Ronda and the Rugged Landscape

Many visitors to Spain have an image in their mind of rugged mountain landscapes, white villages and castles, agile bullfighters, gypsy flamenco music and dancing. This is Andalusia. Of course everyone has heard of Granada, Córdoba, Seville, or the Costa del Sol but the real Andalusia is to be found on the small inland towns and cities, Ronda for example.

Ronda is only an hour from the Costa del Sol, but is the largest of Andalusia's white villages, known locally as pueblo blancos. Not seeing Ronda would be like visiting Paris and not seeing the Palace at Versaille. A deep gorge known as El Tajo splits Ronda in two, the old Moorish quarter, and the new market town on either side.

Getting to Ronda is easy by car, bus or train, and has the great advantage that despite her population of nearly 50,000 souls the old quarter and centre of town is no more than a 15 minute walk from end to end. The view over the Tajo and Caldera is nothing short of spectacular, as are the old streets with white-washed homes and windows decorated with flowerpots and hanging baskets.

The El Tajo gorge splits Ronda in two, one one side lies the ancient Moorish quarter with its narrow streets and history dating back 8,000 years, whilst on the other side the new market town sprang up on the site of ancient oak forests less than 500 years ago. Sadly the oaks are long gone, but an effort to recreate the relaxing feel of a forest in the heart of the city has been recreated in Alameda park.



Straddling the Tajo is one of Spain's most photographed and iconic monuments, Ronda's Puente Nuevo, a bridge that stands nearly 100m tall, made entirely of rock quarried from the river bed below. The bridge was completed in the late 18th century, around the same time as the bullring, coincidentally by the same architect.

Ronda is almost universally known as the home of modern bullfighting, and Ronda's Plaza de Toros its spiritual home. In fact these days Ronda has only one bullfight per year during the Goyesca Feria held in September, the rest of the year the bullring is open to the public who have the chance to view it's impressive museum.

Resident's of Ronda will happily tell you the Plaza de Toros is the oldest, biggest, and most impressive of all the world's bullrings. In fact it isn't the oldest, though the rueda (the sandy area in the centre) is the world's largest, and the bullring truly is impressive. Even an objective opinion of architectural beauty can't deny Ronda's bullring is special. The entire building was completed in 1785, and is the ring is surrounded by 136 Tuscan stone columns supporting seating for 5,000 spectators.

Away from the bullring and the 'art' of bullfighting, Ronda is a city rich is cultural heritage, the city has been continuously occupied for over 8,000 years making Rondeños a tough breed of mountain folk with a long history. This richness of culture is evident not just in the music or the attitude of the people, but also in the architecture of other buildings which have undergone renovations with every cultural shift the city has experienced.

Visit Ronda's Santa Maria church for a beautiful yet bizarre mixture of architecture spanning the ages. Originally a temple to Diana in Roman times, and possibly an Iberian pagan temple before that, the building became a Christian church in the 5th century, before being destroyed t be replaced by a Mosque for Muslim invaders in 711AD, and then mostly destroyed again in 1485 to make way for a Christian cathedral. An earthquake in the 18th century destroyed the church again, and the current church is an unusually attractive blend of mosque, cathedral and parish church in moorish, renaissance baroque and gothic styles.

Ronda is blessed with several impressive museums, visit the Lara Museum on Calle Armiñan for an eclectic range of exhibits such as torture instruments, sewing machines, bullfighting outfits, clocks, wepons, and much more. Located nearby you'll also find the Bandit Museum with a comprehensive history in exhibits of the bandit years in ronda that started around the time of Napolean's invasion and didn't end till well in the middle of the 20rth century. The highlight however is the Municipal Museum in the Mondragon Palace, with exhibits from paleolithic times to the present including a large exhibit of Roman times in the Serranía.

A day trip into the Serranía will take you to some of the most spectacular and unique eco-systems in Europe, the mountains around Ronda, the Serranía de Ronda. The district has evidence of human habitation going back over 30,000 years with cave paintings at Pileta, dolmen burial chambers at Montecorto, and the ruined Roman city of Acinipo all located less than 10 minutes away from Ronda.

Aside from human endeavours, the Serranía de Ronda is as well known for the spectacular wildlife and flora to be found within her borders. Each spring and autumn the mountains are filled with wild flowers many of them quite unique and endemic to the valleys and mountains. Twenty six varieties of orchid have been discovered in the Grazalema, Alcornocales and Sierra de las Nieves natural parks. Many are only to be found in very small areas, perhaps only a single valley, and are now protected plants. The Serranía de Ronda is also known for being one of the last remaining sanctuaries of the Pinsapo, also known as the Spanish Fir.

Birdwatching is a pleasure and a joy in the Serranía, with the district being home to local birds as well as situated on the main path of Europe's migrating birds. Getting out and enjoying nature is very easy in the Serranía, almost everywhere is accessible on wonderful nature walks, though the Serranía is also a great place to cycle and keep fit whilst appreciating nature. The Serranía's many small villages are located on all of the main walking and cycling tracks, so lunch and refreshments are never far.

Gardening Pests and Diseases

Aphids
Colonies of small round-bodied insects suck the sap from leaves and distort plant growth. They excrete a sticky honeydew on which sooty moulds grow, and can also spread viruses. Aphids, which are mostly wingless, may be black, green, pink, red, yellow or variously coloured.

Danger Period
Spring and early summer in the open, but any time of the year under glass or indoors.

Treatment
Outdoors or in a greenhouse, spray thoroughly with systemic insecticide such as heptenophos, or with non-systemic insecticides such as malathion, pirimicarb, fenitrothion or derris. Inside the house, use derris only. Encourage predators such as beetles, ladybirds (you can get from some garden centres), bluetits, hoverflies and praying mantis.

If I ever find a praying mantis on my terrace I pick him up and place on my roses or trees so he can eat all the baddies :)

Scale Insects
Particulalry troublesome on greenhouse and houseplants, but also ornamental shrubs, trees and fruit grown outside.

Recognition
Brown, yellow or white scales - flat or oval - mainly on the underside of leaves and clustered alongside the veins and on the stems

Danger Period
Late spring or early summer outdoors, but at any time of the year when under glass

Treatment
Spray with pirimiphos-methyl, heptenophos & permethrin, or malathion three times at twp-week intervals. Alternatively, gently remove scales by hand or with a soft toothbrush, or spray insecticidal soap.

If you have any bark breaking then you need to cut out the dead wood, remove loose bark to reveal a clean wound. Feed, mulch and water the tree properly and the wound should heal naturally.

Do not have irrigation pipes close to the roots, let the water run to the plant rather than right at it!

Do you have any spotting on the leaves of the tree?
Try watering during dry spells and muching the trees, this is common after a drought.

Fruit - Drop
If your fruit has dropped from your tree early then this would be a classic sign that pollinators are not in your garden, feed, mulch and water the tree. If you are experiencing fruit drop in cold seasons then this means poor pollination and nothing can be done until the following season.

Honey Fungus
This can affect most trees and shrubs. Common among rotting tree stumps, some herbaceous perennials and some bulbs.

Recognition
Toad stools at soil level at the base of the trunk. White fan-shaped growths of fungus occur beneath the bark of roots and at soil level. Black ´bootlace´threads on diseased roots spread infection.

Danger Period
Autumn

Treatment
Destroy dead or dying plants and as many roots as possible. Sterilise the soil with a phenolic compund such as Armillatox. The ´bootlaces´do not necessarily mean disaster. Many species of the fungus are not invasive.

Nitrogen Deficiency
All types, but most commonly fruit trees and vegetables.

