2^nd October 2021

 

Dear All,

Early dispatch as we are off to the Cotswolds tomorrow morning. Swimming was followed by a trip to Oakington Garden Centre for coffee and a few plants. On Tuesday we travelled up to Saham Toney, near Watton in Norfolk to visit my old NIAB boss Bill Chowings together with Glynis and Roger Holland. Bill in well into his 80s and recently his wife has moved to a home in Watton due to mobility and dementia problems. We took Bill out for lunch at Broom Hall Country Hotel in Saham Toney. Glynis was going to drive but discovered she had not enough diesel – such are current times!

 

 

Glynis, Bill, Kate & Roger

 

Wednesday was Squash harvest day, we were helped? by Arthur who was with us for the morning. Later I finished digging the Sweet Corn land at the allotment – it has been a good crop and escaped the attention of the badger population.

 

First Squash Harvest

 

 In the evening our neighbour’s front wall was flattened by a new resident up the lane opposite who discovered he had no brakes when he motored down the lane! Mrs Shaw (the neighbour) can be a bit cranky but she took it quite well as the wall needed replacing anyway!

 

 

21 Willingham Road

Thursday was the end of season winter maintenance on the cricket square. It went well: scarifying, reseeding, fertilising and addition and levelling of 60 bags of Essex special Ongar loam. The scarifyier is a formidable machine so it is always a relief when it works and it is over.

 

 

Pitch Maintenance

Over wintered planting has begun with spring cabbage, red onions and elephant garlic in the ground this week. We held a Zoom session with Andrei in Moldova Thursday evening, sending money is a slow and painful business but hopefully we are progressing.

Amḗlie was dressed as a wartime evacuee at school this week – I hope she is sent somewhere nice!

 

 

Evacuee

It is Harvest Supper and Thanksgiving this week so we have been collecting produce and helping with the arrangements. It will be the first post Covid meal so a bit of a novelty.

 

With love

Mike & Kate