Returning at last!!
With the weather not being too helpful towards gardeners at the moment of writing, thought it might be an idea to start with the garden. Do you have a problem with slugs? Most folks do. They are very busy at night, whilst you’re watching tele, reading or snoring! I remember going out with a torch to see how many I could catch. Wish I could remember the actual number, but I did record it in the GVN at the time. The number will truly amaze you. They love most veg except: beetroot, chard, artichoke, tomatoes, onions, garlic, chives and fennel, BUT they love anything that’s newly planted and obviously, has tender leaves. On the other hand there are plants they hate, so try experimenting by planting these amongst your other veg. or plants which they appear to attack…Salvia, foxgloves, lavender, nepeta, euphorbia, roses, lilies and Astrantia. They also dislike fluffy, ridged foliage, tough leathery leaves, strong smelling and apparently red or purple foliage! Worth a try.
I knew the yew tree in Peterchurch churchyard was pretty old. Did you ever wonder about it’s age? It is one of the oldest in the country, about 3,000 years old. Back in the late 13C. it would have been coppiced for bow making. ( as a bit more local history we would have been allowed to kill a Welshman on the Castle Green, on a Sunday with a bow and arrow…ooops…oh dear) Peterchurch has had a church since about 786AD. The church you see now was built about 1130. Anyone know what happed to the original? Unfortunately there was a fire badly damaging the yew tree in the churchyard as recently as the late 1970. There must be several of you living here remembering it. Would love to hear your account of it especially if you were a member of the bucket chain trying to doubt it. In 1986 a new yew was planted on St.Peter’s Day. Was there a concern that the old yew would die soon?
Do you love cats? There are a few straying cats around Hawthorn Rise, one in particular gives me the heeby jeebies (sp?) it adopts anyone’s front lawn for sunbathing, but worse than that it loves a snooze in the middle of the road. Leisurely, it stretches and moves away when a vehicle approaches, sure I’m not the only one who wonders if it’s been run over and so pleased when looking in the mirror that it’s just slowly ambling away. One used to visit the Monday Club regularly as it knew someone would give him loving attention. A little info I found recently on the back of a Cats Protection booklet might interest you. A. Cats sleep around 2/3rds of the time. So by the time a cat is 9 years old (in human years!) it will only have been awake for 3 years! B. Cats are unable to taste anything sweet. C. Cats can produce more than 100 vocal sounds. Not my results, I’m just quoting. The 1st one I can certainly believe!
HEREFORD DIALECT OF THE ‘PAST.. often words, phrases used by my father.. a very broad speaking Herefordshire farmer. (Some are probably used further afield.. no pun intended!)
QUAT QUOT… a pimple. Dad referred to them as squilts.. maybe one that comes to a ‘head’ so could be different.
CRATCH…. We had one in our ‘sitting room’ made of wood, level and just far enough below the ceiling to hold flitches of bacon. The pig would have been reared on the farm, killed, hair burned off then hung in the back-kitchen from the ceiling to drain its blood through mouth and nose into a container. The ‘pig man’ would come and cut it into joints, ready for the salting stone in the dairy. We weren’t at all squeamish, as you may be, reading it! It was all part of growing up on a farm.
SCRUTCHINGS.. SCRATCHINGS… crispy pieces left after rendering down fat. Nowadays they can be purchased in packets, unheard of 70 years ago.
STARVED…. perished with cold. ‘I’m perished’ meaning very, very cold not lack of food.