 The fabulous frames for growing squash over... we can only but dream! 7 August 2025 (Thursday) It’s fair to say that so far this week has been somewhat of a quieter week, so far... And when I say quieter week I mean less frenetic and less busy in the head. It’s still been a really busy week, with things having to be done every day and these things fully being done every day, though there's also been space in my head to be able to allow me to get on with other things, however small or.major they might be, and get on with them effectively. The plot, which is really looking okay and fine at the moment, has thrown up a challenge, albeit a challenge which I knew I had, and that's with the cinquefoil. I know I've said it before, though for me it is the worst weed to have on the plot. It's so invasive and pernicious, which is really horrible to say about a plant which is rather lovely. Its Latin name is Potentilla reptans, and as cinquefoil suggests it has five parts to each leaf, and it also has lovely yellow flowers. However, it has an aggressive trailing habit, akin to a strawberry because it is a relative of that plant, and this is what makes it really invasive. I found out early in the week that it had really knitted its way through our grass paths, and as I've said in segments of A Week at the Plot this week on Planet Vegetaria, I'm now mulling whether I get rid of my between bed grass paths and turn them into wood chip paths. It's really a shame that this plant takes hold quite so quickly, and voraciously, and because it's got a really large tap root I was sure, as others have said, that actually when the soil is rich rather than poor it won't like it; the tap roots suggests that it takes up nutrients from deep deep down. However, it seems to love any type of soil and, particularly grass paths where it can surreptitiously weave its way through the individual blades of grass, keeping close to the ground and keeping well camouflaged. When I took a hand fork to a section of the grass, sliding it horizontally close to the soil level and between the individual grass blades, I lifted up a whole load of its runners.  Cinquefoil... about 8kg of it... and another bag similar! So I now think the best way to deal with it is to have as little grass for it to surreptitiously grow through as possible. Yes, I can weed it out and those roots that really do go down too - where I see them I will take them out. It's happened pretty well with the beds, except at the very edges, where on the outside edges cinquefoil thrives, I've managed to weed most of the growing areas of a whole load of this invasive weed. And I guess by not managing the soil well, as the half of the plot that is invaded by it wasn't before I took it on, it allows it to propagate. By working the soil, I think the amount of propagation and thorough weeding of it reduces its spread, and therefore its propagation and negative impact. So anyway, I’m mulling whether some of our grass paths become wood chip paths, though at the moment I think the likelihood is 70% for wood chip paths and 30% to keep the status quo. Time will tell… My desk work work this week, ie For Earth's Sake and the Great Green Barn… having had a really good day physically down with Vanessa last week I was able to just crack on with a whole load of things this week; needing very few answers from Vanessa which meant that I could just push forward. One of the important jobs was designing a new advert using Canva for one edition of the local Round & About magazine, to highlight all we have in the autumn season so far (and I’m working on more to book in) and also show how the Great Green Barn’s space can be used in various different ways… hopefully, the ad does this!  Great Green Barn's autumn ad for Round & About, September Also, For Earth's Sake's closing for a summer break; a fortnight of repairs and maintenance… and a few alterations! It may be that we end the two weeks with having more space in the side barn that currently houses all of the dispensable liquids and all of the fruit and veg. There's an area at the back where the fruit and veg could move to which would allow much more space for the liquids down one side, rather than them being a bit bunched up together as they are at the moment. It would also allow for another chiller cabinet to go in which would be hugely beneficial. And so to other things…  A temporary bike rack at Kew Gardens - put in place to accomodate Thursday evening's session of cycling through Kew Gardens. This morning, Richard and I went to Kew Gardens which of course is always a fabulous place to visit. We took advantage of early opening for members only, where they open two of their gates at 8am rather than 10am. Again, it felt as though we had the whole of Kew Gardens to ourselves, apart from Kew’s staff and craftsmen who do a good bulk of their work before the gates open to the public.
When we'd arrived at Brentford Gate (Fenella was parked up and would wait patiently for our return - most probably hob-nobbing with other cars as they arrived, passing glances between each other) and had our tickets scanned, we were told the gates close at 4pm today as this evening they have the special event of allowing people to come and cycle through the gardens - and as we walked around we saw various adaptions in place to accomodate this, including green barriers at the entrance of places which I think cyclists will be allowed to put their bikes against, and at the big lake there was a temporary cycle rack (above), which I thought a great idea! We also visited the Kew Kitchen Garden, not to be confused with Kew Palace's Kitchen Garden... I did a segment in here for this week's A Week at the Plot (which will be uploaded next Monday), and was truly amazed at this fabulous squash frame at the top of this post - currently, we can only dream of such a structure, and of course admire Kew's own! We had a great two and a half hours there, and if you're a member of Ko-fi I did a little piece at the side of one of the less traversed ponds at Kew Gardens. So if you're a Ko-fi member, go over and have a watch. And if you're not a Ko-fi member, and have six pound coins spare, why not have a think about joining for a month and seeing if we're worth it… just like L’Oreal… I'm at the plot, dictating this into my phone and later on I'll be sitting at my desk correcting the grammar and also making sure spell check has worked, because sometimes when I say ‘weed’ it comes up as ‘read’ or occasionally ‘reed’ if it's feeling in the horticultural mood. Richard's at home at the moment doing some recording of rhubarb recipes; I think a Rhubarb Fool with Greek yogurt, and also hopefully making a crumble. I've got no idea what supper is going to be yet; it may just be some salad with cheese as we've got lots of lettuce and tomatoes and cucumber, or maybe it will be something like a farinata which I've been wanting to make for absolutely ages but never got round to. I think it needs time to sit after the batter’s been made, so maybe that's something for another day. Anyway, much of this will become clear by bedtime! Happy Days indeed! Weather: It’s overcast much of the day, around 22°… the sun tries its hardest to break through, though never quite makes it… Breakfast: All Bran, Yogurt and a little oat milk Snack: Lidl Corncakes with some buttery spready, yeast extract and thin slivers of cheese Lunch: Lidl Lentil Soup bulked out with softened red lentils, cottage cheese, yeast extract, cucumber, tomato, radish and crackers Supper: I’ll let you know!
