Last of the summer vine

We have had a pretty good crop of tomatoes from our plant this summer, but they are all just about finished now so it's goodbye to taste and back to the supermarket for a while.



This is one of the byproducts of feeding the birds. It seems that the sparrows here are not too keen on sunflower seeds and so there have been many of them popping up.




On an unrelated topic, I was listening to the radio and heard this apparent cure for arthrytis.
Empty a packet of Californian sultanas into a jar and add a bottle of gin. Leave to soak for 10 days and then eat at a rate of 10 per day. This is a guaranteed cure which I can't wait to try. I am not actually convinced about it, but I shall enjoy trialling it!

Knightshayes Court

We went away for a few days last week and made the journey down to North Devon. A break from retirement seemed to be called for, well, everyone needs the occasional rest.
Anyway we timed the journey down so that we would have time to visit Knightshayes Court which is just off the M5 motorway near to Tiverton. This is another National Trust property formerly home to the Heathcoat Amory family since it was built around 1869 from the proceeds of the fortune made by the family lace making business established in the town in 1816.
The original architect, William Burgess, was sacked for taking too long and costing too much, and replaced by J D Crace who finally completed the task in 1879. The house is very grand and very gothic but not overpoweringly so, with plenty of interest to see. It was well worth the short detour required for the visit.


I thought that one of the most attractive buildings was actually the stable block which now serves as the restaurant for visitors to the site. As usual, the food served was of a very high standard with most of the vegetables coming from the Kitchen Garden.


The Walled Kitchen Garden has recently been restored and is a credit to the gardening team working there. The site is ideal being on a hill slope getting full sun most of the day and being protected by the walls on 4 sides.

Within the garden there are many non food plants grown which were a magnet to the insects thriving there.


Around the house are many gothic touches with some extremely fine gargoyles to be seen.



More information can be found at National Trust | Knightshayes Court
I also have a gallery of further pictures at smugmug - Brodick : Knightshayes Court
After leaving Knightshayes Court we continued upto a cottage a few miles from Barnstaple which we used as our base. Once I have sorted out my photographs I will continue with my postings here.

I said the other day that I seemed to having an obsession with cygnets, well maybe they are having an obsession with me. We took a trip to a local beauty spot at Sence Valley and sure enough, there they were. Mum and Dad proudly escorting their 5 offspring onto the lake. These were much more the size you might expect them to be at this time of the year, unlike the ones we saw at Attington Park the other week.


It was a pretty dull day but there were plenty of birds on the lake even if most of them were by bird watching standards fairly ordinary. Nevertheless, this mallard was pretty handsome.


A whole collection of them lined up for me.



Even though it was a dull day, the bright reflections off the water gave my camera some problems with auto focusing particularly with the darker birds. This was the best of several I took of the coots. I must try to get to grips with using the manual focus for some of these shots.


A somewhat more majestic creature in the shape of a heron paraded on the little island platform out on the lake. This was a fair distance from the shore and just about at the end of the useful range of the lens.

Upton House

A most enjoyable day was spent at Upton House, some little way south of Stratford upon Avon. This is one of those places which immediately grabs you with its architectural splendour set off by the beautiful mellow Cotswold stone with which it is built. The interior of the house is also a delight, particularly on the day of our visit as there was a pianist playing appropriately classical music in the long gallery.
The house, now owned by the National Trust, was built in the late 17th century, and remodelled in the late 1920's by Walter Samuel who was Chairman of the Shell oil empire and son of the founder.
Along with the masterpieces of the likes of Stubbs, Hogarth and Canaletto there is a most interesting display of Shell posters some of which I remember seeing, and which now are classics in their own right. I was reminded to hunt out my copy of The Shell Country Book which also has some wonderful illustrations of the same type, some of which I think were probably also used in their posters. What a shame that advertising today often has so little artistic merit.


I seem to be becoming obsessed by cygnets just lately. The gardens at Upton are steeply terraced down to the lake where needless to say the were no less than seven of them gliding serenely in line across the water. You will have to take my word about the numbers as 2 were out of shot. There was no sign of the adults so I cannot say if they were all from the same family. Seems to be an awful lot if they were.


I am annoyed that I missed off the head of this bird's reflection which would have made a great shot


I am beginning to realise just how fortunate we are to have so many of these places to visit in this country. Since retiring fully I have had the luxury of the time to go and visit some of them, and hopefully I shall have the chance to get to see many more. The only real problem with this is that after a while it becomes hard to separate them all out in your mind. It's just as well digital photography came along to help out in this matter.


On a hot day the walk back up the stairs to the lawns at the top requires quite some effort. The terraces are home to both great herbaceous flower borders, and also some fine vegetables in the kitchen garden.






More photos from the visit are in my smugmug gallery
And more information can be found at National Trust | Upton House

Attingham Park

Last weekend was a holiday weekend, the weather was fine, and so we decided to brave the crowds a pay a visit to Attingham Park in Shropshire.
This is another fine property looked after by the National Trust, and although I don't think it is a very beautiful building on the outside, the interior is very splendid. Built in 1785 for the 1st Lord Berwick, it has been the setting for scandals and financial ruin.



The River Tern meanders through the estate, separating the house from the Deer Park. The grounds provide several enjoyable walks, this one following the river along the Mile Walk designed by Thomas Leggat in 1770.


This pair of cygnets are quite a late brood, but looked very serene as they dozed in the sunshine.


Close to the Bothy (which housed the unmarried gardeners) can be seen some very fine wood sculptures.


A round trip brings you back to the river and a very attractive bridge.


For once we had chosen a place to visit on a busy holiday weekend that was really pleasant to be, and where the crowds were not unbearable, and the traffic almost pleasant to drive in.

For more photos go to Smugmug - Attingham Park and for information National Trust | Attingham Park