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Tuesday 4 April 2017

Hubble Bubble + Parsonage Gardens


I need to get myself a cauldron.    The dandelion brew which I made, for cleaning the windows, etc, is so good that I should really go into production and market the stuff!

I found the recipe in a stray page of a very cheaply produced recipe book which probably dates from around a hundred years ago.      My daughter was sceptical but she has requested a bottle of the brew now she has seen how well it works.

A cauldron would be great fun, I could have a small fire in Owl Wood with the cauldron on a tripod ready for brewing the dandelion mixture.     The more I think about it, the more I like the idea!    I could become the village witch...


Many years ago I had a cauldron.  It was when I was 'The Old Woman who Lived in a Shoe' - on a carnival float.    I was about 15 or 16 years old - so that makes it almost half a century ago!



One of the props was a big black, three legged cauldron, you can just see it in the bottom left of the picture.   That's me in the yellow dress, my younger brother was Little Jack Horner.   I'm not sure he ever forgave my mother for making him wear that outfit - the big white collar and bow, the daft hat, but hey, I had to wear a mop cap.   Mortification all round.

Other teenagers were doing music festivals and having fun!

*     *     *

Meanwhile, back in the here and now.




The primroses have been quite wonderful this year, these steps lead up to the old herb garden.   The brick structure is all that remains of what used to be the privy for the main house.   It had become unsafe, so we dismantled most of it but turned it into the herb garden.   Chives and rosemary are doing really well at the moment, everything else will catch up in time.


The first tulips are out, but the ones I am really looking forward to seeing again are those crazy parrot tulips.   Terribly bright, loud, flashy, not my usual style at all.  Yet I really like them!


Foliage of every colour, but down at the base of the old birdbath the first of the forget-me-nots are appearing.


A little play with the macro setting on the camera and their sweet beauty is revealed.


They will soon be bursting into bloom here.  


The colour of these grape hyacinths is beautiful but, sometimes, all I really need to make me smile


is a daisy.    I love to see them dotted around in the lawn!  


As you can see, we don't keep a bowling green lawn.    This part of the garden leads on to Owl Wood, you can just see the top of the hens gazebo to the middle left, though you would probably have to enlarge the photograph.   The old herb garden is on the right.


There is quite a way to go but spring is beginning to to brighten up the place.    

Talking of brightening up the place - our beautiful daughter-in-law, Poppy, is flying in from Shanghai tomorrow evening.    

Poppy


We are so looking forward to having you home, Poppy!

21 comments:

  1. It's so refreshing to watch all come to life on your land. You are week ahead of us (Ontario)but things are changing fast. I have yet to see any blooms here. I love the apricot tulips...so beautiful. And the daisy (the happy flower)is my favorite of all. We, too, wait anxiously to see them pop up everywhere. Enjoy your time with your family and thanks for the walk-about. Deb

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    1. Hello Deb, We have an awful lot of heavy cloud cover here, so I take these walks and look out for the changes to cheer myself up. I need some sunshine and blue skies really, but I'll settle for flowers!
      Poppy has been away for a while now, we are all excited to be seeing her again - especially her cat, Boy!

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  2. Beautiful gardens. That cauldron idea sounds good, and if it doesn't work plant flowers in it.

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    1. Hello Marcia, The sun broke through half an hour ago, everywhere looks so much better in the sunshine. I have been using my dandelion brew today, testing it out on various surfaces but now that the sun is shining I must get outside and enjoy it.

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  3. -clapping hands- Oh yes! Oh yes! Get a cauldron, and brew up your dandelion mixture, in Owl Wood. Thus becoming The Village Witch!!!!!!!

    Bet if you broached the subject, in a sincere way, to some of the oldest people in your village, they would remember hearing of Witches. And would share with you, their recollections. What a wonderful source of local History!!!!!!

    Oh I hope you do try!!! And please share here, with us, in a post. I would love to hear their memories.

    You are surrounded with such spring time beauty. -sigh- I still have to enjoy yours, as ours is so far behind yours. :-) Thank you for sharing.

    Luna Crone

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    1. Hello Luna, I shall wait for an opportune moment! We have another meeting coming up shortly, so watch this space.
      I would love to know who first came up with the idea of boiling dandelion roots, leaves, flowers, buds, tendrils, altogether and using it for cleaning! I'm so glad that page didn't escape my clutches and get left in the box at the sale.