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 Corfe Castle 9 - 12 July 2025 (Wednesday to Saturday) Wednesday morning, and we were up early as we were off to spend a few days in Swanage with Vivi (of Vivi's Kitchen Garden) at her Cottage by the Sea. Again, a trip seemed to be coinciding with another heat wave over the days that we were to be away, so I was down at the plot to do some really early morning watering; I thought it sensible to get as much deeply watered as possible. After breakfast, and packing our bags and making a few snacks for the journey, we got into Fenella and after a quick pit stop at our local garage to check tyre pressures, we were on our way, soon wending our way down the M3 and onwards through Surrey, Hampshire and into Dorset. We had a necessary (for me) toilet break at Winchester services, where on the way out I couldn't resist a Greggs vegan sausage roll which we ate in the car; neither roll was as warm as we’d wanted it to be but the taste was rather lovely. Post stuffing our faces, a beautiful butterfly landed on Richard's bracelet as he was sitting in the car with the door open; it just stayed on his bracelet licking his skin, possibly taking either moisture or salts. Even with some gentle blowing encouragement the butterfly didn't want to move, so eventually Richard got out of the car and moved to an area of trees where there was lots of shade, and the butterfly decided it was time to move on… just as we then did, continuing our journey down to Swanage. After much motorway and many country roads, we were greeted at Vivi’s front door with many hugs. Happy Huggy Days!! It was time to unpack Fenella, ensuring she had nothing remaining visible to curious passersby, then we drove up the hill a little bit further and parked in free parking a few streets away. Back at Vivi's Cottage by the Sea and after a cup of tea and much chat, we had lunch which Vivi had already prepared which was a fantastic Greek salad which we had with bread and dips of my hummus which Vivi’d made and also an edamame hummus which was new to me and absolutely delicious - I got the recipe from Vivi straight away, and as it’s just a few swap outs of my own is another easy one to do. Lots of table chatting and garden talk, and then at the end of the afternoon, we popped down to walk along the seafront, had an ice cream and sat down and watched people enjoying themselves, sitting quietly as the Swanage world went on around us. As we sat, I was somewhat surprised to hear some rousing Chairman Mao style music, with a host of voices singing along to galvanising Chinese music… it took me half an hour to realise it was actually British sea shanties emanating from the pirate and Jurassic Park themed Sante-Fe Fun Park behind us, landside of the main promenade road! How our mind plays tricks with us… In the evening, we had one of Vivi’s delicious mild curries outside in Vivi's fabulous cottage garden. The growth rate of the garden since our last visit in May has been phenomenal, with tomatoes way way higher than my own at the plot and growth on plants that I’d given Vivi much stronger than I have at the plot myself. I think the soil must be really good, though also, and MOST importantly, all the genuine hard graft that Vivi’s put in turning a tired overgrown back garden space into a flourishing veg patch with lots of flowers and LOTS of wildlife. Sitting at her wonderful table, the hard graft has to be admired and applauded. When Vivi says she's going to do something she certainly gets on and does it, and with her garden, or rather her producing garden I should say, the effort is really paying off, and in so many ways. We sat out chatting and laughing until the light had gone, and even after this Vivi brought candles out, so chats and star-gazing continued. At the very end of the evening we went in and sat down in Vivi's living room for half an hour or so before getting off to bed… and of course, a few pages of my book.  After the first swim in the sea... Thursday saw me up early, and at the kitchen table having a cup of tea. I didn’t have the knack for the back door, though Richard was up soon after and then Vivi joined us and we sat out at her garden table chatting away, and Richard and myself having a breakfast of All Bran. After breakfast, it was down to the beach again, this time walking farther than we'd walked before, right across the promenade and in front of the beach huts, and then over the groynes which are there to reduce the impact of the waves on the beach huts and cliff, and then to a space on the sand where the nearest person was 200 meters away. It had been very hot on our walk, and I decided immediately to do something that I hadn't really expected to do, and that was to go for a swim in the sea… even though I wasn’t prepared for one! As Vivi was getting her dress off, bending over to undo her shoes, she looked to the side and saw that I was already down to my knickers and vest and pacing off towards the lapping water. Very soon Vivi followed in her bathing costume, and in we both went… cautiously at first, just feeling the temperature of the water on our toes and ankles and shins and knees and thighs and, well, other bits… Once I was up to my waist, and with my face turned towards Vivi in the shallower waters and Richard sitting on the beach, I let myself lean back and fall into the water… and then immediately started swimming as it felt rather chilly… After a few moments, my brain began to realise quite how delicious this whole experience was… and a few metres away there was our Vivi, fully in too and we were both swimming, each finding warm patches, or making our own… We stayed in swimming and chatting and laughing and in my case crying for about half an hour or so. The last time I'd even seriously paddled in water was 10 years ago with mum at Rocquaine in Guernsey, a few days after dad had died… memorable in so many ways, especially it being my 50th birthday. Mum was in her bathing costume and I was up to my thighs in water and we were just walking along the shoreline looking out at the fabulous view of the sea, and then looking back at the fabulous view of Guernsey. It was a moment to reflect, and a moment to treasure. Now, a decade on, and with mum now gone, I was having my first time in seawater since that moment, so not surprisingly emotions rose to the surface… just like my blubber-filled body did as I quietly laid back, floating on the surface of the silently whooshing waves. I hadn't really come prepared to swim, as I hadn't hugely expected to be swimming, but Vivi had come prepared and she and I sat on a towel she’d brought, drying off in the warm breeze and sunshine, chatting away with Richard. We sat there for half an hour or more, with the sun beating down and the salt crystals forming on our skins, and then we packed our things up and started walking our way back to Vivi’s Cottage by the Sea. For both Vivi and myself, this first swim had been special and emotional and essential in so many ways… and we had done it together… which was bloody marvelous! Happy Days indeed!! Back home (note the use of the word home - as it already feels like a home away from home), and still flushed with the joy of having