Our first homegrown strawberries of the year. At the weekend, I found one strawberry with the tell tale sign of a bird feasting on it, so I have covered over the strawberries with a black netting. The holes are big enough for the bees, but too small for the birds.
First homegrown courgettes of the season. This is one of the plants that was completely undermined by the moles, so I am pleased that it is flourishing. All the courgettes have lovely dark leaves, sprouting flowers and look very healthy. Still no sign of moles returning.
This is one of the willow whips that we used to build our fairy den. Only one appears to have taken root. It will be interesting to see how the fairy den looks as the leaves grow.
I was hoping to show you a photo of the dragonflies, we made, flying outside. I set them up under a hawthorn tree and they looked like they were ducking and diving. The children and I had chatted about other insects (and guinea pigs!) we could add. Unfortunately, when I went outside to photograph it, I discovered that we were not the only ones that liked the dragonflies. It seems the sparrows had been using them as a staging post before flying on to the seed table. A couple of dragonflies were on the floor. I also suspect that some dragonfly legs are now lining sparrow nests. I’m going to rethink this one.
BL took her dragonflies to school. She came back with several orders for more as birthday presents. Have I got a salesperson in the making?
The girls had friends over and they all wanted to make felt beads, like we made before (how to). We used some of the wool roving that their Grandma gave them. They are made from merino wool, so are soft and not itchy. I like these ones much more than the last ones we made. I love the way that the rainbow colours have felted together. There was great excitement each time I cut into the sausage shape of felted wool. They couldn’t wait to see how they had turned out inside. If only I could bottle that enthusiasm and save it. There are times I could use it.
beautiful!!! We just went strawberry picking a few days ago…oh, the JOY of fresh strawberries…I put away 25 jars of preserves!!
I love your felted bracelets…and like how you do your beads…a heckuva lot easier than rolling them one by one!
I should be done the Toadstool house after this weekend…I’ll drop you a line when its done!
maureen xo
Ten minutes of rolling wool is about as much as this age group want to do, generally. I can’t imagine them taking the time to do it individually. Its one that works even better as a group activity as they encourage each other. Lovely to see the older girls helping the younger ones.
We hope to go strawberry picking today. 25 jars is my kind of quantity. I love everything about strawberries.
The doll is coming on. I’ll set myself a target of this weekend too.
We are just picking the first strawberries from the allotment so I guess it’s time to get the jam pan out!
take care,
Nina xxxxxx
A home full of the fragrance of strawberries. Sounds good to me.
Beautiful… I wish we were neighbors.
I think I’m in for a bumper courgette harvest, so I think you’ll see it as a lucky escape!
Are you sure those strawberries are real ( only joking ), they look delicious, as does the courgette. I’m very envious of all your growing activities.
When we bought this place, my top requirement was a place to grow our own food. I am still trying to figure out where I could position a polytunnel, without it becoming the main feature of the garden.