Merry Christmas

October.....getting a bit chilly....

Well after being away on a break for a few weeks it's really noticeable now that the weather is slowly turning , getting a little chilly in the evenings when the sun goes down.
Still we are determind not to light the cental heating just yet!

All the leaves are turning colour and it really is so beautiful!




















Still a busy time in the garden and we are a little behind this year....
With the possibilty of a frost next week we have been digging up all the susceptable tubers like the Gladioli and the Cannas.





The Cannas have grown so much this year that we had to split them before placing them to dry pre storage!It's hard to believe that 3 years ago we started off with a gift from a neighbour of just 4 small tubers...here now there must be 20 or more 'clumps' of tubers!
Great for next year!!!







We also planted out our garlic and onion sets.
With the garlic we are experimenting with 4 different types...
Some from Turkey, Malta and 2 types from Bulgaria an early and a late variety.
So we will see......






























It's time also to clear up in the garden..but this will take us well into November...so much tidying up to do....though some of the flowers are still in full bloom.
Ah well at least it will keep us warm!!!

4 years today!

Today we quietly celebrated our 4th anniversary of being here in Srebarna!

We cannot believe that the time has gone so quickly and here's to another 4 years!



We were still busy with lots of guests and Mike had the opportunity to Volunteer over in Malta with CABS. (see srebarnabirding.blogspot.com)

We cleared out the greenhouse this week and finally harvested the chickpeas!


As you can see there were not very many.They only survived in the greenhouse, those outside did not do well at all.Although fun and interesting to grow I don't think we will bother next year.The yield was low and they took up quite a bit of space.

We did however really enjoy, or rather Mike did, making our own fresh hummous...




After eating this it all seemed worth it!








We also used up all the green tomatoes by making some fantastic green tomato chutney, it's a great way to use them all up with no waste.

September rains!

At last after over 2 months of hardly any rain in this region....it has arrived!
and with it everything in the garden is once again refreshed!




The little pond we made has really now turned into a little haven for all the little creatures....a bit different from it's before picture in June (see June's entry for pic)














































We have been busy harvesting again pumpkins, walnuts and hazelnuts.






















Some of the tomatoes are still holding on in the greenhouse though most of them are now coming to an end...
























The Canna that our dear friend Friend brought over has not done badly for it's first year.It did flower lasy month with a beautiful yellow flower however even now it makes such a lovely display with it's leaves...





And now with the cooler temperatures all the flowers seem happier.....

The August heat!

With temperatures in the high 30's every day and little to no rain I am brought back to memories of last year trying to keep the garden alive!

No amount of water seems to make any difference ...yet considering all is not too bad and I have found new friends ... plastic flowers....

A cheat I know but they can, if used sparingly, look quite effective and let's face it they are no trouble at all!

















I have already started to harvest.Not only to save as much as I can but by doing it now it saves time and money watering!

Also record number of guest in the guesthouse has meant that a lot of produce has been eaten along the way.....

The cherry tomatoes have all been picked to make sweet chilly chutney.
However I do not think I shall bother with this variety next year.
They took a lot of watering ....and I think that they will take a lot of time cooking too!







....tasty though and a nice change ....

Visitors

We have had some lovely guests this year in the guesthouse...as always...
But this year some unusual ones too.....

He/She has to be one of my favourites!
This toad I found living for several days beneath the damp, cool shade of our courgettes....what a beauty!
The colours were amazing but don't really show how much so here....































Maybe it was attracted to our 'pond' which is coming along ...slowly....

Hot hot hot!

Temperatures have again been high this year...well into the 40's!

Rain has fallen but too little in our region although some areas have had considerable amounts....

However as always the garden hangs on in there....

The first apricots from our smallest tree ....absolutely delicious!!!



The others were all picked and made into brandy 40 litres this year ..so a good harvest for us.


Infact it seems to be the fruits that are having the best year.Blackberries are big and juicy and our new raspberry canes have even produced a little ...

























So many apples that we have drafted in a few recruits to help with the picking...sorry eating.....