Dorset lifestyle
Not too prickly for the donkeys, it was growing in the rose bed and was over three feet high, and as there was only one they had to share. Tied up the runner beans that were trailing along the ground, one of the poplar rods had stopped sprouting so cut it into two foot lengths and pushed them in around the courgette plants on top of the compost heap where it’ll be well watered. A warm sunny cloudy day with a brisk cool wind.
Ivy has been separated from her lamb for a few days and looked to have a lot of milk so she was reunited with Digby, he practically upended her in his enthusiasm to suckle but he was happy to return to the adjacent paddock and keep Jago company later in the day. May have to repeat the process later in the week. Picked tomatoes and runner beans. A day of heavy showers and blustery winds.
Sunny afternoon spent in the garden eating savouries, scones and cake, liked the arrangement of animals in the kitchen. The hot weather continues with the promise of rain tonight, so no watering! Donkeys and sheep choosing sun and shade in equal quantities. First of the runner beans with a fried egg on top for supper. Modified the netting over the centre of the pond to give the plants more room, hope the heron doesn’t take advantage. A blue sky with fluffy white clouds to end the day, doesn’t look like rain….
The first of the year, the plants don’t look strong enough to hold them but they have survived the snails, must use hedgehog friendly deterrents next year, still have a few plants to put in the ground next to empty canes. Cycle ride in 30* from Moreton to Athelhampton House for coffee, coming back across the heath was the hottest part of the ride and a bit dusty, had to walk the sandiest stretch. Everything in the garden needs watering, the mange tout have sprouted so will soon need sticks. A very hot day with occasional cloud and light winds.
Walter and his horns just about visible in the upended arc with Digby watching from outside. Had a lovely walk through hayfields to The Plough at Manston, unfortunately arrived just after ‘last orders’ so had a thirsty walk home! Planted another courgette plant, all the others have been eaten by snails, first flowers on the runner beans, removed side shoots from the tomatoes, picked a cos lettuce. A sunny cloudy day with rain later.
Let out into the paddock they grazed right up to the electric fence, nibbling the fresh spring grass, they’re not looking any slimmer so will have to give them a longer, narrower strip to increase the ground they cover walking uphill and downhill. Watered the tomatoes in the greenhouse, the cucumbers are struggling with some slug damage. Eating radish, rocket and nasturtium leaves, most of the runner beans are winding round the canes and the mangetout peas are starting to cling on to the willow whips, hoping some may root. A cool start to a sunnier day with light winds.
The first two rows are planted out and had to be tied in to the canes to stop them being blown over in the wind. They’ve been left alone by the slugs and snails which is good. Planted out more sunflowers and parsley plants, bought more compost to top up the tomatoes in the greenhouse, still no french beans showing. Ate the first two radishes from the raised bed and a few handfuls of leaves from the rocket and mizuna plants. The Cos lettuce are doing well, land cress is off to a slow start. A sunny cool day with moderate winds.
Dusk in the stable, William and Toby have had their vitamin mix and are tucking into their straw, the feeder will probably be empty in the morning – anything not to their liking will be nosed out on to the floor to become tomorrow’s bedding. A couple of hours later William was chewing on an apple branch he’d brought into the stable and Toby was at the salt lick in the corner. Finished preparing the ground for the runner beans, will fit in four short rows next to the raised beds. No snow overnight, a cloudy day with a biting wind, needed to wear thermals and two pairs of gloves.
A very welcome surprise parcel today, came in a huge box with lots of packaging, looking forward to an evening of pure indulgence. Took down the bean sticks and rescued some of the seed pods that had been missed, the roots don’t look big enough to have provided the above ground structure with sufficient energy to produce masses of beans. The hedge can be cut and then donkey poo will be added and the ground covered until spring, ready for next years plants. Would be good to change the positioning. Collected more rubble for the driveway which progressed another meter. A slightly milder cloudy day with rain overnight.
