31st May 2020

Dear All,

Well it seems like more of the same this week: walking, watering, ZOOMing and gardening. The main addition for us has been a trip to Kate & Gordon’s at Haddenham – the furthest we have been for 10 weeks to replace some tomato plants and a battle with badgers at the allotment. I have grown potatoes for about 60 years and have never had a serious pest problem but I suspect because of the drought the badgers have discovered my patch at the allotment and dug about a quarter of them. I think they are probably looking for worms but also chew the seed potatoes as well. This week we have replaced a puny low fence with 1.5m chicken wire dug in at the bottom and weighted down. In addition, we have placed petrol-soaked rags around the edge. It worked Friday night but we haven’t checked today as yet. Frustratingly they have not touched potatoes on the other allotments which are not protected at all.

Badger damage

 

New Fence

For our longer walk this week we drove to Earith bridge and walked round the lakes there. We intended starting by taking the footpath along the Old Bedford River but it was closed. In general, it was not as good as recent walks as the lakes are mostly owned by private fishing syndicates and sealed off with wire fences. The highlight was the vast numbers of Damselflies. The previous day walking in Over Fen there were masses of Banded Demoiselles.

An unusual sight was an Allan Williams turret. It is a Pre-Fabricated Defence Structure built of Steel. It was manned by two crew members with a Lewis Gun, who entered through the entrance tunnel The turret could be rotated through 360 degrees giving a limitless field of view of fire. 199 Turrets ordered and built. Designed to be used for all types of light weapons: Bren, Lewis, Boys, Hotchkiss & Browning.

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Damselflies

  

Earith Lakes

 

Allan Williams Turret

Banded Demoiselle

This week in the garden I have planted cabbage, cauliflowers and leeks while strawberries and raspberries are coming on stream, together with calabrese, broad beans and mange tout peas.

With love

Mike & Kate

24th May 2020

Dear All,

The heat and lack of rain have meant we have spent quite a lot of time watering this week as several crops and flowers are newly transplanted and not well established as yet.

Watercan line up

My other gardening project has been to construct another compost bin at the allotment from pallets. I have also been forced to fence potatoes for the first time as they are attracting attention from badgers at the allotment.

Patented Compost Bin !

It was so hot on Thursday that we postponed our longer walk until Friday. This time we crossed the river at the Staunch again then headed along the river bank towards “The Pike & Eel” then to Needingworth and back around the gravel works and Barleycroft Lake. The main feature this week was the profusion of Dog Roses.

  

From the Staunch

  

Dog Roses

Needingworth Lake

Terry and I had a ZOOM session with Moldova this week as we sort out the mechanism of transferring money. They have only recorded 221 deaths so far but like many other countries are sceptical about the truth of the statistics. Their restrictions were eased on the 15^th May and they are allowed gatherings of 50 as long as they are outdoors and socially distanced. They held their Sunday service like this last week. The “Meal Deal” for children has not been able to meet but they have been taking food round to the neediest.

Philip is busy making plans for U3A walkers to resume in groups of 6 and rotating round a series of local locations. We think he is a little ahead of the game at present! U3A have contacted us with options for this autumn’s classes which will not meet but may continue on-line or be postponed. We have opted for postponement for “Just Vegetating” but will probably try ZOOM for “Biographies”.

With love

Mike & Kate

17th May 2020

Dear All,

We continue to be relatively fortunate during the lockdown in being able to walk each day, be occupied in the garden and allotment and have remained healthy. I realise it is much tougher for those working from home, home educating or not feeling well. We do however miss seeing children, grandchildren and friends.

Highlights this week include decorating, wedding anniversary, another new walk and a couple of mega planting days.

The paint we purchased before the lockdown could not be restrained in the pot any longer once the weather turned cold and windy at the beginning of this week. Kate did all the preparation and I applied the paint in the back bathroom.

Preparation - Before

During

 

After

On Friday we managed to remember our wedding anniversary this year as we clocked up 49 years. The celebration consisted of this week’s long walk and a Fish and Chips take away – we know how to live!