Recognition
The young leaves turn pale yellow-green, and later develop yellow, red or purple tints. the plants are small, stunted and lack vigour.

Danger Period
Growing season

Treatment
Use nitrogenous fetiliser such as blood, fish and bone or sulphate of ammonia in spring. Improve soil structure and fertility generally. For a quick result, water with a liquid feed or apply a nitrogen-rich foliar feed. A temporary definciency can arise in cold weather, but it will disappear as the soil warms up.

If you have advice where you can purchase these fertilisers or treatments, please let us know so we can forward to our readers

Thanks

Wild Food - Foraging!

Forgaing for food is becoming increasingly popular once more. We quite often walk down our track in the country and come back laden with bits we have found growing by the side of a field or Almonds that are just there for the taking on the trees.

Everything from Wild Garlic, mushrooms, nuts, oranges, blackberries, raspberries, edible weeds - there are tons of free food out there if you just get out of the house and go look :)

Autumn is the traditional time for harvest, when the efforts of months of hard graft finally pay off! In Spain you see the farmers out there in he field during the months of Autumn picking their food either for sale of for their families - home grown food is so much better than supermarket bought food.

However, these days we tend to rely on our food being cultivated in greenhouses whatever the season. In Spain we still only get fruit and vegetables that are in season, it is getting more common these days to see out of season fruit and vegetables - look at what the market is demanding!

Reconnecting with the old ways of hunter gathering, foraging is taking off once more. In Britain's and Spain's woods and fields, there's a bountiful harvest of vegetables and fruits to be had - all growing naturally without intervention from human hand or industrial fertiliser.

From wild garlic to berries and nuts, there are plenty of mouth watering ingredients to be had, whether you live in town or country you will be amazed at what you can find, all for free - well that is until the government catch on to this and ecide to tax it LOL!

You can also help the environment by forgaring, there's nothing shorter on food miles or more sustainable than fresh produce that's already growing indigenously in your neighbourhood. What's more, sourcing food from a country walk or perhaps beside your local canal is a lot more exciting that a trip to your local supermarket, healthier for the family and fun too.

Apart from all that you will start to notice seasons more as you watch your local areas transform from Winter/Autumn to Spring/Summer.

You can even try your hand at making chutneys and jams from the fruit you find and learn something new while you are at it :)

Wild mushrooms - puffballs friend in garlic butter with a bit of black better are divine! Wild garlic, nettles and elderflowers are common in the wild, you can make ice creams or codials with these ingredients.

Miles Irving has been foraging for years and now makes a living finding wild herbs and plants for top chefs keen to source unique ingredients that are fresh and local
from root to tip. Jamie Oliver is a former customer of his company - check him out online. Miles Irving Foraging

During times when families are on the look out to save money and do activities that do not break the bank, an afternoon of foraging is fun and educational for all the family. Teach your kids where REAL food comes from - not fast food joints like McDonalds or Burger King.

However, before you can go off foraging, it would be good to know what you are looking for, you don´t want to go out picking mushrooms if you don´t know what you are looking for as this could be potentially dangerous for all concerned - below I have listed some good books to buy. You just need to check that what you are picking is safe.

Miles Irving has a new gook out called "The Forager Handbook", a guide to Britain's edible plants, or Food for Free.

About The Forager Handbook

At any time, in any place, food is there for the taking - if only we knew how and where to look. Miles Irving makes his living out of foraging - in this unique, authentic guide, he reveals the how, why, what and where of this lost art, a way of life that is becoming increasingly popular as more and more of us pursue an eco-friendly and sustainable lifestyle. This ground-breaking handbook tells you how to recognize the rich possibilities that surround us, whether in the city or countryside. From waste ground to woodland, from cliff top to coast land, plants flourish year in, year out. Spring is when wild garlic flourishes in shady woodlands; summer is the time for marsh samphire in the salt-marshes; autumn heralds an abundance of fruits and nuts; . Many of these plants - nettles, dandelions, fat hen, sorrel - grow so profusely they are considered a nuisance. Yet they offer fantastic food possibilities and are rich in nutrients. Assiduously researched, packed with information and enlivened with anecdotes and more than 330 photographs, "The Forager Handbook" is a milestone publication marking the way forward for the future of British food. And for each plant family, Miles gives ideas for using foraged ingredients in the kitchen. With recipes from some of the most exciting chefs working in Britain today, including Sam and Sam Clark, Mark Hix and Richard Corrigan, and coverage of techniques like drying, pickling and making cordials, this book will take readers on a voyage of discovery. Foraging was something our ancestors did instinctively - this book truly connects us with our past and our future. Discover a secret world of edible possibilities - all freely available.

A classic foraging book by Richard Mabey titled "Food for Free" which is still in print some 30 years after it was first published.

About Food for Free

Fans of Food for Free will be delighted at this new format -- ideal for carrying in a rucksack. Over 100 edible plants are featured together with recipes and other interesting culinary information. With details on how to pick, when to pick and regulations on picking. This new format of a best-selling title provides a portable guide for all those who enjoy what the countryside has to offer. Over 100 plants are listed, fully illustrated and described, together with recipes and other fascinating information about their use throughout the ages. The recipes are listed so that you can plan your foray with a feast in mind. This is the ideal book for both nature-lovers and cooks. Particularly with today's emphasis on the freshest and most natural of foods. There is also practical advice on how to pick plus the countryside laws and regulations on picking wild plants.

If you are looking for a more hands on experience then you can have an unforgettable day out with the Forage Rangers, Xa Milne and Fiona Houston. Their mission is to help people have fun outdoors hunting for wild foods anywhere plants can grow, from city parks, to country waysides and the seashore, and, as importantly, show you how to turn this wild food into delicious dishes and drinks.

They are the authors of the highly acclaimed Seaweed and Eat It - this is a family foraging journal and cooking adventure for all the family.

About Seaweed And Eat It

This is the foodie's answer to "The Dangerous Book for Boys", and a nostalgic journey of rediscovery for the whole family. Part cookbook, part natural history guide, with tasty recipes, fascinating folklore and inspiring ideas for seasonal feasts, "Seaweed" leads the reader through the process of identifying, learning about and cooking unusual and wild native foods. From discovering edible wild plants and flowers, to creating delicious seasonal feasts, "Seaweed" puts the fun into foraging and injects a sense of adventure into preparing dinner. For anyone interested in the origins of their food - or who's shocked by the price of elderflower cordial - this inspirational cookbook will ensure mealtimes are never dull.

Protocol for Foraging
Do not overpick, pick small amounts to preserve the plant
Pick locally from common land
Do not pick from same areas all the time, to lessen your impact
Do not pick from protected areas such as wildlife reserves, sites of SSSI
Private land would require permission
Do not eat or pick it if you cannot clearly identify the food source
Take seeds and try growing in your own garden
Choose a foraging area and familiarise yourself with as much as you can
No Trespassing!
Do not pick endangered or protected species (local library can provide regulations)

Getting Started with Foraging
Start by picking the easy stuff like dandelions and nettles. Collect some rosehips and make syrup which can be used to put in ice cream

Gardening UK, Moving & House Clearance

Hi its Gill

Sorry I didn´t get time to do a blog last week, there is too much to do with the moving, let alone blogs.I am moving house as you know if you follow me already, but this is the most stressful move I have ever done. When you are widowed you feel so alone and unable to cope, maybe its because I am now a pensioner. I hate saying that because I am so young in my head it just doesn´t seem right! The trouble is that I need to get back to Four Marks because my daughter is having my second grandchild next spring and I had wanted to be living nearer her.

