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Saw these two signs on holiday in Gower recently and wanted to share. Thought it might be fun to have a signs thread as they seem to crop up fairly regularly!

We’re on our way back from Spain where ( mostly) the weather has been fantastic. Not too hot, with a breeze when needed. Dreading seeing my garden again. I’ve had someone cutting the grass but as he has horticultural dyslexia ( leaves the weeds, pulls the plants) that’s the limit I dare ask him to do. It’ll be a mass of bindweed, no doubt! Anyone know anything positive to do with bindweed? Your set up, Valkyrie makes me green with envy!

What an artist! Stupendous.

They've changed their minds - the storms and torrential rain is now sunny. Still forecast for the early hours of Monday - looks like we are escaping the worst. Early night tonight and hope I sleep through any reconstructed 1812 Overture from the weather. Today started as it finished yesterday - cooler with total cloud cover - pretty blue/grey and pastel shades.

What a lovely tranquil spot you have made. Well done with the veg. Don't know much about horseradish apart from grating the roots and they can be invasive with huge taproots. With regard to pak choi - yes - you can do both. We have some in a packet of mixed Oriental seeds (which we like best) so have just picked as and when needed, although we have a small patch in the greenhouse we have been eating a lot of salad! I know it likes cooler temperatures and is now beginning to bolt, but not a lot else about it - so I looked up on Youtube and found this short film which is really interesting and something that I'll do in the future (although I think this is in a polytunnel) but could easily be under a cloche in winter!

OoohOW ooohOW! Er pretty but nope, not for here - Mistress Vixen would chomp that fancy tail off in seconds! Well I thought Frida was having a time-out but no, she was laying in the little green nestbox that I got for broody nestbox hogger. She hogged so much that Frida gave up! A nice little cluster of 5 eggs! OH said "oh noooo not that many!!!" But Goldie has seen the light and has now come out into the light. Still having issues with little Fudge, although she had a day outside - bed time and she was in as soon as I opened the door. The Force with her is strong! I gave up with the sin bin - it didn't work either! With Goldie I just let her stay although I pulled her out when everyone was yelling, and for tea and a general run around the garden with the others in the afternoons when everyone had laid. Inga only has one little bumblefoot bit left - the one on her toe came out today - it was huge but thankfully all in one piece. She was duly disinfected and trussed and what happened? She kicked it off. I managed to check it and it already looked like it had closed up nicely. Soooo the last remaining bit looks like it won't be long. It'll be easier for her too as I won't take hours to bandage her up, although I'm getting much better at it! We had our first crop of spuds - 10.5 ounces of Red Duke of York and they were really tasty. I think we'll do those again next year. We still have some in the fridge. I think a nice mini frittata for lunch is on the cards with onions freshly picked too.

I’m half an hours drive from Newquay. I used to live there when I was in my twenties but I wouldn’t want to now. It’s coastline is stunning and you can usually find yourself a quiet hidden away spot if you know where to look, but it’s really too much of a party town for me now. Blimey I must be old 😂

Well with the summer solstice came the sunshine! It's been lovely and today is the same. Will have to dash outside and get things done pretty quick while we can. I think a lot of the bad weather has been blowing across from the USA - they have had odd weather this year, then looking at the satellite it then pootles back across the Atlantic and up the Bay of Biscay - then storms! But hey ho, it is what it is. So while I gave up with the parsnips, I planted out the beetroots. What happens? A day of sunshine and the parsnips put in another sneak appearance! A tad late! Grrrr! Sadly Dudley the pheasant has met his maker.😥 Am thinking Mistress Vixen as there was nothing to show but a few feathers and not the complete plucking session that the buzzards like to do. We are now down to the one Mrs P. I've called her Sweetpea as I can get quite close - like 2ft - for a chat! But that's nature - mustn't get too attached to the wildies. Although a happier ending for a baby blue tit that I found at the entrance to the greenhouse. Picked it up and gave it a cuddle to warm it up. Even OH got to stroke it. Then I went walking round the bird feeders to try and find it's family. When I got to the opposite end of the garden it perked up and flew out of my hand to join the others. Tears of joy that time! Ending on a good note - we have paid the deposit to the architect yesterday so we are actually making progress now. Photo is the stupid tardy parsnips!

Lovely photos - happy days!

That looks wonderful - Bright Blessings m'Dear. What a lovely day... happiness is within you today. (and so is the beer!)

Just thought I’d share that I’ve had such a lovely day today. I had a great day at work with lovely colleagues a lovely job and amazing weather, then this evening I did 108 sun salutations for the summer solstice and international yoga day at south fistral which was just brilliant. Then when I got home OH had made dinner for me and there was a beer in the fridge. Feeling thankful and lucky.

