Tuesday 27 December 2016

Tiptoe-ing back to Blog Land!

So OK, I am soooo sorry for not posting up a blog for a while, but lots has been happening, some in my head, some to do with what we are planning for next year, and some to do with me and Lester having a jolly hefty dose of flu which very efficiently flattened both of us. Even now we are still quite weak, which is a good excuse for going to bed and having a lovely long sleep in the afternoons.
 
Anyway, I hope you had a good Christmas.
Ours was excellent.
Spent most of it in bed.
 
But I did manage to put together a Christmas dinner.
Fortunately I had seen a pair of cockerel legs sticking up from amongst the piles of frozen meat
when I was on the hunt for something else,
so he was cooked up.....boiled first, then roasted.
 
 
 
He doesn't look very elegant, but he was delish.
I felt a fondness for that lad,
and blessed him profusely as he was cooked and eaten.
 
The things that are going on in my head are mostly to do with writing a new website for my work,
which is taking me an age because I don't have a clue what to put on it.
Actually, that is not true, I do know what the website has to carry,
but it is the lay out, graphics, and topic content, which is scrambling my head.
Not to worry, I shall persevere.
 
It has not been helpful that the flu has robbed us of any energy to keep motivated with our plans to open a market garden shop next year.
The poly tunnel still has not been ordered, and the land it is supposed to go on has still not been cleared of hedging along one side. The three vegetable paddocks have been tilled by the now deceased pigs, ( will tell you about that another time), but will need some ploughing over which can't be done because the soil is too dry.
The raised beds in the courtyard have still not been started, although progress about clearing the space has at least been done.
The Chicken Hut has still not been done, so we still don't have any chickens, but we have finished the fencing of the chicken run, and the two gates have been made although not painted.
All in all, the Market Garden Project is likely to have a very slow moving start in 2017!
 
..... and back in October, here is the fig tree in all its glory...
 
 
(sorry about the photo not being very good, but the fig tree is the green lump in the middle)
However, very disappointingly, it has deemed it beneath itself to give us a harvest of figs for the last two years, and instead has converted its energy into growing bigger by the day.
 
This is not good, so......
 

....with chainsaw in hand, Lester has severely pruned the fig tree,
and would have dispatched it altogether if I had not said that we need the figs from it
so give it a chance.
 
The area around the fig tree is where the raised beds are going to be.
I also hope to have a bit of space to put a sunbed up so I can lie in the shade of the fig tree on hot summer days.
This has been a fantasy of mine for the last nine years.
 Preventing me from doing so thus far has been the fact that the chickens have been in residence in, on, and around, the tree, filling the area with chicken paraphernalia  such as feathers and poo,
making it not an area one would wish to spend any time in,
especially when temperatures are high.
Perhaps this year, then, I shall get to indulge myself.
I can only hope.
 
Anyway, nice to have a chat with you, and hope your Christmas is proceeding gaily along.
 
 
And our Christmas Day supper.
It was all DIY produced apart from the bread flour and yeast,
all the rest...the jam, cheese, butter, were DIY.
 
 
Not very festive, but blame the flu for that!
 
Bye for now
 
Vx

22 comments:

Horst in Edmonton said...

So nice to hear from you again, we've had a lot of cold weather as of Dec. first, 2 weeks of -30C, at least we are on the upswing of the Sun now so hopefully it will not be too cold in the new year. Hope you will be feeling better soon. Take care and be well.

Horst

DUTA said...

I'm very glad to hear from you. I found myself using a phrase that often appears in your posts - 'not to worry', but I did worry.
Yes, the flu can be very efficient in 'flattening' us and robbing us of our energy.
Be better soon and have a Happy New Year!

Anonymous said...

Glad you're back!! A belated Christmas greeting and hope for a wonderful New Year for you and Lester.

Cro Magnon said...

I would have thought you could find a s/h poly tunnel (at least the metal part). The farmers around here no longer grow tobacco, and their seedling tunnels have all been abandoned. I have seen several sold off, or dismantled.

p.s. I have never known a Fig tree not produce Figs. No doubt the huge size of yours was the problem.

Coco said...

Merry Christmas and a Happy 2017! Glad to hear your on the mend, though with a to do list like that I might be tempted to stay in bed.

Vera said...

HORST: oh crikey, -30C!!!!....we have managed the occasional -1C this winter, but it has been very mild and sunny for weeks for which we are feeling very blessed. Am on the mend from the flu now, but still enjoying the winter slow down. Hope you are keeping well, and wishing you blessings of health and happiness for 2017.

DUTA: blessings to you, and hope that your New Year is a good and productive one.

ANON, and the same to you too......

CRO MAGNON: thanks for the info and will follow your suggestion. As for fig trees not producing, ours was managing a very feeble crop of figs, the fruit being small and non usable. Hopefully the heavy prune will do the trick.

