A pleasant day, mostly sunny, about 20ºC. Hopefully, we have left behind those days of fierce heat. No good for flora or fauna. It rained a little yesterday, enough for us to skip evening watering last night, but today many plants were suffering. So we watered on.
I took down the leaflets for our Late Summer Celebration which was last Saturday. I wasn’t there for the Woodchips’ session which ran from 11 to 12 noon with a teddy bears’ picnic, but I know it was popular as many parents stayed on with their children for the music and food, and to chat with their friends. I enjoyed two bands that played for us. The first was Fred Snow & the Bootleg trio playing ragtime and early jazz. To our surprise, they brought their own honky tonk piano. I like the fun and energy of the period, Scott Joplin et al, and their set worked really well.
They were followed by the local band, Capel Ceilidh, playing Irish jigs and reels. Great to sit and watch, chat, and admire their skills and their pleasure in playing together. I know most of the band, and have enjoyed their playing over many years.
I replaced the leaflets I took down with Party in the Park leaflets, for this Saturday in Forest Lane Park, running from 2 to 7 pm. This is the last major celebration of the summer. I have no doubt that quite a few of our volunteers and garden members will be there. The other leaflet I put up was a double sided leaflet, one side advertising the Forest Gate Jumble Trail. This has over 60 stalls, so some people are madly de-cluttering. Here’s the link for the map:
The other side of the leaflet is for Earlham Bridge, which the garden is involved in. They will be having an information stall as part of the jumble trail, and may have some jumble too. They will be seeking views for improving the area from people who live nearby and bridge users. Their stall will be on the walkway to the bridge, Earlham side.
So lots happening this weekend.
A visitor asked me if the small shrub by the container was a hollyhock. That was a shrewd observation. It is actually an hibiscus which is also known as the tree hollyhock. The flowers of the two plants are very similar. They are both in the Malvaceae (mallow) family which accounts for the likeness.
Our robin returned today. We hadn’t seen it for some time. At least we think it is our robin, but as we didn’t take the DNA of it in the spring, we have no way of knowing. Let’s assume it is.