Hi, we’ve struggled to find one however hit the jackpot this morning and we’re getting one couriered from Southmead Poultry who have them in.

So sorry - very fragile creatures. As a child I had 2 which didnt even reach 2 years. Glad you had a nice vet and was with him. XX

On this midsummer solstice Have a great day folks

The Watch of the Blight is now lifted for a little while longer yippeeeee! We used up the last of the shop bought spuds yesterday, so from now on we start lifting and playing hunt the buried treasure. Yarrrr! The grass and other growing wild things is tall - and we can only just see the deer's antlers as he walks through. I have thought of leaning on the gate with a piece of hay between my teeth, but I need a big floppy hat and a smock top. Managed to finish strimming all the grass in and around the chicken run before the rain came again. Poor Curly was doing zigzags through the taller buttercups and grass to run back inside away from the scary beasts that were racing in too. Since Trigger's disappearance, the birds seem a lot calmer and the big ones are no longer squabbling between them. I still don't trust them enough to let them in with the little ones though. I've managed to pot up a few things and tied a couple of runner bean poles together - but gave up running in from the field, taking bits back in and out was annoying! Still I live in hope! From the little seed bed in the greenhouse I have pricked out a few kale and calabrese into pots to harden off ready for the field. I have lots of things ready for the field if only the weather would behave! And I spotted greenfly on one of the most healthy peppers. Not amused! They got squished and now I need a squirty sprayer as I've utilised one as a starch spray in the sewing room. The previous greenhouse one was retired as it was next to useless. Maybe a garden centre trip on the cards!

Do you ever regret not having your phone to hand when your animals do something funny. OH found some other devices on BHWT which are like blinkers and so much easier to fit.than bumpa bits. Penny wasnt impressed with our efforts at the bumpa bits and got them off in minutes. We fitted them in past to a hen with a wonky beak (like Rod Hulls emu) no problem Anyway one morning this week having fitted this gadget and feeling happy with ourselves we sat having coffee in garden (actually wasnt raining) watching Penny and Floss free range. Floss has been unwell and is hopefully on mend - laying again after moult and her new bum feathers are growing back so we didnt want Penny pecking her and drawing blood again. So there we are watching Penny with her blinkers. Floss comes up stops short and stares intently at Penny. She looks away and then stares again and you can imagine the conversation would not be unlike a mum staring at her teenage daughters skirt the size of a belt. " what the hell are you wearing? that really isnt your colour you know" we were laughing so much . Floss then walks off looking bemused. Penny has got used to her new device. I found a video on You Tube of a line of hens with these things. Obviously all peckers. Sorry not sure could do that as not very good at technology. If you look at Youtube "anti pecking visors" by Farm pride you will see the lovely girls sporting their new shades. Sorry mods please delete my post which I seem to have managed to post again. Told you I was a technophobe.

Well still rubbish weather and when we do get dry spells we are constantly playing catch up instead of being ahead of the game. I've been hardening off the climbing beans - only to see several little colonies of blackfly under the leaves - heck they've only got a few leaves, give 'em a break - you've already been scoffing my broad beans! Still, I am now looking on the broad beans as field beans and therefore they are fixing nitrogen in the soil. Win some, lose some. Now we are on bligh*****ch alert for the spuds! Some of the salad leaves have gone to seed, but we did have a nice stir fry with lots of rainbow chard. Cooks down to the same colour more or less but it looks pretty while chopping. Happy to report new bean seeds are sprouting up. Meanwhile we have instructed the architect to go ahead and draw the plans. Not done this before so it's going to be a bit of an adventure. Sadly I'm not having an indoor swimming pool - or an outside one, unless we borrow some explosive from the quarry because this shillet isn't fun to play with. We have been using the rubbish rainy days to go hunting for stoves and cookers. Decided on a Rangemaster because they are the only oven that doesn't need a mortgage and will take my largest roasting pan. Yes - we took the pan with us. Those thinking of Agas - they take the roasting pan because they are narrow but deep. Not sure I liked the idea of having one handle and then pulling it out with a panful of roast turkey or goose and likely would splash hot juices all over me and the floor! We also have found a stove - well OH likes the mod one and I like one a little more curvy - but still looks mod! They also had interesting fire pits that OH now wants. I'm not keen on BBQ's so not particularly keen myself. Fancy that - it's raining yet again. Yesterday the evil twins just plonked themselves down in the middle of the gateway to the field and sunbathed. Can't say I blame them - I'd have done the same if I wasn't messing around in the greenhouse! In the field the spuds are coming on nicely (keep away blooming blight) and so are the onions. Still not sure about the garlic. I've planted some beetroot in the parsnip bed where the parsnips haven't bothered, although I saw lots of ungerminated seed when I dug holes for the plants. Not impressed. In fact Hollow Crown was a Dobies special - with some gardening celebrity, that I have no idea who he is, flogging his heritage seeds at a few meagre seeds for double the price. Works out rather expensive when none germinate! I'm sure I can obtain them elsewhere and get better results. Whinge whinge whinge. All the comfrey plants are in and in just one day they seemed to romp away - even the little weedy one that I ummed and ahhhed about but stuck it in anyway. Glad I did! At least all the plantings have had a jolly good watering - yesterday was vertical but thoroughly drenching sort of rain. Righty ho - sun is out again so I'm going to finish off strimming around the electric fence. The chickens are not amused. They wanted OUT! But I said nah ah ahhh because you scoff wild bird food (Inga chases off the ravens, stroppy mare) and then you turn your noses up at yummy delicacies from the veg patch that I give you! Fudge is still a broody monkey and so is Goldie. I'm in two minds about popping down to Blackdown Poultry and picking up another couple of pekins to keep Curly company. Oh yes - that's the next chore - clean the birds out. Hooray, just love a half decent day. I need to list my priorities and tick them off as I go. Oh for goodness sake Blight . . . watch

