Organising Your Backyard for Summer, guest post by Kaitlin Krull

Organising Your Backyard for Summer
Kaitlin Krull

After the snow has melted away and your garden is finally showing signs of life again, it’s time to enjoy your outdoor space. But before you send out invites for tea parties and bonfires, you and your garden need to get your acts together. Check out some of these tips for organizing your backyard to help you have the best summer ever.

Come dine with me
Your home isn’t ready for summertime entertaining until you’ve created an outdoor dining space. Less is definitely more when it comes to eating outside, so give your garden patio or decking a rustic theme with wooden furniture and repurposed jugs and jars for storage. Hang some fairy lights above the table for the late nights spent with friends and loved ones and you’re all set. Bring on the Pimms!

via Apartment Therapy

Party games
Equip your outdoor space with lawn games for your next garden party and you will definitely win entertainer of the summer. Bowls, croquet, and badminton aren’t just for the elite and stuck up; it’s all about having fun! Even a net and football can turn the calmest of get togethers into an energetic, competitive time. Just make sure no one takes it too far and you’re all still friends at the end of the party.

via Country Living

Fan the flame

If your garden space allows it, why not create a fire pit to keep the outdoor party going on those warm summer evenings. Homemade pits have the most rustic appeal, but if needs must, feel free to use a chiminea or metal/stone fire pit instead. Leave some folding chairs or waterproof cushions nearby for impromptu s’mores roasting and ghost stories around the fire.

via DaisyMaeBelle

Let kids be kids

If you have children, most of your outdoor time this summer will undoubtedly be spent chasing them around with a bottle of suncream and playing endless games of hide and seek. Give the kids their own space in the garden with a play house, swing and slides, or some sand and sidewalk chalk. If you’re very, very brave, you could even give them a mud kitchen. Just make sure the hose is handy after playtime.

via Life in the Dub Lane

A touch of green
It may sound redundant, but by adding some plants to your garden, you will see an instant lift in your outdoor space. Besides keeping your existing greenery trimmed and pruned, having some organised gardening projects on display will encourage you and your family to spend more time outdoors and will undoubtedly look great when guests come over. Choose easily maintained plants and flowers so everyone can participate in the gardening.

via Kelly Moore

Maintenance
By cleaning up after every party and play session, you will be able to spend your time enjoying the warmer days and can make the most of your summer. Use these tips and your imagination to get your garden ready for summer. You will not be disappointed! Now, if only the weather would cooperate with your plans.

For more tips and tricks, head to Modernize.com

grateful for

I am grateful for the rays of sunshine that appear through the rain, I am grateful for the fresh air to breath. I am grateful for being able to look out from a warm room where I can be comfortable.

winter to spring to summer

I always like this 'look' , as Abbey loses her winter coat and her summer coat comes in , her face always ends up with a half and half , the beard will lessen but never entirely goes away.
hopefully the weather will continue to warm up and her complete summer look isn't to far away.
Scotland is doing its usual.. warm days, cold days, wet days, windy days.. all mixed up with no way of telling whats to come. 

bank holiday monday

and the sun is shining today

from book to film

I loved the book, I hope it can get to be made into a movie

road trip!!

  Abbey settles with wee Whisp , nothing like eating grass in good company.

very kind friends loaned me this wee truck to move Abbey down to stay in Dumfriesshire.

and the wheel keeps turning...

on the move again... to be updated!!

there's always light somewhere

 

Bless dear friends, near and far,

 

Today I am grateful for
good friends
a hot bath
a warm place to sleep

guest post on Ponds, from Josh Nicholas of Swallow Aquatics

How to get and keep your pond healthy ready for summer

Good news everyone! Spring is on its way, winter has finally ended and hopefully we will soon be seeing some sunny days, a little less rain and feeling that itch to get out into the garden once again!

If you're anything like me, this time of year also means it is time to do some maintenance in order to get your garden fighting fit ready for the summer months, and one of the first items on your list should be your garden pond - after all, this is the time of year when new frogs are coming into the world.

So with that in mind, I have decided to give you a few friendly tips to maintain your garden pond. How to prepare it for summer and keep it healthy and full of life. Gardening gloves at the ready? Good, let's begin.

Remove bubbler and heater

Depending on where you live and the ecosystem of your pond you may have installed a heater and a bubbler over the winter in order to keep your fish alive. Don't forget to remove it now that the weather is getting warmer.

Remove debris

The first step in any pond maintenance of course is to remove any debris from the pond. Over the winter, chances are good that you haven't been doing this, so now is the time to do a thorough clean out.