A mixture of varieties, mostly runner beans with some french beans. These are drying on a couple of sheets of paper towel placed on a tray, they’ll be moved backwards and forwards each day as half the towel dries out and sucks the moisture from the beans. In a month or so they can be stored ready for use next year. Cycled from Moreton along quiet lanes and the rhododendron mile, past the watercress beds. Stopped for courgette fruit cake and a can of coffee. Cloudy with some sunshine and a cool wind.
Pretty much on their last legs, picked the last beans and will leave the rest to fatten up for seed for next year, they’ve more than earned their place in the veg patch, and they definitely smell different when they’re cooking. The tomatoes in the greenhouse are over as well, one last cucumber to pick, and the courgettes have turned into marrows. Cleaned the donkey stable and water trough and planted the freshly rooted strawberry plants in the filled beds. Picked apples, all stewed and in the freezer. A sunny day with light winds. Lunch at the pub.
The hay bales are ready to fill a hungry gap if the grass stop growing in the paddocks and the sheep need a supplementary feedstuff. Grown locally they’re a grassy meadow mix that is softer than the hard dry grass which was cut in the last month. If kept dry the bales will last for five years and still be good to eat. Sitting on top is a bunch of apple tree shoots that were cut today, they’ll be hung in the roof of the workshop and, if still edible, fed to the donkeys as a treat when the paddocks are too wet to be used and they can’t browse the hedgerow. A breezy day with warm sunshine and no rain, watered the beans which are still flowering. Picked tomatoes and a water melon.
The donkeys have never played with the orange horseplay ball so it’s now in the ouessant’s paddock. Digby treads on it and gives it a headbutt to move it around. Pixie and Walter like to watch and run around in circles. The red football isn’t as popular, maybe in a couple of weeks? The worm test results are back from the lab, the tapeworm we found in the field and put in a jam jar is not an issue for the adult sheep as they develop immunity, and they’re only a problem for lambs if they are losing weight. There’s no evidence of roundworm so no treatment required, the sampling and testing will be repeated in December. A cool showery day with rain later. Picked runner beans
Arrived at the gate together, Walter, Digby and Winnie, expecting their treat mix, they don’t have it every day but the sound of a gate opening is enough incentive for them to gather round just in case. Cut the hornbeam hedge and gathered together another bonfire pile, cut the hornbeam which is much too dry and already losing its leaves. Watered the hedge, picked runner beans, courgettes, tomatoes and blueberries. Went to turn off the electric fence that’s stopping the donkeys grazing the acorns to find it hadn’t been turned on! Useful to know it serves its purpose whether on or off. A cool start to a sunny day with a fresh warm wind.
All the straw has been taken out and put in the gateways to help with the mud in the winter, it gets trodden in and disappears over the course of a year so no straw goes on the compost heap. The floor has been washed with a few buckets of disinfectant solution and the top of the kickboards get very dusty so have been cleaned, the cobwebs appear overnight and then gather dust as well. Donkeys are particular about the water they drink so William and Toby often prefer to drink from a bucket outside rather than from the water trough in the stable. A hot day, a few gusts of wind would have helped dry the floor. Picked runner beans and tomatoes.
A lovely 17 miles from The Stocks Inn at Furzehill to Manswood, Horton Tower and up to Chalbury along quiet roads, bridleways and narrow forest tracks. Manswood reputedly has the longest thatched building in Britain comprising eleven estate cottages and an ex-post office although this is disputed because of a similar set of buildings in Suffolk. Cut the long grass alongside the meadowstrip hedging, some of the wild flowers which have now set seed were taller than the plants. The intention is to mulch with donkey manure to give the hedge a feed before winter and that means digging out the compost heap. A warm and sunny start to the day with rain later, picked and ate the runner beans.
The Can O Worms wormery lives in the shed and produces excellent liquid fertilizer and worm cast compost all year round. The worms like living in eggshells and love eating cardboard and anything sweet, like apples. They don’t like acidic waste like citrus or onions and regulate their numbers according to the amount of food available. What’s left after they’ve finished eating is the plastic from the teabags and the gluesticks from the cardboard boxes. The lambs bounced around the paddock today and Nola joined in, donkeys watched, nodded and went back to eating grass. A mild day with light winds and the odd shower. Picked tomatoes, conference pears and ribston pippin apples. Watered the beans.
