Staying shady

 Hello m' slim shadies,

After a two day heatwave shattered UK records, my trusty Glass Storm Barometer warned me that a storm was imminent. The next morning I woke to a drastic drop in temperature, thunder and lightening. Climate change has officially arrived, just as the scientists said it would all those years ago. Sadly environmental scientists don't rule the world, knobbers do.

 Above left - barometer in fine weather | Above right - rapid ascension of blue liquid in snozzle means approaching storm (see monkey blog post here for more detail). If it pees, batten the hatches!

Below: Down by the morning cool, Penryn Marina

 Whilst the holiday makers were rollicking in the sun on the beach, I was crunching on ice cubes, taking shade where I could. Obviously all the parasols had sold out, so a little improvisation was required for the top patio -

 


 Approaching storm after the heat -

 Very little gardening happened during the heat. Contrary to what Monsieur would say, I am not The Terminator, nor even Sarah Connor BEFORE or AFTER the press ups. Some gentle potting duties were carried out in the early morning.


Once the Salvias finish blooming, I'll nab the posh blue pot for some more patio succulents.

I managed to get all of these little beauties out into terracotta pots. Some are self-propagated, others are carbooty finds. The collection continues to grow.

This funny zig zaggy one is called a Crasula pagoda variegata -

 And this gorgeous stony blue one in flower is a Echeveria shaviana -

Other gardening duties have included eating things -

Green Raddichio

A gobstopper sized tomato ('Sweetie') won the ripening race in the greenhouse


Lots of yellow courgettes = time to get the spiralizer out for courgetti season!
 
On to flowers...
 
Agapanthus as big as Brian Cox's starry head


 Sweet peas and Fennel
 
You Dill you don't, you will you won't
 
Statice
 
 
Yet again I have been acting as florist to the stars. A small hand grown thank you to the wonderful teachers and support staff at my daughters' school. They smell divine and have zero air miles!



Before I go I promised Monsieur I'd plug a fab remix his Dubai friend (Thrds) has done on one of his recent tunes. He knows Long Mizzle readers are the best class of folk! I'm digging the semi -dark 80s vibe.

Hope you are well m' luverlies. As always, please send gossip.

Lulu xXx


Thank you for visiting!

Most recent posts can be found here - https://longmizzle.blogspot.com/

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Comments

  1. kjsutcliffe20 July 2022 at 11:27

    Listening to Thrds as I type - yup deffo 80s vibe ! pass me my shoulder pads and plastic earrings!
    Jokes aside - very nice :D
    I love your blue monkey pee, I knew someone years ago had one with yellow water (ergh) which did look a little pee-ish.... as a child I was fascinated.
    Loving the mini 'bouquettes' I bet they were very well received by the teachers, and as for rain - what rain? - send storms north please!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Lulu24 July 2022 at 09:20

      I'll join you with the shoulder pads - I always loved a bit of Dynasty! I'm loving the Thrds remix. Yuck- yellow water ! That does sound a bit gross. Bit more rain today, I'll have a word with it and send it your way... xXx

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  2. Ellie Foster20 July 2022 at 15:00

    Dear Lulu
    I echo the comment about rain - it was looking likely but failed to materialise. I like the look of the pagoda crassula. We have been eating blueberries which are ready a lot earlier than usual. Also my hardy hibiscus is flowering and that doesn't usually happen until August. I am not a fan of the heat so am looking forward to cooler temperatures.
    Have a good rest of the week
    Best wishes
    Ellie

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    Replies
    1. Lulu24 July 2022 at 09:25

      I'm really chuffed I found the Pagoda crassula at the carbooty Ellie, as I'd missed out on one a few weeks back, then kept asking people selling succulents if they had the 'zig zaggy one' :0 Ooh, I love hibiscus - that is early to flower. Hope it has cooled down for you now. Mizzle and sea swimming for me today - lovely! xXx

      Delete
  3. Cherie20 July 2022 at 23:04

    I'm thanking my lucky stars that it's cooled down a lot. Now we need some good downpours.. T'won't be long before we are moaning that it won't stop raining. :-)

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    Replies
    1. Lulu24 July 2022 at 09:28

      I love the rain Cherie - I'm a proper Manc!!! If it's raining, I'm out there in my fluorescent mac :) If you were my neighbour (wouldn't that be fun!) , I'd be waving over the fence to you like a proper nutter! xXx

      Delete
  4. Jules20 July 2022 at 23:08

    Those flower gifts are quite beautiful, and not a piece of cellophane in sight.
    We experienced a good shower of rain yesterday, and I can now confirm I've reached the age where I declare, 'At least the gardens will be grateful for it!' :)

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    Replies
    1. Lulu24 July 2022 at 09:30

      Thanks Jules, the teachers loved the flowers. Oh yes, happy happy gardens in the rain after all that heat :) xXx

      Delete
  5. bahnwärterin21 July 2022 at 00:14

    your little shady bench is so pretty! and even better because you made it with "bordmittel"!
    its succulent weather - you growing collection is gorgeous and how quirky some forms are!!
    here all the plants get burned and look sad for themselfes in the late afternoon.... even in our temporarly shady garden - the substantiel house&tree shades wandering around.... but the sun is like a gas burner. but - the courgettes seem to love the climate - if they get watered richly. i just started to can them because we have already to much for daily use.......
    hope the storm made no damage - we have some rain today in the forecast - fingers crossed!
    totally love the bouquets you made for the school teachers!
    xxxxx

