A very good day

Yes, it does sound like a good day. Isn't it great when one can appreciate a garden, birds, plants and amphibians, not to mention a biker OH! Years ago my OH had a BSA and we visited lots of beauty spots. No helmets, so someone up there must have been looking after us. Recall my knees used to freeze!

When we drained a smallish pond we found LOTS of newts, differently coloured, and gave them to a neighbour with a very large pond specially created for newts and tadpoles.

Lovely photos,especially the ones of your bird friends.
A lovely dayfor a trip on the AJS. Do you still ride your motor bike?

The crab apple looks wonderful, hope it continues to thrive. Lots of bird activity in the garden today. Our Blackbird babies have left the nest, hoping around the garden, no proper tail feathers yet.

Thats so lovely...what an idyllic day! It was cloudy here. I potted stuff on in the greenhouse and gave my ericaceous plants a feed. Planted some lupins in the back garden and then went to the pool for a swim. After that I was pretty much exhausted! Your crab apple has made a miraculous recovery!

Hi Sbg, sounds like a very enjoyable day, amazing what a difference a bit of sunshine does isn't it, Derek.

You certainly packed plenty in to your day. Lovely to see the birds coming closer as they recognise the gardener as a friend. Good tip about leaving the cut edges to dry. I just came in to look up the Astilbe plants I bought last year which need to go in to the garden. Your crab apple is looking lovely and has made an amazing recovery.

Continued weeding today and I remembered the sun cream. though my shoulders do feel a trifle warm.

I am pleased with the progress I am making but there are so many roots from the deceased trees and I cant get them all out. I hope I don't ache too much later on tonight.

I will have to go and buy some plants to fill the space [now isn't that a chore :o) ] and now the area is no longer in deep shade I have an interesting set of choices to make.

I will also put a few shrubs in and move some hellebores that are now in the 'wrong' place. I am pulling out lots of Cardamine pentaphyllum and a purple semi double Vinca minor.

I have found quite a few labels for plants that have gone to the great compost heap in the sky.

What a lovely rewarding day you had and the garden looks great. It must have been a terrific bonus when the beautiful crab apple sent up shoots from the ground again!

Stera good to hear what a productive and pleasurable day you had sharing it with the wildlife and your OH, the weather is too hot for me at the moment (No I`m not moaning) so making the most of it sitting under the canopy enjoying the view.

A lovely day with lots of unexpected surprises :)

It sounds blissful :)

Sounds like you had a great day,SB! Will it be "rinse & repeat for Monday?" LOL! ?

I didn't get to work in the garden today and I hope to tomorrow. Need to get growbags so I can pot up the toms and cucs so I can get them in the greenhouse ground.

We had a lovely 10 mile walk around our village are surrounding countryside. It is lovely seeing the trees coming into leaf.
The oak is slightly ahead of the ash around here and according to an old rhyme it means a dryish summer.

if the oak is out before the ash then the Earth will get a splash. but if the ash is out before the oak then the Earth will get a soak.

My OH said 'so its going to rain all summer then!'
I relaxed in the shade of the beech tree reading a book for the afternoon.

LOL the rhyme and the comment - never heard that saying before. Sounds like another lovely day you had :)

I'm glad you had a good day. I hope you enjoyed your coffee in amongst all those men. They are so boring aren't they ...

Isn't it marvellous how something that seems dead can revive from the roots if they are still alive !

Nice that you saw all those birds. I like the newt. I found one a few years ago but haven't seen it since.

I'm slow catching up lol :)

Lovely blog and photos enjoyed both sbg thank you ?

once the men realised I wasn't just a wife but a woman with her own bsa they were much chattier Hywel.
My daughter was anxious that I had ID the newt correctly as if it had been a great crested newt it is illegal to handle it without a special licence.

Sorry catching up after the weekend. Sounds like a great day. Love the newt. I've never seen one

Lovely blog seaburngirl, great photos of the birds, ive been busy ‘pottering’ the greenhouse is fir to bursting lol

yes my greenhouse is too. I've had to put lots into the cold frame to harden them off. I am also growing some beans toms etc for our eldest girl.

Love your blog - first one I have read but can really relate to the blackbirds and robin - we have a pair of both and love watching their antics. I always have small bowls of water for Lady Blackie to dip her beakfuls of grass/moss/soil into, so they stick nicely when she's nest building. Of course she and Lord Blackie always remind me they need feeding even more at this time of year.

Hi Sbg, around my neck of the woods, we shorten the rhyme a bit, and just say Ash before oak we're in for a soak, Oak before Ash, it''ll only be a splash, so as our Oak and Ash are in the same condition as yours, we shouldn't be too wet this year, fingers crossed,??, Derek.

You are a busy bee Seaburn and obviously loving it, so much better when one has retired and able to sort the jobs that we never seemed to have time for in the past, you are making a good job of it all and will enjoy filling those gaps in, will be interesting to see how well it looks this time next year, I'm really pleased with how my plants are doing now they are not overshadowed by the trees, your little feathered pals are also enjoying you doing the hard work for them.. Another very enjoyable read and lovely photo's....

I did upset a couple of mining bees as I clearly destroyed the entrance to their homes. so not the only busy bee.
I love being retired I can be a bit more measured in how hard/quick I dig. Though I enjoyed my 35 yrs of teaching biology, ecology and science and I do miss colleagues and some students. At hospital last week I was seen by 2 former pupils, one a nurse the other the consultant! I did wonder if they would get their own back for all the extra work they had to do :o))

Ha!Ha! so you have always produced good results. I'm sure they will be delighted to give you a little extra tlc.