Definitely more approachable than when they arrived, the lambs like a good scratch under their chin and even the ewes are touchable near feeding time. Walter and Digby like to run around together in the paddock, Digby bounces around with all four feet of the ground and Pixie joins in with them occasionally. Their paddock adjoins the avenue where the donkeys are free to roam and they interact through the fence. Walter licked William’s nose, he didn’t move away so must have liked it. The runner beans have more blossom, which is great, just have to step inside the tangle of stems to pick them. A warm mizzly start to the day with rain in the afternoon so no watering, no swallows either.
A chilly start to the day with the valley bathed in rolling pink mist. Moved the green oak logs to the old stone crate ready for use in a couple of years time, they will be well seasoned by then. The nasturtium on top will give seeds for next year’s plants. Heard the green woodpecker when poo picking in the paddock, he appeared on the lawn early evening to eat the ants but no swallows today, maybe they have moved on. Trimmed the new growth off the rampent pumpkins and cut back some of the larger leaves to encourage ripening of the fruits. The runner beans are not quite as green as last month and the tomatoes are paler as well despite regular feeding, day length is shortening and the nights are cooler, it feels like Autumn is on it’s way.
Moved the Ouessants into the square paddock for a change of scenery and greener grass, it was fine until it started raining and then they all ran under the sheep shelter, it’s smaller than the one in their usual paddock so a couple of them moved outside and were dripped on. Before the storm arrived the donkeys moved alongside the shelter and then they all got very wet. Tucked them up for the night during the thunder and lightening downpour and then half an hour later the rain stopped! Picked courgettes, runner beans, blueberries, windfall bramleys and sloes.
Planted six new plants in the freshly weeded border, I hope they do as well as the one in the pot, will need to feed them with an ericaceous mulch, the daisies have been trimmed so there’s enough space for them to stretch. The runner beans are still doing well despite being buffeted by the strong winds, it’s difficult to walk between the rows as the frame has developed a bit of a lean. The all shapes and sizes mediterranean carrots are tasty, they’re being overrun by the courgettes in the adjacent bed but I don’t think it’ll make any difference. The trees in the lane are starting to lose their leaves, the hot weather combined with not enough rain has dried out the tops. A cloudy day with a few showers and late sunshine.
Should have taken a photo before I picked today’s crop, this bush will be full of berries for another month at least if kept watered, probably 30 every day so enough for a fresh topping to deserts and breakfast cereal. The runner beans are also cropping well, lots more flowers, need to keep them well watered. Cucumbers and tomatoes are suffering in the greenhouse and need watering several times a day. The donkeys enjoyed an apple lolly, they made short work of the frozen disc. A very hot day with a few drops of rain at dusk.
The yellow Tumbler tomatoes are growing in the same pot as the sunflower and a few red Outdoor Girl have ripened in the border, all different shapes and sizes. The sun and wind has been so hot today that some tomato plants have shriveled in the greenhouse, I hope they recover, will let a sideshoot develop if not. Picked more runner beans, they’ve been thrashed by the high winds so tied a few back to their poles. There’s been a real variety of weather conditions that the plants have to withstand – both varieties of courgettes are doing OK, the drop in the level of compost in the raised bed means they’re protected. A few drops of rain evaporated as soon as they touched the ground so more watering.
The donkeys needed their annual check so this is William getting bored waiting for the vet to arrive. His teeth were fine, no filing required and he didn’t need a sedative unlike Toby who needed something to relax him. He was a bit too staggery once the injection took affect so he needed waking up a little to do the examination. Some teeth had a few sharp edges; donkeys chew side to side so can wear down the inner edges and leave a sharp edge on the outside, the electric grinder did the job quickly. Afterwards they both had to wait to have something to eat as Toby wouldn’t have been able to swallow until fully awake – William stood next to him most of the time giving reassurance and they were both grazing happily a couple of hours later. A hot sunny day with bright blue sky, watered the vegetables, picked runner beans and a few tomatoes, must pick the courgettes tomorrow.