We did the longer walk on Friday this week due to the interruption of decorating but found another excellent route across the river to Barleycroft Lake. This was teeming with bird life and both on the lake and on the Over RSPB reserve there were large creches of goslings – up to 50 in one group.

Gosling Creche – Over Fen

 

Creche on Barleycroft Lake

Barleycroft Lake

After three nights frantically covering all susceptible plants in the garden, at Ken’s and on the allotment we have decided that it is unlikely that there will be any more frosts, so on Friday afternoon and Saturday we planted Sweet Corn, Brussel sprouts, Sprouting broccoli, Kale, Cauliflower, Cabbage, Squash, Marrows, Courgettes & Pumpkins. Another frost now would be interesting!

With love

Mike & Kate

10th May 2020

Dear All,

Kate duly celebrated her lockdown birthday on Monday thanks to all contributors. She actually shares the date with 3 other Over residents. We topped the day off with an Indian take away.

Birthday Loot

The barter system is flourishing locally as John Lane exchanged a trout for some seeds and Mervyn swapped a bottle of port for some tomato plants! On Tuesday evening Glynis tapped on our window and said “Why aren’t you out covering your susceptible plants as there is a frost warning?”. We then spent an hour covering strawberries, Runner and French Beans and potatoes in the garden, in Ken Elsom’s garden and the allotment. In the end it was only a slight frost but it did touch a few uncovered plants.

Garden

  

Allotment

Kate braved Tesco’s again on Wednesday lunchtime and it was fairly quiet and civilised. She managed to find most things with the exception of bread flour.

Ready for Tesco’s

 I have been asked to write an article for the RHS “Garden” magazine on the recent Winter Cabbage trial. I completed this on Wednesday but it is for the November issue so do not hold your breath!

We made an early start for Thursday’s walk and headed down Fen End towards Willingham, then did a complete loop round the gravel workings to Earith then back along the Rothschild Way which runs parallel to the river. Rothschild was a wealthy industrialist with an interest in conservation. He purchased Wicken and Wood Walton fens and donated Wicken to the National Trust. In appreciation a route between the two sites was named after him. We heard bitterns booming again and saw sand martins as well as several swallows.

Gravel Workings

Scotch Thistles

Rothschild Way

We held a low profile V.E. day celebration on Friday by drinking wine on the front drive. There were several bunting strewn gatherings in the village and 3 veterans – including Ken whose garden I tend were given special presentations by the British Legion.

VE Day party!

With love

Mike & Kate

3^rd May 2020

Dear All,

I hope you are still grinning and bearing it all? We added another ZOOM session this week with John Law in Turkey. He is close to the Syrian border and there are 300,000 refuges attached to their town. In Turkey old and young are strictly locked down but middle aged can go out. The rain this week was very welcome for the garden and I have planted out climbing French beans and early Sweet Corn. I have distributed tomato plants to four recipients this week and seed to another couple of folks.

Our Thursday walk this week took us to Bluntisham via the RSPB reserve, the Staunch and the river. Weather was ideal for walking and we saw Swifts for the first time as well as Marsh Harriers, a large Buzzard and a dead Kestrel ln Bluntisham churchyard. Bluntisham has a historic connection with Dorothy L Sayers. Her father was vicar there and she based her book “The Nine Tailors” on the nine bell ringers there.

We have still managed to walk every day, yesterday we travelled via the orchard to Swavesey Green then down Middle drove to Over Mere Fen.

Bluntisham Hall

 

River Ouse

 

Break time

May blossom

Mere Fen

Local colour

We lost two local residents this week who our children will know: Alan Adams and Charlie Jenner. Neither was due to Coronavirus.

Kate’s birthday celebrations seem to have started early – such as they are as following the premature bench, she received a bread and cakes parcel from the children and a floral card with real flowers from Kate & Gordon.

Bread & Cakes parcel

Floral Card

With love

Mike & Kate