Thursday, September 02, 2021

Plums, Books and Butterflies

All the plums have been harvested from both trees.  The larger Victoria plum tree and the smaller one which produces yellow plums that have a beautiful fragrance but don't taste as sweet and sharp as the red ones.


We've had more fruits than we expected so some have had to be prepared and frozen.  Others will make jam and crumbles.
 

Two more punnets over the weekend were definitely the last.

We have plenty of empty jars for jam making.

Above four books I've enjoyed reading recently.  All very different.  I loved The Red Notebook by Antoine Laurain which was recommended by a friend.  It's a short, sweet and satisfying read which I needed as I was getting bogged down by a few of the books I'd chosen and couldn't finish reading some of them.  I loved all the characters and the setting in Acts and Omissions by Catherine Fox and will read the other two books in the trilogy later this year.  I also enjoyed Two Women in Rome by Elizabeth Buchan.  It certainly isn't as 'happy' as the other two but the mystery is intriguing.  Rewild your Garden by Frances Tophill is an interesting and useful book you can go back to and dip into many times. The illustrations are lovely too.


At present I'm reading the book above and according to my Kindle I'm 20% of the way through it.  It's a very long book but I'm determined to work my way to the end especially as I also have three books reserved at the library all newly or about to be published.

1979 by Val McDermid - I'm number seven in the queue
The Heron's Cry by Ann Cleeves - number ten in the queue and The Stone Chamber by Kate Ellis - number three in the queue

I hope they don't all come at once, I expect it depends on how quickly people read them from when they first become available.

The warmer, sunnier weather last week brought the larger butterflies into the garden.  Also two dragonflies which flew around a bit but didn't settle.  Just glimpses as they wizzed by showed one had a green body and one a red body.  It seems ages since we've seen dragonflies which have settled for long enough to be identified let alone photographed.

The Echinacias have been popular with both butterflies and bees.


Although one of the Red Admirals preferred the Hydrangeas.

Whilst one of the Tortoiseshells liked the Zinnias.



19 comments:

  1. Your butterflies are looking gorgeous in the sun, so colourful and good to see them out and about. It looks like you've had an excellent crop of plums. I really enjoyed Troubled Blood, I hope you enjoy it to. I'll have to note down all those books and look out for some at my library. 😊

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    1. I am enjoing Troubled Blood very much but can only read so much at a time as my eyes get tired. It's great to have the plums and they will keep us going into the winter. I have too many books I want to read at the moment:)

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  2. What a great bounty from your garden. Plum Crumble all the way. Beautiful Butterfly pictures too. :)

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    1. It's good to have the plums and they will keep us going for ages with crumbles and etc. I was so pleased to see butterflies in the garden at last:)

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  3. Plenty of plums from your trees & occasionally one of our elderly neighbours gives me some plums and we give them blueberries & the occasional tomatoes when I have a glut, though everyone in our court gets blueberries in season. We get way too many just for us. I love your butterflies & we too quite often see dragonflies, which reminds me of a photo I've not shown on the blog..........hmmm! Glad you enjoyed your books & wish I could settle/relax to read like I used to, but since our move to this house, it just doesn't happen. Enjoy the warm weather for now, take care & hugs.

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    1. We've frozen most of the plums although some will become jam which we can pass on as gifts. We shared strawberries with neighbours earlier in the year as they can't be frozen. How wonderful to have lots of blueberries we've had about a dozen berries off our one plant. It was great to see the butterflies at last. Takecare:)

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  4. I think it's been years since I've had plums.

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  5. Lovely to see all those butterflies. The wind here is keeping our numbers down sadly. Plum jam here too as I had a delivery of plums from my neighbour. Last night my son brought round 3 pounds of blackberries from his garden so I know what I’ll be doing today :). I will check out your books. Thanks. B x

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    1. We haven't seen as many butterflies in the garden this year especially the ones I've photographed. We saw lots of the smaller butterflies like gatekeepers when out walking earlier in the summer. Hope you enjoy the jam making:)

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  6. It is wonderful to see the butterflies. I am so envious of your plums as I love those English Victoria plums and the supermarkets rarely sell them just horrid tasteless things from abroad :( The reading looks interesting - I enjoy your reviews so much and you have given me ideas for wonderful authors to try. Have a feeling I have read Elizabethan Buchan but some years ago. Take care and have a good weekend.

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    1. Thank you, I love Victoria plums too so much tastier than others - even the yellow ones on the other tree. I've been reading a few different things than the usual crime novels although I'm back to those with the one I'm reading now and those on order at the library. It was good to see butterflies and dragonflies at last. You too take care:)

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  7. A lovely end-of-the-summer post, Rosie. Your butterfly photos are wonderful. x

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    1. Thank you Mrs T. Summer is still with us this weekend even though some days it is half hearted about it. Nights are darker and mornings cooler. It was great to see the butterflies:)

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  8. I am envious of your plums Rosie! My plum tree was covered in plums this year and each one succumbed to plum moth so I didn't get to eat one! I don't think I have tried plum jam before but bet it is delicious when you make it. You have read (and to be read) a nice selection of books. I can't seem to concentrate on reading at the moment and must try harder! Lovely butterfly photos. x

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    1. Thank you Simone. What a shame you didn't get any plums this year. I hope next year will be better, I always love jam made with fruits like plums, apricots, damsons and greengages, they seem to lend themseves to it. It was great to see the butterflies:)

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  9. Thanks for the book recommendations - I've made a list. I've already read Troubled Blood and mostly I remember how long it was.
    Amalia
    xo

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    1. I'm still reading Troubled Blood and my Kindle tells me I'm on 70% now. Still a way to go but I am enjoying it:)

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  10. I've started reading Kate Ellis books recently and i've got my Dad hooked too! Lovely to see the photos of the butterflies and great you've had so many!

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    1. I love Kate Ellis books especially her Wesley Peterson ones. Like those by Elly Griffiths its the mixture of past and present I enjoy. It was good to see some butterflies in the garden at last:)

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