The tree surgeon has been and the second large conifer outside the front of my house is now cut down. There is a significant increase in light in the house.
   All the animals are doing fine. The chickens are not laying so well probably due to the shorter and much cooler days. Many jobs to do, digging up the final bed of Desiree potatoes one of them.

Purple cauliflower

  

Time to harvest.

   After last weeks statement on tomatoes the plants are continuing to produce. Lots of Gardeners Delight (grape tomato) with a good number of Roma and French heritage. Another two lots of litre size freezer bags of Gardeners Delight put into the freezer and at least one more to go. The round courgette plants continue to produce with at least six more courgettes since the last blog. Too many courgettes! I have continued to dig up potatoes with Cherie now done. A bit late really as they are designated as earlies. Several rows of Desiree still to do. What else is being picked, cut or dug? Marketmore cucumbers, sweet peppers (Washington giant red (they are not), yellow and orange mini stuffing), chili (Nigels Green outdoors, Basque), beetroot (Cheltenham green top, Sanguine), 5 Dessert melons (delicious!). 

Ouessant ram

As we are keeping the chickens out of the garden my spinach is  growing well as are the beetroot. I have now thinned out the spinach and sown a few more seed to complete the two rows. Carrots have been a disappointment this summer but there are a lot still showing a good growth of leaf in the ground and I am hopeful for some over the early winter. Of course weeding is a must and I should be doing it every day really. At this time of year, just like in spring, weeds and grass grow quickly. My winter cabbage looks good both savoy type and what in the UK we know as Dutch cabbage (large white, often made into cold slaw) are doing well. The swedes are putting on a lot of leaf and I am hopeful of a good crop.
   I am sure the ram in the picture is about to stick its tongue out at me. Chickens are on protest strike. Very few eggs being laid at the moment. Ducks are fine, the female continues to lay one egg a day, the ewes and rams, well, are being ewes and rams.
   Autumn is well underway with the first delivery of wood arriving. Many, many black berries and they are big and juicy. I need to find some time to pick some.