Monday 11th May 2020, still in the midst of a global pandemic and this feels like the 33rd week we have been at home lol though in reality I think we are going into week 8?
As always there are plenty of jobs to keep us busy here and for that I am very grateful. Today as the weather is not as hot, generally cloudy and a bit windy, it’s perfect for me to get out on the veg garden and get some weeding done. John is also helping with the weeding which is great as we get twice as much done and are managing to get it under control. The weeds are being fed to either the hens or the rabbits/guineas and they are delighted I can tell by the squealing and clucking going on.
Tuesday: I felt tired today so didn’t achieve much, a bit of weeding and that was about it.
Wednesday: I have bloods this morning and don’t feel too bad in fact I was up first. I got dressed and opened the curtains to find a pony munching on the grass outside the window 🙄 Biscuit had managed to get out and was enjoying breakfast, I got her back in and got on with doing the feeding rounds until John came out to help. Then off to get the blood test done, stop in town on the way back to pick up a loaf of bread from the bakery and back home to get on. I watered in the brassicas I planted the other day and watered the tunnels, then some plants arrived so I potted them up and did a lot more weeding. Meanwhile John power washed the side of the stables, we need to sort the front really bit the cladding is powder coated (now peeling) so wants replacing fully I think.
I went with John in the early evening as he had a leaking outside pipe to look at, when we got back home I could see the pony had broken out again🙄 A couple of small rails had come loose and this is where she keeps getting out, when we got round to the paddock we found Jack was out as well. John grabbed a hammer and nails while I coaxed them back into their respective areas, we fixed the fence and then rigged up some electric across the gateway to keep Jack in his field as he has now broken the slip rail posts. To be fair the posts are totally rotten so it doesn’t take much for a half ton horse to push and break them. Looks like fencing will be on the to do list tomorrow 😜
I keep breaking out in little rashes everywhere and they are really itchy and driving me mad, I have had them on my thighs, stomach, arms and hands urgh I will be glad when they can sort out my meds and get back to something near normal.
Thursday: John did the morning rounds while I had a shower 😀 and then he went off to do a small job and I pottered around in the garden. I planted a few little bits and then stood back and had a look at the garden, I’m pretty pleased with how it is all going this year. The notion of a small forest garden is actually staring to come to fruition, the beds are a good mix of flowers, fruit bushes, fruit trees and vegetables, it’s not there yet but defiantly going in the right direction.
I had a call from the doctor and although the white bloods cells have gone up, the platelets haven’t, it’s definitely a Lupus flare and so what they have decided to do is hit it hard with steroids (which is what I always say needs doing in the first place lol) and change my immune suppressant drug. The methotrexate never seemed to control the Lupus and so I am moving onto a drug called Mycophenalate a disease modifying drug that still needs blood tests to monitor the liver and kidneys and make sure they are not adversely affected. We wait with baited breath the see how it goes 🙄
I have realised just how much I have fallen in love with flowers again now that I have plenty more growing. Geums and aquilegia are my favourites at the minute, the geums are delightful, vibrant and bring a lovely splash of colour to the garden, the aquilegia are romantically reminiscent of a garden in an age gone by, probably why they are known as granny’s bonnet 😀
Friday: I have been quite busy today, after waiting in an hour queue for meds that is lol. I have been gardening and planting in between the sun going behind the clouds which is far more difficult than it sounds 😜 I had a look at the long range forecast and have hedged my bets on planting out the squash plants, so courgettes, patty pan, butternut squash are all planted along with the first block of sweet corn. I weeded and hoed the bed that the pumpkins are going into but haven’t planted them yet, I will have to keep and eye on the forecasts and cover them if it looks like a frost but I can’t see one coming for a couple of weeks at least so I’m taking the chance.
Apparently I ordered something called yacon which arrived today lol so I have planted them as well.
‘Part of the gourmet roots collection. Yacon means ‘water root’ in the Aztec language. The largest tuber you can grow in the UK, producing very crisp and juicy red roots. Sweet tasting due to the amount of inulin present, which is good for diabetics as its not sugar. Tall plants which produce sunflower-like blooms. Can be eaten raw or cooked, tastes like fresh pear/water-chestnut.’
Late afternoon the farrier came to do the horses, glad to say they are looking good at the moment and no sign of laminitis fingers crossed they stay that way 🙄
I ordered some anti bird netting for the cherry tree, I am determined to get at least some of the cherries this year, last year it was the blackbirds that stole them and the year before the crows, I don’t mind some of them but they strip the trees before the cherries are even ripe 🙄
We managed to get a claim in for the self employed help from the government, it was just for John as his work has been adversely affected but I won’t be claiming as the Farm did better throughout than it normally does due to high demand for eggs and plants 😀
Saturday: Another nice day and another day dodging the sun between the clouds, makes for a long job I can tell you 😀 I had an objective and that was achieved so I am pleased about that, I wanted to get the rest of the peas in and the dwarf beans, that fills a bed and then I put the drip feed hose on which is buried under ground so that the roots all had a good soak. I did want to get the pumpkins in but not quite managed that today. John has been busy cleaning out the hen hut, just waiting for some creosote to arrive and then he can do that before the hens go back out there. We fixed some of the fencing first thing and then went to pick up the rest of my prescription and called at the garden centre on the way back as I wanted some big pots, the queue was quite long and in the sun so we gave that a miss lol.
I had some daisy type plants arrive in the afternoon so I potted them on, most will be going out for sale once established but some I will keep for the garden. I am enjoying filling blocks of the garden with flowers, in the beginning it was all veg and for a good few years after but now I am changing my outlook and loving it. Some areas of the garden need a total rethink because I can’t get to them to weed them very well, the sun bits first thing in the morning and is there all day long so I need some serious research on what to put there to keep it under control a bit better without too much work.
Sunday: oooooh we had a lay in today, most unusual for us but we didn’t get up until 8.45 😱 A lovely morning though, overcast but warm by the time we got out there, I spent a good while watering a few things just to get them firmly established. Feed the ponies, feed the tortoises, make sure the greenhouse is all watered for a warm day ahead, chat over the gate to eggs customers. John did the rest of the feeding rounds and we have an egg from the new pullets 😀 just need the other 11 to lay now. He did a bit of weeding around the rhubarb, the weeds go to the hens that are inside a secure pen at the minute because of the fox trouble we have been having.
I ordered some Oca tubers to grow, I have done these before and they are small and fiddly but nice tasting and something a bit different.
And then I ordered a takeaway Sunday roast from a local pub as a bit of a treat, roast beef with all the trimmings and a pudding to boot, happy days 😀
Totally delicious and I had a strawberry waffle for pudding so now I’m totally stuffed and need a lay on the sofa for an hour or so 😂
Have a great week and continue to stay safe x x
frieslandfarm (flowers) 