PARSNIP IN THE POTAGER (ポタジェのパースニップ)

It was sunny and milder today.

We harvested parsnips in the potager. 

We sowed many seeds last April in the pentagonal bed, 

and only a few germinated.  

Nine months is a long time, but it tasted good in a potage soup this evening.  

今日は晴れて穏やかな天気、

ポタジェでパースニップの収穫です. 

去年の四月に五角形の区画に種をたくさんまきましたが

発芽したのはわずか数個でした.

それから九ヶ月は長かったけど、夕食のポタージュスープでとっても美味しかった！

Parsnip and kohlrabi
パースニップとコールラビ

Two good-sizes parsnips 

Broccoli and brussel sprouts are still producing, and we sometimes pick them.  

ブロッコリとメキャベツはまだ生産していて、ときどき収穫しています.

Nasturtium was damaged by the severe cold last weekend.  

ナスタチウムは先週末のひどい寒さでやられました.

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Today's job was repairing steps between blueberry and lemon. 

Three sleepers were restored and others were replaced with Italian stones.

今日の仕事はブルーベリーとレモンの間の階段修復です.
枕木３本は修復しましたが、他は「ローマの石」と取り替えました。

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TODAY'S SHOT: Seedless kumquat

種なし金柑

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ENGLISH GARDENING MAGAZINES (イギリスの園芸雑誌)

This year I subscribe to two gardening magazines published in UK;
'Gardeners' World' and 'GARDENS ILLUSTRATED'

The current issues were delivered recently, and now
 I enjoy reading those magazines.

今年は二種類のイギリスの園芸雑誌を定期購読します.
ガーデナーズ・ワールドとガーデンズ・イラストレイテッドです.

Our friend, who have been lived for more than thirty years in UK,
visited our garden three years ago,
and she presented us two English gardening magazines as souvenirs.
One of these magazines was 'Gardeners' World'.
 I felt familiar with Monty Don, and I subscribe 'Gardeners' World' two years ago.

'GARDENS ILLUSTRATED' was an English gardening magazine that I bought
at a bookshop in Fukuoka for the first time five years ago.  

30年以上イギリスに住んでいる私たちの友人が3年前にうちの庭を訪ねたとき
2種類の園芸雑誌をお土産にもってきてくれました.
そのひとつが、ガーデナーズ・ワールドでした.
モンティー・ドン氏に親近感を覚えて、2年前に一度定期購読しました.

ガーデンズ・イラストレイテッドは福岡の書店で5年前に初めて買った
イギリスの園芸雑誌です.

The current issues of two English gardening magazines

Following four photos are pages of the Gardeners' World.

My favorite article 'The Full Monty'

An inspirational article by Joe Swift

An interesting article about feeding birds

An awful title, and recommendation of growing fruit and veg ourselves.  

Three photos below are pages of GARDENS ILLUSTRATED. 

Beautiful pictures of English gardens give me many inspirations. 

This year is the tercentenary of Lancelot 'Capability' Brown, the great landscape architect, it says. 

'Book reviews' is one of my favorite article. 

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VIVID COLOURS IN SILVERY WHITE SNOW (白銀の雪の中の鮮色)

Yesterday evening we enjoyed the play 'Hourouki' (A Wanderer's Notebook)
at the Hakataza theatre in Fukuoka City.
The play had been performed 2017 times (from 1961 to 2009)
 by great actress Mitsuko Mori who died in 2012.
The play has been succeeded by a popular actress Yukie Nakama since last October,
and she is playing at Hakataza this month.


昨夕は博多座で放浪記の舞台を楽しみました.
この舞台には2012年になくなった大女優の森光子さんが
2017回出演されていました.
昨年10月から人気女優の仲間由紀恵さんが引き継ぎ、
今月は博多座で公演されています.

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This morning I woke up at 7 o'clock,
and noticed that there was some snow in the garden.
It kept snowing a bit all day,
and the temperature never rose over zero degree Celsius today in Itoshima.
It is said that this is for the first time in 35 years (since 1981) !

今朝7時に目をさますと、庭は雪でした.
終日少しですが雪は降り続き、
気温も一日中氷点下で、これは当地では35年ぶりだそうです.

Seven o'clock in the morning
朝七時

Snow changes the world monotone, however I found some brilliant colours
in the garden as shown below.

雪は世界をモノトーンに変えますが、
下の写真のような庭に鮮やかな色も見つけました.

Red & Yellow Twig Dogwood
サンゴミズキとオウゴンミズキ

Lemons
レモン

Red fruits of Ilex integra (favorite of birds)
モチノキの赤い実（鳥たちの好物）

Rosa 'Angela'

Ducks and hedgehogs looks so cold:-)

アヒルとハリネズミは寒そうです（笑）

Snow drop looks best in the snow.

スノードロップは雪の中で一番映えます.

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SOFT CUTTINGS OF SEDUM (セダムの挿し穂)

I am planning to plant sedum at the sleeper steps.  

I went to my favorite nursery and looked for sedum plants. 

There were many species/varieties of sedum, 

and I selected five varieties.  

They have different shapes and colours of leaves.  

枕木の階段のところにセダムを植えることにしました. 

いつものナーセリーでセダムをさがしました.

たくさんの種類があって、

５種類の品種を選びました

いずれも葉の形や色が違っています. 

In order to propagate them, I made soft cuttings, 

and placed them on potting compost. 

They are placed at the window of the bathroom. 

苗を増やすために、挿し穂をつくって培養土の上におきました.

そして浴室の窓辺に置いています. 

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SNOW (雪)

It's really cold today, the low temperature was 0 degrees Celsius 

and high temperature was only 3 degrees.  

Snow clouds have been coming from the north west to the northern coast of Kyushu Island.  

今日はとても寒くて、最低気温０℃、最高３℃でした. 

雪雲が北西からずっと九州北岸へ流れてきています. 

When I woke up this morning, I found the snow in our garden.  

Fortunately the snow melted in an hour, and I could commute to work by car.  

今朝目覚めたときに庭に雪が積もっていました. 

幸いに一時間ほどで雪は溶け、車で通勤できました. 

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LEMONS RIPENED (レモンが熟しました)

The lemon tree bears many fruits this season again and they have ripened 

beside blueberry trees. 

Last year, Marple made lemon curd and a pound cake with lemon peels. 

What will she make this year?

ブルーベリーの横のレモンの木に今年もたくさんレモンがなって熟しました.

去年はレモンカードとレモンピールのケーキをつくってくれた家内は

今年は何をつくってくれるのかな？

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