swum, it was time for lunch and Vivi heated up some of her delicious Courgette & Potato Soup, added some grated cheddar, and we had leftover dips and bread with spread for lunch, again sitting at her table out in Vivi's lovely cottage garden, chatting and watching the wildlife fly by… butterflies and hummingbird moths, and bees and wasps and hoverflies, and then of course seagulls and town pigeons and country pigeons and doves and so much else, all with the occasional backdrop of a hoot and a chuff chuff from the railway line, and tinkly chiming bells of the local church striking the hour and half hour. Bliss! In the evening, we decided we’d go out and have chips so we went to Vivi’s favoured chippie, ordered a portion of chips for Vivi, cod and chips for Richard, and haddock and chips for me. With wrapped paper bags filled with goodies in our hands, we made our way along the front to a short pier, which is actually called Stone Quay as it's where local small ferries dock. A bench was free, so we sat down to eat our seaside suppers, with seagulls keeping an eye, and one dive bombing my chips though not quite getting away with one… it's only when a seagull is close up to you and literally flying over your lap and have a wing bashing your shoulder as it passes, that you suddenly realise quite how big, how strong and how heavy a seagull can be!  A labrador helping out at the seaside... Photo courtesy of Vivi of 'What Vivi did next' and 'Vivi's Kitchen Garden'. After our fish supper (a very rare thing for Richard and myself now as we only ever have when we’re at the seaside, as fish never features in any shopping basket) and chippie supper for Vivi (Vivi eats no fish), we watched all around us, enjoying the water, and the sun and the sumptuous air that only a seaside town like Swanage can do; suntanned kids jumping off piers into deep water, others on inflatable paddle boards being dragged out of the water by a tugging labrador, and water lapping calmly and endlessly against any surface it wants. A little walk along the front to Banjo Pier, and then it was back home and back to the table in Vivi's cottage garden at her Cottage by the Sea, and time for a few rounds of Yahtzee. Happy Days!!
Friday morning, and we’d already planned to drive back up the valley to visit Corfe Castle, which you cannot NOT see as you pass by on your way to and out of Swanage. Imposing… ruined… majestic. Richard had wanted to visit it on our first trip to Vivi's Swanage, though there just wasn't time, so this time we made time. So, after breakfast we walked up the remainder of Cardiac Hill that Vivi lives on, across and then up Cardio Hill, which is even steeper. Fenella was patiently waiting a short distance away on the next crossroad, and we piled into her and began our short journey to Corfe Castle. Now, Richard and I are members of the National Trust though we’d forgotten that Corfe Castle was a National Trust property… and also forgotten our membership cards! Despite this, we decided that if we couldn't get in with our membership numbers it was worth the cost just to have a walk around this magnificent castle with so much history. Parking up, and going into the Welcome Centre, I asked about parking and membership and the lovely lady immediately said it was not a problem and that our membership could be looked up at the Ticket Office, which was a 10 to 15 minute walk away. She also gave me a slip of paper with the date of our visit specified, so back to Fenella I popped to put the gifted slip on Fenella’s windscreen, to ensure that we wouldn't get charged the penalty fee for not paying for parking. Delighted, I walked back to the Welcome Centre, met up with Vivi and Rochard again… and in the short time I’d been away Vivi had been scouring the shelves of secondhand books for sale… so back off I went to Fenella to fill her boot with Vivi’s wordy gems. Crossing the road carefully, we made our way along the incredibly white chalk path, glistening with sunshine and shadows, over a brook and then wound our way up around the castle battlements to the Ticket Office. Sure enough, they were able to look up our membership and give us tokens which would give us free entry to the castle… technology can be a boon! The walk was pretty rough underfoot, and the castle always were too, though we had such a fantastic time; sometimes walking and chatting the three of us, sometimes in twos, and sometimes just individually wandering around taking pictures and video and watching the train coming in or leaving Corfe Castle station. Also, there are peregrines nesting at the top of the battered battlements which seems so apt, and two of them were happy to show themselves during the time we were there, both looking down on us and occasionally making the noises that are now so familiar over my allotment. I think we must have spent about an hour and a half wandering the castle, and then meandered back down through the huge gateway and into the cafe garden, where we ordered a cream tea, a savoury cream tea and Vivi had a quiche of some sort, I think it had red onion marmalade in it which also came with the savoury cream tea. We hoped that we'd be able to sit in the garden, in the shade, though there was a Wasp Alert on which was signalled on signs and that we were told about at the time of ordering… so once we had sat down and the jam for the cream tea was noted by the wasps, we decided to move inside and have our food and drink in the cafe rather than in the wonderful garden… even so, a wasp followed us in and stayed with us, flying and feasting on a little bit of jam that had somehow made its way onto Richard’s bag. After our little repaste we had a wander of the little village of Corfe Castle, window shopping, visiting the little museum, then crossing over and visiting the rather fabulous railway station. The station itself is a throwback to yesteryear and I think manned completely by volunteers. The train that goes through is powered by steam and goes down to Swanage and up the other way a stop or two. It always amazes me how the time and generosity of a few individuals has ensured that these historic railways and stations and railway lines remain intact, something I think we often forget, sadly. Walking back along the chalk path to Fenella, who was quietly waiting in the car park, we then drove back to Vivi’s for further chats and laughs and games and fabulous food (Vivi's delicious Fassolada) and an evening outside, at her table, in her cottage garden of her Cottage by the Sea, with candles burning and under the crisp starry sky… listening to various jazz sessions glistening over Swanage as part of its annual Jazz Festival at the start of the British summer holiday season.  Swanage Bay Saturday was another planned day in many ways, mainly as it was the day that we were going to be leaving and driving back to a rather hot and sticky London. However, we’d decided that we’d go for another swim, so after some bran flakes we all got ready, which for Vivi meant putting on her bathing costume and for me and Richard meant just dressing like we normally do… no, I’d not bought any swimming shorts yet as I hadn't seen any that I really fancied… though to be fair, I hadn't really looked either!
