The front of the Cottage is getting more and more stunning as the white Wisteria racemes swell. They were very beautiful last year but failed to open the white pea-like flowers right down to the tips, which I suspected was due to a rather dry spell, so this year John and I have made sure that the roots (which are sheltered by the front wall of the house) receive ample water and I think we are reaping a reward for our diligence. Reg's efforts to master the pruning (as I don't climb ladders any more) has also been rewarded, for there is a shoot several feet long hooked around the soffit of the conservatory, fully supporting a raceme every few inches, which will hang down above the west-facing, front door.
Yesterday I was delighted to notice many young Ox-eye daisy seedlings growing in the grassy bank of the flood wall as I was dead heading the remains of a mass of daffodils. I recall asking John and Reg to spread the trimmings here last year as they gathered them up from the sides of the track after the dead foliage was strimmed off. I hoped that the seeds would fall and grow, and it seems to have worked.
Tonight as I went out to turn off the hose that is supplying water to the Wisteria, I gasped at the beauty of the cloudless sky, which was aglow with its white lights. Then I spotted the two rows of new star-shaped, LED fairy lights that Reg fixed up for me last week above the water feature outside the south-facing, kitchen door. It's the first time I've purchased a set that can make use of solar power, or mains electricity, and I'm impressed with the result. Hence my delight at having stars, above and beside me, in this wonderful piece of England where I feel privileged to reside as caretaker.
