Monday 5th June 2023: We have had wall,to wall blue sky over the weekend but today it was overcast, great for me because it means I can get on 😁 I had plenty flowers to cut this morning for quite a few orders tomorrow and Wednesday so that was the first job after the usual morning jobs.
Once I had done that I sat with a cuppa to practice making an animated motion post lol, I know, I had no idea what this was either but when I looked it up I thought it looked easy enough so I gave it a go.
Then as it was still overcast I thought I should work in the poly tunnel so I soaked the soil, dug in some blood, fish and bone and then planted up chrysanthemums and zinnia. The zinnia LOVE the heat so provided they get enough water they will be fine, the chrysanthemums not so much but I am trying out different planting places on things to see what happens. I tried delphinium in the tunnel to see if they would flower earlier than the outside ones, initially they started to flower but the cold early on in the year took them even though I tried to keep the flowers out of any draught. The plants were still fine themselves and continued to grow flowering at the same time as the outdoor plants so those will go back outside at the end of the year. No point pampering something that is going to do what it wants when it wants 😂
Inside them for some lunch and then back out to cut some flowers and foliage for something I want to have a go at, something different from my usual style. If it works out see picture below, if not it won’t be there 😜 Once those were cut and conditioning nicely it was time for a sit down for an hour.
Tuesday: It is positively not June weather today 🥶 I give up wondering what our weather is doing it has a mind of its own, flaming June, more like flaming cold. I think I rather over did the weeding and planting the last couple of days as my hand was pinging away last night, it is a little better this morning but I was up later than usual at 7.15! I had plenty to do this morning as well so I more or less got straight on with making up flower orders that were being collected later today, I also have an order for tomorrow which I have already made up. Then I spent a little time doing something for myself, practising different flowers like the picture above. I confess I did it then had to take it apart and redo it before I was happy enough with it but it turned out nicely in the end I think.
We have been losing the odd hen every day to the fox, they will be feeding cubs and so more likely to come out in the daytime to find food. I heard someone not far from us lost around 60 in one go when the fox dug in 😏 At the minute we are unable to get new hens there is an all round shortage of point of lay hens, we have customers waiting and we will need some to replace the ones taken but not until September we are told 🙄 We may end up cutting our egg selling days shorter than we thought if we lose many more, we are at the point where we are not too worried about replacing them and continuing with egg sales anyway, this might force our hand. With the cost of feeding, watering, housing (and egg box costs even though we get returns we still have to buy more) the hens we just about break even, if you add in our time we definitely don’t so basically we (and by that I mean John 😂) is working for free and let’s face it who is really prepared to do that 🤔
Once all flowers had been collected it was time for a sit down but first dig something out of the freezer for dinner tonight. If anyone has a foolproof way of organising a chest freezer please tell me 😂 I know I had some lime and chilli chicken in there somewhere but I cannot find it 🤷♀️ The task was even more difficult than usual because my hand is not good with temperature extremes hence why I am still not doing the washing up. There must be a skill to it somewhere, bear in mind that often I have small packets of various bits and pieces that I have saved or picked and frozen for later use so not bags and boxes at all. I did find that using sacks in the bottom worked well, one with frozen fruit one with veg and one with meat but that does not cover a plethora of other oddities like frozen herbs (tiny portions) fruit cubes, passata, hazelnuts, cheese, eggs and even chocolate I think 😂 Knowing what I have in there is not the problem but finding it definitely is 😜
Wednesday: Johns 60th birthday, initially he was going to go to work but I said I don’t know why you don’t have the day off so he did. He did the morning jobs then had a shower and changed into his best clothes, meanwhile I still had work to do and he ended up following me around wondering what to do 😂 I was waiting for a delivery at lunchtime and once that arrived we took flowers down to the pub and had lunch while we were there. Back home just in time for a free delivery of woodchip, love free woodchip 🥰 I am on a database for anyone doing tree work in the area, they get in touch and ask if I want it once it’s chipped, then they deliver it. This was all willow and poplar so great stuff, he asked if I wanted laurel and holly, not chipped I said but if you cut it off whole I will definitely have it especially nearer wreath making time lol. It’s been a good day as Shelley took some flowers to her friend who was working, the manager saw them and asked where they were from, he then contacted me and wants weekly flowers plus extras now and again plus interested in me doing activities with the residents from time to time, brilliant 😁 Various family came and went over the course of the afternoon and evening and John has some rather nice events to look forward to including an F1 hospitality day and Dr Who escape room experience 😂 the second will push him outside of his usual boundaries 😜
I have had to put the sprinkler on the garden this evening, it is so dry the ground is starting to crack up and we have temps of 26c coming at the weekend apparently. It might bring thunderstorms and rain with it but you can bet your bottom dollar if we need it we won’t get it!
