Bloomin' Arty...

Papaver Orientalis

Eglantine, (Dog Rose).

Arum.

Peony.

Sureau, (Elder ).

Legume in Arty...

Keeping cool.

In iz garden stronghold...

There are times when little may be bigger than large. Ali sees things Iz way,I can find no arguement in that. Come for a look see what they are up to...

Mulching iz wot.  The spuds are comfortably tucked up. Three rows in the top of the ridge. Well rotted compost and manure . A layer of chopped comfrey as an alternative to much laborious earthing up. As the green tops emerge, a blanket of coarse straw. I wont cover their heads again. Dry grass clippings will be the final blanket, to obliterate the light between potato plants. Potatos can cope with slightly acidic environment, we don't"sweeten" the ground  with lime as it makes scabby skins.  Artichoke leaves shade the end of the ridge, protecting the earth from the sun and detering weeds. A pretty sight too, happen.

Strawberry bed at the base of the potato ridge. The kale is going to seed  to be resown elsewhere . The clump of foxgloves will be enjoyed until they finish flowering. The strawberries were fed in the autumn,they are growing fast, many flower buds. The ground needs scarify, and a new straw mulch.

Hard to see details in the background, Beech hedge, fruit bushes, groseille(whitecurrants) and cassis (blackcurrants). There's a peony I am getting proud of , I will zoom in on that subject another time, it'll be worth a closer look.

Beans sown at the base of the east side of the potato ridge will protect the soil from the heat. Herself seems happy with it. She's bigger than she looks.

The winter salad is flowering. It's been up rooted and turned on its head. The roots exposed to the sun will dry fast the plants act as shade for the ridge they cover. By next winter the seeds will have renewed their dominance of the ground. Anne-Sophie prepares the ground for leeks.

Carrots and beetroot are showing well through the chopped straw. In the background my nursery bed for boxwood cuttings. The Swiss chard looks good enough to eat, so we will.

The neighbour's plum far left, red hazel, irisses, privet, lavender and nectarine

 Newly raked beds ready for planting and sowing. It's a busy time. The green track provides, comfort underfoot, a permanent supply of mulching material, conserves water, slows down the evaporation. The bed is hoe manageable from all sides minimising the risk of compressing the earth. Walk on the grass by all means. We live in the permanent learning curve. The view from under the Mirabelle plum tree.

The Auberpine, (hawthorn) in the hedge is flourishing.

It's shaping up nicely...

Bold Iris,

Shy Rose.

Will Iznibz ever dance again...? Inhibition versus exhibition.

Hard to guess from here. if anyone took the time to wonder, who or what iz Iznibz?

  

 Anne-So has kindly dignified the little body with new trousers.  He lost a hand through overwork. That's been fixed.  I will try and make a video clip of iz performance. If you want to meet him in person, you'd need the lucky chance to be in the same street at the same time.

Truth be known, I have missed the momentary "good times" that distract from the hazards and discomforts  of streetside exposition.

 I.WAZIR      

Dangerous bodhran practice session, volume two...

The bum with a drum... Dangerous bodhran practice session.

 It's hard for me to imagine now how I could have played at this hectic pace for several hours a day on the streets of Cork City. My timing and stamina took a shock from being attacked in U.K. as a result of bad policing. Chemical cosh without clinical or medical need, without any mitigating provocation, in case I got angry over my unlawful detention. Had I pushed myself any further in the practice session, my body would flip into what I unfondly call "speed wobble". Involuntary shaking. It took a lot of dedicated practice to record at least a small taste of this drum style. I miss the action. The damage to my neurology is permanent. I will keep up the practice, in the belief that one may "reroute" one's neural system to accomodate the music. It is hard to stay calm when the drumming is getting wild.  I live in hope.  I'm not dead yet. Having a home now is an obvious help.  I  will keep trying to improve my physical stamina..  It's been sixteen years since the attack. Try as I might seems every route towards representation in law has been obstructed. My modest living was ruined by the assault. Sixteen years unable to work properly leaves me with eighty pounds a week pension,through my inability to  bring my income to the level of basic state pension by providing voluntary contributions to my National Insurance. It is hard to meet with other musicians when the only place I can play my drum "comfortably" is in the safety of my home. I have been subjected, "targeted",  six times in the U.K. The nearest I have got to an explanation as to why is a discharge note stating,  "Identifiable risk factor: Excentric".
Enjoy the "drumsong", that's what I call what I do. If you should happen to dare to jam with an "excentric" stranger after hearing some of his ragged practice samples , make contact somehow. I don't bite. This was written in anticipation of the YouTube posting.There's plenty more . I'll save it for later. Nuff for now.   I. WAZIR