Off we went again, down the very short journey into Swanage town, and then left along the beach front to Ocean Bay and then just a bit beyond. It was still early in the morning, around 8:30 or 9 and there were already loads of people bundling onto the main beaches of this fabulous resort. However, and thankfully, where we went it was still pretty quiet; there were a few people between the groynes that we chose to swim from, and some of the beach huts were open or being opened by their owners. As with Thursday, I went in with my knickers and T-shirt and Vivi in her slinky bathing costume. At first, the water seemed a little bit cooler than on Thursday; maybe because it was early in the morning and the sun hadn't been beating down for several hours warming the top few inches or more. However, we were both soon fully in and again paddled and swam away each to our heart's content, literally as swimming is such a good exercise and gets the heart pumping. It’s only on occasions like this, filled with deep joy, I remember how much swimming was a part of my life growing up. From a very early age, as a baby mum would leave me in a pram or pushchair outside the front door of mum and dad's B&B, and if mum went back at 9:15 and I was gone she knew that she had the day to herself to get on with washing and cleaning and making dinner for all the guests that evening. A visitor or visitors would have taken me off to the beach or to town or to wherever they were going for the day. Most often, it was to the beach and for many years the beach was just an intrinsic part of my life… sand, sea, sandwiches, smiles - even then always a sanctuary too. Maybe one day it will be so again, though just now, for these precious moments of Vivi and I being in the water, it felt so right, and so good, and so joyous. Again, we sat on a towel on the sand and dried off a little bit, and then walked back along the seafront where by now the beaches and walkways were just bustling with folk, and buckets and spades and float boards and sandwich bags, and windbreakers and little shelters, and many smiles with the hope of a fun day out. Back at Vivi’s Cottage by the Sea, Richard made toast and the three of us sat at the table in Vivi's cottage garden, enjoying proper toast topped with a spoon or two of Purbeck honey from a pot that Vivi had bought specifically for our visit… it was totally delicious, and another slice or two was had by each of us. The rest of the morning was leisurely chatting and packing and washing-up and watering the plants in the garden and filling watering cans and doing 101 things, and then it was time for the final feast of this visit which was a cheese and tomato sandwich made by Richard. Sitting at the table, with the smell of salt in the air and seagulls above it once again took me back to being a kid, eating cheese and tomato sandwiches on the beach at L’Eree, almost six decades ago; a cheese and tomato sandwich when there’s salt in the air will always bring memories back off the perfect fodder for a beach. The only difference with our sandwich today was that it hadn't trundled its way down to a beach in the Tupperware and sat sweating under a towel in the shade for an hour or two, so our fabulous sandwich was cool and crisp and just the right temperature, rather than warm, and floppy, and tasty and welcomed as was often the case when we were kids on the beach. Happy Days!! It was soon time to wend our way back to London, and with lots of hugs and a little planning for our next visit, I walked up Cardiac Hill and Cardio Hill to collect Fenella, drove her down, pulled in outside of Vivi's Cottage by the Sea and then we packed our bags back in, had more hugs, and started our relatively uneventful journey back to London, where things would begin getting back to normal… including a visit to the plot in the evening to check on how things were doing and to give plants a water if needed, and recording Sunday Chat on Sunday morning… an event in itself! Weather: Sunny throughout, with a slight breeze, and very warm… though quite a few degrees less than the heatwave of 34° in London! Wednesday Breakfast: All Bran and oat milk Snack: Greggs Vegan Sausage Roll Lunch: Vivi’s Greek Salad (with Feta), hummus, edamame hummus, olives, and bread Supper: Chickpea, Cauliflower & Mushroom Curry with bread Thursday Breakfast: All Bran and toast Lunch: Courgette & Potato Soup, Edamame Hummus, Bread, Olives Supper: Haddock & Chips Friday Breakfast: Bran Flakes and All Bran and toast with cherry jam Lunch: Savoury Aft Cream Tea (Corfe Castle Tea Room) Supper: Vivi's Fassolada and bread Saturday Breakfast: Bran Flakes and toast with Purbeck honey Lunch: Cheese & Tomato Sandwich Supper: Broad Bean & Basil Pesto with wholewheat spaghetti and a tomato, cucumber and basil salad  Heather Alexander as Miss Havisham. Photo courtesy of Peter Mould. 2 July 2025 (Wednesday) Up early, and it was definitely feeling cooler… and what was that? The pitter patter of rain dripping from the unconnected roof guttering! Well, at least it was raining! Up early and our walk will have to wait… as it's too wet, so after a cuppa it's to my desk for a work work morning, and then lunch… Richard’s Quick Roasted Courgettes with a herb crumble… delish!! We had the rest of my Bulgur Pesto Salad too. Off to the plot, and I checked on whether anything needed watering, despite the rain this morning. It was regular and medium-weight rain for a good few hours and most things looked fine, though I gave the squash extra water… and the courgettes. Back home, and I was waiting to hear from Vanessa as we were due to see a show at Jermyn Street Theatre this evening, and I didn’t know whether she wanted to meet before, or just at the start of the show… eventually I found out, and thankfully had had a bath earlier as I needed to leave virtually immediately to meet her around 6.30pm… though in the end the traffic was terrible for her getting in, so we met outside the theatre at about 7.20pm, 10 mins before curtain up! Now, the show… It’s called Havisham, and is a show I’ve wanted to see for some years. The show's director, Dominique Garrard, I know from my Bush Theatre days of two decades ago, and on Facebook I’ve been following (not stalking!) Dominique for ages. Havisham’s about…. Miss Havisham of Great Expectations… It’s a truly fabulous imagining of how she got to be the woman we know… sitting at a dusky, dark dust-ridden wedding feast table in an old house right out on the edge of the marshes. Still dressed in her wedding finery, now all soiled and grimy and stained, having been jilted at the altar many years ago to never recover. But who was she, and how did she get her, and why is that bitter hate so sharp and dangerous? Well, this imaging is truly excellent, and fully engaged me throughout.
