Day 124 - making free plants in lost time.

Saturday 4th May

Happy, happy birthday to our lovely Elaine. 

A busy day on the smallholding with a tunnel to make better sense of.  I have plants everywhere and I need a better system to cope with the frosts we are still getting.  Pete helped me out with the heavier lifting and I feel that the space works better.  Everything is coming on now but we had a very hard frost last night so the plant fleece was out again. 

Potting on became the theme for the day with stocks, petunias and snapdragons all enjoying a bit more space to spread now.  Little gem lettuces are all planted out into their final container for harvesting in a few weeks.  I have some seeds ready to be planted with my little helper, Angus, tomorrow and my sweet peas to plant into grow bags.  By the end of the weekend I will be well on track.  I am still making new free plants at every opportunity so that I will have enough for the June sale weekend. 

My mother is going to start coming up to help one morning a week.  What she doesn't know about growing is probably not worth knowing.  Mother and I can lose hours in the polytunnel.  I have some large tin cans to paint and then plant up offering my customers something a bit different this year. 

I have started to move some pots round to the area just beyond the back door that I want to turn into a productive space.  We are still holding back putting much in the ground because it is so cold again.  Pete put seaweed on the raised vegetable beds and that has now rotted down and they need turning over.  I am not absolutely sure what is going in there this year because we had such a bad time with slugs last year.  I am kind of leaving that part to Pete. 

I love finding new ways to grow and I even have a Pinterest board dedicated to it. We have grown our potatoes in stacks of car tyres for years as the yield is so high with this method.  I checked on the willow crop which appears to be surviving the cold nights well and has lots of new growth.  We appear to have a problem with a perennial weed on the smallholding and that is marching towards the willow - we need to take action.  I have a cottage garden seed mix for direct sow to go near my new studio.  That should keep me entertained with butterflies and bees through the summer months.  So, lots still to do on the planting front and that will keep me out of trouble. 

I do hope some of you have had some lovely time in your gardens and that you have a little more sunshine than us.

Until tomorrow. xx

Day 123 - One child at a time and 'I' has become 'we'.

Friday 3rd August

 A little bit soggy on Arran today but hopeful for the weekend,  We are catching up with ourselves today and doing what Friday is probably designed for.  The boys and I spent school 'getting behind the headlines' by focusing on the awful death rate of children in Zambia from Malaria.  We use the fact that 'every 40 seconds a child dies from Malaria' as it is so shocking and we hope will stop people in their tracks.  Today was about getting behind that and finding out about the killer disease. 

From all the information gathered one piece has stuck with us - there are no new cases of Malaria reported from communities that all have mosquito nets.  I am not sure there is much more to add to that.  George worked out their maths for them and calculated that, on average, every net protects 2.4 people.  So when we are paying our £5.00 for one net we are saving the lives of those people.  In 2006 4.7 million cases of Malaria were reported in Zambia.  The population is only 13.5 million.  Young children and pregnant women are most at risk as are those with challenged immune system.  As HIV and AIDSs is also such a big problem for the people of Zambia this obviously has a knock on affect to the mortality rates from Malaria.  Life expectancy in just 38 years old. 

What I find difficult to comprehend is that people live with these challenges live on the same planet as me.  I have just been out for lunch with a very dear friend and the bill was almost £25.00.  I am mindful that that sum would buy 5 nets but I am also mindful of the fact that two thirds of people in Zambia live on less than 50p a day and have days when they just can't eat because there is no food.  I have never been to Africa so I have never seen these lives lived.  I always need to see things for myself but that is where the Butterfly Tree charity comes in.  They witness these lives and they tell the world about it.  All we have to do is have a few less coffees a week and we have saved more than 2 lives.  I don't pretend to understand the politics of the developing world and, if I am honest, I have avoided finding out.  I am frightened of what I will find out and the part developed countries have played in this global crisis.  The simple thing for me is that if a child dies from Malaria every 40 seconds it is a problem for all of us; not just the people of Zambia. 

Perhaps the time is right for me to delve further into the politics and economics of developing nations and Zambia is the right place for me to start.  As a family we know about the Millennium Goals by the United Nations but here is another example where we perhaps have to get behind the headline statement.  I want to understand why people are still dying of starvation or diseases that could be treated.  I know that in the UK we put a lot into charity causes - more than many nations.  I think that there is a chance that we aren't convinced that our money is reaching the people it needs to.  That brings us back round to the Butterfly Tree.  If you follow them on  facebook you know exactly where the money is going and can see the progress being made.  I think that is important.  If you have time take a look at their home page on their website where they list just some of their achievements. 

