ON MY WALK TODAY.

Though busy in the garden this week,not a lot has been happening  of any interest.The weather continues to fluctuate between spring,summer and winter,all three in one day.!!!

However,I did manage to get some photos  today while taking the dog for a walk.

The walk started with this,put rain coat on,when there is a rainbow,there is going to be a heavy shower of rain.

After a short shower the sun came out and it was quite warm,so took off rain coat.I saw this cheeky little pied wag tail on a gate post,he was very keen to have his picture taken and followed me up the road for quite a while.

 

This lamb was also bemused by my camera and posed beautifully for me,or it might have been the the dog  he was interested in.!!

We have not had many wild flowers  this year so this was a rare find.The biggest  Primroses I have seen for years  but they would have easily been missed because they were growing well away from the road,in thick reeds and briars.

These Violets are also a rarity this year.They are one of my favorite wild flowers so I was thrilled to find these.

Having walked two miles ,I was greeted by this herd of deer,the perfect end to an enjoyable walk,and I was back before the next shower of rain and hailstones.

I wish you all a pleasant week.

Carolyn.

THE HOLE IN THE ROOF

We use the barn every day,the wood and coal are stored in it so are all the gardening tools,lawn mower etc,and John's bike.
We knew there was a hole in the roof but a few days ago we noticed twigs sticking out of it,we were in the front garden (the side with the hole )and I kept an eye out to see who was taking up residence.

Soon this Jackdaw turned up.

The next day the hole looked like this.

Both MR and MRS Jackdaw continued to bring in twigs...

....both of them working tirelessly from sun up to sun down.
All this time we have been going into the barn,then yesterday John called me to bring the camera to take a photo of the nest.
Jackdaws usually nest in holes in old trees or their favorite is a chimney ,( they are the cause of many a chimney fire ) they drop twigs down the hole until they get lodged,then build a stack of twigs to the desired hight,and nest on top of it.
OK,that makes sense ,a hole in a tree or a chimney stack is a confined space but dropping twigs into a huge void beneath  a hole in the roof must be an endless task.

This stack  is over 4ft tall and as wide and still they are dropping sticks and twigs in.
Unfortunately the base of this nest is resting on the trellis panels  that are for the new patio area,we were due to start this project this weekend but I have not got the heart to demolish this monumental structure,the fencing will have to be put on hold until the nest is finished with. I can not believe we did not notice it before now.!! I think we both need some new glasses.

Chaos was caused on the road today....

 

....the sheep escaped from a field and blocked the road in front of our house,the locals could not get past them and we could not get out of the drive. We are used to this kind of hold up,though our quiet life is not so quiet,with bleating sheep and tooting car horns.
Have a good week everyone.
Carolyn.

GUESS WHAT IT IS.

This photo is an object on the patio in the garden,in fact there are two of them.They are about 3feet tall and as round as a large barrel constructed in concrete.I thought they were some kind of ( not very interesting ) modern art structures .I recently found out what they are,but for a bit of fun,wondered what you thought they might be.!!

The next  couple of photos are little oddities connected to the house and garden.

 A folk art stone head in the shrubbery

 The ancient stone dog or lion guarding the entrance to the side passage to the house.

Two angel heads? either side of the front door.
The more I look at the stone and the garden the more I am convinced that who ever did the new building on the house used reclamation stone and marble from an old church or monastery.

To finish my post today I leave you with pics of the birds on the feeders.

With so many bird in their spring plumage,lets hope spring actually arrives.!!!!
Carolyn.

THE GARDEN AND LITTLE DETAILS.

Happy Easter to you all,I hope the weather was good where you are and that you enjoyed the weekend break.
It is still very cold in our part of Ireland and there is still snow on the mountain,but it has been dry so this weekend we started on the garden,weeding,digging etc.We have some big projects going on ,a new patio area,that we will do ourself and a new drive being done by a contractor,yet to be finished.

This is the area we are clearing for the patio,it was a huge garden rubbish dump,while the digger man was here doing the drive we asked him   to use the machine to pull all the debris out,making our job a bit easier.

This is some of the junk hidden under all the garden rubbish...a complete bathroom set,bath,toilet and sink.Old window frames complete with masses of broken window glass,a television set,old drainage pipes and building rubble.

These are the patio slabs,there are also some rigid trellis panels  to go round three sides of the area,then lots of shade loving climbing plants to go up the trellis.

 The new drive,waiting for top dressing

 Looking down to the road,there will be new gates at the end.

The side garden/small field

So,lot to keep us busy.Will post pictures of finished project soon,I hope, if the weather holds out.

Some details I have noticed recently while tidying the garden.

 The ornate edging to the rose beds,the base to the garden light and the fountain  are all carved from marble,I knew it was ornate but just thought it was stone as it was covered in moss and discolored,but the snow and frost has revealed what was hidden.

I think these features are so ornate that they must have come from a church or monastery,will have to give them a scrub to bring out the beauty.
Until the next installment,have a good week,
Carolyn.