A glorious day

Geraniums on the wall above the Parterre at Ednovean Farm



A View across the courtyard garden



It was a glorious day here yesterday at Ednovean Farm and at a certain point in the afternoon i made my way up the far side of the courtyard and was struck by the tranquil calm of the soothing shades of green of the foliage, with the tinkling fountain playing gently in the centre of the courtyard. somehow the sun had never seemed so bright or the afternoon more vibrant and i stopped to take a picture of the parterre from the shade of the fig trees. The contrast of the geraniums lined up along the wall was greater today a vivid slash of colour in the discreet scene.

And as all days should end the sun set beyond the hills of west Cornwall was inspiring. For us it was time to put the horses to bed and if you remember Archie, the chestnut colt foal being born last month, here he is meeting his proud father Danilon on his way to bed.



The sunset over Mounts Bay from the garden with St Micheal's mount framed by the palm trees





The high moors behind the Italian Garden




Danilon the Spanish stallion watching his son Archie go to bed

Olley's summer confession

The pugilistic pussy



sitting in his favourite vantage point looking over the garden


perfect for a cat - sun and shade in equal measures and a good view of the front door for snack attacks

poor homeless Wilbur asleep in the herb garden, a thorn in olley's side

Olley has a confession to make .............he's been fighting.

I thought the old chap had mellowed with the years and for a cat that bore the instructions "Not to be re homed with another cat" on his cage many years ago at the RSPCA, , he has been very tolerant of Wilbur the visiting stray, probably because of advancing years, overweight and the size of Wilbur.

Well Wilbur was not "at home" today and Olley is bearing the feline equivalent of a black eye and a very smug expression! Perhaps Wilbur has just gone courting.

Waiting for the storm

From the Blue room Bedroom

Glancing up from bed making in the Blue room the other morning I notice the storm gathering across Mounts Bay darkly dramatic the rain had already started to fall on Penzance before sweeping towards us only to clear again leaving our world glistening with the abandoned raindrops.

The next day dawn in perfect contrast of crystal clarity the shades of blue, redolent of the Mediterranean but I was too busy to wield the camera sorry. ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZzzz

A Summer evening

An evening view across the courtyard in front of the house

The unpredictable days of summer drift on this year - some days teasingly soft with a misty veil and the next of vibrant clarity. I value each of the days for the joy of them and the promise of the unknown tomorrow but some days i can't resist casting a little magic with pools of candle light to stretch the evening. To sit in the courtyard as the granite building give back their warmth to the night and listen to the crickets sing with Olley Cat who invariably will have sidled up to claim a warm lap to sit and purr on and watch the courtyard recede until all that is left is the flickering pools of light -and so at last it is time for bed and Olley slinks off with exaggerated importance to patrol the garden of the night.

The granite walls slowly give back their heat into the courtyard

The Beach

As the sun sank below the hills the other evening we followed it into Perranuthnoe to watch the last few moments of the day, below a sultry sky.

The sea was washing tightly onto the slipway and two fishermen had already set up their rods for the the incoming Sea Bass and so we perched on the sea defense to listen to the steady rhythm of the sea and watch some hardy sea bathers before eventually drifting home again to light the candles in the courtyard and stretch the magic of that particular day a little further.








The Boulders brought in on lorries to help to preserve the crumbling cliff a few years ago.




A silken evening as Perranuthnoe Beach is hidden by the tide



The crumbling clay cliffs - home to Sand Martins - with Cudden Point beyond

Fishing rods waiting for the Tide to bring the bounty of fish

The changing light of dusk

and so to bed Good Night

An August visit

An urn at Ednovean Farm outside of the Italian Garden

The newly mown spiral in the grass

Perranuthnoe Church with the sea behind it from the garden

our familiar lawn

how did that rabbit get there again?

A wild corner planted with Cannas and Grasses

Daisies by the lower gate

This week Ednovean Farm had a visit from the Manaccon Gardening Club booked in aid of the ngs, which led to frantic activity in the garden to prepare for them - in fact I felt distinctly nervous about the visit from so many knowledgeable gardeners in one afternoon. They were all quite charming of course when they arrived but to borrow (and slightly change a phrase) "Time spent in preparation is seldom waisted"

Over the course of the week Charles and his lawn mower churned relentlessly up and down, backwards and forwards until the lawn was deemed well and truly mown. There was sufficient growth of grass this time to re cut the spiral around Annie Henry's statue of an Angel , meanwhile I strimmed and weeded as though my life depended on it. The result wasn't perfect to my eye but pleasingly tidy and happily they all enjoyed their visit before visiting the Church room for the weekly home teas.

The Village teas are always worth a visit if you are in the area - every Thursday afternoon through the summer, with delicious home made cakes from the kitchens of the village made by cooks with a lifetime of experience. But i collapsed in one of the jaunty wicker chairs i had set out, Raffles like around the lawn, and looked at the view.

A mellow morning

The abandoned hen house




The beautiful apples starting to form



The cobwebs lay like flotsam on the dewy grass


Each morning our first task of the day is to turn out the mares and foals from the stables and these days the air is mellow and sweet in that certain way that thrills the senses, with the nights cobwebs caught still on the grass spangled with dew in the first rays of the sun.

My hen house lays guiltily abandoned abandoned in the little orchard of vintage varieties of West Country apples along the route, a project to revisit when time permits but now as the season draws on, the apples at least have started to form on the little fruit trees and I always steal an admiring glance at the morning shadows as we lead the mares and foals on the way to start their day in the fields and we return to the house to cook breakfast for our guests.