Oops!

Last weekend our elder daughter was home for a few days and we went for a swim and then a hot drink at the beach café. We were surprised when we got down to the sand and saw a beached sailing boat. What was the story behind that? I like swimming here because the sea is shallow for quite a while and therefore very safe, I can have a good swim without getting out of my depth. Was it the shallow draught that scuppered this boat? In the week a friend came to stay, happily another swimmer and we had a lovely dip. The beached boat was still in place looking more forlorn than ever.

The sea is still warm but the weather now is very autumnal. I'm clearing ground at the allotment ready to put in some autumn planting onions and garlic. It has been a very poor year for homegrown food. Small parsnips and leeks have survived the drought but whether they will play catch-up now that we have rain I shall have to wait and see. The tomato crop has been the most successful and is still going strong.

The gazebo is now rather chilly but the conservatory is a nice place to be at this time of year. A solitary rose has bloomed. Maricel Neil, a china tea that struggled in the extreme heat but has given me this one flower to say that it's okay. The plumbago has flowered throughout the summer and I've taken a number of cuttings.

This delightful, dainty poppy is flowering in the garden. I love everything about it and hope to collect enough seed to have more flowers next year.

We gardeners are (generally) an optimistic lot!