Onion knowledge!

Ms Tagalong has been looking through some of the photos she has taken of various great gardens this past year.

One garden in particular stands out. Another National Trust property, chanced upon as a detour off the great M5 motorway was a wonderful break.

Hanbury Hall and gardens , a William and Mary style house built in 1701, has its share of history with a family including ne'er-do-wells and squandered fortunes.

The stunningly restored parterre garden is a highlight,
'My sister would love that! All that perfection and order,' said Ms Tagalong.

The walled garden is once again a working, producing, viable veggie garden supplying the cafe with its greens, fruit and of course eggs from the happy chickens!

Ms Tagalong has probably mentioned before how excited she is about the course the National Trust is taking with all this sustainability and local produce. Fantastic!

Wandering into the greenhouse Mr Ideasman spied onions drying on a table. He cupped one in his hand impressed by its size, 'I certainly know my onions!' he quipped.

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An Autumn Morning in the Garden

Ms Tagalong wandered into the garden early this morning expecting mists and mellow fruitfulness but the sky was cloudy and the early morning chill had all but gone.

The chickens were arguing in the pens, jostling for first off the post position as the doors were opened but Ms Tagalong had photography on her mind, not the stomachs of chickens.

She saw the sculptured pathway of the soon to be mosaic pathed road into the chicken enclosure. Little elves have worked hard manoeuvring the mulch into hills somewhat resembling the eagerly awaited swales which Ms Mova has so long craved.

She spotted a table full of healthy pawpaw plants ready to be planted and the fruit to be savoured next year with some of the limes we are attempting to grow.
On second thoughts the limes are kaffir limes and the fruit is not quite the same! Ms Tagalong might have to donate some of her limes off her prolific lime tree. Well, prolific might be an exaggeration, but at least she can count the limes this year.

Next through the camera lens was the neat rows of onion seedlings planted behind this year's exuberant garlic chives.


Sweet potatoes continue to burgeon and Ms Tagalong was rather upset to realise that the ends of the plants which she had gaily thrown to the chickens last week, once dug up can be replanted to form next year's tubers. Ah, well, live and learn.