Category: Nature

Red-Veined Sorrel

Red-veined sorrel (Rumex sanguineus) is easy to grow, decorative and edible. Like spinach it’s rich in potassium which lowers blood pressure and I expect it to become very fashionable in gardens great and small.

Barons Court in Bloom

At this time of year one’s thoughts turn to gardening. My brother mounts his ride-on mower, Rosemary and Ann attend to the gardens at Barmeath and I browse the horticultural section of my bookshelf.

Eating My Hat

Reggie and I were unadventurous yesterday. We reprised our Monday morning walk to Bruniquel but this time in low cloud and a light drizzle, or a grand soft day as it’s called in Ireland.

A Swift Hello

There used to be eels in the lake at Barmeath and probably still are. The lake is landlocked and I could not work out how they got from the sea to the lake but they did; probably through an overflow drain that runs under the fields and then through ditches down to the sea. Much… Continue reading A Swift Hello

Summertime

The Mall is decked out for the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting; Lancaster house is sealed off and has much tentage and Lord Lieutenants and their deputies are run ragged greeting delegates at airports.

Griffons, Goats & Grub

We have seen griffon vultures wheeling high above us. They look quite small at such an altitude but in fact have a wingspan of more than eight feet. It would be exciting to see one close-up but that seems unlikely.

Forsyth Saga

I came across this plaque in Kensington Gardens on Sunday. It is the right time of year to see it because William Forsyth’s Forsythia was flowering.

Ten Things To Do List

1. Write thank you letter to Alistair for inviting me to the Hotel Chocolat last week. Here’s the bar of chocolate I made. Looks like a dog mess but I won’t stress that in my letter.

Phantom Threads

Phantom Threads is supposed to be Daniel Day-Lewis’s swan song, but I suppose he will be enticed back to appear in cameo roles.

Local Notes

1. Periwinkle, planted in 1984, seems indestructible. It has spent months buried under building materials over the years and gets trampled on by me and the bin men.