Spring bonfire

On the morning of 22 April the weather was just how I like it for making a bonfire. The outside temperature in the shade was a little less than 15°C, there was hardly any wind, and it had been dry for a week. That itself is unusual in Argyll but it does happen and April seems a good month for such wee dry spells. So I made my bonfire of dry twigs and leaves and added chopped lengths of the woodshed rose that I'd chopped down in the autumn. That metal bar you can see in the photo is the edge of an old bed base. There are two tangled up in the spiraea up in the top west corner. I expect they were put there, possibly as part of the fence, once upon a long time ago.

This is the woodshed rose in July 2013. I just don't want it to grow right up the side of the house any more because it sends its vigorous shoots into the eaves and would damage the roof if we let it. It is looking robust this spring so don't worry, I will just limit its imperialism a bit!

woodshed rose

also woodshed rose, same plant

I kept back some thicker pieces and will let them dry out more. We can use them in the stove in due course. They are resting right now on the other old bed base.


After that I cleared out the messier side of the tool shed where Toad had flung various bits of sailing gear. It was hot enough in the sun and under a thin shed roof to be dressed in shorts and a vest top (the British kind, not the American).

Perfect spring weather. Not too hot and still comfortably cool in the shade. I'd be very happy for summers to be like this, especially the midge-free part! The blighters will start biting soon.

Inspired by Nick Ray (@LifeAfloat), I left a small tower of the stones I unearthed from the spiraea and grey sallow hacking last autumn up by the bonfire patch.

Boggy Brae's answer to the Kensington Stripes

Someone painted their house in red and white stripes in Kensington. Apparently the neighbours are appalled. The funny side appeals to me.

The Boggy Brae house is red and white too.

Front terrace in summer

Through the bathroom window

I don't think our neighbours mind.
Magnetic Hippo likes it:

The disapprovers should steer clear of Tobermory and of course nothing beats the Oxford shark! Go, Kensington!

A wander round the Boggy Brae garden on my return from Derbyshire

The morning of 10 April 2015 was hazy and cool but looked promising. After my long drive back from Derbyshire, via Poulton-le-Fylde to see my mum and brother, I had little energy for much more than loading the washing machine and wandering in my wellies to see where the wonderful wildness of the boggybrae was at. Yes, I know that's bad grammar. Just grit your teeth and bear it ;)

DerbyshireDaughter and I had seen ash tree flowers at this stage. Approximately two and a half degrees of latitude further north, ash buds have not yet burst.

The state of the ash trees at Boggy Brae on 10 April

Hawthorn budburst

Hawthorn buds have burst, and so have those of wild cherry and rowan.

Wild cherry budburst

Rowan budburst

This pic is from the old half dead rowan near the top of the garden. Interestingly, the younger one that's level with the house, lower down, has not burst its buds yet. The Grey Sallow in the field copse near it is flowering away.

Grey Sallow

Back up near the top of the garden again, I looked down over house roofs at what I call the "Balloon Boat" (because the buoys it carries can seem like balloons) working at securing mooring buoys on a hazy loch.

Under the keeling cypress tree up there, I found a lot of Wood Pigeon feathers. Evidence of a sparrowhawk's meal, I suppose.

Wood Pigeon feathers

Up there where I did some clearing of spiraea last autumn, I had marked where some bluebell leaves were showing. In amongst them there are the early shoots of Peruvian Lilies.

shoots of Peruvian lilies

Salmonberry

I spotted a small Salmonberry (Rubus spectabilis) among the new shoots of Solomon's Seal. I'd thought this plant had died and I pulled up its dead main stem last year. This shoot is a little way away from where the parent plant stood so I guess it has grown as a sucker from a root. I'm excited about this as it has lovely pink flowers though, being so young, it might not flower this year.

Wandering down to the house again, I found the first dandelion of the year.

Dandelion

Lower still, by the steps from the shed, violets are not flowering yet but they do appear to be spreading. That's got to be good!

Violet leaves

The struggling peony (it didn't flower last year) is pushing up red, Common Cat's Ear basal rosettes are appearing everywhere, Lungwort is thinking about flowering, and aquilegia leaves are looking good.

Common Cat's Ear
basal rosette

Lungwort

Aquilegia leaves

Field Wood-rushes are flowering in profusion on the south-east slope and the early deep pink rhododendron (what's left of it; some has died) is beginning to open its flowers for the bees.

Lastly, my small lawn of Common Smoothcap Moss (Atrichum undulatum) is looking very green under The Big Rhodie (Rhododendron ponticum) under which I intend to sit once the weather warms up some more. There have been heavy showers of hail and sleet today. The tops of the hills look white again when one can see them at all but right now the sun's out so I'm off for another wander while I can. Happy Spring!

Common Smoothcap Moss (Atrichum undulatum)

Visit to Chatsworth, Derbyshire

Even the stable block at Chatsworth is overwhelmingly opulent. I always want to be a time-travelling 'fly on the wall' and see such places in action during their heyday. Failing that, I decided to concentrate on details and let the excessive opulence wash over me.






I enjoyed the "Do not sit on the chairs" signs everywhere:

There were also modern seats one was allowed to sit on.

Zigzag chair

Chair made of US half dollars

This chaise longue was behind a rope barrier in a room where the curtains were drawn, presumably to prevent further fading of the bed clothes. The curtains, sorry, drapes, were lavish everywhere.

Really rather OTT for my taste

Toadlet liked the chandeliers.

I liked floor details.

We both liked the library 

and various other bits and bobs, if "bits and bobs" can ever be applied to such richesse!

Nice pot

Nice flag

Nice wee teapot and fan plates

Nice carpet

Nice fence

Nice slate path

All terribly 'nice' but I wouldn't like to live in such a place now. Admittedly I probably wouldn't have minded back in the day when the alternative was abject poverty!