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  4. And Re: your comment in this blog entry of mine... "I have always liked the word 'Parsonage' both the shape of the word and the colour (I am a synesthete, so some words and/or names I 'see' in colour)."

    Oh how wonderful! Have heard of people who have this unique ability. It is so very, very interesting. Oh could you please tell more about it???? If not, on your blog, than backchannel (private email)? I would love, to know more about it. Please and thank you.

    Luna Crone
    92 dot moon dot 34 at gmail dot com

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  5. And last but not lease, enjoy your time with your beautiful daughter-in-law Poppy!

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    1. Luna, I'll drop you an email, though it may take a couple of days to get round to it. Very excited to be seeing Poppy again, she is a lovely young woman.

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  6. Poppy looks beautiful!
    And so does your garden - I love tulips because they are tall, elegant and don't have a back and a front, they are good from all sides! I'm not too keen on gaudy bright red ones. We were given a mixed bag and I planted them in a planter and, of course, they've come out and look garish, but they are rather spectacular all the same. I prefer soft shades and deep shades, so would have pastel apricot with Queen of the Night in preference to bright orange and red. I bought my tulips from Sarah Raven as I've done in previous years and they have always been wonderful, she has the most amazing selections.
    Dandelion mixture for cleaning glass? I wonder how they found out that this 'worked'?
    Margaret P

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    1. Hello Margaret, Most of my tulips are soft colours and I love them, which is why I was surprised when I found that the appearance of those raucous parrots had such an effect and made me smile.
      The dandelion brew makes windows sparkle, is wonderful for washing down paintwork. It was also an excellent way of getting the spring cleaning completed - I was so busy seeing what it could clean, and assessing the results, that I didn't notice it was housework!

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  7. Love all your pictures and the daffodils in your kitchen. Can't ever imagine you with a cauldron. Wish Poppy a wonderful trip back to Shanghai and a safe journey back home to Owl's Wood xx

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    1. Hello Molly, Lovely to hear from you! I'll be sure to pass on your message; we all miss that girl when she is away.
      I hope your poly tunnel is gearing up for a productive season.
      xx

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  8. I love the forget-me nots! I'm gonna have to plant some this year. Hopefully they'll actually grow. (Our soil isn't so good here. Only our roses seem to do well).

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    1. Hello Kristin, Thank you for visiting! I'm with you on the forget-me-nots, they are tiny but so beautiful - even if I do need specs or a camera to see them properly these days!
      Roses are another favourite of mine, so much variety in colour and beauty, the scent of some of them is yet another delight. Lucky you.

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  9. Your garden is coming out a treat, I think we have a cauldron somewhere but it's plastic so no use for your brew

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    1. Hello Bill, Even the old apple tree is starting to unfurl some leaves, always a good sign. Shame about the cauldron!

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  10. Oh, I think a cauldron for the dandelion cleaning brew is a perfect idea. Those cauldrons, if one can be found around here, are very expensive. Just last week I was washing windows and complaining to my husband about how streaked the windows were after all my hard work. Your place and the flowers are very pretty. Poppy is a beautiful lady. I enjoyed seeing you and your brother in the older picture.

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    1. Hello Henny Penny, I think I am just going to have to make it in small batches. It is well worth the effort. I just use the dandelion brew undiluted, soaked into a cloth, wash the window. I didn't rinse, just dried it off. Then I polished it off with a rag of old towel. I find the old towel makes that final polish very easy. I hope you give it a go. You may find a method which works even better for you.

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  11. I would love to have a cauldron, but would use it for dying clothing with plant material. And, if I did have one, I might even try your dandelion brew for cleaning windows. Wonder what that brew would do to cloth? :~)

    Your spring is ahead of ours in "brightening up the place," but we are getting there, even though today has been cold and windy with some light mist. :~/

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    1. Hello Chip, I imagine that cloth would come out light brown, judging by the colour of the brew, but who knows? I have a book about plant dyes but dandelion is not listed, unfortunately. The cleaning recipe calls for the whole of the plant to be used, not just the flowers. doubtless someone will have tried it out!
      All I know is that I absolutely love it for cleaning windows and washing down paintwork!

      Enjoy the rest of your week!

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Lovely to hear from you.
I will try to answer comments in the next post.