Bit By Bit

My sweet peas are doing well

I ate a raw carrot for my lunch today. It's supposed to help with anti-aging, eating raw food. I hope I haven't left it too late. I can't remember the last time I chewed so hard, if you discount the Thorntons toffee that Waitrose now ill-advisedly stocks. My jaw is aching, and I may not repeat the process for fear of dislocating it. There's quite a lot in a carrot. Perhaps I could start with something small, like an After Eight mint.

Pond with slate surround and new planting

View from upstairs as requested

Two goldfinches drinking from my pond again this morning, flashing reds and yellows reflected in the water as they hovered and dived. I went out early with all good intentions to shift the bark from the shrub bed to the path beside it, after covering it with a long sheet of weed-suppressing material. But I found I couldn't move any faster than slow crawl, and had to admit that I'm more tired than I had realised. I've been doing it in stages, dragging the bark across the bed in a couple of sweeps of the rake and then sitting down. The weather isn't helping. It's very breezy but warm, and when the sun breaks out I have to put my hat on, but that makes me feel even more sleepy. If only the occasional cyclists passing by had an inkling of the drama that happens in this garden on a daily basis.

Young hypericum, aka St John's Wort

I've now got a temporary oil tank beside the summerhouse, filled from the old one but leaving enough oil below the crack for me to continue using it.It probably sounds a bit perverse, but I like the look of it there. It gives substance to the summerhouse. I might have to replace it with something solid when it has gone, though the last of the summer evening sun comes in there and I don't want to block it. 

Oil tank next to summerhouse

 

Geraniums

Dahlias

I've managed to get my new camera working now, though I can't see how to use the x20 zoom. So I'm putting the latest pix in this entry and hoping they're not miniaturised or anything. Looking through the viewfinder is most strange. And the camera weighs three ounces more than the last one, which may not sound a lot but actually is. I'm not sure if I'll get on with it. I'll keep persevering. If all else fails I'll read the instructions.

New path with bark laid