8.5km my favoured route of late- the Langford round. Lovely to run through a wooded lane on a track only passable now with care. The difficulty is seen in the steepness around here. Literally steep down and along and back up again. There are few stretches where I can actually get proper long strides in- it’s great when I can. Down hill I have to be so careful to be kind to my knees. Uphill is fine but some of these are 1in 4 possibly 1 in 3 in places.
Broad bodied chasers
Seen today in the pond. The female was yellow bodied and the male powder blue – both unidentifiable by their broad bodies.
Compline
A framed view of fields captured in The golden light Of long shadows and filtered sun; Where sheep graze , their coats full and heavy, And lambs in groups Charge to and fro in playful chatter. Where dappled light is cast And dark green of oak filters lime Through leaves caught by the sun Down into the sunken lane; Where the air is close; The heat intense; Breath is heavy; Holding on to the warmth of the day. Stirrings in the bank as I run past Rustles and urgent calls of a thrush- That elusive bird of dawn and dusk- Darts across. Bullfinches play out in final flourish Branch to branch- with seemingly no purpose But to enjoy. The flowers too- Colours intensified Of striking foxglove and blousy willowherb. A bee works frantically Petal to petal Bright yellow buttercups and campion Face upward, Tall grasses arch over. The air thick with the scent of honeysuckle. Time is running; I am stopping To watch, to look and save the view. Waiting. A cloud of dust : a tractor passes; The farmer waves And makes his way home. The air settles and the view clears. My breath is stilled. This simple beauty of a world intensified Just before the sun goes down in Rhythm of the day. Where all creation seems held In harmonious pursuit of calm enjoyment. This is their church and mine to share. Before the ending of the day Grant us a quiet night and a perfect end. Ruth Partridge
Evening in the slow lane
Tonight was definitely slow after a full day in the garden. More photography was called for – 6.5km very hot in the depth of the lane. Stuck to the one lane – totally beautiful- the light, the flowers , the sheep, the birds – played tag with a pair of bullfinches . They went on ahead waited for me to catch up and flew to the next tree. It’s amazing how different male is from female . Probably our most beautiful song birds, yet they elude the bird table. So many secret gems in this lane.
Sunny Days in the Garden
Starting early is key to getting as much done before the strength of the sun. Watering the cold frame is a must and all the pots. Yesterday, broad beans had yellowed and I thought over night what to do. I had dug compost in over winter, used general purpose fertiliser before planting. Broad bean- normally easiest by far- rarely require any attention until pinching out on arrival of black fly . What could be the problem ? Water or being eaten from the base or mineral deficiency.
Best solution with what I have to hand: spread some wood ash ( have no potash feed ) add some fish blood and bone, water in and mulch with rich compost from the heap. Hey presto – three hours on they are green.
While quietly planting out sugar snap peas, I was vaguely aware of a rustling and saw quite a few beetles scurry . Lo and behold a mole was beside my right hand!
The garden always has surprises to hand and I have to remember that I am sharing the space with all the wildlife that it supports even though I moan at mole hills ( but use their sandy soil) detest rats which seek to undermine the runner bean trench and have uprooted the leeks and get irritated by the sparrows which bath in the bird seed sending it showering to the ground and down carefully positioned holes or straight to the hens.
But we love the bird song ( not the rooks ). The wood pigeon (T two cows Taffy) the collared dove (T Two T) the wren ( t tweet trrr t t tweet ) the thrush and black bird and the goldfinches . On days like today we await the arrival of the buzzards . They are so distinctive in their call.
Nesting in the garden or nearby we have these: nuthatch, blackbirds , Robin , chaffinch , greenfinch , bluetit , dunnocks , sparrows, goldfinch , wood pigeon, collared dove , rooks , blackbirds , wrens, robins and coal tit.
My
The Garden this week
Gardening dawn to dusk has been the order of the days this week of Half Term. The weather has both been glorious and challenging for the garden. Whilst some established plants love the weather and the hardened tomatoes cope being transplanted, other hardened vegetable plants have had to endure harsh sun and have needed a lot of watering. The roses have been the stars of the show and every bit as exciting as last week’s Gardeners’ World rose special. The other great thing to say is that we have managed to resist spending £100 for a compost delivery to fill the raised beds, mulch and pot up. Rigorously turning the four compost heaps from the first cut of grass has yielded enough seven weeks on. Also, using the hot bed system on the raised beds has been quick fix: paper/card, manure, grass clippings , compost.
