Lots of odd jobs

After picking runner beans, tomatoes and beetroot for selling, C went off to move the irrigation equipment down in the village. He set it going yesterday afternoon and went back to check it was  OK in the evening, as it hadn't been used for a month all sorts of things could have gone wrong, but all was well. After a coffee when he got home this morning he was working around at our neighbours strimming and grass cutting.
I spent several chilly minutes rootling round in the chest freezers trying to sort out what we've got. LOADS of plums,apricots, peppers and tomatoes have gone in this year plus some raspberries. We still have some cooking apples left from last year and with all the lamb and chicken bought this month there is no chance of us starving this winter!

These Autumn raspberries are not going into the freezer, they are such a treat that we are picking and eating this many every two days. We'd never grown them until a few years ago, now I wouldn't want to be without.

 The small polyanthus plants were filling out their plug pots so I've got them into bigger pots ready to sell later in the year, the free mini daffodil bulbs have also been put into pots also for selling. That just leaves the crocus bulbs, do I risk putting them in the flower garden or put them in pots. Whatever I do I hope they don't just disappear as all the others have done over the years. A friend in Essex has so many in her garden every year, they just keep spreading but here - zilch!

Here is my ladder planted up for winter/spring, maybe I'll push a few crocus bulbs in with the pansies and polyanthus and see if they survive.

 As I was typing this in came Polly cat with a small rabbit which then dashed round and round the living room, I had to catch and kill the poor little thing - don't like doing it, mice are easy but rabbits always seem to suffer for ages, pointless just letting it go outside as Polly would be straight after it again.

This afternoon we put the first of the pears into the freezer and C decided the wind was in the right direction to burn up some rubbish - he likes a good bonfire. After a cup of tea and Countdown on TV he went and cleaned out one of the chicken sheds while  I got a veggie curry sorted for dinner using all our own veg - onion, green beans, potato, courgette and an eating apple. I used  Thai red curry paste today instead of curry powder for a change. Served up with rice and a homemade naan bread, it makes  a lovely cheap meal .

Wandering round the garden for a bit of exercise I found a few whole walnuts on the ground under the tree ( along with loads of open empty ones which the squirrels have pinched and eaten already) but when I cracked them open they were either mouldy or shriveled. So it seems that squirrels can tell the difference between good and bad without even having to crack them to find out what's inside.

That's my news from a quiet day in Suffolk not much to write about because, as advised by everyone, I'm still resting in between jobs trying to get my energy back after the darned pneumonia.

Back Tomorrow
Sue