Yummy Honey!

 Today was the day.....we received the field rent for the two bee hives situated in the fruit garden. They paid us well in jars full of wonderfully golden, sweet runny honey! I can't tell you how many jars we have because, as I write, the honey is still dripping through the sieve. Soon it will be ready to be bottled or potted, sealed and labelled. It's a sticky job, but rewarding!

 Today, it was a family affair, both boys, Sam and Josh collected  the honey laden frames from the hives, whilst the girls Aimee, Ailsa and Anya decapped the honeycombs and spun the frames to reveal and collect the honey! What a day!

Tomorrow......well it's definitely toast for breakfast, and definitely a generous drizzle of honey!! Yum! 

Today, it was a familly affair, both boys, Sam and Josh collected  the honey laden frames from the hives, whilst the girls Aimee, Ailsa amd Anya decaped the honeycooms and spun the frames to reveal and collect the honey! What a day!

Tomorrow......well it's definately toast for breakfast, and definately a generous drizzle of honey!! Yum! 

Wat..er Summer

Wat..er Summer!!

 I love summer, but I have to confess that this summer has been rather disappointing :( 

I hate to complain, but there are good summers, poor summers and then there was this summer! I haven't seen the statistics, but surely they must confirm that the number of sunshine hours for the past three months has been low, whilst the volume of rainfall must surely have been high. 

It's not that I wish to sit on the beach for hours, or on a lounger in the garden, though that does sound appealing right now, as I listen to yet more of the wet stuff landing on the roof window.  I love to spend hours in the garden, digging, weeding, planting and pruning, cutting back, rearranging and harvesting summer fruit and vegetables. Treating myself occasionally, to a five minute sit - down to enjoy an ice cold lemonade. I love it when the children loose me behind the runner beans and resort to phoning my mobile to relocate me in my jungle! Not this year though! 

This year, despite no shortage of water, the runner beans and the French climbing beans  have not long managed to reached their lofty destination. They almost lost in their battle to ascend the six foot canes. Almost...nearly...but, finally, somehow they managed it, but I'm yet to be delighted by a summer feed of wonderful beans, drenched in butter and plenty of  black pepper with crusty white bread! 

 

As always, I love to meet other gardeners, to chat and compare progress.. or lack of!  For a short while in June, I started to doubt my veg growing skills, maybe I'd just been lucky for the past twenty years! A touch of  beginners luck maybe? Until I met up with some other keen vegetable growers, and all had the same sorry tale to tell. Vegetables rotting in the ground, failed crops, slugs galore, rain and cool temperatures, a desperate combination :(

I'm now dreaming of a warm and pleasant Autumn. I may have to buy  pumpkins this year, but I can still enjoy making comforting winter soups, chutney and jams.   Maybe I can even sit, wrapped up in a comfy blanket, and enjoy a very late feed of runner beans under a cool autumn sun!  Better late than never! :)