The writing is so well crafted, with a totally believable back story that made me want to reread Great Expectations, now ‘knowing’ so more of a pivotal character that we ‘knew’ so little about before. The copy (blurb) reads “This is the story that Dickens left out…” and I have to say, old Charlie boy should have put it in! Next time I see Gerald Dickens, which won’t be too long, I’ll have to ask him if he’s seen Havisham - as if not, he must! Heather Alexander was just superb in the part, taking us through the early years of a lonesome girl, through her challenges with men, and life, and abandonment, into happier times… and then betrayal… though not one of us expected how such a betrayal would come about! Utterly gripping throughout. And what I haven’t said is that Heather wrote the piece too, so beautifully multi-talented. I now want to see her other show ROOM. Havisham’s whole production was superb, and Dominique’s direction, of course fabulous. Both Vanessa and I could see how the show would work at the Great Green Barn, and are both sure it’s one for next year, if Heather and Dominique can fit us in! After a quick meet with Heather post-show (I’m sure she and I have met before - yet I’m not sure how… I don’t think at Kenwrights, though Ray Cooney springs to mind), and it was time for us to all wend our ways back home. If you see the show near you, or within travelling distance, do go and see it, as it is so worth it!!! A quick sideline - I see Heather is doing the Edinburgh Fringe Festival this year with Becoming Maverick, inspired by the character of Mrs Danvers from Daphne du Maurier's Rebecca - another of my favourite books! This will definitely be worth a ticket!!.. Of course I also LOVED seeing the lovely, fabulous and talented Dominique after so long, and we had a brief catch-up. She’s still doing work at Questors Theatre in Ealing Broadway, so we WILL have a coffee and a further catch-up soon!! My journey in and back was adventurously unadventurous… the Elizabeth Line makes much of journeying into London pretty easy now, and swift, despite this journey time being the same as it would have been without this regal line. As I stepped off the train at Hanwell station, with a darkened summer sky and a cool breeze, the heatwave of just a few days ago seemed miles away. A home, a cup of TV, a catch-up with Richard, and then it was time to get to bed and read a chapter of my new book. Happy Days! Weather: Rain first thing for several hours, then warming, though definitely cooler. Around 25°. Breakfast: All Bran and oat milk Lunch: Richard’s Quick Roasted Courgettes and leftover Bulgur Pasta Salad Supper: Rice crackers, yeast extract and peanut butter  26 June 2025 (Thursday)
Another early start and a walk, though not as early as previous days… but we got up, had a cuppa, did our walk, and then the day continued… Trying to get ahead of the game as we have a busy weekend, plus there was quite a lot to do for the Great Green Barn in getting fitness class socials out to hopefully sell for the week after next… rather too late to put an event on sale in my opinion, though Vanessa is keen to get some fitness going, so… fingers crossed! For lunch I did Butterbean Smash, all wrapped up in a wholewheat wrap from Lidl. Delish!! The afternoon was a chat with Vanessa, as we need to do Monday’s ordering today as she wants a few days off - so she goes through what we need and I make a note and do the ordering. Then I’m down to the plot, and doing watering, and adding cordial bottles to the Cheeky Prince squash I planted out a few days ago from their modules - they needed to go in, so in they went. I also took down two watering cans that I’d bought to replace my favourite one; it is near the end of its life and the plastic is cracking all over. As I’m keen not to add plastic and particularly microplastics to the soil it was time to ditch it and replace it. Now, I've bought various watering cans over the years, both metal and plastic, though this Ebert one was my favourite BY FAR! In the end, with a Google I found one VERY similar, and bought two! The rose, the spraying bit on the end looked similar, and in use is similar, which I am really glad about as the drenching ability of my favourite really needed to be replicated, and now it is - more on this and watering cans in next week’s A Week at the Plot! Happy Watering Can Days!! Butterbean Smash Drained can of butter beans, half a red onion diced finely, two sticks of celery diced quiet small though still to give a good bite, a teaspoon or two of miso paste, two teaspoons of dijon mustard, one tablespoon mayo, one tablespoon of yeast flakes, about ten torn up basil leaves, and some halved olives. You can have this to put on crackers, or with a big salad, on toast would be delish, though we had wrapped up in a wholewheat wrap from Lidl. Weather: Overcast though warming; around 28°. Breakfast: Bran Flakes, oat milk and a banana Lunch: Butterbean Smash wraps Supper: Broad Bean & Basil Pesto with wholewheat spaghetti and grated cheddar  15 June 2025 (Sunday)
A bit of a funny Sunday as we’d yet to record Sunday Chat, which we did late morning, though before that Richard fancied a cooked breakfast - he pulled out almost all the stops and did an absolute banger of one! The sausages were Lidl’s Vemondo Cumberland Veggie ones, and there was also grilled tomatoes, pitta, scrambled eggs and baked beans - If we’d had mushrooms, they would have been on the plate too! It was bloody delish, and set us up for the day! I finished editing A Week at the Plot, after breakfast, then we recorded Sunday Chat quite late in the morning. After having a big breakfast, there was little need for lunch other than a mid-afternoon snack, so after a little house-keeping at my desk I went to the plot to water and do a few jobs. A relatively relaxing afternoon, including for me a bath, and then Richard decided he’d make his Quick Soya Burgers for supper, and I said we had two baps we could use for them, and I made a salad. We watched an intriguing programme on how organs (the instrument kind!) are being lost throughout the UK - with them either being saved (and most going to France) or just dumped… Organ Stops: Saving the King of Instruments, it’s well worth a watch. Then we dived into Happy Families, though Richard fell asleep halfway through episode 5 so I pressed Stop, and we’ll pick up on it tomorrow. Instead, I watched half an episode of Endeavour, which I’m again working my way through… it must be about the sixth time! Undoubtedly there will be a seventh time… and an eighth… and a ninth… Weather: Cooler than yesterday by about 6°, though still warm in the sun. Breakfast: Richard’s Cooked Veggie Breakfast Lunch: Rice cake, yeast extract and peanut butter Supper: Quick Soya Burger in a Bap, lettuce and mixed salad of olives, cucumber, red onion and tomato  A pretty poppy, despite now fading - it's priority... maturing seeds! 10 June 2025 (Tuesday)
