Swapping and The Garden

Glorious sunshine today. I have weeded the peas and planted the cabbages.

I know all those Southern Gardeners will be eating their peas by now, and my brother and his wife in France are probably sowing a second crop! But up here in the Frozen North, we have to wait until the last week of May to be sure of frosts - and one year we had snow on June 6th. Its a hard life up here you know!!

I called by Cafe Nero today (home of the Wonderful Knitters of Hexham - Thursday afternoons from 2.00 - Hexham Branch only as far as I know??) I came home with all their coffee grounds to use as slug repellent. Not sure if it will work but worth a try.
 
It is a wonderful day for gardening.
Here are our potatoes - just popping through

the herbs are all thriving

flowers too

unfortunately though - so are these

so I am going to get the strimmer and the mower out and tackle them next.
Zoe organised a book swap - a very cunning one that has had me frantically reading pre 1960's books for knitting references. I was paired with Mary and her swap package arrived yesterday.

Lucky me!
I'll leave you with the hens free ranging in the wilderness patch in front of our house

Happy Hens! (Despite what Tash says - I still maintain there is very little room for a brain in there - a beady eye and a lot of instinct - but not much between the ears!)
and Geoff's arty supper last night - all his own work - the rest of us just had bangers and mash and peas

Comments

[Sheila]

Hi Katie,
Just discovered your blog and love it, especially reading the tips for travelling! What a great time you had. I am around the same age and just gave up my job of 15 years last August and am now part time and self employed, also trying to rebalance life a bit. I have so enjoyed picking up crafts I haven't touched much since the children grew up and in September last year I started my blog, having found so many enthusiastic and lovely creative blogs out there.
Thanks for all you share.

Sheila

[Zoe]

The veg, the hens, and the swap all look great and of course the supper prepared by Geoff. I can't wait to see all the books we swap.

[jackie]

The things you are going to attack with the strimmer pass as flowers in my impoverished garden world! Will the coffeee keep the slugs off? I just tried oats to supposedly bloat them and when I looked out at night it reminded me of an African watering hole. There were massive big yellow ones, little brown ones medium sized black and grey ones..all circled round and absolutely relishing the oats. they were back the next night so no bloating yet. More like thriving.

[Maddy]

Your herbs look very lush, I can almost smell the basil. I sent my swap off this week but my book isn't post 1960 as I just didn't have time to read up, but I found a murder mystry within a knitting group hahaha! I agree with you, nothing much between thos BIG eyes.

To kill off stinging nettle without poison poor boiling water on them from your kettle, it kills them stone dead.

[French Knots]

Your garden looks lush! I had some peas that were doing quite well, just forming the first flowers.....but after a week away have returned to find that the slugs have eaten them all. Grr.
Will have to give Maddy's nettle tip a go as I have a healthy crop in the front garden.