Burial chambers & seed collecting

Well, that's my mum away back home, it's been lovely to have her here visiting this past week but I know she's always glad to be going back to her own home and I would be exactly the same.
I think she had a good time while she was here, to be honest there's not much to show people once they've been a couple of times but isn't it always the way that you remember places you should have gone once you're sat at the airport waiting for their flight home!
Anyway I told her she'll just have to come again next year so I can take her to the places I had thought of - think it worked! Hope it worked! lol

Apparantly despite having been here a few times now I have failed to take mum to see the Grey Cairns of Camster, I'm not so sure though - I think she's just forgotten the trip because it's usually the first thing we take people to see because it's only 5 miles up the road.
Well just in case she forgets again I'll blog it here lol

These particular cairns are among the oldest stone monuments in Scotland, they're over 5000 years old and are two of the best preserved burial tombs from the Neolithic anywhere in Britain.
So much is still a mystery when it comes to these Cairns but we know they were definitely used as burial chambers - you can also enter the cairns via a tiny doorway but it's cramped and you have to crawl to the centre room on your hands and knees, I've done it many times but it's fairly creepy and not the spiritual experience you would hope for.

Just 6 miles in the opposite direction of our house is the Stone circle at Loch Stemster.
I've loved stone circles ever since visiting Avebury when I was a kid, these ones are on a much smaller scale than Avebury but it's still way cool to have them so nearby.

Not my image

The purpose and date of this circle are unknown though it's likely they belong to the Bronze age and while it's usual for the flat fronts to face inward of the circle (though this one is actually a horseshoe not a circle) the standing stones at Stemster have their sides facing inward - for what reason, who knows!

I've managed to have a quick check on the PT today in between pallet dismantling and I was pleased to see that the Apples are about ready for picking now. Neither tree is producing huge apples but the Braeburn is of a fairly decent size and the Golden Delicious would have been too had I thinned them out adequately weeks ago.

Braeburn apple

Golden delicious apple

+9

I've decided this year that I'm going to collect seed from plants I wouldn't normally bother with and I noticed the Echinacea was looking particularly brown and full of seed. I have no idea about collecting seed from from Echinacea and therefore have no idea what the seed is supposed to look like when it's ready to harvest. These were falling off the head as I picked them though so I guess that means they're ready?

Todays little watcher as I ferried back and fore moving wood was Bob the Great Horned Owl, he was a rescue case and has a split beak.
Say hello Bob

Clearing more veg beds.

I can't tell you how much of a relief it is to see the polytunnel area so tidy and organised, I still couldn't help smiling to myself when I went round there this morning.
Todays agenda was to make a start on the greenhouse area and veg beds - it's a smaller area than the polytunnel but has much more weeds and the grass was going to take a lot of mowing.
I maybe didn't get as much done as I had hoped but I didn't berate myself because I was a little stiff from yesterdays weeding and because I went out for quite a hard run last night - don't know if I've mentioned before that I run? I talk about it on my running blog but basically I have 2 10k's this month and I've even roped Mr TG in to running them with me and Leanne, in fact he's my trainer because I don't like running! I want to like it and I want to be good at it like I was when I was younger but my joints and age make it quite difficult!
Anyway I digress, back to the gardening. The veg beds are currently in this state

Poor old Bob the mannequin, he's become quite undressed and lost a few limbs from the wind. I think I may have to make him new snazzy clothes and maybe some kind of straw hat, his builder clothes have about had it now

But look what I did find among the weeds, a few climbing french beans on plants that I thought had given up the ghost weeks ago because they never grew and I basically deserted them

I also found a few potato plants thriving, though I haven't actually grown potatoes in this bed for the past 3 years

And this is an Apple tree that was grown from a pip, it's a few years old now

Here's evidence of just how little rain we have had this year. This is a natural pond and we've never seen the water level this low  in all the 10 years we've been here. Please excuse the fact that Mr TG put a formal fountain in a natural pond, I really don't know what goes on in his head sometimes (it's not even centred) but just to give you an idea of the lack of water, it usually covers that fountain right up to the bottom layer. In fact in winter that far wooden bridge is usually covered right up to about 3" from the top - we seem to have lost a serious amount of water this year, I'm just hoping it's the dry weather (though it's usually dry in the summer) and there's not something else going on (like all the willow I planted at the side of the pond sucking up all the water before it drains into the pond).
BTW that fountain is coming out next year and it's going to be filled with succulents to give a waterfall effect and have pride of place on the patio I intend to build. Mr TG still needs to be talked into helping me with this though because it will take 2 of us to move it and he isn't keen on fountains being used as plant holders.

Having done all that weeding yesterday at the PT veg beds I was quite pleased to see that the Cabbages are actually doing better than I've ever managed before and there's no sign of caterpillars despite them growing outside and uncovered.

Bad, bad gardener!

I've been a bad gardener lately! For some reason I'm going through a Meh stage and have avoided going anywhere near the polytunnel or the greenhouse except to water the contents (done with blinkered eyes so that I don't have to look at the suffering plants or growing weeds) and picked the odd bit of veg.
It all started when I couldn't get out there because of the slipped disc and then when I could get out there - but not do anything - I fretted and worried about the abundance of weeds that needed clearing and fruit / veg that needed picking. I did ask Mr TG to help me weed at one point but that just resulted in the loss of all my Parsnips so after that I avoided looking around.
Yesterday I just had to go to both the PT and the greenhouse in pursuit of some bolt croppers (that ended up being in Mr TG's work van anyways) - I put it off as long as I could but when I sauntered round there I was suddenly seeing it all with clear eyes and let me just say.....O....M....G!