I could afford a flat but would die without a garden!!! I am about £30,000 short for a small house. I have looked in neighbouring Alton but the ones I can afford are in such rough areas and yes I am may be being a snob but I don´t want to live there. I just don´t know what to do and would love some feedback from you all if possible.

The only alternative I can see is to buy on a pensioners mobile home estate. The houses are lovely but everyone has white hair and I dont feel ready to retire to a place like that. I had thought that maybe I could buy a small piece of land in Four Marks for £100,000 and put a wooden mobile home on it. Unfortunately all the builders gobble up any land available!!!!!

The garden is still a nightmare of a mess but I do intend to get it straight for the new people, they have 3 children and they will be wanting to play out there.

I did go out with Irene and Wendy on Wednesday to a garden centre, I would have gone insane if I hadnt got out of the house. We went to Secretts in Godalming. This is a nice place to go because they have a good range of shrubs, flowers, bulbs, Christmas stuff, and nice food. The only bad thing I have to say about them is that their bedding pansies and violas were £3.49 for 6 and they are £2.99 in most places.

On the way home we went into Hilliers in Liss because I wanted a bag of grit for my cacti. They didnt have their Christmas stuff out which was a shame because we cannot resist buying decorations. The tables holding the flowers outside looked absolutely lovely, a miriad of colours everywhere you looked, very nicely presented.

Well all I can say with the gardening is to make the most of this lovely weather and carry on clearing away all the spent plants and generally tidying up.

I will do my best to do a blog next week but know you will forgive me if I don´t get time. Take care all, happy gardening. Luv Gill xx

Autumn Gardening

Hello all, Gill here,

There is so much to do in the garden in the autumn, it makes you wonder where we all find the time. At this time of the year the main thing is clearing up and pulling up. If like me you like your plants growing naturally anywhere, when you pull, shake, there may be some seeds still left in the heads.

Love them or hate them, you cannot fail to notice the striking colours of the dahlias. They come into their own at this time of year, in my opinion there is nothing to rival them. They come in every height from 6inches to a about 5foot, the flowers heads are from a teaspoon size to a dinner plate and there are some with zillions of petals and some with single petals so I find it hard for someone to say that they hate all dahlias!

Most people don´t think of autumn as being a busy time for planting but it can be for both flowers, fruit and vegetables. Plant all you currants now, black red and white and raspberries oooo yummy, gooseberries yuk and the like, all cane type plants.

Also your herbaceous perenials, cottage flowers such as echinacea should go in now.
I have already mentioned fruit trees in a previous blog, you can still plant those for a couple of months, but preferably September and October.

Broad beans are best planted now because they are less prone to black fly than when planted in the spring.

Get down to the garden centre now if you want shrubs and get digging!!!! I think they take better in the autumn than spring, they certainly get a head start next year being planted now, such as euonymous, berberis, choisya and hebe. Most garden centres do these at very reasonable prices in bulk. I think in Avenue nurseries, Lasham they have 6 small shrubs for £8, thats fantastic. They are small but dont take long to grow. Get two sets, one thats all green plants and one reds and yellows, when they grow all mixed up together they can look stunning at this time of the year.

These can be put in tubs or hanging baskets with winter cyclamen and pansies, an ivy and heather, don´t forget to pop in some spring bulbs so that when the pansies are dying off, up come these little surprises of bulbs to make you smile :).

I have noticed that the birds are eating a lot more suet balls, so please don´t forget them, they are such lovely creatures, they brighten up my day, I can´t imagine a world without birds.

I am rushed off my feet at the moment packing boxes to move. I cannot believe I have got so much rubbish!!! Car boot here I come.

Make the most of this lovely autumn sunshine and get cracking in the garden instead of reading this lol.

Catch you all next week when I get time, take care all, Gill x

Gardening: Holiday, Moving & Planting

Hiya peeps, its Gill,

Got back a week ago from my hols staying with my brother in France not too far from the Pyrenees. Glorious weather, between 26 and 30 deg every day. My brother Peter grows all his own veg and some fruit for the year too. I was told to eat as many strawberries and raspberries as I wish from the garden. Needless to say I didn´t have to be told twice lol! The raspberries (my favourite fruit) were delicious. It reminded me of my first taste of this wonderful fruit. When I was about 7 or 8 years old I had a friend on the army estate where I lived in Wolverley called Joyce McCluskey. Her back garden was about 5foot square at the most and it was just raspberries. We used to lay on our backs and crawl under these canes and just eat. What wonderful days. My Dad used to grow strawberries and I used to eat them green, I couldn´t wait for them to turn red. He often used to say what a poor crop he had, if only he had known! If he were alive now, I would own up.

Whilst in France we watched swallowtail butterflies, a beautiful creature that was plentiful in my youth but haven´t seen here for over 50 years. Also something I have never seen before a humming bird moth on a newly opened hibiscus, stunning! There were frogs croaking all day long, a flock of egrets came every day and settled near a little creek to catch the fish I guess, and we watched buzzards spiralling on thermals, as I do in England too.

My nephew 5 year old Jenson had been there for the summer holidays and had seen the chickens eating a mouse. He was most concerned and told my brother to get it because if he didn´t the mouses Mum and Dad would be sad if he didn´t come home. Isn´t that lovely? Oh and the other thing that I haven´t seen before was a big fat black bee on the runner beans absolutely fully laden with pollen he could hardly fly, I could watch that sort of thing for hours.

Well I have news, we have sold the house and will be going our separate ways soon, but there is so much to do in the garden to get it straight for the new family moving in. The biggest job is to move the chickens, my daughters friend Jenny is having them. They will have acres of bluebell woods to run around, a freer life than they get here. I did shed a little tear, I will miss Lucky most, but I will be able to go over and see them when I like she said.

It is definitely the start of autumn here so I will be cutting off all the tall plants. The tomatoes can be pulled although there is still time for a few more to plump up and redden. I pulled all the runner beans up yesterday and gave the whole plants, beans and all to the chickens. They stripped everything off and left just the main stems, they will eventually mulch down into the ground. All the leaves on the trees are starting to turn a golden yellow, absolutely stunning time of the year.

Now is the time of year to start looking at spring bulbs. There is an ernormous choice these days of colours and shapes. For me you cannot beat the every day daffodil, I am not one for the pink variety etc. The tulips are my favourites in the spring. Just check that the bulbs you buy are not even slightly mouldy, they won´t grow and they infect the others. I hate the thought of leaving my lovely English bluebells here but I´m not going to dig them up as I wont have a permanent house to go to and dont know when I will have. Most of the bluebells that you see other than the ones in the woods here in England now are Spanish. Goodness knows how that happened. I think one of the most beautiful sights in England is woodland with that glorious bluebell colour, a lilacy blue haze. My gladioli are still flowering, one of my Dad´s favourites, thats why I grow them.

Don´t forget like I said last time, if you need to regrass or have patches on the lawn that need seeding, do it this month or March only.

I have dug up and potted two of my acers and left 5 here that are too large to move without doing any damage. This week I will be potting up probably about 5 of my azaleas, one of them I brought from my last house and it survived, a vivid orange one. I have bought some ericaceous soil for that, oh and also two rhodedendrons. I must be boring you with all my things to do so I will close now and get some of them done.

Take care all, happy gardening, and will try and think of something to chat to you about next week. Luv from Gill

September Gardening Trimming

What should you do in September?

This time of year you should be watching out for hungry caterpillars and removing them from your roses before they munch them all!

Hedges need their final trims.

