Digging complete

Digging complete

After about 4 days' digging (mainly in the rain) the excavations are complete.  The coarse gravel has been put in the bottom and leveled out.

View from Ringstraße along centre of house

View from corner of Blüten Weg and Ringstraße

 The Bauschild (building notice?) is hanging in a plastic sleeve on the gate, rather than on a 3 x 2 metre plaque as originally proposed.

 In order to try and prevent any big flooding problems, the engineers have installed a pump in the bottom of the hole which is working 24 x 7, making a sort of slurpy noo-noo noise.  It seems to be sucking mainly air.

Checking the pump

Start of earthworks for new house

View from Ringstrasse looking along the line of th Riedsbach

First pile of soil shifted to the side

First day of work fo rthe digger drivers ... last part of villa on the left

Somethings been happening under the pumpkin patch

A happy surprise from the allotment yesterday

After much moaning about their voracity, I have now dug up the last of the pumpkins.  They have yielded a huge crop and even a giant 50 kg prize winner at the EHS show (Helernus prize for the biggest specimen ... always highly sought after).  Nevertheless, they went bonkers over the summer holiday, swamping and obliterating my leek seedlings.

At least that was what I thought.  Yesterday, I found a row of strong looking leeks plants lurking under the pumpkin leaves.

They need a bit of thinning out and a bit of weeding and general TLC, but it was a nice thing to find.

Floor covering selections

We have chosen he floor covering for the new house.

On the ground floor there will be a natural lava/basalt floor in the entry area and an oak floor thoughout the rest (not in the bathroom, which will be tiled).

Left to right: lava/basalt from EG, oak from EG and carpet from OG

Oak floor from EG - no flash

Oak floor from EG - with flash

On the first floor there will be a short arched pile wool carpet (not in the bathrooms, of course).  After a bit of dithering we have gone for a warmish pale blue, but it was a close run thinh with the wasabi green.

Carpet from OG - no flash

Carpet from OG - with flash

 There will be underfloor heating throughout, just in case you wondered.

Ideas from the neighbours

Whilst visiiting nearby Schloss Schönbusch the other day, I picked up a couple of ideas for the layout of our new garden.

I think I need another word or two with the architect to see if we can squeeze something similar in by the terrace near the brook.

EHS Summer Show 2012 - Results

The EHS Late Summer Show was on 23rd - the weather held and the competition entries were extremely good.

The prizes were awarded as follows:

• Best root vegetable - Richard S
• Best other vegetable - Phil W
• Best fruit - Tom S
• Most attractive bunch of cut flowers - Richard S (although could easily have gone to the dahlias, if you ask me)
• Best junior - Myla H
• Best home made produce - Jochen G
• EHS special prize (red devil chilis from supplied seeds) - Simon E
• Helernus award for the biggest specimen - Simon E (giant pumpkin)
• Best in show - Stephen T (cake, but it was a close run thing)
  

Highlights of the show were the home made fruity brews and the knock-out home made chocolate truffles.  The judge was kind enough to also bring seeds for participants to take away in order to grow a butterfly atrracting bed of flowers for next year.

Our thanks to the organising committee (ha ha ha) and let's hope we have a good time again next year.

Fecundity and obliteration

After two weeks of rain swept south west England, it was not too bad to get back to a rainy Germany.  Whilst there we had a chance to look around the (rainy) gardens at Greenway (NT) in Devon, where I really like to the peach frame in the grrenhouse.

Peach frame at Greenway

But somehow the time away had seen just the mixture of rain and sun required to make my few little pumpkin plants go completely beserk.

Pumpkin invasion

Unfortunately, the pumpkin plants grew not only all across the vegetable plot, but also across the lawn, up the (3m high) hedge and into the neighbour's runner beans.  My baby leeks were crushed.  Some of the pea row got pulled down.  And my own runer bea plants got assimilated with the pumpkins into the hedge.  Aargh.  But the good thing is the pumpkins are great (Turk's Turban) and there are plenty of them (around 30 so far.  Anyone know any easy recipe for pumpkin wine?