Hotter than Spain.

The last few days have reminded me as to why we moved from Spain , it was too damned hot in the summer, it seems that we have overtaken Barcelona for temperatures, Monday was hotter than Barcelona, according to the weather forecast is  going to get even hotter in the next couple of days. The farmers must be rejoicing , grass is growing very quickly but if the hot weather does continue the next complaint will be lack of water and the grass not growing again  although there is a very heavy dew at night. What ever the weather does someone will always complain, and that includes me, it's too damned hot!

The garden is now catching up at last, most of the veg planting is done but the weeds are trying to do a take over bid. We have had very good germination on some things, mainly the roots, but peas and beans are struggling, but the season is still early so we can replant things that have failed to do well. The potatoes are doing well and need their next earthing up, the first ones in the tunnel are now ready for eating.
 It's hard to keep up with the strawberries, although much later than last year we are now picking at least a pound a day, there has even been enough for me to make four pots of jam.

The  Rhubarb is also cropping well and I have bottled some for the winter months. All the trees are looking very good with plenty of blossom and the blackcurrants and gooseberries have all set fruit, so there must have been some pollinating insects around, we have seen real bees and hoverflies in the last couple of days, I hope the hoverflies start work soon on clearing the roses of greenfly's, we have not had sufficient stinging nettles to make our aphid control, I think I will try using rhubarb leaves as a stop gap.
Now that the veg garden is just about planted for this season it has given us a little time to dig the garden pond, we had hoped to have had this done some time ago but there was always something more pressing to be done.  There was a huge amount of stone in the area where we wanted the pond, but it will get used up somewhere.

 Once started it was done quickly, just four days, thanks to Simons hard work, it has been very enjoyable planting up the rockery and find plants to put into the pond, as this is pond is to increase wildlife habitat we will not be having any fish in it, we hope that it will accommodate frogs and maybe smooth newts.

We do have a lot of frogs on the land so I hope they will enjoy the pond, it has already been used by one of our ducks, Daffy, she has always been the friendliest of our ducks and seems to think that we have made this especially for her.

A welcoming lick from Sussie.

   After five months of looking we at last  have a new kitten, I would never have thought it would be so hard to find a kitten, maybe more people are at last taking note and   having  their cats spayed or neutered.

As yet we have not given him his permanent name, maybe Mungo as in Mungo Jerry or Monte, we will wait a little longer and see which name fits him.

With the seasons being so late we are still enjoying what should be spring bulbs, the parrot tulips have been wonderful this year, I love the deep purple ones which are growing close to the bronze fennel, they look wonderful together.