Vegetable Garden

• You still have time to sow salads and greens for the winter


• Plant garlic and onion towards the end of the month


• Keep the birds off your produce by using netting, at least until they have put down their roots


• Make sure purple sproutin broccoli or brussels are earthed up and staked to prevent rocking


• Remove leaves around winter squash and pumpkins so they can ripen in the sun


• Place an old plate under pumpkins and squash so the dry evenly and don't rot


• Celeriac and leeks need a liquid feed for the final growth spurt while the weather is still good


• Cover tender crops such as lettuce, dwarf beans and other salad crops with polytunnels and cloches as the nights begin to get cooler

Flower Garden

• Dead head as many plants will not produce more flowers late in the season, keep pretty seed heads on for autumn and winter to keep the insects happy


• Try not to be too tidy! If you want to see more wildlife then a tidy-ish garden is the way to go


• Plant bulbs between shrubs and herbaceous plants, and in natural drifts in the lawn, discard any mouldy or shrivelled bulbs


• If you are lawn planting choose daffodils and crocus


• Clip new hedge growth, such as yew and box for the last time this season, weed around the base of hedges, compost the weeds


• Protect your tall plants from strong winds by staking them


• Fruit trees should be planned now, the cheapest trees are bare-root plants sold to plant in late winter/early spring. Frost resistant varieties are Apple Falstaff

Seeds
Saving your seeds is an easy way to grow your seed collection. Easiest are poppy, nigella and beans. Leave your beans until they rattle in the pod, shake poppy and nigella seeds into airtight containers. Store in a cool dry place for next time

What Bulbs should I plant now?
Dutch Iris
Parrot Tulips
Alliums
Crocus
Daffodils
Hyacinths

My favourites are Daffodils and Hyacinths, I have Hyacinths in various colours growing in pots - just gorgeous!

Chickens Learning About Nature

Hello everyone, its Gill,

I hope you have all been enjoying your gardens in the last week. Mine looks like a disaster zone at the moment, we let the chickens out of their run yesterday and they created mayhem!!! I will be tidying up today so no problems. My lovely chickens are going to a new home in the next 8 weeks. We sold our house on Saturday and as neither of us can have them at our new abodes they have to move on. Luckily my daughter Michelle has a friend with acres of land and she is kindly taking them on. I have already shed a tear, you grow so close to them, they all have different characters, and are more intelligent than people think, although being thick at the same time, if you understand what I mean lol!!! I will miss 'Lucky' my bantam more than anything. When I was a small child we had chickens, mind you I grew to hate them because I fell in their run when I was about 3, I can actually remember it, and I thought they would eat me. Ridiculous but when you are small they must seem huge. My two Aunties in Crawley had them, Auntie Dorothy and Auntie Bess. I loved going over to Auntie Bess' she had 8 children and it always seemed that there wasn't a second without noise everywhere, I absolutely loved it there. We used to chase after the chickens, naughty us, but we were young then. There was always a huge plate of chicken for dinner. Of course my favourite part as always was collecting the eggs.

One of the reasons for me getting the chickens was because I was opening up a bag of compost that I had folded the top down on after using it before, and out came a spider. I am scared of spiders, I mean really scared. This was a black widow, I froze on the spot, then stood up and went to my brother and sister in law who were staying with me at the time, and told them. My brother did what all brothers do, laugh, but my sister in law said, "Look at her face she's serious". We went back to the bag and of course it had gone. I got straight on to the net and found that it was a false black widow. All I remember was that its body looked like a shiny black marble, perfectly round. They are prevalent in the south of England and have been here for about 35 years, apparently the first one coming over in someone's suitcase after holidaying. (how they know that I will never know). Hence the chickens, nothing grows or lives anywhere near them lol. Yesterday when I was in the garden with them, I heard a little scream and found 'pepper' pecking at a little frog. Poor little thing, I saved it, I didnt know they could scream.

Obviously the main reason for people loving gardening comes from their parents, but also what we used to call the 'nature table' that we had as infants. Most schools unfortunately don't have them now. Also nature walks, I loved going on those learning the names of all the plants in the area. They apparently can't do these now because of 'health and safety' what absolute RUBBISH. Never did us any harm, in fact it started off the seeds in our brains for the love of all things to do with nature.

I cannot tell you how much I love to see old gnarled trees, and I am certain that came from my infant teacher, I know I learned the names of them from her. I can remember a marshy place not far from our school absolutely full of oxlips. I have some now in my rockery, I bought them from the garden centre, I wouldn't dream of digging them up from the wild.

I have the predicament at the moment of which plants to take with me, and which to leave. At least it will be the right time of the year to dig up small trees and bulbs (my lilies and gladioli) mainly. I am hoping that my friend Wendy will take all of them to stand in her garden until I make up my mind what to do next. I hope that my son and his wife sell their house soon then I could have a wooden chalet in the garden of their new house. Luckily I have several places I can go until we all get sorted. My plants are my main priority right now.

If you have patches in your grass, March and September are the best months to seed your lawn.

Okay folks thats it for this week. I won't be doing a blog next week, sorry. I am going to France tomorrow to visit my brother who now lives there, for a week. Hope you have good weather and get all the tidying up jobs done in the garden. Take care,

Gill

Kolkwitzia Gazanias,UK Garden Centres

Hello everyone its Gill, hope you are having a good week,

I am a little early this week due to the fact that I am going caravaning this weekend to Worcestershire and visiting a village that I lived in as a little girl - Wolverley, a pretty pretty lovely village. The main reason for my visit though is that I am meeting up with two of my cousins that I havent seen since I was about 12-14yrs old. They lived opposite my Nan and Grandad in Notting Hill. Ray the older one lives in North Wales and he and his wife are meeting us in Shrewsbury.

Ray's sister Sue who lives in Jersey is flying over to meet me too, I am so excited. I don't have any contact with my Dad's family since he and Mum have passed on so this is wonderful. Ray and I met on Friends Reunited. We have found a campsite for adults only (wonderful, kids stay up till all hours these days and when you are in a caravan you hear every bit of noise) on a farm in the middle of the countryside. The pics look lovely, hills all around.

Anyway this is a gardening blog, not a Gill blog you would never know hehehe!!!

If you want a recommendation for a pretty bush, buy a kolkwitzia. Alan Tichmarsh said on one of his programmes that every garden should have one. At the time I couldnt afford one so bided my time. They were about £11 for a plant about 1ft tall.

I saw one in Keydells, Horndean at exactly that price and got it with a gardening voucher that my lovely friends buy me for Christmas and birthdays. That was about 3 years ago and you wouldn't believe how much it has grown in that time. I would guess that it is about 6ft across and 5 or 6ft tall. It has smallish pink flowers with an orange throat, an unusual combination of colours but it works. Another plant that he said is a must is a verbena bonariensis, a tall gangly purple flowered plant. These are usually about £5.99 in garden centres but don't buy one. If you spend less than half of that on a packet of seeds you will end up with thousands of them, they are so easy to grow. They are perrenials too, and usually flower the first year. I have had them in several gardens now. They do grow very tall, about 5-6ft so place them carefully. They are spindly so you look beyond them to other flowers beyond. Oh also they self seed everywhere and I do mean everywhere so actually you really need to only grow the one seed. The following year there are trillions of them, plenty to spread around friends and neighbours! They look good cut and placed with other flowers.

I have dead headed my buddleias this week, hopefully they will flower a second time round this year, I have done this for the insects, mainly the bees.

