Odds and ends

The Man of the House' first potatoes of the year, in the veggie collecting basket I bought him.

The recent strong winds and rains here have played havoc with anything that is not well staked.
The big yellow things in front of the window have suffered a bit. I did divide them last year and planted a clump next to a fence, in the hopes of being able to remove this original lot from in front of the window. It was given to us a few years ago by a friend with a small garden because "it was too big!. I know what she means.

This photo was taken a couple of days after the first one, and the day lilies have started to bloom. At least thats what I think they are. And strangely all previous years they have been buttercup yellow. I could swear - in fact I shall have to go and look for photos. Do they always do that?

Agapanthus

A favourite of the Man of the House - they remind him of an aunty's garden in years gone by.

Sweet peas are a favourite of mine, but I dont sow the seeds, just buy them as tiny plants. They have done well this year, despite the wind and the damp weather.


Alchemilla mollis - I cant resist it after rain! Who cares that it has tiny flowers too .........


The evening sun just caught my £5 pottery pretend Japanese lantern - next to a mossy stone (watered in the dry spells)

I took myself off to Clouds Hill - where I had never been, in all my thirty three years in Dorset.
It was bought by the famouse T.E. Lawrence (Lawrence of Arabia) as a hideaway when just a primitive gamekeepers hut. An escape from the roughness of Bovington Army Camp nearby, somewhere he could write, listen to music and be quiet. I climbed the small hill behind which looked down on the roof and out over the Dorset valley of the Frome river.

I could stare for hours at the sky beyond pine branches. It touches something very deep in my soul, such a satisfying shape.

Ancient stones in a peaceful garden

A day out of the office took me to the north Dorset hill top town of Shaftesbury. I was helping the Public Catalogue Foundation record some paintings in Dorset Libraries. But I had a moment to myself while my colleagues were photographing at Shaftesbury Abbey museum.

I discovered the peaceful grassy gardens, which contained the ruins of the nunnery dating back to 888 AD. Such history - and such a violent end six hundred years later. Cromwell had a lot to answer for.

The relics of Edward the Martyr were supposed to located there, and indeed some bones that carbon dated to the correct period were discovered, buried there.

Despite the violent end of the nunnery, the garden was an oasis of calm in the sunshine. I was given a hand held audio guide, and found it easy to see the walls of the impressive church coming to life in front of me. The photos taken on my phone pan from left to right across the garden.

I didnt have time to look around properly, or even go into the museum, but this chart caught my eye in a delightful studio at one side of the garden. I hope you can click to read it.

Its a shame that Shaftesbury is an hour's drive away, but its a delightful small market town full of unusual shops and it seems quite isolated, in a time of its own. I shall definitely find time to visit again, and hope to explore the nunnery ruins again at leisure. This time with more knowledge of its amazing history.

Maybe soon I WILL have more time. Retirement is definitely on the cards at long last.

Watch this space!

An important stepping stone

My Eldest Daughter's first baby - a daughter - my first grandchild.

No words needed.