The Cottage Smallholder

Barbie has finally tumbled to the bottom of the pecking order. The chicken that holds this place is the one that does not fight back when pecked. Mrs Boss languished there for four years but has found new status since she has hatched out five guinea fowl keets. She has her own coterie and doesn’t Read More »

I have been bewailing my fate on the comments section of our first tomato blight post . I can’t find organic remedies for tomato blight or sterilising the greenhouse (soil and general environment) or the soil in the kitchen garden.
If we have a cold winter with a decent length of hard frosts, the soil in Read More »

I reckon that there must be a few dogs in my ancestry as most dogs get along with me, even the difficult ones with a history of biting tradesmen.
Dashit had made an impression on the inspection visit. His owner holding him firmly by the collar as he roared and growled at me. After a vociferous Read More »

A few years ago, one of the Sunday papers had a weekly column “How to Cheat at Cooking”. Canny recipes created by Delia Smith. Danny and I loved trying these. They introduced us to new ingredients and showed us how to cut corners. They encouraged us to experiment and become a bit more relaxed about Read More »

Every now and then my sister Sara and I treat ourselves to a deluxe garden tour. I don’t know how we discovered Border Lines but found that we liked them. The tours suited us. Every now and then when we are feeling flush, we embark on another adventure.
The best garden tours seem pricey but Read More »

If it wasn’t for the fact that he was wearing his battered panama, Jalopy and I would have not noticed Gilbert. He was wearing some sort of camouflage fatigues and carrying a bucket. Curious, we drew to a halt beside him and he swept off his hat with a magnificent bow.
“I suppose you want to Read More »

The long period of rain and a few weekends working has given the bindweed the sort of break that it needs to really romp. In fact some more remote parts of the garden it looks as if we are deliberately cultivating the weed. We have most varieties from the dinky miniature columbine to the Jack Read More »

Over the past month I’ve been delighted to receive some blogging awards. I had wondered how bloggers got awards and discovered that they are given by other bloggers. If you are lucky to receive an award you are then able to pass the award on to others. Each of the awards came at just the Read More »

Leftovers. They tend to lurk in the fridge. Danny seems to have a mental list of them.
“I just wondered who is cooking tonight? We have loads of leftovers. Pork and chicken and then there’s that ham…”
D gets up earlier than I do. He has hours to examine the contents of the fridge.
“We MUST use these Read More »

This monsoon weather is finally getting me down. I am beginning to feel like a character from a W. Somerset Maughan short story that one knows will be slowly driven mad by the rain the moment they clap their hands and order another G and T.
The cottage is pretty damp in places and usually dries Read More »