The runners are coming in thick and fast now, yummy!!!! I have picked that cucumber and several tomatoes. Do you remember I was having problems with the toms going black at the bottom before they had chance to ripen, well my neighbour says that is due to irregular watering. Yes he is right or was, I am watering every other night in the greenhouse now and it seems to have stopped, fingers crossed. For me the very best flavoured tomato I have ever grown is a yellow cherry one. (They never get to the table because I cant resist them when I am in the greenhouse), don't tell anyone ;)

I went to Hayling Island on Sunday last with my grandson, James, he is 7. The sun was great because there was a lovely breeze too. We only stayed there for four hours but that hasn't stopped me looking like a beetroot the next day, must have been hotter than I thought hehe. Whilst there I saw 5 buzzards spiralling up on a thermal, what a magnificent sight! It was even more special to share this with my grandson and explain to him what they were doing.

All the butterflies seem to have left us other than the cabbage whites, I wonder where they go? Spain if they have any sense.

The dahlias are starting to look good, you can't beat them can you at the end of summer right through to the middle of autumn? My gazanias are still magnificent, absolutely vivid colours, I will definitely buy these again next year. These were bought from Brambridge garden centre, they were the best value that I saw this year.

If you live in Hampshire and have never been to this garden centre, then go. I can highly recommend it for the plants and the quality of their food. I haven't been for a few months but when I go and see any bargains I will let you know. Tomorrow my friends and I are going to Forest Lodge, then after we have eaten there we will go on to Country Market 5 minutes away. Here you can buy vegetables that they grow themselves on the farm and also pick your own.

Anyway you must be getting fed up with me rambling on. Have a lovely August Bank Holiday because I will. Happy weeding hehe! Gill x

Planting Autumn Bulbs

After a long cold dark winter, the appearance of the first blooms of spring are like an elixir of rejuvenation, awakening spirits weary from the wintertime chill. From tiny delicate snowdrops and bluebells, to swathes of daffodils and tulips, thick sweeping brush stokes of yellow, red, orange, these are the vanguard, the first flowers ahead of the profusion of glorious blooms that follow from late spring through summer.

Right now, spring may seem like a very long way away, but its during the preceding autumn when you should be planting bulbs if you want a floral spectacular next spring.

In the Garden
Spring flowering bulbs can brighten the most dismal of spots in the garden, though you will need to consider that the light requirements of the plant are correct for the location. Also when planning your planting, think in terms of blocks of colour and sweeps of flowers, this will look spectacular in springtime. Think too about how colours work together, and complement each other. Some basic understanding of colour theory will help you immensely with understanding how to use colour to its best effect.

You will also need to make sure that you know how to plant correctly. An autumn planted bulb needs to be planted deeply, three times the depth of the bulb is a good guide. A tulip for example will need to be planted about 8" or 20cm deep. This ensures that the bulb is safe from hungry rodents, and has a good supply of moisture.

If you have a high clay soil, then add some grit and organic matter such as compost. If the bulb is going to remain put for more than a single season, then it is a good idea to add fertilizer when planting too, or simply use a specially formulated bulb compost such as Miracle-Gro Eco Sense Bulb Booster which has been specially formulated to nourish bulbs and encourage vigorous root growth.

Finally, water well, which will help the bulb to root before it gets too cold, but be careful not to over-water as this will cause rot.

In the Container
Bulbs in containers are extremely versatile, they can be moved around and put in spots for a welcoming splash of colour. How wonderful for example, to come home after a long commute to planters full of glorious purple hyacinths or cheery yellow Narcissus framing the front door , a sight to lift away the stress of a hard day's work. All it takes is autumn planning and preparation. Fill the container with compost, and as for planting in the garden, a special purpose bulb compost is perfect as it contains all the specific nutrients for bulb growth.

Plant the bulbs to the correct depth and make sure they are not touching. Top off with a mulch and finally give the pot a good watering.

Planting suggestions to get you started

If you are confused about which bulbs to plant, here are some suggestions:

Narcissus (Daffodil), Tulipa (Tulips), Muscari (Grape Hyacinth), Hyacinthoides (Bluebell), Galanthus (Snowdrop), Crocus.

Gardening in England & Fruit

Hi all its Gill,

Hope you are all well. I can't believe another week has gone by already!

At this time of the year there is so much to do, especially dead heading if you want a succession of flowers through to the autumn. Also (my favourite thing) gathering seeds ready to scatter next year. I always think I am getting something for nothing hehe.

We had our first pickings of runner beans tonight for dinner and they were succulent. I said before that I would tell you the outcome of my `trials` as to white or orange flowered runners. So far the orange ones have far more beans on them.

This year looks to be a bumper year for fruit (I bet that doesn't reflect on the shop prices though). My neighbour has several apple, and pear trees and one damson. They are heavily laden which is nice because they allow me to go in and pick what I like.

I pick up the windfalls and chop them up for my chickens, they love them. I have a tiny victoria plum whose boughs are almost touching the ground from the weight of the fruit. There are also loads and loads of hazelnuts this year - one of my favourites. If you buy from local farms the fruit seems to be a lot cheaper than Tescos, but then again that's not surprising!

Don't tell me that you don't have enough room to grow your own runners because unless you are in a flat, you do. Mine this year are in three tubs with canes making them into a wigwam shape on the patio. Actually my friend Irene has a small balcony with her flat and it is absolutely full. There are herbs, trailing tomatoes and strawberries in baskets, and loads of flowers too. She has feeders everywhere for the birds, and she seems to get more variety of them than I do.

Going back to fruit trees, yes they can be expensive but last year Wilkinsons was selling plum, peach, cherry, apple and pear for £5 each and they were about 6 foot tall. Whether they have them this year I don't know. Most garden centres sell them for around £25.00 each. Last year from one of the cheapy shops I bought a gooseberry plant for £1.25, that little plant had several gooseberries on it this year.

Seeds are expensive when you consider how many you get from one plant, so why not go along to Campo girls seed swap site, great idea and free. I always ask for seeds for Xmas but never specify which ones, that way you get lots of little surprises. I give lots at Xmas too especially for the men, because I find them hard to buy for.

One of my favourite stories I am going to share with you. My Dad bless him passed away at a youngish age 27 years ago. When he was 3 years old and lived in Notting Hill back in 1922 he had several brothers and sisters so they were not what you would call affluent hehe, the opposite actually. My Nan always put the rent money on the side every week waiting for the man to collect it. One day he came and it was gone! Everybody looked frantically for it but to no avail. I dont know if my Dad was looking guilty but they asked him if he had taken it for ages, then bribing him with a freshly ironed shirt. He took them to the front garden where he unburied it and placed it in Nans hand. Asked why he had done that he said that he was growing a money tree!!!!!! How lovely is that, awwww.

I will love you and leave you with that, happy gardening. Gill x

A bit of this and that

Hi everyone, it's Gill,

I hope you have all had a lovely week. Last week and this believe it or not I haven't been to a garden centre - that has to be a record for me! I know that if I go, I will be tempted to buy plants that simply won't fit in the garden, there is no space left. There is so much to do in the garden at the moment, mainly weeding, the dreaded weeding is always there. However many you pull out, they still appear to be there the next day. I have stinging nettles and blackberry to pull up, at least with all the damp we have had it shouldn't be too hard (thats if I get round to it) hehe!!

If you haven't done it already, you should be planting up your strawberry runners ready for next years crop. We have a water barrel with holes drilled in the sides with some of our strawberries growing in, and a few in a small beds in front of the greenhouse.

My first cucumber is about 10 inches now, maybe it will be eaten by the time I do the next blog. I was given a few tomato plants by a friend that she had grown, they are large plum shaped ones. There are loads of fruit but so far when they have swollen the bottom of the fruit has rotted, does anyone know why please? My runnerbeans seem to be really plentiful this year. I have experimented with the common one with orange flowers and a white flowered one to see if there is any difference with yields. If there is I will let you know.

