Posie's Blog. Tales of island life on a hebridean hill farm

Posie's Blog. Tales of island life on a hebridean hill farm

Sunday 24 June 2007

Pup's paradise




I have put the hours into the vegetable patch this weekend; it is starting to look promising. The potatoes are getting ready to burst with flowers. I thinned the carrots. The courgette plants are beginning to flower, the broccoli is beginning to burst out, the cabbage and cauliflowers are growing good healthy green foliage, and the onions and leeks are beginning to grow taller. The salad leaves I have begun to gather proved irresistibly delicious for lunch and worth the sore back I had from hacking away at the weeds that were appearing in all corners. I am of course covered in clegg bites, the horse flies happily tucking into a feast of flesh as I worked away, oblivious to them.

Mist our sheepdog pup is not so little anymore. She is growing bigger by the day and the old sheep dog seems to be getting thinner by the day. I think the feeding arrangements will have to be changed; she is definitely getting more than her fair share, obviously stealing his food when she has finished her meal. We went out to lunch today and arrived home to find her sat smiling and wagging her tail on the front doorstep. She had managed to jump over the garden gate; even eldest daughter’s woodwork skills to extend the gate have failed to contain her. Luckily she had chosen not to venture too far from her home, although she looked very muddy, so I think she must have been away digging somewhere. She is going away soon to live for a month with the shepherd we got her from, for some intensive sheep dog training. The happy farmer doesn’t spend so much time working the sheep these days, so the opportunity for her to be with a shepherd working with sheep all day will be a huge bonus. We will miss her though, even if she does chew everything in sight, pulling the washing off the line, digging up the flower beds and eating the children’s shoes!

The farm house has been very quiet for the last few days. My son is away on an outward bound trip, and although the girls had friends over it doesn’t quite fill the emptiness that surrounds us. He is due home tomorrow, so chaos and noise will be restored, and I can’t wait!

It is going to be a busy week ahead, the schools close here on Friday, and the head teacher of our primary school is due to retire. It is always a mad, hurly burly rush to the end of term for the children and then whoosh we will have the seemingly endless summer holidays stretching ahead, I do so love that feeling, unfortunately they always go by far too quickly.

Until next time…

12 comments:

Inthemud said...

Hello Posie

How simply brilliant to have grown all those veggies, very impressed.

Your pup has grown, you'll miss him when he goes for training, hope it all goes well.

bodran... said...

Yes the summer holidays are far to short.. I always looked forward to mine going away on trips but as soon as they went i'd cry and then count the hours till they came home screaming of the bus to show me their treasures..xxx

Un Peu Loufoque said...

Very immpressed by the pottager it is splendid. Mine is a mass of weeds we have had so much rain!

I love long hols too ours break up soon Eldest already been finished two weeks!!

bradan said...

Hi Posie, very impressed with your veggies! I am currently trying to establish a garden. Your pup is lovely.

Elizabeth Musgrave said...

I love the way you look forward to the summer holidays. I always did too and could not understand the people at the school gate moaning about keeping kids occupied. My veg are starting to go into overdrive now and the mangetout are delivering faster than we can eat, courgettes starting too. I love this time of year.

Anonymous said...

Oh how familiar this sounds! Our sheep dog puppy, Sparky, is only 11 weeks old and is already pinching the other dog's food! Molly, however, is only 3 & a half and incredibly docile (although a superb working dog). We were going to send Molly away for training but she picked up the necessaries from her predecessor. We're hoping Sparky will do the same so fingers crossed because I couldn't bare for her to go away for a month and I don't think she would either.
Great blog!
Crystal x

Pondside said...

What a busy weekend you've had! Your garden sounds gorgeous - you'll be feasting soon.
I always felt the same way about holidays - loved having the kids at home, to myself, to have fun with them an enjoy one carefree day after another.

laurie said...

lovely garden, lovely dog! and smart! we have a border collie but we live in the city so he never learned to herd sheep. he does, however, herd all of the toys in the house, other dogs we meet on walks, and, sometimes, geese down at the lake.

my cherry tomatoes should be ready to start eating by the 4th of july. that's good for our part of the country.

i enjoy your blog.

Suffolkmum said...

Wow on allyour veg Posie. I'm having vegetable envy! Lovely dog. I feel exactly the same about the summer holidays, that feeling of freedom from routine is infectious.

Woozle1967 said...

Hi Posie! Your veggies sound great - my courgettes are just in flower, and the broad beans have been my most successful so far (no black fly! touch wood). Nothing so satisfying as a well weeded veggie garden! Daren't look amongst the flowers though!!x PS lovely pics too.

Pipany said...

Golly Posie, how on earth have you managed to do any gardenening? Perhaps the rain hasn't been quite so bad there. We have had it incessantly for about three weeks and my plants are so bedraggled that I can't bear to go out there! xx

Bluestocking Mum said...

Just catching up-half an hour and cup of tea. So impressed with your veggies-puts my pitiful attemts to shame.

Pup is gorgeous too!

warm wishes
x