COCO: I must admit that our 'to do' list does have an overwhelming effect on us sometimes! But better to be too busy than having time hang heavy on our hands because then all we do is mess about on the Internet and You Tube! Hope you also had a good Christmas, and wishing you an absolutely brilliant New Year.

Denise said...

Glad to see you back and that you and Lester are recovering from the 'flu bug. I was going to email to check you are still writing, because (as you know!) this is a very important consideration, writers that we are!

Xx

Kerry said...

So pleased that you are both OK despite your flu. We gave our fig tree a big hair cut last year and it still produced masses of figs, so fingers crossed the pruning will give it a new lease of life. Looking forward to reading about how you're new project goes next year. Happy 2017 to you both.

Lisa @ Two Bears Farm said...

That flu sounds awful. Glad you are recovering now. Hope the fig tree had a productive 2017.

John Going Gently said...

That cockerel has rigor mortis
Nice to have you back

Vera said...

DENISE: you are right about being a writer.....to be a writer you have to keep on writing! ...... and I am, I am, I am!!!!!!! x

KERR: it's 'do or die' with our fig tree, so hopefully it will get the message that it is better if it gives us some figs (probably not next year, but hopefully the year after than)if it wants to stay in situ! Wishing a happy and glorious 2017 to and your husband.

LISA: that flu was a wretched thing to have but we have had a good rest which we probably needed! Wishing you and your family a happy 2017.

JOHN; oh, is that why his legs are stuck straight up in the air? So I wonder how they get commercial chickens to have their legs nicely, and neatly, tucked in by their sides!
Hope you have survived Christmas all in one piece, and wishing you all the best for 2017.


Dawn said...

nice to see you back, sorry to hear you have both been unwell, looking forward to seeing your plans unfold in 2017

Cottontailfarm said...

Glad to see you back, I missed reading about your adventures!

minwks said...

All the best for the New Year. You will soon get over your flu and once again be full of energy and putting your plans into action.
Glad the weather has been mild.
Any chance all the chicken manure gave the fig a nitrogen boost?
Take care.
Regards Janine

Vera said...

DAWN: wishing you all the best for 2017.

COTTONTAIL FARM: thank you for your encouragement! Hopefully I shall have lots of adventures to share with you next year. All the best for 2017.

JANINE: The fig tree must have had tons of chicken manure given to....because for several years the chickens roosted in its branches! But hopefully it will concentrate now on making fruit instead of putting on leaf growth! Blessings to you for the coming year.

Kev Alviti said...

Glad you're feeling better, I had wondered what was up. Prune the roots on the fig by digging round it and that should make it fruit. Even just pushing the shovel all round it should help, they need to be restricted to fruit.
What is your new website about? I'm interested! I keep trying to think of ways to make this place pay.
Merry Christmas!

Olly said...

Very glad to see you back again.
I agree about pruning the roots of the fig tree, ideally they should be planted in something that will restrict them.

Looking forward to hearing more news from Labsrtere, here's wishing you both a happy New
Year.

Kirsty said...

Sorry to hear you've been unwell. You have big plans for next year, just make sure you're fully recovered from the flu.

Paul said...

Hi Vera, Glad you are feeling better. Have you thought about using wordpress for the website? It has tutorials to help you format.
Also look at the navigation on similar sites and that will help you structure what it is you want to say in pages. It will be easier to refine once you get it all out.

Vera said...

KEV, thanks for the info about the fig tree, but I think the roots go down too deep for us to try and cut them. Not to worry, hopefully the severe pruning might help it to fruit. My website is incorporating my personal life as a homesteader, plus other info regarding my 'other' work. (I am an intuitive). It will also act as a platform for Labartere Publishing, for my self published books. Kev, I am sure that the right path will open for you....you are very talented and something will take off for you, of that I am sure. Happy New Year to you and your family.

OLLY, this fig tree was in full growth when we arrived here! And it did give us tons of fruit for the first few years, but then the size of the fruit reduced as the tree went into overdrive with putting on leaf growth. Wishing you a happy 2017 as well.

KIRSTY, the flu has relaxed its grip on us, just the low energy to deal with now! Hope 2017 is a stupendous year for you and your family.

PAUL, I use Dreamweaver for the website, so will stick to that because at least I do get on with it alright, but thanks for the advice about Wordpress. Making a start on the website was the difficult part, but I persevered and now have more of an idea about what I need to say on the website. Thank you for your input, and wishing you all the best for 2017.

meadowlass said...

I am so glad you are back I must confess to being a little worried. I am glad you are recovering well from the flu. So thank you for your posts and Happy New Year

Vera said...

MEADOWLASS, bless you for your very kind comment, and wishing you the very best for 2017. Vx