My buddleias continue to be the centre of attraction for the areas butterflies, I could watch them all day! These lovely shrubs are supposed to attract bees too but I haven't seen one on them yet, very very scary. If you dont like buddleias, I think you should try and put one in a corner because they do bring in all sorts of insects. I know they have a straggly persuasion, but they can be trimmed virtually to any shape you like. Also if you want to cover up an ugly bare corner, mine have grown about 10 feet in three years.

In today's Daily Mail they were saying that we should all be putting a sugar solution out to attract bees, 2 parts sugar to 1 part water, then place between the flowers. I will do this tomorrow and maybe you could all have a go too.

Don't forget to ask your neighbours to water for you should you go on holiday or for a weekend away, it's surprising how quickly they dry out, especially the greenhouse.
Still not getting many eggs from the girls, they had better sharpen up or they will end up on my table. I wonder if it is anything to do with the weather, the lack of eggs I mean. Maybe one or two of you might keep chickens and could give me the answer. We have 10 chickens and 2 cockerels and are getting 3 or 4 eggs a day, we were getting that through the winter. One day about 6 or 8 weeks ago we had 8, I nearly dropped them when I counted them!!!!

Okay all that's it for now, do take care and of course happy gardening. Bye for now, Gill

butterflies this year

Hi all its Gill,

Aren't you just sick and tired of this weather? Day after day of miserable damp and its warm which is awful!!!! The only bright news in all this is that I have more butterflies than I have had before since moving here over 3 years ago. On television last week they were saying that there is a shortage of peacock and red admiral butterflies this year. THEY ARE ALL IN MY GARDEN. What a wonderful sight, I have loved butterflies ever since learning about them in junior school. This year I have four buddleias and a huge hydrangea in flower in the front garden and they are smothered with these adorable creatures. Piccies to follow.

Last year we all heard of the plight of bees, scary but I saw about the same amount as usual and didnt think much more of it. This year however I have noticed that there are very few about. Its a very worrying situation.

My girls are laying less this summer and I am wondering if they are fair weather layers lol. From the 10 chickens I seem to average about 4 a day, lazy beasties!!!! I think they are spoilt too much and dont realise that they are here to lay eggs for me. In fact I am just about to collect the eggs, lets see how many there are.

That's it they are for the pot, 3 measly eggs.

Whilst I was outside I looked at the lavender, I have about 10 shrubs, and there were 2 bees on them, that used to be buzzing. That reminds me of the time I went round to my friend Lornas in Winnersh, Reading. She has a huge lavender hedge all the way from the road to her front door, probably about 70 foot, and ~I am not lying about this, she stands and strokes the backs of the bumble bees as they forage in the flowers. But then she is a special person. I have also seen her stand in her back garden, put her hand out and a robin flew to her and sat in her hand. He also used to tap on the lounge window, she would open the window and crumble up a digestive for him. One day whilst watching this, a little field mouse climbed up her cotoneaster and sat with the robin eating it together. I wish I had whatever she has.

To tell you the truth I havent dont any gardening this week, maybe a bit of dead heading but thats all. My runner beans are covered in flowers, and I have quite a few plum tomatoes in the greenhouse, but they arent anywhere near ready. I have a few cucumbers in there too, about 5 inches is my largest so they have a way to go yet.

That's it for now all, got to water the greenhouse. Take care and enjoy your gardens, Gill

Growing from Seed

Hi all, its Gill,

Many many years ago I remember walking past a garden and being gob smacked by a plant that I saw. I hadn't a clue what it was and have never seen one since until I opened my Thompson and Morgan catalogue last year and saw the seeds for sale. It was a melianthus, a honey bush.

Has anyone out there got one? It grows to about 6foot I think, and has huge fronds of brown and gold. I eagerly planted all the seeds in one pot and covered them in vermiculite and placed them in my greenhouse earlier this year. Eventually one plant emerged, then two and now I have four. They are about 8 inches tall so I guess no more will come through. They were all planted in the same pot, in the same conditions etc so I am a little disappointed that only 4 have come through.I must admit that I have bought loads of seeds from Thompson and Morgan and I think I have yet to get a full packet of seeds to grow!!!

I nevertheless go back to them because of their enormous variety of seeds that I dont see anywhere else. Last year I bought two packets of banana seeds and unfortunately not one seed grew. I have grown bananas in the past with no effort, such a shame I was looking forward to seeing them.

A couple of years or three ago I bought loads of lilies from T&Morgan, and I can highly recommend you to do so too. I open my back door and there is a heady aroma coming from my lilies, a spectacle to behold, they are stunning plants and the flowers are all much larger than my hand. I have taken some piccies and when I work out how to get them on here I will show you. Dont forget that if you buy lily bulbs to always plant them on their side on sand, then cover over in soil.

I have to tell you a story about my grandson James who was 4 at the time, but is now 7. We had just put down an indian sand stone path up the back garden. The slabs had fossils of ferns and trees etc on them. James walked up the path and on seeing a fossil for the first time, said "Look you have tattoos on your path". Isnt that wonderful!

I quite like gardens that are regimental but that's not for me, my garden just happens!!! I have tall flowers at the front of a border whilst the little ones at the back are struggling to survive. If a plant self seeds, then that is where it stays. My path that I mentioned earlier is smothered in thousands of foxgloves, poppies etc etc, I can hardly walk up it haha. Next year we wont be able to at all and will have to walk on the grass, defeting the object of having a path really! I have nowhere to replant these seedlings and I wont pull them up. My neighbour has had as many as he can take too. Nevertheless I can guarantee that a few packet of seeds will take my eye next spring, I will plant them and if they grow I will have the same dilemma I have every year - where to put them haha!!!

Gardening, Spain and England

Hello fellow gardeners its Gill again,

I was in Spain last week staying with my son and daughter in law. Phew it was hot!!! They have my favourite tree in their garden, a jacaranda, wish I could grow them here. The highlight of my week was going to a garden centre out there and seeing all the exotic things you can buy that you definitely dont see here in Hampshire. They bought a mango tree that had 6 fruits on before we forced it into the car along with several other plants, and had one fruit by the time it got home! Also they bought a paw paw tree for €5.75 what an absolute bargain, thats what the mango cost too, and guess what else, something I thought I would never see, my favourite nut, a macadamia tree also that price. By the next day they werent looking too happy being planted out in all that heat but I have my fingers crossed for their survival. It was a wonderful experience going there.

What a shock to come home to half of that temperature at Gatwick and rain. When I drew up into the drive though, my hydrangea had bloomed whilst I was away. I have a piccy for you, but dont know how to get it onto here, something else I have to learn hehehe! All this technology is fairly new to me, I take a long time to learn.

As soon as I dumped my luggage my first port of call was my girls (chickens), then the greenhouse. Woohoo I have some baby tomatoes, thank goodness for my neighbours watering and looking after for me.

Yesterday I went to Frensham garden centre. I like that place, they make the most delicious shortbreads for only £1 for a huge one. Their plants are healthy and the prices are similar to most centres. There is so much to see there its well worth a visit. They have a good range of acers my second favourite trees (I think I have about 8 in my garden).

I go to a garden centre every Wednesday with two friends of mine, and we always eat out there too, there must be about 18 that we go to regularly. If any have any bargains I will let you know of them although I know that most of you are in Spain. Hopefully we have some English readers too. Guess what, yes its raining again, thank goodness its summer else it would be worse!!!

Okay peeps Im going to love you and leave you, enjoy your gardens, catch you again soon, take care, Gill.

