I set up an Instagram account a few  years ago and promptly forgot about it until some months ago and began browsing and got hooked enough to start posting, mainly about gardening.  I noticed some DIY crafting posts and began following them as I had always knit/sewed/made and done etc as many of my generation did because we had to , to look after a family and make ends meet. It was immediately very clear this new generation of crafters enjoyed the creativity and colour in each DIY project they did My monks bench was vintage white with a pale grey stencil, after looking at the colour ..read more

The Northern Lights/ Aurora Boreallis were on my bucket list for a while and I decided this was my year to tick them off, especially since IcelanderIcelandair are offering very good rates to fly from Dublin to Reykjavik.  The photos are uploaded in no particular order, it was cold so layers of clothes and waterproof walking boots were in order! I had booked my flights back in May, booked my B&B through Booking.com, prices in Iceland are more expensive than at home or most places I would think!  I had also booked an evening tour to see the Northern Lights on the Sat night, pick u ..read more

So another birthday reached, maybe not regarded  as a milestone  one but, every year is a milestone now as they seem to come around quicker and quicker!                                                   I began thinking of a bucket list a few years ago, having been lucky enough to have travelled a bit I had seen a few places,such as Venice and New York where we visited ground Zero which at that point was still a hole in the ground, the Statue of Liberty a ..read more

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 I don't grow Beetroot anymore as I no longer have the space to do so but, I would buy fresh at a Farmer's Market or where I know its local and organic. Saturday was one of those days I saw a bunch of Beetroot and decided I would pickle some. We are currently having a heatwave with near drought conditions and water rationing, YES, in Ireland!  Vegetables are in short supply and may even get scarce unless we get rain. Potatoes have failed in some places due to lack of rain at a very crucial period in their growth. Anyway, back to my Beetroot. I have been doing a very short term pickl ..read more

A much anticipated family occasion took place recently, the wedding of my grandson Stephen to Hayley in the UK, almost the entire family decamped to Kenilworth for a few days of laughter and merriment.  The sun shone on the wedding party for the whole day, which was wonderful as it was all planned outdoors in the hotel gardens! Stephen and Hayley are the proud parents of my great grand daughter Aoibhin, a thoroughly mischevious, adorable funny little Miss  here she is twirling the train of her Mom's dress around her, literally running rings around her. It was a beautiful fa ..read more

Well, post number 2, if I get one post up per week it would get things moving  with some continuity once again. The annual Mallow Homes and Gardens show took place last weekend which I attended with two of my grandchildren Jack & Heidi. the weather was a little unkind and some of the time we spent indoors was at the Taste of North Cork. these are a group of artisan producers who showed on the day but I was quite taken by Nibbles Food Emporium, award winning bakery based in Millstreet, Co Cork.  The Gardners Green soup with Bluebell falls goats Cheese crostini was intriguing, Chef ..read more

I can’t believe it’s been nearly 4 years since I last uploaded a Blog post!  Blogger became more complicated, smartphones became the norm, Face Book became the media of choice to share news etc.  Son Billy had to travel more for work and also took up marathon running, 17 clocked up to date. It was usually late in the evening by the time I got to the allotment and between being ate by small flies and not liking being alone there I didn’t continue. I did garden at home but that was mainly flowers. I actually didn’t even think of the Blog for months, lately I have logged on and caught ..read more

There was nothing done on the plot since Friday due to the worsening weather over the weekend.The greenhouse needed watering so I went out this evening. I intended pulling the remainder of the beetroot and the carrots and clearing the bed for the winter.The carrots had been very slow germinating and I thought not a great return from them, until I removed the Enviromesh which has sheltered them all summer. The beetroot has been fantastic  all year, all from one sowing ,I have been using the thinnings as baby beetroot in Balsamic vinegar but they have now grown tennis ball size, I think th ..read more

We have finally dug out the last corner of the plot, its been sitting under plastic sheeting for months to break down the high grass.The plastic was removed and the dead grass could be easily pulled away making it possible for a fellow plotter to come in with a rotavator to break up the ground.  We then dug it over thoroughly and removed the scutch grass roots and the stones.  I went on a road trip near Kinsale on Mon and brought back 4 bags of seaweed in the boot of the car! Wellie boots are compulsory for this task. I did'nt want to get seaweed from the harbour area as it is poss ..read more