Saturday, 18 February 2023

Heading Through February at a Rush

 All sorts of random stuff in this weeks round up..............

But first........... thanks to everyone for Sparrow comments yesterday

 I've mostly been reading and then some more reading. With 15 library books and my Crime Classics book subscription  to get through it seemed best to get on with it. I don't need much persuasion to swap housework for reading!

Although the car got a much needed wash and inside tidy - a puzzle book and map in a side pocket had gone mouldy from damp which is a mystery. Hope there isn't a leak round the door.

Then I went shopping and everything had gone up in price yet again, 20p and 30p at a time. I don't always look at the middle aisle of Aldi where they have their food specials but noticed this and I love beetroot, fresh preferably, but not at all when it's vacuum packed and squidgy or pickled in really strong vinegar. This new pickled beetroot is a 'Winterberry' flavour and wasn't too strong at all. I wonder if it's something they'll stock or perhaps never to be seen again - you can't really tell with Aldi. But I noticed they had bread flour back for the first time since Ukraine was invaded.



When I moved in here there were several Hebes, a shrub I dislike as it makes me feel odd looking at it - the Hebe Geebies! one was in the back border and died the first year, one is out the front and is doing OK and two were under the back living room window but they were both  'got' by the hard frosts we had in December so this week I removed them without any guilt.
The previous owners spent a lot of money on plants just to get it looking good ready for selling, but many things they planted, especially the smaller plants aren't doing well. The back garden is surrounded by 6 foot  fences but instead of making it sheltered it seems to be a frost pocket and doesn't get a lot of sun in winter. I want to get a couple more big evergreen shrubs for the border, to hide the neighbouring houses and probably loose some of the small stuff that isn't flourishing or spreading.

Looking forward to a second hand book sale this weekend. There's a craft sale and coffee morning too but how to do 3 things at the same time in 3 different villages?!

I'll be back Monday
Sue



 

 

28 comments:

  1. We have a similar fenced back garden and have found that viburnum tinus and viburnum davidii both do well. Tinus in particular is good for late winter blooms - ours flowers for around 3 months as the different aspects of the garden get more or less sun. Davidii is good for spring flowering, so together brighten up what would otherwise be a dull time.

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    1. I've got V.Tinus on my list - evergreen I think and I've already got a V. Bodnantense which has lovely pink flowers all winter except if its very frosty. I tall column conifer is my other 'want'.

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  2. My sisters car has loads of mould in it. Side pockets, seat belts etc. She has no idea why it’s happening either.

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    1. Never had it before. Think I might have wiped the car windscreen and put a damp cloth in there .

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  3. Did they now! I was in Aldi on Thursday but had given up looking for bread flour there - thank you for the info. xx

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    1. Not seen Bread flour in Aldi for months but they had some in Stowmarket.

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  4. I would pop the small stuff in pots and let them grow bigger, you can pop the pots in places you like, and in a couple of years you will have decent plants for your garden.

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    1. Thats a good idea but the trouble with pots is that it takes me an age to water all the food things in the greenhouse every day in Summer - so having more things to water would be a pain!

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  5. If you manage to do 3 things in 3 places all at once let me know how you do it, that would be a trick worth learning. Car problem could perhaps be condensation? I've had bread flower from Tesco no problem. Don't you think prices are rocketing, not just the odd penny or two - sometimes I've just refused to pay, nothing to do with budget but wondering if some of the supermarkets are doing spot of profiteering under the guise of having to pay more for supply. Greed I don't like. Bergenia is fabulous in my shady, damp under the cherry tree patch. Elaine

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    1. I've no problem getting bread flour everywhere else but Aldi haven't had it for months. Begenia is missing here so that's a good idea and it usually spread well too

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  6. I’ll look forward to your book purchases-enjoy your visits to three different venues! Catriona

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  7. WintersEndRambler18 February 2023 at 10:51

    Glad to hear you're not short of nice things to look forward to.

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    1. I've got several Jumble sales in the diary and they are all on the same days too!

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  8. I think you'll figure out the three things at once. Doing them at top speed, maybe? Too funny. There's a lot going on where you live!

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  9. You would have to race from place to place and probably not fully enjoy any of them properly. I would almost be hoping my first stop was not that good so I could head off to the second one, it's always a dilemma isn't it. But I guess living close to three villages that all have events does mean that sometimes they pace themselves a bit better and you have one a week or a day to go to.

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    1. Stop 1 didn't take long so I got to the Saturday Cafe for breakfast too!

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  10. I have to confess I’d go to the book sale every time...even though I’m out of book space!

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    1. Yes there was no way I was missing the book sale!

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  11. I have been doing a lot of reading also. I just finished The Whalebone Theater which I recommend. It's a book I found I couldn't put down. Not my usual mystery book but very good. Set in Dorset before and during WWII.
    Good luck with your shopping!

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    1. Just looked it up - sounds interesting although the reviews were very mixed

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  12. Can't wait to see what you might get at the sales.
    Funny coincidence for me, in your post about your crime book club I asked if you were on the book site Goodreads as I'd like to see your books/reviews. The next day I had a friend request from Sue in England and on my phone I accepted to look at later.
    This Sue is from N.W. London. Don't suppose that is you? :-)

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    1. No not me!
      I just write about what I've read on my separate Books Read page and I'm hopeless at proper reviews

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  13. Grocery costs are up here too. Now I fill my cart 1/4-1/2 full and I spend $80. If I do a larger buy, it costs $120-140+. I needed to define my guest parking area at the end of my driveway and I planted Juniper Hibernica and they work well. For something a little wider, I like Korean Fur. They have a blue-green color and grow odd pinecones up-side-down.

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  14. Your Hebe Geebies comment almost made me spurt my coffee. Granny Marigold

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    1. Sorry! When I wrote about the Hebes when I moved in here that's what someone called their dislike of the shrub - I remembered it.

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