Monday 10 August 2015

Herb Bouquet



I got a wonderful surprise today of this gorgeous scented herb bouquet that my auntie created using lavender, sage, rosemary and thyme from her garden. The smell would knock you to heaven and back. It is a perfect example of how interesting foliage and beautiful smell leaves no necessity for masses of colour. Another bonus is that the herbs retain their smell, form and culinary use as they dry out. I didn't have a vase so I upcycled a plastic water bottle using some ribbon and I think it looks fitting.


Best enjoyed up close.



Saturday 8 August 2015

My Garden: 8th August 2015

I am currently on two week's holidays from work so I am trying to do a few jobs in the garden as well as just enjoying being out there doing nothing. Although we've had some nice days, this July has been quite wet and cold at times. It shows in the tomato plants which are all fruiting but not a speck of ripening. From a distance I thought one tomato was starting to blush red but on closer inspection it turned out to be a bit of scab. Sigh.  





My jalapeno plant is flowering its delicate white blooms and you can see a tiny pepper just beginning to form. Last year I got a few small peppers so hopefully I'll do better this year:




My courgette plant was fruiting nicely then seemed to be having some trouble. The flowers were falling off while still tiny, resulting in no fruits, and some leaves were dying off. I cut off the brown leaves and gave it some tomato feed and it seems to have come back to life. I wonder if the excessive wet weather is to blame. The plant needs a lot of water but I think the leaves might prefer to stay dry:




I am growing Indigo Rose tomatoes for the first time this year. The rich black colour deceives you into thinking that the tomato is ripe but it will have to change to a reddish/purple colour before it is ready to eat:




My lavender is flowering but I only get specks of purple with this little white feathery cap on top. I don't know if it is simply because of the variety or if something is lacking. It smells gorgeous but I'd love to get full purple blooms. Please leave a comment if you have any advice for me.

*Edit* I found the original pot that the lavender came in (now housing an Aloe Vera on my kitchen window) and can see that the variety is 'White Spirit' so it is supposed to look like that. I've added in two little plants that I was given by my aunt and they are the standard purple variety, so I should have a nice mix in time.




I planted beetroot in a container near the back door to use for salad leaves and they are doing nicely with a few bonus slug holes. I used soil from the garden, which isn't recommended for container planting, so I'm glad they are pulling along:




I should really get my purple sprouting broccoli in the ground. I have a few plants but this is the healthiest:




Brussels sprouts need to be moved on also:




I have some borlotti beans in a window box. They are planted later than most bean varieties so hopefully I'll get some lovely pink and white beans later in the year. I love the colour of the leaves:




And lastly, I have moved lupins that I grew from seed into individual pots. I won't get flowers until next year but the foliage is decorative enough for me at the moment:




That's it for today. Happy gardening.

Tuesday 4 August 2015

Happy World Breastfeeding Week

Our first brelfie!



I've always had great experiences nursing in public and conversing about it, even now that my son is almost two years old, but it is still glaringly obvious how low the numbers of Irish breast fed babies are, particularly beyond the first few weeks of age. Instead of placing the blame on the mother, it is important to acknowledge where the problem begins, and that is in the lack of education and awareness about the realities of breastfeeding. 

When I was pregnant, a question I was often asked was if I was going to breastfeed. When I said yes, almost everybody told me a negative story, whether it was about their own experience or of someone they knew. That breastfeeding was extremely painful was the most common complaint but the other common denominator was that none of the mothers were prepared before the birth, but had "hoped" to breastfeed. Of course, when your baby is unsettled and seems to be at the breast constantly, if you don't know that this is normal infant behaviour, who could blame a mother for availing of the free bottles of formula that are handed around without question in the maternity ward? After all, she has probably been misinformed that she does not have enough milk.

I think we can all agree that feeding the baby is probably top priority when it comes to the list of jobs that comes with caring for a newborn. I suggest that on your first maternity visit to the doctors, a straightforward fact sheet about breastfeeding should be given to every mother-to-be. This fact sheet should highlight the mechanics of breastfeeding (supply and demand, correct positioning and latching), realities of breastfeeding (cluster feeding, frequent feeds, length of feeds) and the benefits of breastfeeding (reduced infection/allergies/obesity/SIDS in infants, reduced breast and overian cancer/post natal depression in mothers and it also helps your uterus return to normal size more quickly). 

Currently most references made to breastfeeding in the media are either to preface a baby formula advert or some hysterical story about a mother who nurses an older child. It's time to start treating breastfeeding as a basic, essential part of a child's life rather than as a lifestyle choice.