This is the veg beds next to the greenhouse. The French beans have amounted to nothing - probably strangled and starved by the weeds - and I had intended to use this area for winter veg as it's sheltered here. Don't think that will be happening, not unless I get in some serious weeding beforehand.

Even Bob the mannequin has become neglected and lost a leg.
Bad isn't it!
Both beds are being covered in weed suppressant asap.

The PT area was no better. The outside raised beds were full of Horse tail and bolted veggies. The carrots finally appear to have got their act together, the problem is that although the raised beds are supposed to be easier to tend they're not when you're recovering from a slipped disc so the carrots aint getting thinned, at the moment I simply cannot bend across to thin them.
The inside of the PT was just as bad as the outside - so much neglect!

This apple tree had fallen over from the weight of the fruit. I need to have some kind of support system erected.

This is what greeted me as I walked in the PT and it's much worse than it looks. Cosmos flourish in the hot conditions of the PT but I won't be growing them again. I initially grew them for cut flowers but I've only ever cut them twice as I'm not particularly fond of them. I would cut them all back now but the bees love them so they'll stay, despite their thuggish behaviour, until they die off!

My poor Tomatoes! I had such high hopes this year for Tomatoes and have been quite pleased with 'Black Russian', a new variety for me. If I had tended these carefully and had tied them in, fed them regular etc etc (that bucket of comfrey tea still sits in the PT smelling like a cesspit) they would not look so forlorn and poorly as they do now.
Next year i am going to have a better support system in place.

It doesn't end there either.
The sweetcorn is seriously competing with weeds, luckily I'm coming to the end of the cutting of them anyway. Next year I'll be using black polythene in the Corn bed.
The Cucumbers are growing rampant like never before and the Courgettes have become Marrows which has encouraged the plants to stop producing more fruits.
The sweetpea hasn't been cut in weeks so has set seed which means no more flowers and to top it off there are huge Raspberry canes growing in the Sweetpea - at least I'm assuming they're Raspberries as I grew some in the PT a few years back, but they could just as easily be Tayberry or Loganberry which grows wild all over here.

I don't very often buy plants on a whim but Mr TG and I popped into Homebase the other day and I bought a veronica plant for £6 - it just looked so pretty.
When I saw the plant yesterday I was really annoyed with myself. I hadn't potted it up and it had completely dried out and looked half dead. I rectified it straightaway and it now looks 100% healthy again but this picture shows how neglected it was and this picture was taken an hour or so after it had been sitting in water - poor thing!

So, like I said I've been a very neglectful gardener of late. The house garden hasn't fared much better, I weeded a couple of the beds yesterday but I have to admit it was painful. The big bed still needs weeding but it is going to have to wait until there is a serious decline of wasps on the plants because no way am I purposefully going near them.

Today I will probably be attempting to salvage the PT and the PT outdoor veg beds, of course that depends on the temperature today as yesterday it was impossible to spend more than 5 minutes in there it was so hot.

Next year will be different - I'm going to weed suppress everything, I'm not going to waste another years hard work because of illness.

There has been a couple of lovely flowers come out of the PT though. I planted these Gladioli bulbs without realising that's what they were and it was lovely to see their flouncy, blousy blooms.

Gladioli 'Spic and span'

Unknown Gladioli

Success with fruit trees

Yesterday morning the weather looked quite promising and I anticipated a full day outside, it was a little bit breezy but nothing to worry about (I hate, hate, hate wind)

However by the time I had got the housework done the wind had whipped up to near on gale force, the skies had darkened and rain was pelting down and it stayed like that all day.
I know the forecasters claim the weekend is supposed to be dry and sunny but it seems we may have a reprieve today also - it looks fair with no wind.

Back to yesterday though and although I couldn't garden I still have animals that need taking care of and letting out so while the 3 musketeers (Atlas, Huntly & Kasa) played around in between storms I hightailed it to the polytunnel and oh my, was it ever warm in there - toasty!

I took a good look at the fruit trees to see what had pollinated and I was pleasantly surprised.
This Conference Pear had one fruit last year and it rotted and dropped off, it appears plastered in fruit this year so fingers crossed we get some viable fruit from it

I am a complete newbie to fruit growing and have no idea what I'm doing so I assume that all the trees will drop some fruit during June?
Do I leave all the fruit on or do I cut some off to let other fruit develop bigger?

This Bramley Apple also didn't produce much last year but again is plastered this year. I'm guessing the plants were still too young last year - they'd have been only 2 - 3 years old.

This next Golden Delicious Apple produces masses of fruit and was given to me a couple of years ago by a friend who's late father had grown it.

Finally I have a Victoria Plum. This plant is young (bought alongside the young Pear and Apple) and so far has not produced fruit, so I was amazed to see 1 fruit this year - just the one but exciting none the less

I also have a couple of Cherry trees, 2 Fig trees and some more Pear and Apple trees but they've been delegated to outside the polytunnel as they take up too much room. I didn't expect them to survive the winter in their buckets tbh but I had a quick look yesterday and they're all leafing up quite nice, I don't think they'll flower or produce much fruit though.

So what do I do? Do I wait for the June drop and see what fruit I'm left with? Then do I leave all remaining fruit or do I thin them out to encourage bigger fruit?