These are the golden days, they are long and abundant and sun infused. There are strawberries, lots of strawberries, and there are salads with flower petals, for dinner.
And bouquets on every table and windowsill.
There are roses rambling along the fence line and growing up the wall of the old wooden shed near the garden gate.
There are bees flying and flowers blooming and the whole of Honey Grove hums from dusk to dawn. Bees on phacelia, bees on clover, bees on blackberry.
And sometimes the only thing to do is to pause there in your busy day, and to go and watch them gathering the sweetness of the season, to sit there amidst the hum and the honey smells, under the solstice sun.
And while the bees are flying, the garden is growing.
And Mark’s Mum and Dad have once again come all the way from England for their annual June visit, and as usual, they have wasted no time in getting straight to work; helping us in countless ways. With their help we have net the blueberries and the currents, and perhaps this year we will get a few berries before the robins eat them all!
And Marks Mum and I have worked together to tie a wild tangle of garden peas.
And Marks Dad (a retired horticulturist and my exceptional gardening teacher) continues to teach me about the secret life of green and growing things as we walk through the garden every evening after supper.
And oh the things I learn about leaf miners and mulching and carrot-root-fly!
And while I am having my evening lessons, Mark and his Mum are going around the lower field on”slug patrol,” gathering the garden slugs with bucket and trowel and offering them to the ducks, who eagerly await their return each evening.
And we all have a lot of fun too!
And when they are not helping us in the garden, you will find them helping Mark in his new bakery, which is coming along beautifully.
Yes, Mark has rather fallen in love with his new work-space and the inspiration is flowing once again. He has even started making pain d’epi, and look how beautiful they are. I mean just look.
And here you can see his shiny Italian oven in action.
And at last he is able to make it out to some of the markets, which his Mum and Dad have been helping him with, when I am too busy at the farm.
Meanwhile, Cohen and Katie are as busy as the bees working at the local vineyard and preparing wonderful things to eat for all of their summer visitors. And when they are not running to and fro, they are down by the river, trying out their superpowers.
As for Gus, he is spending his days meditating in the daises.
And swimming through ponds of lilies.
And reminding all of us to savour these sweet days of summer.
With Gratitude for your Company~
Nao, Mark, Gus, Cohen, Katie and all at Honey Grove
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