They say it’s warming up, though it’s a chilly, grey start to the day… Up and at my desk with a cuppa by 6.30am, and work work and work, as I need to edit the segment I recorded at the plot yesterday… I had not expected to record anything, though when I saw harvests… A morning of work work is frustrated by a lorry having taken down the festoon lighting over the parking area at For Earth’s Sake, and another regular supplier has ‘a driver missing’ so the thing that usually pops up first thing on a Tuesday for me to check doesn’t appear - after a bit of scratching of my head I decided to call and see what’s what, and the what was a missing driver, so the delivery will be tomorrow. It’s not a major hardship, as we don't open until tomorrow anyway, and the customer service person can tell me what they’ve not been able to fulfill of our order, so I can get on and start following through the usual Tuesday morning routine - albeit an hour and a half later. Then a call from Vanessa, which is full of static - both images and crackle... and then we realise the broadband's not working... is it something to do with the festoon lighting coming down? No idea!!! But, the upshot is I can't connect to the till from where I am at my home office, so any changes I make to prices are not reflected live on the till... I know we've said this in Sunday Chat, though do we now rely on connectivity and broadband too much? Time will tell, and it's a priority to get this sorted, though Vanessa has other things to do today too... So I leave her to it... Inspired by Richard’s Warm Couscous Salad, I do a quick stir fry for lunch - olive oil, an onion, three thinly sliced carrots, about 100g frozen peas, a little turmeric and also a little madras powder, and leftover cooked brown rice. With a little Bragg’s liquid aminos we have a warming spiced rice lunch - filling, though more importantly… warming! However, after lunch the sky starts brightening - it looks as though that warmer, sunnier weather may be on the way! I needed a few answers from Vanessa, though she was already stressed out, understandably, by the broadband, and the get-in that started yesterday is still happening, which for her is a joy - a show, being busy and what she absolutely knows; theatre is definitely in her blood! When I do ask something mid-afternoon, she tells me via WhatsApp she’s “breathing in the lovely afternoon, cutting laurels and clearing soil for the pond and tractoring the chairs down to the Dell”... so I leave her to it and go to the plot to water and plant some things into beds... and I find this pretty poppy too, despite the fact it's gone over as having already given it's best, yet of course, maturing all those tiny seeds is now it's priority! Home, then a quick supper of wraps, protein and salad… then some TV to calm the rest of the day... priorities. Oh, and I have a new book to start when I go to bed - Louise Penny's How the Light Gets In... priorities again! Happy Days!! Weather: Grey, though it is due to start warming… sun late afternoon, as forecast. Breakfast: Bran Sticks, yogurt, and sultanas Lunch: Spiced Vegetable Rice (see above) - inspired by Richard's Warm CousCous Salad Supper: Wraps - one hummus and one cheese - with lettuce and homemade coleslaw  Richard, the master photographer at work 22 & 23 May 2025 (Thursday & Friday) Thursday morning, and I was up early, making a cuppa or two in Vivi’s kitchen, taking one out onto her patio garden which we’d gently walked through yesterday. Standing still, slightly honey sweetened tea in hand, the view is just divine; the still waters of the bay, imposing chalk headland, borrowed landscape of rose covered walls, rooves and chimneys, a steeple and crenellations - this is something I’d not tire of, ever! Back in the kitchen, Richard joined me and we had breakfast, starting with our cereal then putting on some thick toast for us when Vivi joined. Lots of chat, a little more chat, then a little more chat, then up, dressed and out, walking further up Cardiac Hill, along, then up Cardio Hill which seems even steeper. Our mission… a not so little walking tour up to the South West Coast Path, down along to Peveril Point, then carefully step by stone step down to the harbour-to-headland promenade, across the fronts of houses and backs of marine businesses, over a small beach and then behind the Yacht Club with its glimmer of exclusivity and warden-manned gates, then breathing in the sights and glorious scent of roses and mallow in an elevated border as our feet trod along at ground level once again. All the while the breeze blew gently, the sun shone brightly and the salty smell of the sea brought back happy days of buckets and spades, and seaweed and sand… and grease-proof paper wrapped sandwiches in Tupperware with no branding. Happy Days indeed! With Vivi and Richard taking a seat in the sanctuary garden, I went off passing restaurants and day trippers to the seafront facilities to do what seafront facilities allow before returning to the two of them, reading a few restaurant menus on the way back as time was less pressing. Back at Vivi’s and after a delicious lunch we were out back, in the garden, pulling ivy and planning a lightbulb change which required a quick trip down the street and across town to the hardware store, where we met the lovely Wendy and her sisters; she’s a subscriber to What Vivi did next and was just so delighted to have met Vivi whilst on her holibobs with her sisters. Lightbulb bought, we popped into the train station to watch the smoke rise as a steam train left the platform, then off to the Co-op and up to the Mill Pond, then down again back to the High Street, passing on the way a hotel that was once a nunnery, and antique and bric-a-brac shops, and pubs… there are quite a few pubs! Then it was home to change the outside bulb, which we did and found out worked once it was dark… although Vivi told us by the next evening the lower one wasn’t working though the upper one we changed on Friday morning was - maybe a loose wire. A delicious bits and pieces supper with a glass or two, much chat, then bed.
