The Garden Cottage

2011-03-30T03:18:00.001-07:00

2011-03-30T02:22:00.000-07:00

Oh what a lovely morning, just a little bit of rain during the night. The garden is looking so colourful various yellows, blues pink and lots of greenery.

I have just been a walk down the garden. Ive seen the stoat with a rabbit much bigger than itself, and it didn't drop it when it saw me, I think it must have babies, I'm just a bit worried about the hens.

The pond is full of tadpoles. I moved a lot of toads yeterday when I was weeding. I think the birds are using the nest boxes again, the Holly hedge does appear to have a lot of activity in it as well.

more about the cheese and wine event

2011-03-15T07:34:00.001-07:00

The Garden Cottage Website As you can see we had a full house for the quiz and looking at two of the revellers ts the end a good time was had by all. The winners were from Hurst Green. Thanks to everyone that helped make the evening a success.

2011-03-15T07:22:00.000-07:00

The Garden Cottage Website

We have just finalized the purchase of some land adjoining the our garden. The hens and bantams think they have died and gone to heaven. A friend has lent us some sheep to eat the grass down, when this is done we aim to plant some broad leaf trees.

I helped to organize a cheese and wine evening for St James church at the weekend, we raised £781.00 pounds but I'm still tired. Next thing up is the Inglewhite litter pick on the 22nd of this month, it usually rains, but heh ho we won't melt as my dad used to say!

The stoats are getting more cunning we don't see as much of them now, there seems to be lots of baby rabbits around. so long as they leave the hens alone they are welcome.

Spring News

2011-02-21T09:01:00.000-08:00

The Garden Cottage Website

The hens and the Bantams are laying well again following the snow. We have a big Bartle hen that has to live with the Bantams, she was attacked by a dog that tore all the feathers and skin from her neck.I thought it had taken her head off. But she survived and has E.45 on her neck each day and suncream if its windy or sunny. She is very spoilt and both her and the bantams are helping keep the weeds down.

We have just taken an old cabin down, with the good wood left from that and one from my brothers we have built a garage/workshop, we're really pleased with it.

We have put the muck on the raised beds, planted Shallots, Onions, Garlic and early carrots. I have also planted some different sorts of Tomato seeds and some peppers as reccomended by the Saturday Telegraph. I have raked up leaves and bits of trees until my arms feel like they are dropping of. More news soon.

2011-02-01T05:35:00.000-08:00

The Garden Cottage Website

Winter and Spring

2011-02-01T05:19:00.000-08:00

The Garden Cottage Website

The winter has been a long one. We really enjoyed the snow and the clear sky's. Now the garden spring clean has started. We have been cutting back a lot of shrubs and getting rid of dead leaves. We have also been putting plenty of muck on the veg gardens, I'm just about to start my tomato and pepper seeds off inside. The onions and garlic have been in a while, although I'm not sure if they have suffered.

The poultry have done really well and have continued to lay lots of eggs being kept warm by the straw in their houses. The worst thing that happened this winter is, the water supply to the cottage froze under the flags, what a job we had to put an above ground supply and stop it freezing by surrouding it with straw. I will try to put some pictures on to show what the place looked like

2011-02-01T05:07:00.000-08:00

The Garden Cottage Website

It's an awful long time since I have had time to bring my news up to date. The cottage has had a really good year and the bookings are coming in for 2011. We had open gardens for the church last year, that was big success and the guests in the cottage enjoyed it as well. We served afternoon tea we were able to divide the taking's between the Air Ambulance and the Lifeboats.

We also managed to sell all our surplus fruit.

We've bought a bit of land adjacent to the garden so anything can happen now more hens! some new animals! who knows.

We also hosted a wine tasting evening for the Whitechapel Players a vey good night John and Dee Laker from the Isle O Wight really enjoyed themselves it's a good job they had been before.

2010-03-08T12:49:00.000-08:00

What a beautiful weekend. The daffs are almost out, the snowdrops are really a great show this year. One of our rescue fowl (a small bantam) has been bullied by the hens so we have moved her and on Sunday so that she wouldn't be lonely we bought three more bantams and a bantam cockrell, he's so handsome. They all laid today magic! We are thinking about all the work we need to do in the garden, it will be open for a weekend in July. More about that later.All the bird boxes are back in place and being inspected by prospective tennants. We're also keeping an eye out for the return of the frogs and toads

The Garden Cottage Website

Spring

2010-02-17T02:39:00.000-08:00

The Garden Cottage Website

Well at last the snowdrops are through. We have just finished cleaning all the bird boxes out and soaked them in jeyes fluid. They've been dried and put back up. By the way some of the birds are acting not a moment to soon!

We've been getting all the raised beds ready for planting and the hens are laying again, yippee.

I couldn't believe my eyes yesterday there was a Sparrow Hawk on the bird table it hadn,t caught a bird but as soon as I went for the camera it flew away

winter snows

2010-01-19T04:33:00.000-08:00

The top picture was taken from our bedroom window one frosty night in December 2009

The middle one was taken of our two visitors that were staying over the Christmas period. Gareth played Prince charming at the Guild Hall

The last picture is of the garden during Christmas when we were snow bound. We lived in our own little world. It was lovely

The Garden Cottage Website

Autunm

2009-10-25T09:48:00.000-07:00

Well at last hopefully this blog space is sorted. It's been a funny old year, we have either been melting or drowning. The garden doesn't seem to have suffered to much. We have had lots of visitors of the fur and feathered type,and oh yes humans as well.

Just now we are busy cutting back, everything seems to have put on a lot of growth this year. Like everyone else we have had a heaps of fruit, the vegetables, all did well as have the greenhouse brigade. Lots of our guests were able to share all of these things with us.

We had a very successful coffee morning raising lots of money to sponsor Mark our son and Donna our niece who both completed the Great North Run and raised between them around £2000,00 for Prostate Cancer Research.

The Garden Cottage Website

Big visitor

2009-03-18T08:58:00.000-07:00

Elvis visits the garden cottage

our website

Spring has Sprung at the Garden Cottage

2009-03-18T08:15:00.000-07:00

The sun is shining and the spring flowers are showing their faces to the sun. The birds are examining the boxes, all were used last year,we have just finished cleaning them out.

The Garden Cottage Website