Thursday: I have a few orders this weekend as well as Friday flowers so I needed to get flowers and other material cut first thing. Once that was done I really needed to tidy up the flower room a little, some flowers I haven’t use or have gone past their best either get composted or the petals removed for drying. Some I had already decided to hang up to dry I just needed to get and do it so those jobs are all done and I am ready for the next lot. I need to be cutting every other day now to keep the flowers producing and if they are not being used fresh they get dried. Charlie came over with instructions and some of Oscars things as he is staying over tonight (not sure how that is going to go 😂) Shelley is having him this afternoon then bringing him after tea and Charlie and Macca are going to a wedding. I have the twins first though so I will quite possibly be knackered by bedtime 😜
It is all very well having an irrigation system set up but we really really need some rain, there is nothing quite like rain to saturate the ground and give things some oomph again. I am at the point where the things that survive stay and the things that don’t do not get replaced as I think this is the way things are going to stay, possibly (probably) even get worse 🙄 We can only do what we can and there is no point fighting against it we have to work round it but watching the news and the pollution in the USA from wildfires in Canada ought to make us take better notice of what is ahead. And just as I type scientist’s have confirmed that ‘el Nino’ has begun 😏
Friday: Oscar was a superb guest and I even got smiles in the morning, he was up at 5ish had pre breakfast, played, pooped and then went back to sleep at 7.30 for another 45 mins. That gave me just enough time to dash out and water the front and put the eggs out. Once he was awake again I put him in the pushchair and we went out to the paddock to do the horses water, take the rubbish down to the bins and feed the torts. A not of playtime and then Charlie and Macca came to collect him, he had been fine but on seeing them he suddenly realised they hadn’t been here and burst into tears 🥰 Sam and the twins came mid morning for an hour or so and then once they had gone I had to get on with making up some flower bunches to put into the flower shed for Friday flowers.
In the evening we went to get a bit of shopping and on our return a wild duck and lots of ducklings were in the driveway. Last year a duck, and I assume it is the same duck, walked all the way along our lane and down the hill to the local pond with her ducklings, it’s over a mile and she was escorted by a local lady for some of the way. This year after she left our drive she decided to go across the fields, I hope she made it. The evening wasn’t over and I had to make up a tribute heart for a customer collecting in the morning, a bit of watering and finally it was bedtime.
Saturday: Up at 5am and outside to get some watering on and cut some flowers for more orders and market bunches. The next job was to make up 20 jam jars for an order to deliver this afternoon and then a flower arrangement for the local church. It was very hot today and I was hoping for a decent thunder storm and some good rain but what we got was plenty of noise and a wetting. Everything is seriously dry, I put in soaker hoses for irrigation but didn’t bank in no rain for weeks and then temps of 30c in early June 🙄 Being on clay the water gets sucked up so quickly even on raised beds that it barely helps the plants when it is so hot and dry. Once the jam jars were delivered we had a couple of hours rest before getting on with other jobs. Back into the flower room to make up bunches of flowers and jam jars to put out for sale and also prep flowers for drying. All the while I have had the sprinkler on and moving it round every hour or so, I can’t rely on waiting for rain or I will have no flowers left.
It seems after talking to a few people that we missed the downpour that was happening all around 😂 literally we had a wetting that was it, no downpour that would soak the ground, barely enough to make any difference whatsoever 🙄
Sunday: Up early and gardening in my pjs 😁 watering, some cutting back and some weeding before it gets too hot. I have come to the conclusion we are in totally the wrong location to try growing anything 😂 no wonder it is always a battle 😜 The rain moves round us, the sun beats down on us, the clay and brash soak up all moisture it’s surprising I can grow anything really!
Once we had dropped off the flowers to the church we went to a nursery to look for some specific plants. I found a few but there were still some eluding me so we set off for a garden centre. We got a bit lost in the country lanes but it was a nice morning and eventually ended up where we wanted to be. As we pulled up I spotted my brothers truck and found him his wife and my mum having breakfast lol. We ordered coffee and cake as we were five mins too late for the breakfast menu. I still couldn’t find the plants I was looking for, salvia amistad seems to have dropped off the face of the garden centres this year 🤷♀️ I lost mine in the winter wet and cold, I had some on order but the order was cancelled and despite looking I have not been able to locate any as yet. I also wanted some white astrantia which is proving to be difficult to find in stock anywhere. Nevertheless I did come back with a few plants so I satisfied my wants for now 😜
It was hot in the afternoon so we stayed inside and relaxed, it is Sunday after all. I spent my time watching the live rain radar and was thrilled when I realised we were actually going to getting some rain, we also got thunder and lightning galore, love a good storm and the smell is fabulous. A strange thing happened when it started thundering though, John started sneezing, loads, I mean 20/30 sneezes so I looked it up and it is a thing, who knew 🤷♀️ it is called thunderstorm asthma, you learn something new every day. I am hoping we get a fair bit more rain as I need those tanks to fill up but I will take what we have had so far, it will energise the plants at least. I think we are a very long way short of restoring ground water levels though but I am happy for now.
I am still having a little trouble with my hand but no where near as much as I have had. I still don’t have full grip and I still can’t tolerate temperature extremes and using it for any length of time starts it jangling but hopefully day by day it gets back to normal.
Have a lovely week x
frieslandfarm (flowers) 