Chris and Bev – Heads in the Clouds

Arrival of the bench from Ian, the blacksmith, for the wellhouse. He adjusted the length of each leg to cater for the uneven floor. Ian thinks we now need a table to match – maybe two …

We’ve now submitted the light spillage assessment report demanded by the Council planners. This models how much light might come from our new windows and hit the garden walls. Bats don’t like lit walls apparently and this could put them off their foraging in the garden. The good news is that the report from our … More 7th June 2021

We’ve made a start on building the raised veg beds. We’re planning for these to be three-high in sleepers so that the final level will be near waist height. That’ll make gardening easier for when we’re too old to bend down, but is going to need a lot of soil from somewhere. The last couple … More 1st June 2021

With the potting shed complete and the prospect of a (delayed) garden shed in the next month of two, we’ve decided to consolidate our storage and get rid of one of our hired units and save a few quid. Genevieve and Ollie came over to help and did plenty of the heavy-lifting. When the unit’s … More 30th May 2021

We’ve tidied up the RPA – the ‘rustic picnic area’ as per Svend’s garden plan – with topsoil and will add some bark and tree chippings and a fire pit in the coming weeks. This will be the larger of the ‘gin and tonic’ venues … The bog garden has filled with water but sadly … More 29th May 2021

This week we’ve had three intensive days with Matt and Tristan and a hired six tonne digger. We’d saved up a few jobs that needed a big machine to get things going and we can now spend the next few weeks finishing them off, reverting to shovels and barrows and slow manual labour. Job 1: … More 27th May 2021

Henry and Erica came over today for a work session and lunch. The area around the new wellhouse apron was tidied up and reseeded. And then when the rain set in, the Chuckle brothers got on with building the first work bench in the bothy. The top for this is made from Dutch cheese shelves … More 23rd May 2021

In between the endless showers this week, and yet with the occasional burst of sunshine, we’ve managed to (more or less) finish our work on the base of the greenhouse. The Alitex man has been and the good news is that he’s signed off the base as being ready for the frame, with lots of … More 22nd May 2021

Another day off today for a lovely Woolacombe reunion and to celebrate Mark’s birthday (and retirement). Mark and Maria and Martin and Julie were our neighbours in The Sands. To welcome our exciting – and very welcome – post-lockdown freedoms, when the rain started we had the novel experience of squeezing into the caravan for … More 18th May 2021