This is not a description of my garden not my home-made biscuits. So I am going to whisper this we’ve hardly had any rain for almost 3 months. I’m not sure what constitutes a drought, but my garden and the surrounding machair are parched. Now I know people on the big island have a surfeit […]
Croft Gardener
Sunshine after the storm
It is a fact of geography and climate that when the weather is foul in England it is often wonderful in the Western Isles. Since that last gale in early May we’ve had virtually no rain and day after day of sunshine. With a north-easterly air flow it has been a little on the chilly […]
After the storm
It’s a maybe gardening day today, blowing a mild gale (Force 7 about 35 mph), a little on the chilly side at 6°C with the threat of rain so the domestic chores win. However, I might just sneak out down to the polytunnel to water the seeds and give my tomatoes some encouragement. I’m determined […]
Undercover Harvest
We now have over 16 hours of daylight and there is no lack of sunshine, but with the northerly winds the temperature barely rises above 12°C even on calm days. Even with this lovely weather the vegetables beds are still empty and forlorn. The main crop potatoes were planted at the end of April as […]
Turner and the stealth bird
In April and May, when these islands in the far north-west are caught in a northerly air flow the long days are bathed in sunlight. The cold air brings a crystalline clarity to the light and on calm days the distant islands of the archipelago appear to float on the horizon. We have not entered […]