In the veg garden, potatoes have been earthed up, peas have been transplanted and supported with hazel pea sticks. french beans have gone out well and the wigwam was easy to do with hazel copiced across the lane. We have used two pallets in an A frame for the squash plants- this is a first. Normally, they trail and take their chance. We will see if this yields better results. Courgettes have been dismal, so I have sourced two plants from our first trip to the Avon Mill Garden Centre today – what a treat. We came away with some sugar snap peas and bedding plants for the many empty pots.
Evening Run
Thursday May 28th
8.5Km Regular route. Don’t often plan my route ahead of time , but tonight I phoned a friend and it was great to catch up at the garden gate. Beautiful evening, lovely light. Divine smell of honeysuckle on the air. Bit of a headwind on the outward stretch.
The Ridgeway Road
When I ran along this route the other evening, it’s comparable length and straightness challenged in a different way from the tiny lanes. As ever, I’m lost in thought and invariably think back. This was the evening exploring local history- something I wanted to do with the written notes I have to hand. Local friends may recognise the places. The poem dips and dives a bit, just like the road itself. Please enjoy.
Long and narrow upland road
Hugs the contour line;
Worn through time of toiling step
From abbey to the Devon coast.
The Ridgeway
For meditation and reflection-
A solitary journey,
A pilgrim on the route.
In Saxon times the name is changed
To Wheel Way, though still rough.
Wheels are made for ease of travel
Yet progress slow
It's far from flat.
The reddish stain of Devon soil
Hugs
The rims and soils the boots
Of those who walk.
The views are good where land is open
A safer way to go,
Yet sheltered too from deep set banks
Stones drawn: soil piled
As fields are made
And native trees line the path
From the winds that cut across
Forested Dartmoor hills.
Romans may have aligned some straightness
Visible in Five-Mile Lane.
Sketchy knowledge they were here.
The Normans were and used the route
And named a field Vauldeveur.
Medieval times, manorial living
Gifted by the king.
Villain farms,
A settlement,
Beenleigh, Trimswell names remain.
From the ridge
Lanes steep and narrow
Connect the valleys
Thread like veins,
Farm to farm
Hidden deep ,
Long ingrained.
Still well-used this road through time,
What memories it holds
If only we could see.
The clues are there
But nothing more-
The love of history.
Ruth Partridge
Survival of the Fittest
Might just rethink how I feel. The pond is for frogs who eat slugs and snails, and for newts and dragonflies. Then I see a grass snake swim across. I’ve not seen my last goldfish ( one which stayed black and avoided the 40 or so which went to the heron). I guess I know now what happened to him. Now the frog’s days are numbered.
Darwin’s theory doesn’t help how I feel. I love the garden: I love the help of frogs and toads. I love the first sign of frogspawn on a February day, the tiny tadpoles clinging to a piece of elodea. I love the visual interest of fish in the clear water. I love the winged combat of damsel flies and dragonflies with all their iridescence. The swallows dip and dive over it through summer . The blackbird and wood pigeon bathe- one more clumsily than the other. I love the arching stretched flight of the heron over a stretch of water; I hated its non stop visits to the pond in one evening in September.
It was magical to find the huge white eggs of a grass snake one year in the compost heap ( turned too frequently these days ) . It was unnerving to meet the largest snake ever- a Harry Potter moment one summer. While quietly tending the vegetable patch I looked up on hearing a sudden ‘hiss’ and saw jaws and tongue protruding inches from my face.
Survival of the fittest we saw in the heron incident and I subsequently compared it to lessons I teach; if only the black fish had had another to provide offspring! Now we have to see the predator/ prey struggle born out in our small pond. I think I know the winner – it’s rather inevitable.
A wildlife pond is essential to a gardener for all the benefits, though right now I’m alarmed at how precarious the balance is within a pond. Nature is sometimes harsh.
Hottest Day of the Year falls at half term!
Chilling in the hut after sorting vegetable bed and digging compost . Filling the pond. Where does all the water go?
Half term holidays don’t get much better!
Ruth Partridge 