We are being poisoned....

A change of tenancy of the fields surrounding our little village  has brought us no closer to a healthy environment. Grant aided asset strippers spraying fungicide in high wind. We have no buffer zone to shelter  the residences from toxic overspray. Coincidence or not, the previous tenant was a member of the council. The current tenant farmer is also a member of the local council. The marie appears to deliberately ignore it's duty of care. The farmers callous action is illegal, unlawful.
Using the existing prescribed protocols for dealing civilly with the issue have proven ineffective.
Anne-Sophie has made a video as an evidential record.  I hope we can transfer it to our computer, we struggle with outdated equipment, an old video camera, we need to bring the matter to public attention. The farmer sprays  fungicide three times a year, not the only toxic product we are forced to endure.

Not a good day to spray.

The photo of my scarf blowing in the breeze, was taken some years ago when the previous tenant farmer engulfed us in areosol overspray. Then as now the wind conditions , combined with no protective barrier hedges, given the farmers' lack of consideration, leaves our small village (six residences in all), vulnerable. The avoidable risk factor should not be ignored. The annual malpractice has a cumulative effect.  Past complaints lodged civilly with the marie and in person to the farmer concerned  thus far have achieved no practical result. We are looking at the prospect of denouncing the culprit publicly and engaging the local police to take action. It ought to be treated as a criminal matter. If the firm is grant aided we will do everything in our limited power to have the funding clawed back with the hope that further penalty would be forthcoming.It seems that folk around here have given up on complaining when their neighbours or colleages do bad stuff, afraid, perhaps of reproach, or worse, devious "punishment". There are too few that would dare to "make a fuss".  The local bourg appears to shut it's eyes to the abuse of the surrounding hinterland, comfortable in their deliberate ignorance I don't doubt. I guess it is down to us to make the necessary fuss. Our garden home is at the front line. The farmer's action in avoidance of his mandatory duty is an assault on our persons.We don't consider the criminal neglect by Agri-business as accidental "friendly fire", thus rendering an isolated incident forgivable. Both marie, the mayor in person , and the farming company, have been informed on several occasions.  What to do?

Tomorrow we are bringing our complaint to the municipal police. They have a duty to act.

Further attention to remedial details need to be brought to the local public notice. Hedges need to be reinstated. Legal distance of safety margins, buffer zones need to be increased by voluntary action. A service is available that would plant hedges free of charge, no excuse for the farmers to say it is cost prohibitive.  They are too engrossed in pursuit of profit to exercise due care for the Patrimony, the environment, the future viability of the soil,the  water courses ,wild life, our food chain, the livestock, pets, not least in danger are the families forced to breath the polluted atmosphere.

Make what you will of the above four images. Something the "spy in the sky" is prone to miss.The same farmers that overspray us are responsible for  and should be held  to account for the evident avoidable degradation. Bad practice appears to be the popular habit of convenience. 

We have Right with us. Let's see what good that may do. I will keep you posted.  I.WAZIR

Just jamming...

"Blessed merry be, Part 1." 

My thanks go to Toby and his friend Tom. Spontaneous happening, the good old craic. Rough mix with poor equipment. Like the good bits, ignore the rest.The recording is from 2007,pictures from the Izdom of Iz. There is a Part 2, coming soon.   I. WAZIR