Sweet peas / Embroidery / Pullets - The Accidental Smallholder

Posted: Monday 9 June, 2025

by Rosemary at 8:52am in Smallholding No comments Add your own

Saturday 7^th June

Oops, I did it again and forgot to write up my diary daily.

Not a very busy week Dalmore-wise. The leeks have finally sprouted. The runners, sweetcorn and the remaining courgette look poor. I made muck tea, so am feeding them.

Move the sheep to Far Ditch on Monday after Alistair came and weaned the lambs and took them home; he brought another two ewes, making ten. Not a squeak out of them. I guess the joys of motherhood had palled.

Lorna and I took our usual constitutional along Arbroath seafront on Tuesday. The wind was strong and the sea grey and choppy, but it wasn’t cold.

The North Sea, Tuesday.

The first sweet peas are flowering in the polytunnel.

First sweet peas of the season.

Thursday, my embroidery kit arrived. Dan's starting a Crafternoon at the hub, so I thought I'd better get a craft. Maybe having a craft kit will be enough.

My new embroidery kit.

Friday was busy and tiring. I wakened at 4am, checked my phone for the result of the Hamilton by-election and then couldn’t get back to sleep. So I got up and baked cookies for Dan to take to football on Saturday. After breakfast and doing the animals, it was off to Forfar to collect poultry and pony feed. My plan was to go straight to Arbroath to walk with Lorna, but the car was handling so oddly, due to the weight, I came home and unloaded.

Back to Arbroath, walked along the front with Lorna – the water was blue today as opposed to the steely grey and whitecaps of Tuesday. Bit of shopping – I’m trying to get back into the routine of shopping Tuesday and Friday, when I’m in Arbroath anyway – then home.

The North Sea, Friday.

Quick turnaround that involved a bowl of Fruit & Fibre, then off to pick up two new pullets – White Leghorns – from Craigievern Poultry at Perth. Nightmare roads; finally got there 20 minutes late, which I hate. I felt less guilty when Jane said she had another customer still to arrive.

The pullets are in the winter pen, which Dan prepared in my absence, until they settle down a bit, then they’ll go up with the others. One is for our friend Craig; he was called her Flossie. We've called the other Henny Penny. Bell, the Light Sussex is broody. I’m sure she went broody last year too.

Two White Leghorn pullets, a bit camera shy.

While I was away, Dan stimmed and strimmed. He cut the back grass on Thursday, so it looks nice and tidy now.

I skipped Gaelic for an SNP meeting; I wasn’t going to go and, had we won the Hamilton by-election on Thursday, I wouldn’t have but I thought I’d better show face for the post-mortem.

Knackered, dehydrated (I never drink enough if I’m on the move as I was yesterday) and stressed, then I watch the second half of Scotland v Iceland. It didn’t make me feel better. We had tickets but sold them; Dan says he’s going to email the lad that bought them and apologise.

WTAF? I’ve been supportive of Steve Clarke (like he cares, but you know), but I truly think it’s time he moved on. Scott McKenna, playing week in, week out in La Liga and he plays Grant Hanley, who isn’t even playing for an English third tier team. What’s Hanley got on him? A Reddit comment said Hanley turns like a cruise ship and it’s not far wrong. He’s been a good servant, but he’s not the future of Scotland.

Anyway, Dan is away to a walking football tournament in Glasgow today; I did the animals and went back to bed. Once I surfaced, I did a few wee jobs, just to make me feel better. Tomorrow is another day, after all.

Rain started about 4.30pm.

Sunday 8^th June

Lovely day, if a wee bit breezy. We both managed to get a few hours in the garden, although Dan had to do some comfrey work too.

I finished tidying up the greenhouse and potting shed, and pulled out all the spent wallflower. We jointly identified the 144 perennials that are coming along in pots – not individually, but by species.

Dan’s been called for jury duty. I hope he doesn’t get picked.

The bed under the living room window.