There has been sun and there has been rain this month. July's garden continues to delight us.
The bees are also loving the flowers. I'm enjoying the roses, the candy pink phlox, the orange crocosmia and the many marigolds that were planted out in the herbaceous borders and vegetable beds. I was happy to see a stray frilly-petalled oriental poppy growing among the French bean plants in the veg plot. How it got there I do not know, but I'm pleased to see it none-the-less.
The tomatoes (different varieties) are growing in the covered yard, among the flowers in planters, in pots placed by a wall that gets more sunshine than other areas and a bush variety is in the raised beds in the vegetable plot. The courgette flowers are pretty, the courgettes even better and versatile for cooking in different ways. The broccoli is coming on nicely, one of the olive trees has developed fruit this year, the cucumbers, sweet peppers and the grape vines are growing in the covered area. The grape vines are also being trained on wires along the drystone walls in the front and back gardens. Thyme, oregano, mint, fennel and basil are my favourite herbs to grow.
At the beginning of July Mr P was busy tidying up the cypress hedge by giving it a trim on top and at the back. He made a better path along the side by levelling the original blocks of stone and making them more secure in the ground. Taking a walk around the hedge on the new path I saw a huge bumble bee crawling through the cut cypress branches that had fallen on the ground. It's a reminder not to be too drastic with these maintenance jobs in the garden and to remember that all sorts of creatures live in the garden or visit for different purposes.
Mr P also made his home made wine from the grape juice bought recently. It's a white Sauvignon Blanc. The process doesn't need any extra bought sugar so it's a nice brand and economical to make and bottle. I like hearing the sound of the fermenting juice and seeing the bubbles in the outlet airlock tube.
There's a lot to do in the garden at this time of the year whether it's re-arranging different areas to find space for more plants and then planting them out, maintenance jobs, watering the tomatoes and other plants in the covered yard and so on. When the work for the day is done it's a pleasure to have some corners of the garden where we can sit and relax and then, of course, there's the herbs and vegetables waiting to be picked and used in an evening meal.
Whatever you're doing this weekend and in the coming week I hope all goes well for you.