Friday, and again I was up first, though not as early as yesterday, and then Vivi, and then Richard. Cups of tea for Richard and me, and the same routine of breakfast as yesterday and then we were back out in the garden with the view pulling more ivy, gently though firmly; it’s a fabulous plant, but you really don’t want it to take hold in and through your Purbeck stone walls, of which there are many thousands in the area! After a vibrant, tangy, and salty Greek Salad a la Vivi, it was time to wend our way back up Cardiac Hill and Cardio Hill, check Fenella was fine and dandy, depress the clutch, turn the key and start our journey back to London, leaving Vivi and a little bit of ourselves in Swanage. I doubt it will be long before the three of us, Fenella included, will be back south to visit once again Vivi’s Cottage by the Sea. Thursday 22 May Weather: Swanage was a little warmer and gorgeously sunny. Around 18° Breakfast: Bran Sticks, oat milk, and Richard's bread machine wholemeal loaf as toast with Flora ProActiv and honey Lunch: Vivi’s Chickpea Curry with thick slices of Richard's bread machine wholemeal loaf Supper: Crackers, oat cakes, hummus, blue cheese, cheddar, orange Friday 23 May Weather: Swanage was a little cooler and greyer than yesterday. Around 16° Breakfast: Bran Sticks, oat milk, and Richard's bread machine wholemeal loaf as toast with Flora ProActiv and honey Lunch: Vivi’s Greek Salad Supper: Wholewheat Spaghetti with broad beans, basil pesto and grated cheese, and radish  26 April 2025 (Saturday)
We were both up early; me at my desk very early to edit together yesterday's A Week at the Plot footage and upload to Planet Vegetaria. Sunday Chat filming day, and whilst Richard started editing it together I made lunch of homemade hummus - a staple in our house which freezes REALLY well! I’ve popped my recipe below. It’s also so easy, and you can use your own cooked chickpeas instead of a tin, just ensure if they’ve been frozen they are well defrosted. After lunch, I was at the plot doing the usual watering, checking on germination, tidying and weeding… at the end of my work there, sitting on my wooden chair outside the shed and mulling wending my way home, I checked the time on my phone… 5:03pm. My eye wandered to my left, spying the overgrown flower border bed… Into the shed I went, and grabbing my kneeler, putting my gloves back on, and laying my hands on a big 30l tub, I got to work. Half an hour later the bed looked very much better - at least I can now see the plants for the weeds! LOTS of weeds still to pull, and especially sturdy roots of tufted grasses and that pernicious Cinquefoil, though I can take my time doing some each week. It will never be perfect, though in reality very, very few things ever are! Whilst cooking supper I read another chapter or two of The Beautiful Mystery. I’m now at that stage where I’m keen to finish it, though don’t want to as I’ve enjoyed reading it so much - a bit like when you meet a friend irregularly and after hours of chat you know you need to leave and make your way home, though at the same time you want to stay and chat for just that little bit longer. If youi don't know the Louise Penny's Inspector Gamache series, I highly recommend them! Supper was followed by some TV, and we stayed up late, both fully engaged watching a fab series called 40 Hidden Music Treasures at the BBC… we watched volume two and there's volume three too, so two others to watch! Happy Days!! My Hummus Recipe I drained two cans of chickpeas very well, and added them to our food processor (keep a few tablespoons of the liquid - aquafaba - for if you want to use any later) and four cloves of garlic, roughly chopped. I actually used a block of garlic from the freezer - I heated it through in the microwave to bring it to a steam, just because I don’t like eating vegetables from the freezer without cooking them. In next, one tablespoon of Marigold bouillon powder (use a teaspoon of salt if you prefer) and five tablespoons of lemon juice (love fresh lemons, though I always have a large bottle of bought lemon juice in the fridge, which I use for this). If you like your hummus less lemony use only four, and if you like it extra lemony use six! Blitz this all up in the processor, or mash with a fork if you are doing by hand - doing this by hand you can keep this as chunky as you wish, or not, though it will never be smooth like you get in the shops. I’ve not used a stick blender for this, though I would be interested to know how it works so please let me know, or I’ll give it a go myself at some point. The fridge always has a large tub of tahini, which is sesame paste, and four generous tablespoons goes in, and I blitz again (or carry on mixing and mashing if doing by hand). Scrape down the sides of the processor bowl to ensure all is incorporated, and blitz till smooth, or until you have the texture you wish. If you like your hummus thinner, add some more lemon juice or a tablespoon or two of the drained aquafaba from the can. I portion this up into plastic Tupperware or similar and freeze; I do 150g servings for two. It will keep in the fridge happily for several days, and in the freezer for several months. In the summer if I take out a tub at breakfast it's defrosted by lunch, and I give it a good stir. In the winter it might need a quick wizz on Defrost in a microwave, or bring it out the day before and pop in the fridge to fully defrost. I don't have a photo - though when I find one or make the next batch I will add! Weather: Overcast start to the day, and remained so much of the day with the afternoon being bright and much warmer. Breakfast: Bran sticks, yogurt and sultanas Lunch: Homemade Hummus, Pitta, carrot batons, cucumber slices and a little leftover coleslaw Supper: Lidl Vegan Cumberland Sausage, roasted carrot, parsnips, onion and potato wedges with an instant onion gravy  10 April 2025 (Thursday) We planned a visit to Aston Rowant today so we got up early, getting our ablutions and breakfast all done and dusted and me preparing a snack and a flask of tea for our trip. It's part of our routine to take a snack and beverage with us so that we can sit on a bench, a fallen tree or a ledge, refuel, and ponder all around us, even when we're only going to Kew Gardens… a mere twenty minutes drive away! I guess as well as sustenance, it's a treat, harking back to picnics of bygone days. Richard hadn't slept very well, so he asked if I’d drive which I obviously had no problem with. It can be quite challenging when you've had a poor night’s sleep to then be in charge of any equipment, especially something as dangerous as a car driving along the motorway at whatever speed your head and foot dictate! After an uneventful drive, where chat and gaps were both welcome, we parked up in the Natural England car park at the end of the now very well weathered and pitted road. The car park’s used by dog walkers, walkers and doggers alike; each category of user having their own purpose and pleasures! We did our usual round: walking from the car park down to the lookout point, through the gate (that had PLOP written on it in chalk…), along the chalk embankment (hence writing implement for the PLOP), then up across the sheep walk and the back down to look out over Aylesbury plain, down into the woodland, up the wider path to go into the forest, left into the side forest that sweeps around the giant field of yellow flowered rapeseed, and right past fallen pointy tree point, and along almost to the road, turning 180° at this point to retrace our steps. We took our time, and halfway through the long walk of the side forest sat on our favourite bench to have our snack, with some quiet chat and a managed gap in trees giving an almost secretive glimpse of the hazy plain beyond. The first three quarters of the walk was incredibly wonderful, as we met not a single person. It's always lovely when walking to pass somebody and nod, or give a smile, or say “Hello” or “Morning” or “Lovely day for it”... and it's even more special to do the same walk and meet no one. True bliss, surely?  On our way back, just passing the bench where we'd had our snack not twenty minutes previous, I saw the first dog walker; up along the top path, his mongrel bounding excitedly ahead and he following on, with a whistle quietly thrusting through his teeth. He seemed oblivious to me being on the lower path, and of Richard fifty feet behind taking a photo of some wood anemones.