So, our Butterfly Tree journal has moved on today as has our understanding but we still have so much more to learn.  We still have so much more to do. 

My boys are following the example set by 7 year old Angus who has already filled  his vintage cup with coins ready to pass to me.  He is onto his second cup filling.  Angus was with us at our little tea party and he helped with the raffle.  He knows exactly where his pennies are going and why.  I think the whole collecting loose change in a cup has captured the imagination of the children involved in the campaign.  If any of you know any children who would like to help I have plenty of vintage cups that have long go lost their saucers and need a home.  Do let me know if you would like one and I can post it out to you. 

Maybe if we all checked inside our sofa cushions we could even get the collecting underway.  Of course, if you get that fabulous moment when you find a ten pound note I won't mind if it goes in your wallet! 

Beyond the Butterfly Tree work was a lovely lunch at Coast which I am please to say was really busy.  Angie and I put the world to rights and just had some time out.  Lovely!  We did notice that when talking about the fundraising events coming up I had changed 'I' to 'we'.  Poor Angie.

This weekend is all about plants so I will be beautifully chilled.  I do hope you all have some lovely plans for the bank holiday.  I see that my southern friends are still hogging most of the sunshine though.  Little Angus is coming to find out all about growing and help in my tunnel.  I could make my life's work teaching young children about growing their own food.  My one child at a time strategy could take a while though.

Until tomorrow. xx

Day 122 - Curled up kittens and a very talented old school friend.

Thursday 2nd May

 

Thank you to our lovely Helen Le for supplying us with the cover photograph for this blog post.  May is, indeed, blossom month although some come earlier.  For me, blossom heralds the warmer weather and promises much.  Just knowing that the trees will be bearing fruit is enough for me as I gaze at the wonder that is spring blossom.  Stunning as our blossom is in the UK I think we would all agree that Japan is the place to really see blossom.  For the Japanese it is not just a thing of beauty as it has spiritual roots as well.  Cherry trees are called Sakura in Japanese and refers to the transient nature of life.  This, in turn, ties in with the Buddhist thinking about the nature of life.  Traditionally, the Japanese would enjoy the beauty of the blossom while regarding the meaning of life.  Celebrations were held among the blossom trees. 

For me May is a month of celebration and I think the blossom has much to do with it.  I always feel like the winter is behind us and the spring growth has established itself.  I always feel a little blessed in May.  I have borrowed these absolutely stunning photographs of blossom from an old school friend, David Newell.  He has one of those cameras that make people feel important where as I have one that I mostly want to hide.  That said, I have worked with a lot of photographers in my time but David's work is truly first class.  David is a very, very busy man so any attempts by me to persuade him to start a photographic blog are unlikely to be successful.  But if you guys all comment here or on my facebook page just maybe...

 

Today has been a lovely day in home school as we went off round the smallholding looking for early wildflowers and other spring growth.  George and Max know so much more than I did at their age about wildflowers and we quickly gathered a great little collection. These included the following -

• Herb Robert
• Yellow Weasel Snout
• English Bluebells
• Wild Primrose
• Dandelion
• Common Field Speedwell
• Anemone Nemorosa

In addition we collected branches of willow and Hazel catkins and white Heather. 

 We wanted to try and create a page like Edith Holden did in her book so the watercolour paints came out.  The boys then delved into all our wildflower books to find out some more information about the specimens they had painted.  By wandering the smallholding early in the season it means we can spot new things on subsequent visits.  The Bluebells are just coming now but the real joy is across the far field that we do not use.  Birch trees have completely taken over this field so I need some strong boys to use their handy slasher tool and make a path for me.  If I make it I promise photographs (not as good as David's sadly).

The rest of the time in school was spent on more basic operations like spelling.  George's list always includes at least one word I have never even heard of let alone written.  That ensures I keep learning alongside the boys!