New Campo Girls Author

Hi all,

Just thought I would introduce myself, my name is Gill and I am Campo Girls mother in law. I love plants and over the years have gathered a little knowledge about some of them, emphasis on little haha! I live in Hampshire on the eastern side and about half an hour from the coast. My garden is a typical size for a semi detached 1930s house, maybe slightly longer. I have a large patch for my chickens, a small greenhouse, a couple of lawns, loads of flowers and the rest looks like a bomb site. I would like to be one of those people who potter about outside every day, but unfortunately I border on lazy! I want my garden to be lovely with as little effort as possible. I adore flowers and trees but rarely pick them, they should be outside but am not aversed to someone giving me some from a shop, they have been grown for the purpose. Come to think of it, other than Mothers Day and my birthday, I never get any given to me now.

I am widowed and have been for over 15 years, my husband died young of cancer, and he would pick me meadow flowers sometimes, which of course these days I wouldnt encourage, as there arent enough meadows left. Every year he would stop his car when he saw the very first pussy willows and bring me a couple of sprays home, their lovely fluffy yellow heads always reminded me that spring was round the corner. Then when sticky buds were about to burst open, he never failed to bring me some home, something he also did for his Mum when he was a little boy.At Xmas he used to stop in a small lay-by just outside Four Marks where we lived to collect me a few teasles to spray gold and silver for the festive season. I have never picked any of these things since myself, then it makes it more magical that he did.

Okay folks, I have given you a very small insight of my love for flowers and hope to write to you all a lot more in the future. In fact next time I just have to tell you about my trip to a garden centre in Spain last week, the exotic things you can buy there that obviously wont grow at home. Take care all, see you soon, Gill.

Red Weevil Update

We wrote about the Red Weevil in 2008 and we wanted to give a quick update along with details where you can contact the Junta to have your palm trees checked and looked after for the future

Red Weevil in Spanish Palm Trees



Unfortunately the Red Weevil is now very common locally with the main victim of palm tree being the Canary Date Palm (Phoenix Canariensis), the Red Weevil has now spread to other varieties of tree which includes the Fan Palm (Whashingtonia Robusta).



If you find an infestation of the Red Weevil it is generally too late to save the palm tree, infected palms must be quickly treated if you are to save your beloved tree.

Death is caused by the larvae which burrow into and feed on the soft leaf tissue of the terminal bud, the tree's growing point. In many cases the tree is often beyond help but you can act now and help protect the palm trees that you do have left.

There are rumours that in ten years there could be no palm trees left in Spain but with assistance from the Junta de Andalucia you can have your palm trees treated every month to help protect against this nasty little bug!

Top Palm Tree Tips
Do not cut or trim your palm tree
Only purchase new trees from a licensed garden centre or grower, insist on a passport for the trees which is passed by the Junta de Andalucia, Conserjería de Agricultura y Pesca.

Have you had any Red Weevils in your palm trees? Please share your photos and stories with us!

Gardening in Spain: The Fruit and Vegetables

Well it has been a while since we managed to blog, sorry about that but life has been hectic with the web business and then we started another business selling portable power products including portable solar panels, our feet haven't touched the ground yet!

I decided I needed to take some time out of my busy schedule and tell you about the gardens of the campo girls just recently, I know I can speak on behalf of Gina also as she has been really busy planting and eating!


The last couple of weeks we have had a right good going over the garden, we have been organically weeding the vegetable area that we have allocated for growing fruits and vegetables, we have also learnt from our mistakes last year and have now organised it slightly better, a few things are still growing a little haphazardly but we are getting there.

Our vegetable patch now consists of:
Lettuce
Cabbage
Carrots
Broccoli
Lettuce
Tomatoes
Cucumbers
Peppers
Leeks
Raspberries (red and yellow)
Blackberries
Melons
Kiwis
Onions
Nectarines
Garlic
Mint
Pears
Pomegranates

Organically weeding the vegetable patch is keeping the soil really nice, fortunately the area of garden we chose to grow the vegetables and fruit housed 2 horses for many years so the soil is basically all passed through horses - great for growing!

Due to the weeding by hand all the soil is being turned over regularly and also we have different plants that pop up and continue to grow, some we have never seen before so we always leave them to see what is going to happen.


We planted small mint plants near where the septic tank lives (next to the shed), the plan was to get this to cover a whole area so when you come up the drive you don't see the tank or smell the tank you see and smell mint instead, this plan has gone really well and the mint is having a great time, the plants have already grown really big and they are very healthy! Bring on the Mojitos this summer ;)


We also have lovely hanging baskets on the terrace by the front door, I love the whole feeling in Spain at this time of year, the smells from the garden are gorgeous and all the blooms are wonderful to look at, in my opinion, very calming!

Tornado hits Malaga!!!

Yep you heard me right, there was a Tornado that hit Malaga on the 2nd February, 2009, what is happening to our weather? We had disasters across France and Northen Spain from the Hurricane, which killed numerous people and now a Tornado follows injuring 25!

Hurricane in Spain

We are a bit late blogging about this I have to be honest but I wanted to blog anyway as I was so shocked with all the strange weather we have been having, before we know it this blog will be about Spanish weather! LOL

The Tornado ripped through Malaga causing damage to property, trees and vehicles, the injured people were cut by flying glass from the 180 kilometres an hour winds!

The tornado also affected the area of Estepona where a circus tent and a number of trees were blown down by the winds, injuring 5 people.

The video below is taken from YouTube

The rain in Spain falls where?

Well they say the rain in Spain falls mainly on the plains but it would seem that most of it fell into my garden today! LOL

The rain has not stopped yet today, no break in the clouds, nothing, we had some thunder earlier also, I am very worried about my vegetables that are growing in the garden, I expect they are drowning silently and slowly right now, fortunately our garden has a nice downhill slope from top to bottom so at least it is not pooling around the vegetables.

I don't think we can get out of our gate at the moment though, well not without wearing wellies anyway, I dread to think what the track looks like, we don't drive a 4x4, we have an Audi A6, which is 4 wheel drive but I still don't fancy our chances right now.

The pool is overflowing and adding to the situation, we have all the blinds down because the rain is lashing so much it is coming through!!!

I have lived in Spain for 10 years and never have I seen rain as bad as this, granted I have seen heavy rain and when it comes in Spain it certainly doesn't mess about, however, this has to be the worst, it certainly wasn't as bas as this last winter.

It was suggested to me that I get some bricks and form some kind of small wall as a defence for the vegetable plot but I have a better idea in the form of raised beds and after seeing this weather today, the next job on the list has to be raised beds, that is when the rain stops falling!

I wish Spanish houses would build their properties using damp coursing and insulation, it would make the houses a lot more economic and green when trying to heat them for the few months a year that we need to.

Anyone else living in a Finca and suffering from heavy rains today, is your house insulated or does it have damp coursing?

Spain and France in mourning after hurricane

Spain and France were hit by the worst storm to hit since 1999. Winds were 172km/h. Trees were uprooted, roofs came down, rail services were disrupted and more than 1 million people without power!

100 mile an hour winds brought down a sports hall in Sant Boi de Llobregat, near Barcelona, 4 children were killed and 9 were injured, while they were sheltering during Saturday morning baseball practice.

A police officer was killed while directing traffic in Galicia, he was was killed by a falling tree, over in Barcelona a woman was crushed to death when a wall collapsed on her!

Many other people were killed by falling trees and flying debris from buildings, it is just horrific, we usually hear about this kind of thing happening across the pond, not in Spain and France!

The Basque country was heavily affected and had to be evacuated while the Alicante region also evacuated 14,000 people due to electricity cables that had come down, the Spanish were worried about a forest fire starting.

