A Creative Spirit
Mother's Day came with a monetary 'allowance' to spend on plants. Needless to say, I was like a kid in a sweetie shop when the OH drove for over an hour on Wednesday to visit my favourite garden centre, Qta Ataboeira. If you want succulents and cacti, for me, they are the 'go-to' place. They also... Continue Reading →
Where do the weeks go? We desperately need rain but despite the forecast showing a shower or two, we have only been gifted 1cm since last Sunday. If it does not rain soon, we have already been warned there will be a shortage of water in the Western Algarve. Sitting in the garden eating breakfast... Continue Reading →
My gardening six this week focuses on a new project to extend one of our succulent gardens and identify ALL the succulents. Research seems more labour intensive than the physical aspect of digging, moving rocks and planting. Is anyone else confused by all the different names? 1. Succulent Garden - Work in Progress I originally... Continue Reading →
A busy week of seed planting and pricking out seedlings means I've already filled our two cold frames. I've discovered, there's something quite satisfying about growing seeds... I think. So far so good. I've now gone crazy and ordered 5 packets of seeds from a friend who is putting in an order with a UK... Continue Reading →
My weekly smile this week comes courtesy of a dear poetry friend at writingforums.com. My Christmas Pippy Pig never arrived so my tenacious friend sent another! It now sits pride of place on my desk. Parcel delivery to our house can be a little unreliable at times and seems to depend on the tenacity of... Continue Reading →
Another great week in the garden! We've had plenty of rain as well as warm sunny spells so seeds and vegetables are off to a good start. As I posted in 'My Garden in Bloom - February' I am amazed by the number of cacti and succulents in bloom and it looks as if this... Continue Reading →
Looking through my february photographs I am amazed at the number of different flowering plants. The weather in February was a mixed bag of sun and rain, and our in-house weather station recorded temperatures as low as 4C at night while rising to over 22C plus on several occasions during the day. Spring Bulbs -... Continue Reading →
We've had glorious weather again this week and the night time temperature has not fallen below 10C in our micro-climate. Unfortunately, we've had no rain so once again we rely on our temperamental irrigation system. 1. Upcycling Plastic in the Garden As I've been struggling to find plastic plant markers in the shops, I decided... Continue Reading →
My smile this week came courtesy of an unexpected source: public toilets. Eew... yes. Seriously. The journey to Coimbra, in northern Portugal, for my post op visit with the knee surgeon is long and tedious so we punctuate our journey with various coffee and toilet breaks (pit stops) to relieve the monotony. Our first pit... Continue Reading →
Where has this week gone? It seems like only yesterday I was taking photographs for last week's Six on Saturday and then touring fellow gardeners blogs to check out their progress. Despite the strong winds this week we did manage to cross one job of the gardening 'To Do' list. Or should I say, the... Continue Reading →
This poem is dedicated to the wonderful selection of insects we have in our garden.
The Ugly Bug Spring Jive
by PiP
With the Herald of Spring the bugs start to arrive
in my Garden of Eden for the “Ugly Bug Jive”.
The weird and the ugly they give me the jitters
who may I ask created these critters?
There are black bugs and green bugs and stripey ones too
perhaps they’ve escaped from the Ugly Bug zoo?.
Grasshoppers and spiders arrive at my door
the Jive’s in full swing so they take to the floor.
The Ugly Bug Jive is now the “In” thing
and a great way to cheer, the arrival of Spring.
The birds, snakes and lizards come looking for lunch
The “Ugly Bug” guests look an appetising bunch…
hmmmmm
Gobble gobble!
What’s on the menu today?
Reading Trent's Weekly Smile I am reminded it is often the little things in life that brings us the greatest happiness. On Sunday we went to one of our favourite restaurants in Lagos Marina for Sunday Roast. For those not in the know, Sunday roast is typically British: Roast pork, beef or lamb served with... Continue Reading →
In years to come I wonder if Britain will regret its decision to leave the EU and if future generations will shake their heads in despair? I am not a political animal but with the uncertainty of Brexit looming over our heads like a black cloud in a blue sky, I fear for our future.... Continue Reading →
My SoS (Six on Saturday) for this week is a bit of a mixed bag. I've been more active in the garden and we are more or less back on track planting vegetables, clearing weeds etc. I've yet to scratch the itch of walking around a garden centre so perhaps we can add that to... Continue Reading →
Karen over at BlueSkyDays365 is also on a creative journey with watercolours and prompted this post. Having decided I'd like to paint I had hoped to join the local English art group, but like most things in life it's not what you know it's who you know. Apparently, according to a group member, it was... Continue Reading →
My biggest smile over the last week is due the birth of my fifth grandchild. A little boy who looks absolutely adorable! I continue to receive photos and updates via WhatsApp, but nothing can replace a real life cuddle. I am working hard on physio exercises to strengthen my knee, after my recent meniscus operation,... Continue Reading →
Where has this week gone already? It seems like only yesterday I was writing last week's SoS (Six on Saturday). My Six on Saturday this week focuses on vegetables. Temperatures at night still hover between 4C and 12C and daytime temperatures usually above 14C to as high as 20C. Probably higher if I measured the temp... Continue Reading →
Looking back through some of my garden photographs for January, I am amazed just how many plants were in bloom. With this in mind, I thought it would make a good point of reference to keep a month-by-month pictorial journal.Hibiscus Flowering in January Cacti and Succulents and in Flower - January **** January Perennials BromeliadBougainvillea, Lavender and Rosemary Orchids The Bird... Continue Reading →
This senryu is for Colleen’s Poetry challenge. Each week we are given two prompt words but we can only use synonyms not the words themselves. This week the prompt words are ‘slow” and “work”. This challenge is for syllabic poetry forms: Tanka, Haiku, Senryu, Haibun, Etheree, Nonet, Shadorma, and Cinquain poetry. Given the prompt words,... Continue Reading →
WoW! My fellow gardeners in the UK are really suffering with the snow. I hope your gardens are okay and there are not too many plant casualties. My Six on Saturday this week is once again restricted... Determined not to miss a week this roving reporter did manage to hobble round on her crutches (not... Continue Reading →