After school is a mad dash out to the tunnel. Now the plant sale is out there I need to push on.  Spring is an excellent time to make new plants from cuttings or dividing.  Rewarding my excellent chives for their fabulous growth I set about cutting them up!  Bless.  Out of one 12cm pot I can usually make 3 plants which is always rewarding.  I like free things and I like cuttings even more.  Max's apple mint cuttings from last year have done so well I was taking cuttings from them already.  My garden mint is flourishing and rather showing off so I told a dozen cuttings from there as well.  The new one for this year is the ginger mint.  I have taken a few cuttings but I am not sure about these.  We shall see.  I always start mint off in jam jars filled with water on sunny windowsills to grow small roots. Then I transfer them to pots mixed with compost and seaweed pellets.  I normally advise people never to buy potted herbs from supermarkets as they are grown quickly in very controlled conditions.  When we take them home they can't cope with the different conditions and die.  The exception to this is garden mint.  I bought one in the Co-op yesterday for 99p and I made 6 new plants out of it today.  Each of these will sell at £1.25.  You do the maths!

Onto other matters, briefly.  I sent a tulle butterfly off to an adorable little girl called Ruby.  She is the daughter of a previous pupil of mine - how old do I feel?  They were kind enough to donate on my Butterfly Tree page.  It took us several goes to get this to work.  To clarify the best link is my lovely big blue button in the sidebar of this blog.  That takes you straight there.  Otherwise if you search for My donate and then search in the middle fundraisers box for Fiona Doubleday my page will come up.  I am yet to put all the money from the tea party in so the money raised looks a little sad at the moment. 

May I give you a little incentive....for anyone who donates £10.00 or more I will happily send a tulle butterfly to the person of your choice.  Think Mums, Grans, best friends, girlfriend etc....You just need to include your name in the box as you donate and send me a quick email with the person's name and address and I will do the rest.  You and your nominated person will have the joy of knowing that you have purchased at least 2 mosquito nets and made a real difference. 

I know from my analytics that roughly 140 people read my blog and most of them read daily.  What is 140 x £5.00?  Whatever it is it is a shed load of mosquito nets and many, many lives saved.  I have such a lovely blue button as well. 

Fundraising events are springing up everywhere so there is much to look forward to.  Thank you again to everyone who has supported thus far. 

I was busy making more tulle butterflies as I have none left now when my little kitten decided she rather liked the basket I keep my wire in.  Wire had to come out as kitten went in and she has been in there for hours. 

Until tomorrow. xx

Day 121 - Wild cowslips & hairy cows.

Wednesday 1st May

Happy May Day everyone and I do hope you have had some sunshine today.  Our little island has had some but the chilly wind remains.  Not at my best today so was kind of forced to slow up a bit which always makes me a bit cross.  On the whole I try not to do 'cross' because it is bad for the soul.  Eventually managed out of bed and on with the day.  Thankfully my mind still works at a normal rate to I try and use the time to bring things together.  Today was a good day for that. 

Keeping with a broadly botanical theme I planned the return of our annual plant sale.  For various reasons this had dropped off the schedule but I am thrilled that it is back.  It is a bit weather dependent but if the sun shines we usually have a good turn out and lots of our lovely plants find new homes.  I prefer this approach to selling through local shops as I get to talk to our customers and I always feel the plants have a better chance of success because of those chats.  So, the second weekend in June is all set for our plant sale and this year we are serving tea and cake and taking donations for the Butterfly Tree charity.  I will also pass on some money from the sales where I can. 

Of course, this year we will also have the studio that you can't really miss as it is en route to the tunnel.  I am going to put some lovely crafts with a botanical theme in the studio and take sales from there as well.  I am just inviting two people to provide work for this but I think the impact will be guaranteed because I have selected those that best fit in with what I will be doing.  On this occasion I am going to focus on dried flower wreaths.  Now I realise that might not sound very exciting but they can be quite beautiful if done right.  I had just better do them right then.  They will act as an early introduction to the willow ones we hope to have in time for Christmas. 

On days like today there is very little to be done but give in and plan something a bit more sedate.  The answer is not to lie in bed, unless absolutely necessary.  The answer is to keep moving so Pete and I went for a gentle stroll around Brodick Castle gardens.  You will probably know that it is the place I return to over and over again.  It is always such a delight.  The castle is owned by the National

Trust of Scotland and has just been nominated as their flagship property.  As a result it is about to undergo a multi-million pound make over.  I could do with a bit of that myself!  I am going to keep pace with the National Trust and photograph how it changes over the next few months or possibly years.  I do hope they manage to maintain the essence that is 'Brodick Castle' with all their commercial plans. I will be watching....

