The Journey: What a difference a week makes!

Hurry up and open that gate. Let us out on the
grass! Not yet boys, bide your time. You have
to give the grass time to grow first.

Spring is here, although having just said that, it might now decide to go into retreat. For now we welcome the sunshine. I'm not so keen of the cold wind that we've had on a few of the days, but at least we've had a night without putting the heater on. I was quite pleased to be able to get a good weekend of work in the garden and now all the potatoes are planted up and snuggled under a good bed of alpaca manure that has been seasoning over the winter. Next week, I plan to get the cold hardy seeds in the ground and hopefully starting off the not so cold hardy plants in the greenhouse ready for the end of May. If I don't get the tender plants started off next week, it will keep for another week.

It has been a bit breezy at times, but at least it
wasn't too damaged and we could stand it up
again.

Ooooh! Life is so good when you can have a
good roll in the dirt. Sigh! That fleece will want
washing soon.

Aggie with baby bump!

I like gardening at this time of the year, because the weeds are only just getting going and so they are easy to spot and uproot. Later on in the year it can get a bit overwhelming, especially if the lawn also looks like it's about to take over and smother my flowers and veg. It is just so much easier at this time of the year to remove all the dead stuff that needs removing, cut back what needs cutting and then uproot the few weeds that are there with the results that the beds look nice, neat and tidy with relatively little effort.

Mari is not as far on in her pregnancy as Aggie

Somebody has been earning their keep.

One of our regular summer visitors

The spring-like weather has also been coaxing out the visitors and we had more again this weekend. They've all wanted to take our alpacas for a walk too. It's been a bit of a juggle for Ian to work out who he can take out each time. Some alpacas will just accept going out for a walk, some are more hesitant at first and some will easily get bored. Later on the decisions will get harder and we will probably have to restrict who goes for a walk when we start the mating season. It is not much fun taking out a male who thinks he's going to see the girls. Last year there weren't as many who wanted to go on walks, they just wanted to visit the alpacas and take pictures mainly.

Ian's had a harrowing week, chain harrowing that
is! Now all the molehills are flattened and the
dead grass raked up. The main issue was the
molehills that mess with haymaking later if left
but the grass always looks nice after a good harrow.

The grass is growing and a green blush creeps
across the landscape.

Turbjørn looking quite perky
here, but I think that he thinks
Ian has some food for him.

This week I've applied to join an expert working group. It feels really strange and makes me want to laugh. It's not that I don't think I can do it, it is just the surprise that others think it's worth me applying. It still feels weird to think I'm an expert in anything when I spent so many years at home with my kids, a job that some will tell you qualifies you for nothing - what do they know? It's all valuable experience and I wouldn't trade that experience for the world, even if I felt tempted at the time when things weren't going so well. But that's life!

There's nothing like a good scratch... for making
alpacas pull some amazingly funny faces.

All together now! Roll!

Online seminars in the greenhouse

I even amazed myself the other day when I was working with a student online and she didn't know which direction to take her work. I spotted somethings about the area from the pattern of the fields that makes it unique to that place and I knew from reviewing a paper that the ownership pattern can cause stewardship issues. Also from the work I've been doing with the database on blue spaces over the last year, I could also see some potential areas for development. It took about 15 minutes to set her on her way and I was just left marvelling at how much I'd managed to cram into my head over the last few years that actually had some relevance somewhere. It's better than planning my way into senility.

Bouffant hair style anyone?

Someone trying to see if there is still some milk.
I think the answer is no and stop doing that!
Ilvija you shouldn't mess with Chanel, it
doesn't go well! Chanel's lovely really but can
be spitty when she's not happy.

Freddie looking very elegant.

I don't say all this to boast, but to encourage others that you can learn new things even when you are older. Don't let it stop you. The world is amazing and wonderful and we can make so many changes if we don't let fear stop us. We all have the capacity to change, although I do know in that many respects I'm privileged to have the space to make the changes. That doesn't stop us all from having the capacity though. For many the Covid 19 pandemic has brought lots of issues that restricts what people can do, but also for many there has been a chance to rethink what they really want to do in life. How has it felt when your work is not considered essential work? What could you do differently? Is now the time to change? It's certainly time to change society to get it on a more sustainable footing. We cannot shop and holiday our way out of this pandemic and it won't make us feel any better at the end of it if we did.

Valeria, not looking so elegant but enjoying some
sunbathing. She can't blame a baby bump though.

The willow is springing into life. Plenty of pollen
for all those early bees.

Willowbuds close up

Cowslips starting.

Wood anemones carpet the forest
again. There was no sign of them
last week.

Such a pretty flower. I always look forward to
seeing them.

Another sign of spring. Coffee breaks outside,
albeit shaded from the wind on the sunny side
of a shed.

Peonies coming through. Such a bright colour.
I can't even remember what colour they are
supposed to be as they didn't flower last year -
too young.

Siberian squill. Not as flashy as bluebells but at
least the blue flowers are pretty and will carpet the
area in spring sometime.

Whoops, did I miss some parsnips?

Only four rows of potatoes this year. I think that
will be enough.

The turnips lasted amazingly well
over winter. The carrots though
look a bit sad. They were protected
by hay bales, fleece and a good
layer of snow through the coldest months.