The Delargo Gardens - November

 Here we are again me dears with a very chilly visit to the Delargo Towers Gardens. November is the most miserable damp and scruffy month in the garden but at leat we had the I N F O M A N I A C Garden Photos Event. (click to view) to cheer, entertain and edify us.

At the begining of the month we also had next doors American Black Walnut tree turn into its golden Autumn colour.

Salvia Uliginosa

Salvia 'Amistad'

Salvia 'Embers Wish'

Salvia 'Love and Wishes'

Salvia x guaranitica “Rockin' Fuchsia”

 

 

Salvia greggi “Mirage Cherry Red”

I am amazed that Black-Eyed Susan - Thunbergia Alata is still flowering but not for much longer methinks

This sweet little Campanula refuses to stop too.

And

'Non Stop Begonias' are just that - non stop!

There tiz then, me dears. Now, Sadly due to technical issues the planned Balloon trip has had to be cancelled so instead let's jump into the Land Rover for a tour of the rest of our vast grounds. Hope yo've got your thermals on.

I hope you enjoyed the tour and your hot toddy in the hospitality suite afterwards. Now that we are back in the main garden, I thought you might like an update on the Taro.

and the lovely metallic colour on the dead flowers of Hydrangea macrophylla Black Stem Blue

We are over the moon that we have not lost our Cordyline.

There is just time before we go for a sneak preview of the New Year Fuchsia Fest - Fuchsia 'Sheila Crooks', new to us last Spring she has been trained as a full standard.

Donny and I hope to see you back in the garden next month

But till then It's Ttfn from Donny

and it's Ttfn from me

Toodle-loo and Pip Pip

Madam Arcati Cooks the Books #2; Elizabeth David

 Madam Arcati Cooks the Books #2

Here we are again back in the Kitchen with Book number 92 - 

French Country Cooking by Elizabeth David first published in 1951 my edition 1987

There are chefs who write books and there are cookery writers and then there is Elizabeth David. The Diva of them all.

 Elizabeth David CBE (born Elizabeth Gwynne, 26 December 1913 – 22 May 1992

She was born to an upper-class family but she rebelled against social norms of the day. In the 1930s she studied art in Paris, became an actress, and ran off with a married man with whom she sailed in a small boat to Italy, where their boat was confiscated.
They reached Greece, where they were nearly trapped by the German invasion in 1941, but escaped to Egypt, where they parted.
She then worked for the British government, running a library in Cairo. While there she married, but soon separated and divorced.
In 1946 Elizabeth David returned to England, where food rationing remained in force. An interesting life by any standards and she had not even started her amazing career by then. 

In 2006 the BBC did a biopic - 'Elizabeth David: A Life in Recipes' which was fab and crying out to be made as a lavish Merchant Ivory type Production. With no disrespect she would make Julia Child look like a 'Hausfrau' (and I love Julia Child).

Her reputation rests on her articles and her books, her influence on cookery extended to professional as well as domestic cooks, and chefs and restaurateurs of later generations such as Terence Conran, Prue Leith, Jamie Oliver, Tom Parker Bowles and Rick Stein have acknowledged her importance to them. In the US, cooks and writers including Julia Child, Richard Olney and Alice Waters have written of her influence. 

in writing 'French Country Cooking' she acknowledged her debt to French writers, Edmond Richardin, Austin De Croze, Marthe Daudet known as Pampille, and J. B. Reboul..

Estouffade de boeuf à la Provençale

 And now my attempt to cook it

This is my slow cooker with a liner and not a bin bag and yes that does like someone's hand !

I tried but Elizabeth David wins ! it was nice but not special.

Elizabeth David was an elitist and took no prisoners and her books will not hold your hand and talk you through a recipe. She expected you to know how to cook! but her writing changed the we cook and how we think about food, in this country and around the world!

CBE ! she should have been made Dame of the British Empire but then she did stand on a few feet and did not curry favour from any one.

The Holy Tryptic of the Primary Shrine in my kitchen (she is on the right can you name the others)

Ttfn

The Delargo Gardens - October

 Here we are me dears with the Delargo Towers Gardens, October tour and we are more or less on time for a change. Summer is well and truly over but we still have plenty of colour in the garden so get your wellies on and we will head off.

Clematis 'Comtesse de Bouchaud' is not happy but is flowering. We will re-pot her and hope she does better next year

The Salvias are at their best this month and should carry on till the first frosts

Salvia 'Amante'

Salvia 'Embers Wish'

Salvia Uliginosa

Salvia 'Amistad'.

Salvia x guaranitica “Rockin' Fuchsia”

All of the Begonias are still flowering their little hearts out.

While the Hydrangea macrophylla Black Stem Blue flowers have faded but have turned a rather lovely metallic colour which I like a lot.

The indispensable Geranium 'Rozanne' is still a joy. It does not get enough sun to be at its best but has flowered all season.

I am so pleased with the Phlox. We have three varieties that each flower in succession This month will be the last blast this year methinks.

Cobaea scandens has given a few flowers in recent months but is only now thinking about flowering properly so that will be a race against the first frosts.

Unlike the Black-Eyed Susan Thunbergia Alata

and a self sown seedling from last year. Both have flowered all Summer and refuse to stop.

There we are then, me dears. Now it's time to jump into the Land Rover for an extended tour of the rest of the vast grounds of the estate. Hope you have your hip flasks fully charged, It's might be a bumpy ride.

I hope you enjoyed the tour and hope the mud and terrain didn't make it too bumpy. Now we are back in the main garden I thought you might like to see how the Taro is getting on.

It's flowered !

We don't often mention the wildlife in the garden which is a shame because there is a lot. One of our great pleasures is watching our girls (the spiders) hatch and grow. They are big girls now!

just time for our sneak preview of the New Year Fuchsia Fest - This is Lady Isobel Barnett. She was the first named variety fuchsia I ever grew and this fuchsia is where my love/obsession with fuchsias came from.

Well there Tiz me darlins.

Donny and I hope to see you back in the garden next month

But till then It's Ttfn from Donny

and it's Ttfn from me

Toodle-loo and Pip Pip