Taking time to enjoy summer... at The Pumpkin Patch

Taking time to enjoy summer... at The Pumpkin Patch

What is this life if full of care,

We have no time to stand and stare. W.H Davies

Sunshine and Vegetables!

August is the height of summer, the month we associate with summer holidays, relaxed balmy evenings, barbecues on the beach and a glut of vegetables from the garden! The children are home from school and it should at least be a time of playing happy families in the sunshine! Call me an old romantic but this is what I remember and what comes to mind at the thought of summer months! Reality, however, is often different. Evenings are not always hot and balmy, summer rains often spoil a family barbecue, but one thing you can be assured of … a glut of vegetables – that is, if you planted them!

The weeks of back-breaking toil, preparing the vegetable patches pays off with a bounty of peas, beans, onions , brassicas and salad. The garden is overflowing with edibles and flowers too. Such is the beauty of the lush and beautiful garden that one can forgive the green backdrop of enthusiastic weeds that are a spectacle in their own right!

Evening Sun & Shade

The rolling hills of the Towy Valley cast shade over the Pumpkin Patch Garden at Allt y Gôg Farm in the early evening whilst the valley below continues to be smothered by evening sun, giving warmth and light well into the evening. For those of us in the shade we've re- discovered the camp-fire - a wonderful way to enjoy the outdoors well into the night, whilst providing heat and light and an alternative to the barbecue! Recently Sam, our eldest son and an outdoor enthusiast, convinced us of the need to purchase a fire tripod … what an investment! We now boil, fry , steam a variety of meals for breakfast, tea an supper! Not just for a late night feast either – we now cook our Sunday morning sausages on the camp-fire – slightly crazy but a delightful and relaxed way to wake up at the weekend! For safety reasons The Pumpkin Patch hasn’t been introduced to this way of cooking yet, but I'm sure the teenage class will soon enjoy a camp-fire evening – I can't wait! So, if cooking in the summer months is more of a chore than a delight, and if you can't bear to stay indoors more than you have to, I recommend the “tripod” - your evenings (or mornings for that matter) will never be the same!