Locked down with my Ukulele 15

These are strange times! I’m gardening. I like to have a garden. I was surprised how important having outside space was to me. I quite like hard landscaping and building structure but the care of plants has not been high on my list of priorities.

I’ve been able to kill lavender. Weeds in the wrong place, seem to thrive. I’ve built a planter and put herbs and tomato plants in it. They are still alive but that’s because I’ve left them alone. It looks like if I don’t touch them they do much better. I don’t really have grass. I have a weed that happens to be green and can be cut with a lawnmower. There are patches of moss in other bits where there is no grass or weed there. This I know because it went brown during a recent hot spell.

I was offered some seed onions that a friend had left over from their vegetable patch. They’d “heard” I was planting my garden. This is an over statement of the facts. I’m sticking stuff in the ground and seeing if it still lives.

I don’t know the names of some of them. I know a guy who lives on the estate who is keen on his garden and has made an investment of time, effort and money in his plants. If I have a plant question I go to him. I’m likely to get a speedy text reply to an enquiry. He can quote the Latin names of plants as well as the common names. I asked him about this and he said that if you want to get into plants then Latin is the currency of the gardener. I’m useless at languages as well. Not looking good is it.

I am extending my efforts to watering the plants that are in the shade even when it has rained. I dead head the roses and squirt some stuff that stops the bugs killing the plants. I am the only one allowed that privilege.

I do want to make it as maintenance free as possible and do intend to lay landscape fabric and lay pebbles over the entire garden. I have mentioned this to a couple of keen gardeners, I think I would have got a less disparaging gaze if I’d shot a puppy.

Mr Blue Sky

In my phone I’ve two versions of this.

The first is Jeff Lynne’s re-mastered version on his All over world the best of ELO album. This is another song that seems to have a life of its own. Lynne apparently locked himself away in a Swiss chalet to write the sequel to the album new world record. The weather was terrible. Then one day the sun came out, hello Mr Blue Sky. It was released on a double album Out of the Blue. I still have my original copy. The art work in the cover was “a work of art’. I’m surprised I haven’t worn this out yet.

The second is the unlikely ukulele version by, the continuously mentioned Joe Brown. I’d like to work up a harmonised version of this for the ukulele group. With different sections of the group playing different cords. Once we have got some of our more difficult new songs mastered and I’ve learned how to do harmonies I might find time to work it out. Some work for the next decade.

It is a great song I’m sure you’ll have heard it if not give it a look maybe just listen to it for fun.

Stay safe