Chudfest Open Garden weekend

The highlights of the 4 gardens we visited .... not quite RHS Open Garden Scheme standards & the cream of the crop was Liz's mixed border consisting mainly of annuals .. I'm very envious of her gorgeous mallow plants, that colour is just what I need in my border. She's going to save me seed. The Inula was in a garden that was rather neglected, I think more emphasis was on the wood baked pizzas that they hoped to sell for their charity. The Acacia pravissima, I used to stock in the garden centre where I worked. I love the leaf shape. The lupin, love the colour but know they are loved by slugs & snails so never consider growing them. So pleased Mum & I did our little tour yesterday as the weather has been awful today. (Back blip).
I walked Indie in the morning, lots of beautiful wild flowers around, not so many insects though. Back to Mum's for a coffee, then we headed up to Chudleigh. We visited 3 gardens in the car, too far for Mum to walk, back to base for lunch. Managed to fit in 4 horse races on tv. Mum had one 1st, hubby 1, & me 2. Then we walked to Liz's cottage just up around the corner. She's a real nutcase .. hilarious! She has the fruit garden in front of my plot up on the allotment site. She makes jam to sell in her family's greengrocers in the town.
I dropped Mum home, then hubby at a mates house in the village to watch the rugby match Exeter Chiefs v Saracens. I went exploring around the perimeter of the clay pit works looking for wildlife. Signs of deer & rabbit, I spotted & snapped some pretty damselflies, plus a few plants that grow well up there. Just heading back to the gate when I startled a deer. I just caught sight of it's tail as it bobbed off through the undergrowth.
Back to Chudleigh, nipped to the shop, then the allotment to pick the first veggies of the 2021season. Lettuce, chipples, & baby beets (thinnings). Just leaving the plot when I met Misha, my new allotment neighbour attempting to align the lock combination. We had a quick chat then I headed back to prepare dinner. Picked hubby up just after 8pm ... Too late to eat steak so we just had a few oven chips & salad. It's very satisfying eating homegrown veggies.