I say ‘the storm’, like there’s been just the
one. But we’ve had storms almost every day for weeks and weeks. It’s normal for
this time of year in the mountains – we have beautiful hot, sunny days followed
by stormy evenings – and we never usually mind. One storm at the weekend was so
impressive we ended up turning off the film we were watching and just watching
the lightning for half an hour. (All the
tiny power cuts were getting annoying anyway. In our area, it only takes one
gust of wind or clap of thunder and the power starts cutting out. I wonder if
it’s like that everywhere in Bulgaria?)
But there’s always one storm in the season
that’s a bit of a bastard, bringing water into the house and flattening the
garden like a Bullingdon bad boy. That storm was yesterday.
So here are some pictures of how the garden
was coming along throughout May and June – followed by some not-so-nice ‘after’
shots. Like a muddy reverse makeover.
Before
 |
Honeysuckle and roses in bloom at the same time. This arch is heavenly to walk through
in May ... so long as you don't mind a few (dozen) bees. |
 |
| Edging closer to my dream of a mad old lady cottage garden. |
 |
| I want to be like Mariah Carey, demanding fresh cut flowers and a dozen kittens in every room. |
 |
| Lots of lovely latahs (and alliteration). |
 |
Tiny courgette from earlier in the week. To be fair, I only sowed the seeds
at the end of April, so I think they've come on really well. |
 |
Look, reader, I have managed to cultivate some lettuce. The bastard snail army had already
eaten my first batch but I'm too smart for them. These jagged bottles seem to be keeping them at bay. |
And after
 |
| Look at my fucking rhubarb!! |
 |
| Winner of World's Saddest Courgettes 2018. They should recover, though, they normally do. |
 |
| Beetroot? |
 |
My poor kale. Already almost destroyed by the bastard snail army, then drowned in my
clever anti-snail device. Luckily, I have some more kale seedlings in the polytunnel. |
 |
The wonky polytunnel held up surprisingly well, even against the huge hailstones.
We just had to get rid of this alarming bulge of water... |
 |
Water running down the walls from the window on the floor above.
What a wonderfully airtight house we have! |
Here’s hoping the stormy season is nearing its
end for this year…