Record waves were recorded in Northen Spain, 70 feet high, flights were suspended across the region and all rail services suspended.

Spain's armed forces will now help restore all services to households. Spanish Ministry of Defence have announced that troops will help fire fighters contain the wild fire in the region of La Nucia, Alicante.

Campo Girls would like to send their best wishes to all families affected by the hurricane and wish you the best for the road to recovery.

Great Juicing Ideas

Juices and blends have become extremely popular over the years and I for one have been juicing for a very long time, I realised that the price of oranges, lemons, grapefuits and many other fruits and vegetables were very easy to grow or fairly cheap to buy from the supermarket.

Juicing can fit very easily into a hectic lifestyle, enabling you to incorporate healthy habits into your everyday routines.

Benefits of Juicing
Nothing quite beats the taste of a blend made at home from fresh ingredients, despite the fact you can buy ready-made juices. The freshly made juices also contain more nutrients than those bought in a supermarket. If you do drink juice on a regular basis you will enjoy certain health benefits, clearer skin, better energy levels and balanced health. It is well known that antioxidants found in fruits and vegetables work most effectively when they are consumed together, juicing encourages precisely this!

The main advantages of juicing are:
Easy
Quick
Convenient
Rejuvenating
Healing
Revitalizing
Delicious

Vitamins and Minerals


Pink & Perky:
1 pink grapefruit
1 white grapefruit
2 ripe pears
ice cubes

Immune Zoom:
1 small mango
1 eating apple
2 passion fruit
juice of 1 orange
5ml/1 tsp echinachea
mineral water
ices cubes (optional)

Ginger juice:
1/2 small pineapple
25g/1oz fresh root ginger
1 carrot
ice cubes

Pomegranate plus:
2 pomegranates
4 fresh figs
15g/1/2oz fresh root ginger, peeled
10ml/2 tsp lime juice
Ice cubes and lime wedges, to serve

Tropical calm:
1 papaya
1/2 cantaloupe
90g/3 1/2oz white grapes

Strawberry soother:
1 peach or nectarine
225g/8 oz/2 cups strawberries

Minty melon cooler:
1 Galia or cantalopue melon
Several large mint sprigs
Juice of 2 large limes
Ice cubes
Extra mint sprigs and lime slices to serve

Apple juice:
10 apples
Ginger (optional)

Orange & carrot juice:
10 oranges
2 carrots
Ginger (optional)

Acapulco:
Pineapple
Passionfruit
Mango
Orange

Instant Energy:
Orange
Apple
Pear
Grapes

Pinky:
Strawberry
Apple

Fresquita:
Strawberry
Orange

Anti Stress:
Ginger
Lime
Orange
Apple

Piñanaranja:
Pineapple
Orange

Hawaiian:
Apple
Mango
Passionfruit
Ginger

Mente Sana:
Apple
Pear
Grape
Ginger

Summer Danger:
Raspberry
Pineapple
Pear


Green juice:
Celery
Lime
Cucumber
Orange

More juicing recipes coming next time, along with juicing and blending techniques

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Growing Fruit in Spain

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Spains climate lends itself perfectly to cultivating and harvesting a wide range of fruit, with March and April representing the key times of the year for cultivating and managing fruit trees.

Spain’s climate is determined by its curious world location, on the south western edge of Eurasia and just thirteen kilometres from Africa at its narrowest point. Spain’s infrastructure includes an ocean on its western front and a sea to the east. It's continental land mass and high mountainous terrain means that Spain can produce a myriad of various climates and micro-climates which are one of the most varied in Europe.

Due to this climactic variety, Spain has a history of producing a wide range of fruit that may be harvested throughout the year.

It is possible to cultivate fresh Spanish fruit all year round, including Lemons, Oranges, Raspberries, Strawberries, Apricots, Figs, Apples, Almonds, Grapes, Pomegranates, Bananas and Avocados.

When embarking upon the cultivation of Spanish fruit it is worth considering that it is not essential to have a great deal of space or land at your disposal, with the majority of fruits able to be cultivated in containers on a terrace, on a house patio garden as well as in the garden or orchard.

As with any cultivation of fruit it is important to follow a few simple guidelines to maximise the chances of a succesful crop.

1. Cultivate the types of fruit that you are familiar with and that you enjoy eating an a regular basis.

2. Make sure that the fruit that you intend to cultivate is right for the type of climate of your garden or patio, remembering that each area has its own 'micro-climate'.

3. Ensure that all the frosts of the seaon have finished before planting new fruit trees.

4. Where possible buy trees that have been hardened.

5. Ensure that your soil is well cultivated with manure and compost prior to any planting.

6. It is essential to properly support new trees with stakes to prevent damage, especially to the roots.

7. Do not prune trees before their roots have had the opportunity to develop into the soil successfully.

8. Ensure that trees are planted where there is adequate run-off so that the roots do not rot from excessive water damage.

9. Maintain your trees correctly annaully by pruning back at least twenty percent.

10. Stimulate healthy growth by pruning out bad or affected growth.

The following list illustrates the harvesting season for Spanish fruit trees:

January - February | Olives, oranges and lemons

March - April | Oranges and lemons

April - May | Loquats oranges and lemons

May - June | Cherries

July - August | Peaches, plums and pears

August - September | Apples, grapes, figs

September - October | Grapes, figs, almonds, pomegranate

November - December | Persimmons, quinces, oranges, lemons

No Spanish garden is complete without its very own fruit trees. There is a huge variety available to every Spanish gardener from the complete novice to the experienced, whether owning a house, villa, town house, finca, penthouse or apartment.

Growing Vegetables in Spain

Spains climate lends itself perfectly to cultivating and harvesting a wide range of vegetables irrespective of the availability of land or space.

You have to decide when embarking on growing vegetables in Spain where, when and how you intend to make the most of your vegetable gardening time and effort. You can either decide to cultivate a wide range of vegetablesi.e. those that would normally feed your family, or you can decide to cultivate a few more specific vegetables.

Once you have decided where to cultivate your vegetables there are a few simple rules that you need to consider in order to optimise the best use of the temperate Spanish climate.

1. It is essential to correctly prepare your soil with the addition of compost and natural manure.

2. Choose vegetables that you enjoy eating rather than those you are not familiar with.

3. Your first attempts should be made during the cooler spring and autumn periods as opposed to the warm summer period.

4. Rather than attempting to grow from seed, your initial endeavours should be carried out with sededlings which are widely available in most Spanish garden centers and stores.

5. Manage your expectations properly and do not attempt to grow overly large specimens. Try to grow normally sized crops that are packed with nutrients and flavour.

6. Choose the correct tools for the job. Many of the tools that you would normally use in UK gardens will prove in-effective in the hard dry spanish soils.

7. There is a tendency to overwater in such a warm climate. Ensure your soil is constantly damp rather than flooded. This will avoid cultivation of water filled, nutrient and flavour poor crops.

The following vegetables should be sown from seedling during Autumn: lettuces, broccoli, onions, leeks, chives, Swiss chard, spinach, globe artichokes, cabbages, cauliflowers.

The following vegetables should be sown from seedling during Winter: leeks, onions, broad beans, Swiss chard, garlic.

The following vegetables should be sown from seed during Autumn: carrots, radishes, lettuces, rocket, parsnips, beetroots, seed potatoes, garlic corms.

The following vegetables should be sown from seed during Winter: peas, broad beans.

Finally and most importantly growing your own vegetables can be a very satisfying experience, especially when you first sit down at the table and enjoy a meal that includes the 'fruits' of your labour.

There is a sense of pride from and achievement from the rewards of your hard work.