Lovely speckled tummy with knobby skin, cool to hold on a warm day, they wriggle constantly. This one is big so must be a female, they come out late in the day to feed around the greenhouse. There are lots of damp places to relax in the shade under the hedge and to paddle in the water in the outdoor tomato plant trays. Runner beans and French beans today with roast beef and Yorkshire pudding. Assembled the raised beds for the strawberry’s, they just fit in the space between the tree and the hedge, will put weed proof fabric in the bottom and then grass cuttings and donkey poo. A cool start to the day with a brisk wind, hot sunshine later so watered the vegetables and the greenhouse.
In the roof void at the highest point in the upstairs hall. There was a brown stain on the ceiling that looked like a water leak, and a pitter patter noise. Turned out to be a bad idea to touch the paper thin ceiling (wasps eat plasterboard) and they quickly emerged through the hole, very angry. The cats made a run for it, unscathed, and a few moments later the hall was full of wasps. Pest control arrived within the hour, dealt with the nest and taped over the hole. A check outside revealed no other activity, but this morning wasps were emerging from around the wisteria, so another nest has been treated today. A hot day that ended with cloud and some light rain, more expected overnight. Watered the vegetables, the runner beans have reached the top of the sticks so rain may not reach all of the roots.
The six borrowed sheep are ewes that didn’t lamb this year, after a few weeks of grazing the paddocks they now come when you call, and creep up behind you when you’re fiddling with the electric fence. They were shorn before they arrived and are growing a new fleece. Weeded a patch of the border and fixed another camera to the stable to view the new paddock. One runner bean that the deer missed is 8 inches long, the second set are an inch or two. A very squally day, heavy rain and strong winds for at times, much cooler.
Flew into the window, bounced off and sat in the grass a little stunned. Put him in a tree to recover, hope he flew off ok. Over 30* degrees today, started poo-picking early, finished mowing the bottom paddock, sprayed the donkeys legs with Deet, and gave them another carrot lolly. Fixed stock wire to one of the new gates. Vegetables all needed watering, some of the runner beans have reached the top of the sticks, the Veitch’s Climbing are being attacked by slugs, they must like them.
I snipped off all the stalks without flowers on the runner beans, 6 or more per cane, this is the temporary deer protection as I like runner beans a lot! Fencer coming this week so I will have stock fencing to put on the trellis, then I’ll need to add a couple of gates. Think I may have found where the deer is coming through the hedge, a couple of pallets and some bailer twine have filled that gap. Time will tell whether this works, good to see that the courgettes are starting to wander in the raised bed. More rain this morning and then the day warmed up with late sunshine. Iceberg lettuces need planting out, hopefully get round to that tomorrow.
Caper Spurge growing next to the runner beans which have a few first flowers. They won’t be helped by a second cold day with strong winds and rain showers although there was some late evening sunshine. The grass will start growing again if we get sunny days; the hay harvest was early and half the usual yield so the farmers are hoping for a second load later in the year.
An intricate spiders web over the lense blocks the view of the fence and the donkeys standing in the corner, in daylight this camera sees down the paddock; buttercups, fences and trees. Very windy today, vents on the greenhouse still opened in the sun, able to work in there without feeling too hot. Tricky for all the plants which have to cope with daytime temperature swings of 10* or more. Planted out the rest of the climbing beans, some of the runners are halfway up the sticks. Lawn looking dry, need some rain but there’s none in the forecast. A couple of branches have snapped off the oak tree, need to be brought up to the house and cut into logs for the woodburner next year.
Stenner runner bean seeds sown on 7th April, planted out today before they started winding up and around each other. Sticks have been up a month or so, secured with lengths of bailer twine to cope with the strong winds. Poppy was briefly interested in the chives! Good that the deer didn’t eat the young plants, hope that’s true of the flowers as well. Not sure about the rabbits. Ordered more raised beds for the strawberry plants, still chilly in the evening so lit the woodburner, hope we don’t get a late frost.