Grab those big bits of debris such as fallen leaves and sticks, but it is also worth using a skimming net to get the finer debris. A skimmer net will have finer holes that a regular pond net, so it will pick up even small bits of debris, hence improving water clarity and allowing more light into your pond. Additionally, here's a handy guide to using your garden hose to remove debris.

And for bigger ponds, consider using a pond hoover (like this one) to gently remove excess silt and debris from the water. These are well worth the investment and will help to keep your pond nice and clean.

Check water health

Next, you should check the health of the water by measuring the PH levels, ammonia and nitrate and nitrite levels. The correct levels will again depend on various factors, but there are plenty of guides for measuring each. Here's one q and a that may help.

Change the water

If the levels are off, or if the water is particularly dirty, it may be worth partially changing the water in the pond. Emptying and replacing around 30% of the water in the pond should be sufficient and safe.

You can use your regular pond pump to pump the water out of the pond, and then a regular hose and bucket to fill it back up.

Before adding water to the pond though, you should use a water conditioner, which will remove the chlorine, ammonia and any other nasty chemicals which might harm your fish or your plants.

Save your water!

Just a note here. Pond water is very nutritious, full of nitrogen and other nice things that your plants will love, so after double checking based on what plants you have, feel free to use the excess pond water to feed and water the plants - they will thank you for it come spring time.

Pump maintenance

Next, you should have a look at your pond pump - particularly if it has been turned off over the winter. As a minimum, take it out and check the inlet for debris or a build up and plants, soil and general gunge.

A good clean out will keep it functioning well, failure to do so may cause slowed water flow and even burn out, which will cost you a new pump and cause a drop in oxygen levels in the pond. Here's a YouTube video to show you how!

Add beneficial bacteria

Finally, don't resort to harmful algae treatments which will use nasty chemicals. Instead, get a natural pond treatment which contains friendly bacteria. It's just like one of those yoghurts, but for your pond and will keep your ponds ecosystem healthy and algae free.

If you follow all of these tips, you will never need to use chemicals, your pond will be healthy, full of life and the water will stay clearer than ever before.

Thanks for reading, and good luck with your pond maintenance this summer!

Post contributed by Josh from Swallow Aquatics garden centre.
Thanks for reading!

I think I'm the monkey in this one...

and things change... the end of an 'era'.. comforting friends who have lost parents.. now starts the comforting of freinds children as your friends start to die off... and I'm not that old.. 48.
my gardening friend Billy died a couple of years ago, his wife Sandra died today.
and it brings me to thinking.. well why would you particularly want to live a long time anyway? I've had lovely times in  my life, lots of good experiences, but I've also enough grief that it just is overwhelming sometimes. and the constant struggle.. usually to do with money , which never eases, even working till I'm exhausted and think I just can't do it any more.
so I wouldn't want to be doing this till I'm 80.
and hope its sudden, no desire to linger...

we're all okay here

Abbey in gray and Quince in blue. I'm standing with a bag of hay that they didn't seem particularly interested in.. I thought they might be hungry with all the snow.

troubled times

Be Thankful
Be thankful that you don’t already have everything you desire,
If you did, what would there be to look forward to?
Be thankful when you don’t know something
For it gives you the opportunity to learn.
Be thankful for the difficult times.
During those times you grow.
Be thankful for your limitations
Because they give you opportunities for improvement.
Be thankful for each new challenge
Because it will build your strength and character.
Be thankful for your mistakes
They will teach you valuable lessons.
Be thankful when you’re tired and weary
Because it means you’ve made a difference.
It is easy to be thankful for the good things.
A life of rich fulfillment comes to those who are also thankful for the setbacks.
GRATITUDE can turn a negative into a positive.
Find a way to be thankful for your troubles and they can become your blessings.
~ Author Unknown ~

todays wee jolly

company car again

 a photo of me in Little Red

my daughter Rosie who visited the farm for the first time in nearly a year.. she had driven a similar tractor in the past but wasn't quite sure about this one.. I think the rusting roll cage doesn't inspire confidence. . .

aww, her first pair of boots

Abbey hasn't had metal shoes on her feet since shortly after she came to me. Mostly she does just fine with her hooves bare. She manages the stony driveway, and the very rough lane through the trees.. however one ride we do occasionally involves a stone track that has been repaired with big rough stones and she just can't walk on them.. so the choice was not to go there or to try boots. She had them on for 20 minutes today for a wee wander round, they seem fine, she didn't seem bothered with them at all and there were no obvious rubbed spots. Cavallo Simple Boots

internet jigsaw

Horse Jigsaw Puzzle


here's a wee thing to while away time.. I like 'real' jigsaws and have a puzzle board to do them on, this means they can be put away which is essential when living with three cats.