Richard had decided that we'd take a new way back to the car, which I was slightly wary of as the suggested path went sharply down, meandering away from where we needed to get to and if we followed it down I was sure at some point we'd have to wind the whole way right back up. I also wasn't sure it was a circular path, instead thinking it led away from where we wanted to get to in order to take ourselves back to the Fenella. However, being the staunch adventurers we are, we walked down the steep incline, and after about five minutes of trepidatious foot placing and much rustling of leaves found ourselves at the back of a few houses… With uncertainty of what was ahead and a certainty of what was behind we turned round, making our way back up the steeping incline breathing deeply and puffing gently as we both went. Back at the top, we began our way back to the car, retracing our steps rather than taking the usual shortcut along the rutted road. We passed various other folk, and when we got back to a high point where it's necessary to go through a gate we found two rather fluffy terriers standing still and watching what we were doing, with anticipation or apathy, I couldn't really tell. Their ‘owners’ looked to be nowhere, though the hilltop hid them and they were maybe just a few feet behind; an elderly couple, and she took a rest on the incongruous lone metal chair that's pegged into the ground. I guess they do this walk regularly, maybe weekly, even daily, maybe even twice daily. Who knows but them and their dogs? As we greeted and passed on our way as walkers without dogs and dog walkers so, I imagined the couple having lived their lives together for decades, dogs changing as they do as the years of love and care go by. Of course, they may have only recently found each other, though I felt there was a comfort of knowing between them that only comes with uncounted days of give and take, and a developed deep understanding of one another… and suddenly I’m reminded of my mum and dad, and the joys and jostles life threw their way. A moment of anguish that they're no longer with us, and minutes of smiles as I remember the happy time… and then looking up I see a red kite soar in the thermals and my mind is taken elsewhere. Back at the car park, with boots taken off and shoes put back on, we sat in the car just watching things go by; Richard fiddling with his camera and lenses and me watching a red kite circling close by, maybe the same one, maybe not. In one of its turns dropping off an unwanted poo cargo that thankfully, despite its trajectory, was far enough away to miss Fenella. There was a joy in this moment… a first for me, as I'd never seen a red kite pooping in midair before… in fact not surprisingly, I’d never seen a red kite’s ablutions before. Happy days indeed, though if I’d been underneath it… it could have been a very Lucky Day, as the old wives’ tale goes. The drive back, as usual, seemed to take less time than the getting there, and once home and lunch was had, it was time to get to my desk for an hour's work work. As Richard electronically developed all the photos he’d taken, sorting out what was good and what was not and what would be used where, I popped to the plot to do the necessary watering. It hasn't rained for well over two weeks now, and watering needs to be done. The forecasters say that at the back end of the weekend the temperature will dip from the highs that we're getting now and rain will come. And even though I love the temperatures, the rain will be welcome. Happy Days! Weather: Cloudy start, with sun coming out late morning. Blue skies and sun in the afternoon, and warm veering to hot, circa 22°. Bliss. Breakfast: Bran sticks, yogurt, banana, sultanas Aston Rowant Snack: Rice Cracker Sandwich with spread, yeast extract and thinly sliced cheese, and tea Lunch: Baguette with Quorn Chicken slices, coleslaw and cucumber Supper: Baked Beans (from freezer), potatoes broiled in a lidded pan with leftover braised cabbage and carrots added and heated through at the end.  2 April 2025 (Wednesday) We were thinking of going to Avebury, though instead a closer less tiring drive took place to Kew Gardens and back. The sun shone and it was warm, though there was a blustery wind all day which meant that a gilet (body warmer) was definitely needed. The cherry blossoms and magnolias were mainly in full bloom, with some looking stunning whilst others just looked thoroughly beautiful. One spectacular pale yellowy cream magnolia really took my interest; called Yellow Lantern it’s one that I would love to have - unusual and eye-catching, though as with many magnolias there was no scent. One rather blousy white magnolia did have the most magnificent scent, making it wonderfully special in its own way.
There were still many daffodils out, though drifts we’d seen a few weeks back were now well over. A few varieties really caught my eye, including one that was virtually white, maybe then palest cream species and another which was white petaled with the palest yellow trumpet. This is the thing at Kew Gardens, they have so many different species and specimens and suddenly you see one or two that really grab you.
Getting back home, after a quick lunch, I finished editing yesterday's filmed segments of A Week at the Plot, and then going on and doing a quick edit of today's footage at Kew Gardens today, though I want to get to the plot and do some work, just watering… though in the end I do much more!
Early to bed, as it’s an early start for me tomorrow as I’m off to Vanessa as I’ve meetings at the Great Green Barn with potential crafters who run workshops, and also some prices to change at For Earth’s Sake which I can only do onsite. Weather: Cool start, then warming up swiftly and sunny much of the day. though quite a chilling blustery wind all day. Breakfast: Bran sticks, yogurt, banana Kew Snack: Rice Cracker Sandwich with spread, yeast extract and thinly sliced cheese, Cream Cracker Sandwich with spread and yeast extract, and tea Lunch: Pitta, homemade coleslaw and thin slices of cheese Supper: Microwave Spinach Omelette, Baked Potato, salad of red onion, radish, cucumber and celery |
Paul SavidentFollowing on from A Guernsey Gardener in London, I've decided to try and write a regular blog, and we'll see how it AND 2025 go! Archives
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