We sat just out of the wind but in the afternoon sun and felt very lucky indeed.  The fact that I don't really work for anyone else means I don't have to take any sick days I just slow down a bit.  I am not sure you could rush round the gardens even if you wanted to.  There are far too many 'stop and stare' moments to behold.  We soaked up that warming sun before heading off to their plant sale. 

As the boys were off playing badminton with their Granny and Hamish we felt we had all the time in the world.  The trouble with slowing down is it is hard work getting going again.

The morning for Pete and the  boys had been full of comparisons in mortality rates and life expectancy and lots of number crunching.  The afternoon was a lovely contrast for all. 

Everything is sprouting up in thee castle gardens including my favourite bronze fennel in the whole world.  Year after year it comes back and it is quite majestic.  For all the captivating colours of the flower beds my eye is always drawn to that bronze fennel.  If you have never grown fennel it is well worth a go this year.  We use the leaves in our salads from about now until the end of autumn.  The season growth then dies back but next spring it is back stronger than ever.  It is best planted out of the prevailing winds because it grows tall and can break in strong winds and that is beyond heart breaking. 

Mine is protected by an old chimney pot with strawberries in - what else?  On Country File a few weeks they featured the desperate state of our horticultural industry with so few young people opting for that career.  It is such a shame but I have very good news.   At the moment the new draft National Curriculum in England and Wales has growing firmly placed for all children to learn about.  The emphasis is on growing their own food and that is even better news.  Growing offers so many skills and lots of interesting knowledge but I also think it is therapeutic.  Let us hope it gives the industry the boost it badly needs.  Growing has been such a massive part of our home schooling and I think Harry's new boss is constantly surprised by just how much he knows.  proud mummy moment!                                              . 

 After a lot of reflecting on my blogging journey so far and some strategic conversations with people I am going to be writing for in the coming months I have already decided on the theme of my daily blog next year.  Yes, there will be a daily blog in 2014.  I am clearly bonkers.  This will run alongside my new website One soul, many hearts.  The theme will be my relationship with Mother Nature and thus is simply called 'A Year with Mother Nature.'

The plan is to pull together all I know and extend this knowing into new areas all under the umbrella of nature.  I have such a wonderful relationship with her and during 2014 I am really going to celebrate it.   It will include posts on growing, foraging, cooking, crafting and education and, at last, it will all be in one place.  The plan is to use the daily posts as starters for ten for an ebook of the same title.  This will then be available on my brand new website One soul, many hearts.  This blog has already spoken to me in terms of telling me where I need to pull things together.  Over the many years of growing and working with Mother Nature I have picked up all sorts of interesting bits and pieces.  This blog and the subsequent book will bring it all together.  I am going into self publishing in a big way following the example set by Waverly Fitzgerald.  She remains my number one guru.  Others come and go but Waverly holds centre stage. 

I am sure most of you will have come across the book entitled 'The Country Diary of an Edwardian Lady' by Edith Holden.  We are into guru territory again.  I dip in and out of this book all the time.  May is one of my favourite months of

the year and Edith captures it so very well.  Her first image of the nest full of bird eggs says it all.  All over the island the birds are chatting away and probably flirting outrageously.  Good for them.  May is also the start of wildflower season and I my little cowslips are showing the way this year.  I am cultivating some new wildflowers in the tunnel to add to the meadow as one or two species are taking up far too much room. 

May is also the start of Tussie Mussie season for me.  My little healing posies find their way to people that need them and I am always thrilled to be asked to do them.  Edith Holden taught me how to observe nature many years ago and I visit the book each and every month to remind me what to look out for.  My blog in 2014 couldn't possibly be as vital as her book but I will do my best and try not to let her down. 



My favourite May gems to look out for include -

• Crab apple blossom
• Red Campion
• English Bluebells
• First yellow buttercups
• Flowering wild garlic
• Yellow Heartease
• The daily sightings of butterflies and bees
• and so very much more.

Enjoy May!

Just a quick link if you don't mind.  My little write up is in this months digital newspaper for Arran - Voice for Arran - it is the last article so you can read everything else on your scroll down. 

Until tomorrow. xx