Storm damage

We spent a few days in England recently, family visit, swapping of Christmas presents, etc.   We took the ferry over on Friday afternoon and the storm arrived the next day.  The ferries were cancelled over the weekend, but the one we booked back was the first one to run once the storm had passed, on the Monday night.   

There was no major damage to anything at home, but one of the Garria that had be trained up the wall of the grange had been flattened, as in horizontal, and another had become disengaged from the wall, and was leaning over the path.   I was surprised; fixings had been pulled from the wall, steel eyes that had been holding wire supports had been bent.   I'm using new fixings, chemical (resin) wall plugs and stronger steel eyes.

I had to hard prune the flattened one (the near one in the picture), in order to get it back against the wall, and so I had to do the same with the other two plants so it doesn't all look lop-sided.  Nearly finished.  Next job - shredding the removed wood.

Nailed it

I got a nailer for Christmas, and a very fine nailer it is too.

Got some extra nails too, they come in packets of a few thousand.   So I'm thinking that that's enough to see me out.   Then I'm thinking that that thought comes a bit more frequently these days;  something to do with age I think.  I'm not sure if I'm being positive or negative.

Figs

A few years ago I managed, after several false starts, to get a fig tree to grow from a cutting given to me by my musical friend Sandrine.  It is beside a South-West-facing wall that backs on to a shed that backs on to the boiler room.  It is probably the warmest spot in the garden in Winter.  I took 8 cuttings from that tree this Autumn when I trimmed it back a bit.

Meanwhile, some cuttings I took last year have grown and I have planted them out.   The warm spot by the wall being occupied, I have had to find somewhere else for them.   I have put them beside a low South-West-facing wall, and made little dry-stone shelters for them that I hope will keep the worst of the cold off while allowing them to get some sun.   They have a hay mulch for extra protection.   Fingers crossed.

I have had good crops from the one mature tree, but it's clear that figs go off very quickly.   So I'm wondering how they preserved figs to make figgy pudding (that we all like) at Christmas.   Did they dry them, or maybe make the pudding in October, or what?   For my part, this year I made fig wine.

River's high

It has been raining heavily during the last week or so, but that day was bright and dry, so I took a walk along the river.  It was high as expected, and the path was muddy.   First obstacle was the river  blocking the footpath.  I did the lumberjack thing, swinging from tree to tree....

The stepping stones at this point were underwater too.   This is a winterbourne; perfectly dry in Summer, now gurgling away happily.

 

Walkers and ramblers are like rivers: they find the path of least resistance.   This style was bypassed months ago and is in disrepair.

This pool is filled with river water in Summer.   I'm not sure that it's officially a swimming pool, but people swim in it.  I avoid it.  Lyme disease anyone?  I'm not sure what that shower-like thing is in the middle - I've not seen it before.

A bridge over a muddy puddle in the path, a repurposed palette.

And so, back home, via paved roads and paths.

Snow and visitors

In common with much of north-west Europe, snow arrived here yesterday.   And today we have visitors.

There were three deer, but I only every got two of them together.   They were eating leaves from the trees and the occasional fallen apple.

How to fix a collapsed roof

Sorted!

Random update

I grew a small amount of sorghum this year.  I'm not sure why, perhaps I thought it was a good idea at the time.  The grains are now drying in the conservatory.   Anyone got any idea of what to do with sorghum grains?

It was windy on my walk the other day but this tiny butterfly was holding its own.  Not a good piccie, the phone zoom is not that good.

My walks sometimes take me past this barn.  It's never been in good repair, but the roof has finally collapsed after the recent storms.

Our village hosts art exhibitions every year.   This evocation of a forest I thought was excellent (it's complete with sound).   The careful use of mirrors makes it look bigger than it is.  Can you find the hedgehog?  The mouse?