New project no 2

After the dismal failure of the pond project we are onto another of my last year's environmental improvement tasks. I wanted to plant a little group of Scots Pine trees to hopefully attract some goldcrests to the farm. It took me a while to find a supplier of slightly larger trees (as in larger than miniscule), as I'm hoping if they can be seen they won't be driven over by the tractor! I bought from Perrie Hale who did an excellent job of providing what I needed. While researching Scots Pines I was interested to see they are also known as 'drovers trees' and were planted as a marker tree alongside droving tracks which is exactly where ours are, and from my newly planted trees I can see others in the distance both to the south and the north of Hill Farm.

Big cake, little cake

This month we have a WI competition to 'make something interesting using a baked bean tin'. I made a tiny fruit cake in mine before putting the baked bean wrapper back round the result. Of course I needed the larger cake too as I couldn't just make a tiny quantity. The recipe is for 'Everyday Cake' and I often used to make it for my father to take to his amateur radio field days. It's a very plain cake, more like a rock cake, and comes from an ancient Stork Baking book that I've inherited from my mother.

Mothering Sunday

Today we held a service to distribute our Mothering Sunday posies to the congregation (although given the rather limited number of us in attendance maybe congregation isn't quite the right word), plus over half the recipients had actually been involved in making the posies in the first place! However we had fun and as well as the flowers there was a sprig of rosemary in each bunch. These came from cuttings I'd grown from my late mother's rosemary bush so it seemed a fitting inclusion, I know she'd have loved it as she always helped make similar posies for her Somerset church.

A frosty start

Today dawned cold and frosty and as I walked down to church there was the odd snowflake drifting in the breeze. Brighter when I walked back up the hill I was still glad for several layers of clothing.

Going, going ... (day 5 and a couple of hours)

Oh dear our lovely pond that I was so excited with only hours ago in now going down the plug hole (literally), it was amazing to watch and hear the water gurgling down. We assume that the weight of the water has broken down into part of the old clay pipe drainage system which we'd tapped into higher up to create (the now un-necessary overflow system). I guess a plan B is called for.

Watching you

As if it isn't enough to be constantly watched by the cat and the sheep now the pheasant has joined in the act. He did look impressive though with the morning light on his spectacular plumage.

Our pond (day 5)

Walking down across the field this morning I could see the water had reached it's final point and our pipe and hanging basket filter overflow system seems to be working well. I've got some ideas about planting the margins and am delighted with what we've created.

Postscript: going down to discuss my plans with Dave a few hours later the water is disappearing fast ....

Our pond (day 4)

Looking good so far, there was frost on the field as I walked over to see how it was this morning. The pond has filled with water and it overflows from the trough just as I imagined it would. There is some leakage from the bank on the far side but the levels seem to have worked out very well.

Our pond (day 3)

The pond is filling up quickly. I couldn't wait to go down at first light this morning to see how it was looking.

Our pond (day 2)

Today we had snow fall in wintery showers but as the pond was beginning to fill with water I was tasked with trying to put a pipe in place to allow for overflow drainage, Dave did the more technical bits and I was the labourer. There was originally a clay pipe that took the water from the trough and enabled it to drain out onto the grass creating a very boggy area between here and the little stream on the boundary. The water itself comes from one of a number of springs in the field.