Day 83 – A Head Start…

We are not expert gardeners by any means, but as well as growing a few summer flowers 💐 we try to grow some vegetables as well. One crop that does well in our garden is onions, so we always plant a few. Experience has taught me that planting them directly outside will see us lose quite a few to birds as they come through, so nowadays I start them in the greenhouse and plant them out when they are a decent size. These will be planted out in another week or so, and will hopefully survive and flourish…

Onion sets, our greenhouse – iPhone XR

Day 82 – It’s In The Tin…

It’s been somewhat of a ‘bake in’ day today. A request to help cater an ‘afternoon tea’ birthday party for a 10 year old saw us baking scones, fairy cakes and chocolate brownies. Makes a change from buying ready-made cakes…

Homemade Chocolate Brownies – iPhone XR

Day 81 – A Stately Pile…

Seighford Hall is a 16th-century timber-framed manor house and grounds near Stafford, re-designed in the 18th century. Although it looks pretty derelict from this angle, it is currently in use as a nursing home. I bet it has some stories to tell…

Seighford Hall, Stafford – iPhone XR

Day 80 – A Tall Story…

I drive past this patch of woodland quite often, but rarely stop and explore. Today I had a few minutes to kill, so wandered through. Spring hasn’t really had any impact as yet, very few leaves on the trees, and the woodland floor is mostly dead leaves and ferns. Another couple of months and it’ll all change.

Woodland, Loggerheads – iPhone XR & Moment w/a

Day 78 – Clouds Rolling In…

6.20am today. Came down for my morning cuppa and saw a patch of colour in an otherwise grey sky. Pulled some shoes on, grabbed my phone and popped outside – this spot is just a few yards from home. It lasted just long enough for a photo before it clouded over completely and all the colour was gone.

Peatswood, Market Drayton – iPhone XR

Day 77 – Colour On A Dreary Day…

I hate the fact that the garden is usually so dreary during the winter months, with all the herbaceous plants dying back, and few shrubs keeping their leaves. So this year I planted up some pots and containers with plants and bulbs to show colour all through the winter. I’ve arranged these such that they can then be replanted for the summer… What’s not to like!

Planter – Sony A7iii & 24-105mm

Day 74 – Full Steam Ahead…

One of my winter ‘evening’ projects this year is to build a small model railway. I’d made a half-hearted attempt to build one previously, but it didn’t really work out… The challenge this year is to build a completely portable layout, so this one measures just 50cm x 50cm. It means that realism is somewhat compromised, but it’s still possible (just) to have a continuous track, with a couple of sidings.

009 gauge layout – Sony A7iii & 24-105mm

Day 73 – Oeil De Boeuf…

This Grade 2 listed building in Nantwich by Ernest H. Edleston, built in 1911, is in the French Baroque style of the late 17th century. It is one of over 100 listed buildings in the town, some dating back to just after 1583 when a fire destroyed most of the town. Bullseye or ‘oeil de boeuf’ windows are typical of the style.

Hospital Street, Nantwich – iPhone XR & Moment tele lens