Mistle Thrushes and Black Redstarts

As trainee twitchers, we were amazed to see a flock of about 40 mistle thrushes descend on the garden for the last 2 days. We think they are after the ants and we are eagerly awaiting their arrival today. Not only have we rarely seen a single specimen but to see about 40 at once was really exciting (we dont get out much!). Even more exciting was to see today a juvenile Black Redstart. It was trapped in the conservatory/ half-greenhouse lean-to and then flew up into the cherry tree so we had time to get the binoculars out and have a good look. We read that there are only about 100 breeding pairs in the country and they are concentrated in London, with some in Birmingham and the Black Country.

The picture shows that I need to do yet more weeding!

Vegetables from the Garden

We used the vegetable patch as a bonfire site whilst we cleared the garden. Many fires were lit as a lot of stuff got burnt!

Once the fires were over we started clearing and planting.

We are lucky enough to have an asparagus bed although it's a bit tired and needs replacing. This was the first sign of growth last year but plenty more popped up during the short season.

And this is the vegetable patch now. In here there are carrots, beetroot, purple podded peas, lettuce, onions, runner beans, garlic and asparagus although the high winds and heavy rains have caused devastation. We may well move the veg. patch up towards the artichokes, rhubarb and gooseberries.


We're not experts (see the previous post!), but there really is something in eating produce that you have grown yourself!!

Over-excited carrots

I

I'm certainly no expert veg. grower otherwise I would have thinned out the carrots. However, it does produce some interesting specimens!

Doing Up The House - The Living Room

Continuing the theme 'Doing up the House' this week we'll look at the living room........

These posts are not necessarily in chronological order, however, as we renovated the whole house at the same time, many different rooms were worked on simultaneously. I should also mention that a lot of the 'before' shots were taken on my old camera, not the digital one. Hence these pictures are of the 'during' and 'after' phases!

The living room required a lot of work doing to it, not least because we had to lay a new floor.

This picture shows the extent of the work, and also the cellar we discovered underneath. A lot of the plaster was removed so we could apply a damp course. The doorway the picture was taken from had been boarded up.

All the beams in the house required treating to solve the wood worm problem. This picture was taken from the dining room. The new floor and fireplace had been fitted and the windows were in the process of being installed.

So now the living room looks like this............


This picture is a bit on the dark side, but hopefully shows how cosy the room actually is!

Next week: The Top Bedroom

Out and About - Arthur's Stone

Arthur's Stone, is a burial chamber that dates back somewhere between approximately 3700 to 2700 BC.

The tomb is named Arthur's Stone because, according to folklore, it marks the spot of one of King Arthur's battles. This legend however dates from thousands of years after the stone tomb was erected!!

My cousin and I walked from the house to Arthur's Stone which is about eight miles.



For a map of this location click here

Out and About - View from Hay Bluff

Today the rain subsided and there was actually some blue sky! We drove to Hay Bluff and strolled about for a while enjoying the views.

To view a map of this location click here

Doing Up The House - The Kitchen

When we bought Yew Tree House in 2005, with the intention of converting it into a bed and breakfast, we knew it would be a massive task. The house is over 200 years old and was quite run down.

Over the next few weeks I will post 'before and after' photos of the rooms and garden to give an idea of the work involved.

First up is the kitchen.

The lovely thing about the kitchen is its size and the breakfast room leading off it. As you can see from this picture, it was quite badly outdated.

Nearly there, just the finishing touches to go.

We now have a serious oven (actually it's the third one, but that's another story!) and a generally much brighter and more modern space. We spend a lot of time in here....

B&B Blogging

We are very new to the world of blogging. It wasn't even our idea, but it has opened the eyes to a completely new world!! And I must admit it is quite good fun.

Over the coming weeks more pictures will be posted of the house and garden, as well as the wonderful surroundings.

If you like what you see, then perhaps you could vote by clicking here:

or by using the link on the right hand side.

Thank you.

P.S. Please do keep popping back. And if you want to find out more about staying with us, then follow this link to Yew Tree House.