Toulouse, which is 50 miles East of us, had a 10 minute hailstorm which brought down trees and smashed roof tiles; here a couple of mm of light rain fortunately. Still had to water everything this morning and so we are now down to 1000 litres. Lifted some main crop potatoes which showed they could benefit from a few more weeks growth. My hands tingle after petrol strimming Valkyrie, so I limit myself to one tank of fuel use per day. The little electric one is much better in that respect, but then dragging cables about is awkward.

Just on the last 2 rows before I add a couple of borders. Oh look I see the fire tag under the chair!

Do you ever regret not having your phone to hand when your animals do something funny. OH found some other devices on BHWT which are like blinkers and so much easier to fit.than bumpa bits. Penny wasnt impressed with our efforts at the bumpa bits and got them off in minutes. We fitted them in past to a hen with a wonky beak (like Rod Hulls emu) no problem Anyway one morning this week having fitted this gadget and feeling happy with ourselves we sat having coffee in garden (actually wasnt raining) watching Penny and Floss free range. Floss has been unwell and is hopefully on mend - laying again after moult and her new bum feathers are growing back so we didnt want Penny pecking her and drawing blood again. So there we are watching Penny with her blinkers. Floss comes up stops short and stares intently at Penny. She looks away and then stares again and you can imagine the conversation would not be unlike a mum staring at her teenage daughters skirt the size of a belt. " what the hell are you wearing? that really isnt your colour you know" we were laughing so much . Floss then walks off looking bemused. Penny has got used to her new device. I found a video on You Tube of a line of hens with these things. Obviously all peckers.

Sorry to hear that - seems the way with chickens quite often 😔

I think that's right. And apparently if you have a vegan kitchen it's fine too.

I agree - lugging tons of soil is blooming hard work! But well done. I was up early and working in the field at 7.30 - must have been insane! It was cloudy but dry. Very windy though and we even had sunshine for quite some time. Clouded over again though. Lots of stuff done in the greenhouse and things planted outside. This afternoon we even managed to mow the lawn and the veg patch! In time before the storms arrive - although I don't know if that applies to our are. Storm warning in place and is apparently from 7pm tomorrow and through the night, so someone will be getting them - unless they change their minds, but OH's weather app said storm warning and my one which is Net Weather has it marked up too. Just need the dry weather to come sooner rather than later - several of us around here need the fields to be cut and baled pdq! Also joined Bligh*****ch which gives notifications of blight (tomatoes/potatoes) for farmers and amateurs - one of the sponsors is Bayer - no guesses why they are - buy our chemicals to spray on your veg. Blight-.watch!!! Simple - no rude words!!!! And in any case I was told to look it up by my dad and it is an article of nuns headgear. So there!

Hiya - I have a new Eglu without the automated door as I don't shut them in at night, I've had hens for years in different runs and never have shut them in their actual house, the run keeps the foxes out and they seem fine with the door open, they can get up very early in the morning and I can have a lie in - however I do have to shut the nest box door at night...seemingly more so with this Eglu - whether they prefer the box to the slats I am not sure but I am hoping if I shut the door for a few weeks they might get out of the habit so I can be lazy and leave it open as I have with most other set ups. Anyway - this caused me to think, what is the point of an automated external door if you can't automate the nest box door as they will all crowd in there! Omlet need to design one. Not sure I will buy it tho...far too pricey for me...will have to rely on good old human hands and the nest box will just have to be open 24/7 if I am away. So I am very much with you on this one - but have absolutely no idea how you can achieve the automation - don't even know what Arduino is. Good luck!

Your machines are fabulous and what a difference when you get inside and clean them all up. Also your patchwork is really lovely too. Not done much patchwork lately but have done some key fobs as an order.