This year has been more of a struggle than I thought.  Just when things were getting going, my father in law was diagnosed with inoperable cancer.  He lived close by and looking after him became a priority.  He passed away in early September and I've been feeling a bit lost.

The sunshine this week has got me motivated and I'm catching up on the weeding.  I missed harvesting some of the crops, which was a shame.  The last few months have been a steep learning curve for me.  Even in my eden depression can come over me, little things that go wrong feel like failure.

I'm planning for next year, one major issue has been watering, I wanted to use rainwater, however, the dry spring meant my supplies ran out and I had to resort to the hosepipe.  I got some soaker hoses as these direct the water more efficiently.  The lack of water early in the year has meant some of the plants have not produced as much as I hoped.  The raspberries I planted last year are doing well and producing a few punnets.  The gooseberry, strawberries and blackcurrants I planted have established well this summer.  I just need to keep the birds off.

The chick Storm and Nyx are getting bigger, though they look like they will be bantam size like their dad.