Sunday: garden update and other stuff



The cosmos has been wonderful this year.  Too much of it, really, for my small patch, but oh, the pleasure it has given me has been huge.



Pink and white . . .



. .  . beautiful in close view . . .



. . . or further away . . .



. . . except for this one which has grown and grown and grown, put out a few blooms earlier in the summer and since then has steadfastly refused to flower, putting all its energy into being bigger than everything else in the garden, as if it wants to replace the bush that thought it was a tree.  Last week I told George we'd probably have it out soon.  You can guess what has happened - suddenly it is covered with buds!

 

The tomatoes are now earning their keep.  Eight yesterday, nine today and, as you can see, there's likely to be another good picking tomorrow too.



This is the bay that 'died' last winter.  Pretty good, isn't it?  I should call it the resurrection bay!

So much for the garden.  It seems to be giving me one last huge effort, as if it knows that time is shortening with the days and the angle of sunlight and is determined to force me to remember it in the dark days to come.

DG is here with me today.  He's sitting in the recliner in the corner with his laptop connected up (I am so glad I got a wireless thingy that enables him to connect to the Internet here), snuggling under a quilt and singing softly to himself.  He sings so sweetly (when he wants) and I will be sad when his voice finishes breaking, which can't be long now.

When DD dropped him off, she gave me the key to the allotment with instructions to go down and pick all the ripe raspberries I can find and eat them!  I think that's one order it will be hard to disobey!  She also bought a bag with some other produce - red and green peppers, courgette, a baby butternut squash - which I think I will turn into chutney, using some of my ripe tomatoes as well, seeing as I have a bowlful of them with more coming.  I don't have a recipe so I will trawl through what I do have and work out some proportions of vinegar and sugar to vegetables.  It can't go wrong really!  However, I will save one red pepper and the baby squash to have roasted at lunch time.  I have some ribs I want to cook in a sticky sauce and roasted tomatoes and red pepper will be an ideal accompaniment.

Well, I'd better get going.  There's plenty to do, that's for sure.