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Lulu24 July 2022 at 09:34

      Thanks Beate :) Well done canning the courgettes. I'm the only one in the house that eats them... knowingly ;) I have a chili con carnie slow cooking on the hob with chopped up courgette in there! There's a lovely steady mizzle outside as I type and the lawn is greening up again xXx

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  6. Mike Perry21 July 2022 at 03:12

    In the shade with your succulents, how very perfect! Gosh, it was definitely hot. Though we didn't notice it a first as we are quite sheltered by trees - but then we went for a walk and realised the full extent of the heat - phew! What great gifts those bouquets are, the teachers must have been well chuffed. A most enjoyable post. All good wishes.

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    Replies
    1. Lulu24 July 2022 at 09:37

      How lovely to be sheltered by trees Mike. I could do with some more shady planting up by the top patio - but we get a wind whipping in the winter, so they'd have to be very tough plants. I think the teachers could have filled a whole trailer each with all the flowers, wine and chocolate they received, but they did appreciate them xXx

      Delete
  7. Polyester Princess21 July 2022 at 10:46

    Listening to Thrds remix as I type, and totally loving it!
    Also, hat's off for your clever and crafty shade solutions. I'd sit there all day enjoying the view.
    Admiring your collection of succulents, and those teachers and staff at your daughter's school must have been chuffed to receive those gorgeous bouquets!
    I hope your heatwave didn't out with a bang. Ours, fortunately, just fizzled out overnight. xxx

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    Replies
    1. Lulu24 July 2022 at 09:40

      Thanks Ann, I'll pass that on to Monsieur :) It is hard to get going sometimes after I sit down for a coffee :0 Heat wave over thank goodness. It has been raining & windy today, so of course I headed to the beach for some body boarding with the kidiwinks - perfect! xXx

      Delete
  8. Winter Peach Photography22 July 2022 at 07:03

    It might be a bit long, but "Environmental scientists don't rule the world, knobbers do" needs to go on a T-shirt. I'd buy one! The fire starters have been at work in the wood behind our house throughout the heatwave, which has been a joy.

    Very clever shade solutions and I could definitely use your floristry skills for a shoot I'm planning - shame we're so far apart. The 80s vibe of Monsieur's latest creation would work very well too.

    I'm mourning the passing of my succulents. I listened to my Mom who has them growing in her rock garden all year round (she's only a mile away). Sadly, ours didn't make it past winter. xxx

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    1. Lulu24 July 2022 at 09:48

      Haha, right, I need to start up a T-shirt slogan company then Claire! Sad to hear your beloved woods have been affected. I put most of my succulents in the cold greenhouse over winter, but I know people that just tip pots on their side, so they don't get too soggy. It is the wet that tends to do them over, not the cold.

      Of course I'd love to do some florist installations for you - bouquets, crowns, arches and all, if we lived closer! I am coming over to leave a message on your bloggy. Monsieur said he could send you a .wav file to use for your shoot.... xXx

      Delete
  9. Ivana Split22 July 2022 at 09:59

    I love your succulents.
    Here it is super hot.
    I'm hoping we get a nice storm to cool things down.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Lulu24 July 2022 at 09:49

      Thanks Ivana! :) I need to come over and have a proper catch up.... xXx

      Delete
  10. David Bennett23 July 2022 at 04:53

    You were very resourceful with your sun shade and it was really needed. We had a temperature of 35 degrees up here on the east coast. That's unheard of here! Coningsby in Lincolnshire recorded the record highest tempdrature on the Tuesday.
    You really like your succulents, they look very attractive and maybe I'll find a space for a few.
    I like your Agapanthus, very impressive. I have one grown grown from seed last year that's full of leaf but now flowers yet. I hope it flowers next year. Lovely post, stay cool, David. 😊 🐕 🐢

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  11. Lulu24 July 2022 at 10:00

    Thanks David :) I was going to sell that copper pipe that I found in the undergrowth for scrap metal, but I may hang on to it now. Bude, up on the north side broke the Cornwall record with 36 degrees. I'm not interested in shoes at all, but I am a little obsessed with succulents! Fingers crossed for your Agapanthus from seed. There was a patch of Agapanthus already in flower when we moved in years ago. They have since self seeded round the garden and gone on to flower too xXx

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  12. Vix25 July 2022 at 08:53

    Yay! We're Agapanthus, fennel and outdoor rug twins. How have your courgettes survived the slugs? Our gardens full of the evil buggers. I managed to snaffle three from their vile clutches this morning. Your succulents are looking marvellous and it looks very black over Bill's Mother's in that photo.
    I bet the teachers loved those beautiful arrangements, sure beats a mug with Number 1 Teacher on the front.
    Lord Jon says to tell you that he loves Thrds remix of Monsieur's track. xxx

    ReplyDelete
  13. Lulu29 July 2022 at 00:38

    Welcome back Vix! Thanks, flowers went down a treat :) Mollusc activity has been minimal during this hot dry weather - but they'll be back ! :0 Even my little fig tree, which seems to be a delicacy for them, has managed to grow a bit. Monsieur's proper chuffed that Jon likes the track & he's passed on to Tris from Thrds. I'm coming over.... xXx

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