Our Yurting Weekend

Oh we have had a fantastic time....very busy, so much to do and so many family members to enjoy it with us.

This year we actually got a bed in a yurt!! 

We had one evening entirely on our own which was quite magical and relished with glee. 

 We soon had the campfire going using the logs provided.

How lovely to have our own fire, a great feature at 

Freshwinds Camping.

We sat here until very late, toasting our toes and wrapped in blankets. 

We were able to sit much longer in the bigger yurt as it had solar-powered lights, bright enough to read and crochet.

We had a great sleep in the comfy double bed, watching stars through the skylight and waking to a beautiful sunny morning.

 Steve used the new hot shower just alongside the smallest yurt and he loved it.

No pictures....he would not appreciate that.

We had bacon sammies to set us up for what would prove to be a very busy day. 

The rest of the family arrived just before lunch.

The children loved sitting on the workmax which is used 

to carry luggage.

 The wheelbarrows are also useful.

My great-nephew, Henry, fell fast asleep in our garden barrow.

It was baking hot.

We had platefuls of sandwiches for lunch, some flaked out on blankets, some sorted out their beds and some set up swings.

The cows came to drink at the huge trough and that caused much excitement with the children.

We watched buzzards circling high above.

We strolled up to the garden where we enjoyed meeting the rabbits and tortoises. We looked for frogs in the pond and enjoyed all the flowers. We collected vegetables, picked sweetpeas and showed other visitors round the polytunnel.

By then we were all ready for Paula`s delicious cakes.

Back at the yurts it was all hands to the deck for barbeque preparations and a lovely warm evening.

It was delightful.

Bedtime next.....stories and teeth brushing outdoors.....

......as the sun slowly set.

What more could you ask for?

 

That was not the end of our weekend but it seems a good place to end this blog entry.

 

We had a wonderful time...thank you Anne and Tim.

We love this peaceful, beautiful spot

and we love the new facilities.

 

If you should get the chance, come and stay ..... it is a truly unforgettable experience.

 

 

 

Goose Grass,Thistles and Hops

Everything is going at full pelt and after a long weekend staying at the yurts, there is plenty to catch up with in both gardens.
The morning has been spent freezing tomatoes and making up soup packs....a great success last winter. Today`s contained cucumbers and runner beans. I also made more blackcurrant jam.
The afternoon was spent in our own garden.
Yesterday we were at Freshwinds Garden for harvesting, watering and deadheading, as well as trying to find the bottom hedge.....over-grown with goose grass, thistles, hops and stinging nettles.
I managed half before I needed a change of job. 
In the polytunnel growth is phenomenal.
Here are the morning glories touching the ceiling. Hope there will be more flowers soon.

I think the melons grew overnight. They are now supported by recycled fruit bags.

Here is our new sitting area backed by the new fencing.
I have a few more ideas to jolly up this space.

The annual larkspur brightens our teabreaks.

We are very proud of our onion crop this year. 

Having allowed more light into the orchard by cutting the hedge, the fruit will ripen more quickly.

Sunflowers, gladioli and helichrysum.

The sweetcorn bordered by gladioli.

The pumpkins are going mad especially after I cut back the feverfew and they had more room to spread out.

And the fairy garden is being swamped by lobelia. 

 Even tiny gardens need tidying up.

At home I realised, as I disbudded dahlias in the late afternoon, that I have not had a late evening walk up the garden path this year.

 It`s always a great time to take photos.

Here is a small collection. 

By the way, it took me ages to remove all the sticky goosegrass seeds stuck in my clothing.
Clever dispersal technique.

Cornflower Corner and Black Hollyhocks

Work at the garden continues after the excitement of fairy day.

Harvesting is beginning in earnest.

The blackcurrants were really a bit over-ripe but we picked about 15 pounds and there are still some to ripen.

A lot of jam making has been going on by both me and Paula.

I have a rather motley collection of jars.

In the polytunnel, things are moving on after setbacks.

Morning Glory are thriving in there.

We picked nine cucumbers some of which were given to a camper going home. This same lady bought quite a lot of plants from our little nursery as well.

 

 The aubergines are fattening up. 
Their flowers are so pretty.

The melons are swelling. I have stopped the growing side shoots only allowing one fruit. It is difficult to keep track of all the growth so I`ve tied string round all the fruit I`ve found so far.

 

I have had to cut back the French marigolds. I planted the wrong variety and they are overshadowing the peppers and aubergines.
Nicotiania and nasturtiums looking good.



Outside lots of colour around.
Cornflower Corner.

Artichoke Corner.

We`ve had quite a lot of runner beans already.

 

The sunflowers are at eye level, having recovered 

from their earlier pruning.

The front of the veggie patch with clary, self seeded poppies and feverfew.

Almost black hollyhocks grown from seed. No signs of rust as yet.

 

This teasel has grown in the gravel just by the fairy garden.

The pale flowers open in tiers.

A few flowers when its time to go home.

And a good day`s harvest.

Then home to make jam.

 

Here is our next project.

More next time.