Snowdrops

The snow may be gone but the snowdrops are very much in evidence. They are such an easy plant to grow. No need to worry too much about ph nor other soil conditions. Maybe I am just lucky.

 

My experience has been that one plants the bulbs and the following Spring they flower without any assistance. Year on year the numbers increase. The only intervention needed is to split up the clumps when they become too crowded. A lazy gardener's plant!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A Tale of a Winter Garden.

Snow Capped Teasels

 

The snow is back and the garden is covered in a white blanket. Perforce there will be no gardening today. My failure to conclude the autumn weeding will be hidden from view for a few days. A welcome side affect.

 

Between snow flurries the sky is an iridescent blue but there is no heat, no melt. The air is still, steely cool. Two goldfinches perch on the snow topped teasels and feed on the papery seeds. Their twittering calls cut through the silence. It is winter.

Dogwood in the snow

 

Frozen Leeks

 

The Belfast Mineral Water Company

I was paging through a copy of the Belfast Gazette from 14th June 1929, as one does, when I came upon an advertisement concerning the winding up of a company by the name of, "The Belfast Mineral Water Company Limited." The crudely drawn blue lines around the announcement highlighted its sometime importance to some one.

 

The name rang a vague bell in one of the stygian recesses of my mind as having a connection with Londonderry despite its nomenclature. I was correct. The Company had had premises in Londonderry during the nineteen twenties. These were situated near the bottom of Glen Road and had been purchased from Welch Margetson & Company Limited in June 1922 for the sum of £1,175. The lands are shown coloured red on the map at the foot of this post. I believe that the latter company had operated a laundry there in connection with its shirt manufacturing operation.

 

The Liquidator put the property up for sale on 5th February 1929 and it was purchased by John J Madden of Queen Street, Londonderry, Mineral Water Manufacturer for the sum of £570.00. Many people will remember the Madden Mineral Water Co and its, "Clarendon Springs." He subsequently sold the entire property in 1936 for £1050. The portion of the property on the north side of Glen Road, is where Craig's Bakery was to operate from for many years.

 

 

Twitchers' Weekend

Big Garden Birdwatch

24-25 January 2015

I have taken part in the RSPB's Big Garden Watch for the last couple of years so I thought I might as well spend an hour counting our feathered friends for another year. Maybe it is an age thing but I do find it interesting, not just the day of the count but also the final results. What birds are declining in numbers, what birds have managed to fight back.

Last year I do feel that the weather must have had an affect on the results. Even our feathered friends don't like hailstones. Today's weather was comparatively mild and as a consequence there was definitely more activity around the bird table. That said I was surprised that the resident collared doves didn't show nor one or two rapacious magpies. My count provided the following results:-

Blackbird. 2

Blue Tit. 3

Chaffinch. 3

Coal Tit. 1

Great Tit. 2

Hedge Sparrow 13

Long Tailed Tit. 7

Robin. 1

Wren. 1

Cheaper Petrol and Diesel.

 

 

There aren't that many advantages to living in the adjunct to the United Kingdom that is termed Northern Ireland but the quantative easing that is now occurring in the euro zone has some fiscal benefits for the Northern Irish driver, provided that he or she, (and all variations in between), is within a half hours drive of the Republic of Ireland.

 

I dodged across the border on Friday and filled the almost empty tank of the horseless carriage. The necessary diesel fuel cost me 91p per litre so a reasonable and welcome saving. An attendant at the pump was a pleasing facility. It is a pity however that one has to purchase one's fuel in these foreign litres rather than in comfortable galleons. Hopefully we will have the opportunity of reversing Wilson's ex post facto referendum of 1975.

 

Dead Wood

 

Having a mature garden has its benefits. You don't have to wait for the tree or shrub to go grow to maturity. But it also has its disadvantages. Eventually those mature plants pass their genetic allotment of years and die.

About half way down the garden there is quite a large planting of laurels. They must be some thirty feet high. Certain of them have toppled over and new growth is sprouting from the long bare boughs. Others have just fallen and died. I spent most of Sunday afternoon cutting out this dead wood and carrying it the hundred or so yards to the yard for sawing up and splitting. I know that a chainsaw would make short work of this latter task but I am rather wary of that particular power tool. I managed to process about a third of the wood this morning. It will be Friday before I am able to resume the task.

 

Frosty Run

Sunday was not the warmest of days but at least it wasn't snowing. It was however very icy when I poked my head out of the kitchen door at nine o'clock.

 

Having broken my fast I inspected the state of the roads. Too slippery to run on, but fine to drive on at a modest speed. A day for a beach run methought and I accordingly set off for the north coast.

 

The closer I got to the shore the less frost there was. By the time I was within four or five miles of the brimey the roads were entirely clear of brine and the frost sign was appearing and disappearing on the car dashboard. The wind was gusting and the grey waves moved threateningly towards the dunes. Before I ventured on to the beach I ran a few miles on the surrounding roads. Dog walkers marched to and fro on the sands chasing their recalcitrant best friends. I should probably have clocked up a few more miles than I did but eight miles seemed a reasonable distance in the circumstances of the morning's weather.