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More willow, seeds and kittens

Sunday 17 March, 2024

by Rosemary at 7:50pm in Smallholding 0 comments Add your own

Monday 11th March

Office day.

Test results coming back for Riley are all negative – no campylobacter, salmonella – nothing. Which is good, but she’s still scooty. Blood tests next – and I’m extending her insurance. She’s put on half a kilo in weight though.

Tuesday 12th March

Dan and Murdo finished cutting down the willow, trimmed it and planted a load along the ditch to stabilise the back. And signs of Spring are around.

Willow, seeds and kittens

Monday 11 March, 2024

by Rosemary at 10:01am in Smallholding 0 comments Add your own

It’s been a variable week, weatherwise. We had a couple of nice days at the start but it’s been bitterly cold, with a breath-taking easterly wind, at the end. Damp, dreich. Only the snowdrops and daffodils show that it’s spring.

However, I started sowing some seeds on heat – tomatoes, sweet peppers, - and some in the greenhouse - some herbs, sweet peas, calendula and candytuft.

seedsFirst 2024 seeds.

Mainly more kitten spam

Monday 4 March, 2024

by Rosemary at 9:40am in Smallholding 0 comments Add your own

W/e Sunday 3rd March

How did it get to be March? We’ve had some nice weather this week. It’s been mainly kittens, as they settle in. Riley’s still scooty, so we’ve put them in dried food of the same make we use for the big cats. I can’t always get a consistent supply of wet food of any particular variety.

I don’t know how they managed to tip this stool.

havocHavoc.

Mainly kitten spam

Monday 26 February, 2024

by Rosemary at 11:17am in Smallholding 0 comments Add your own

Monday 19th February

Final kitten preparations today. We’re excited and apprehensive.

Tuesday 20th February

Collected Riley and Cooper from the shelter this afternoon. Oh boy, is he uber confident!!! Bounced up to Diesel (who’d sneaked (if a 6kg cat can still sneak!) into the cat room) and booped him on the snoot. Exit Diesel.

Riley is much quieter. She stayed in the carry box for a while after arriving home. She’s very cuddly and not anything like as playful as Cooper, but he’s had an easier life. So far.

Sunken Garden / Cooper and Riley / Lego

Monday 19 February, 2024

by Rosemary at 8:48am in Smallholding 0 comments Add your own

Monday 12th February

Dry, cold and sunny

Tuesday 13th February

Dry, cold and sunny. Finally finished the article.

Smokey had his feet trimmed.

Wednesday 14th February

Damp and cold. My Valentine was off early doors with a trailer load of manure to the allotments.

I was obliged, compelled, I tell you,  to bake a fruit cake as MV had bought two bags of “brandy soaked Christmas fruit” on special and it’s out of date soon. I made Delia’s Last Minute Christmas Mincemeat Cake. It’s OK. We’ll eat it.

Sleepers / Smokey / Ditch

Sunday 11 February, 2024

by Rosemary at 8:04pm in Smallholding 1 comment Add your own

Monday 5th February

Still windy. Dan started removing the gooseberries – and the huge amounts of ground elder.

Tuesday 6th February

Racing corgis. That’s Gwenna at the back – not because she’s slower, but because she’d have been distracted by some smell.

corgisBryn and Gwenna.

Vet was out to give Smokey his annual onceover, flu & tet, and teeth check. He behaved perfectly. Although, I think he’s hoping he won’t be noticed if the vet returns before next year.

Salix Mount Aso / Seeds / Wind

Monday 5 February, 2024

by Rosemary at 3:23pm in Smallholding 1 comment Add your own

Finally got the polytunnel cover cleaned; I started it last week  and now it’s done. What a difference. I’ve moved all the plants out of the green house into the tunnel so that I can get ready to start seed sowing. I’ve had the seed box out and sorted out February seeds.

seed boxThe seed box

I also sorted through the shallot sets I bought for autumn planting that didn’t happen. Jermor and Griselle – two or three were a bit soft, but plenty to go in later this month.

Jocelyn / Hedge / Wheelbarrow

Monday 29 January, 2024

by Rosemary at 9:20am in Smallholding 1 comment Add your own

W/e Sunday 28th January

Storm Isha has been and gone and so has Storm Jocelyn. Thankfully, the only damage was the relocation on a sheet of black plastic from the vegetable garden to the door of the plant room.

plasticStorm damage.

On Burns Night, we had a traditional meal of haggis, neeps and tatties. Even after all these years, I still get a buzz from wandering out into the garden and pulling fresh vegetables for dinner – in this case, a neep. It was very neepy.

Storm Isha / Fire and ice / Murphy

Monday 22 January, 2024

by Rosemary at 9:37am in Smallholding 1 comment Add your own

W/e Sunday 21st January

Once again, not much to diary.

The snow lasted until Saturday, then a thaw set in followed by rain. Sunday saw Storm Isha hit; I think we missed the worst of it. The plastic sheeting covering the b=veg beds relocated, but there’s no point putting them back on yet.

Dan and Murdo had more fires on Thursday, so now the old pig pen is clear and ready for planting, but that won’t be done until the autumn. Sunken garden and front garden are the focus for now.

Garden / Fluke and worm testing / Owl mittens

Monday 15 January, 2024

by Rosemary at 12:44pm in Smallholding 2 comments Add your own

W/e Sunday 14th January

Not a whole lot happening. The weather has turned dry and cold, which is great and water levels in the fields are dropping.

The man we’re hoping will do the landscaping in the front garden came to see it on Friday and is preparing an estimate.  These photos are as it is now; Dan and Murdo have burned all the brash and we can actually see the space better now. Feeling quite excited. And Dan’s ordered the sleepers for the retaining walls in the sunken garden.

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