CHARLEY's STORY

 She showed up ten days ago. I called her Bagheera.Like the panther from "Jungle Book".  Big eyes.Big heart.  I watched her eat bird seed voraciously.Bird seed I had scattered on the ground.  I watched her hide under the bench. Scared. Alone.

 For ten days, she would look in the door. See us. We'd see her. Who could resist?  We would tumble out into the yard and sit with her, play with her, cuddle and talk sweet things to her.  To be rewarded with "Purrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr".  She was alone. We would try and find her home. Or, if not, find her another home. Maybe with us. Maybe with someone else. She was darling.

 I contacted every cat rescue organization I could find. I ended  up finding "PAW PRINTS" Cat Rescue. Amazing people. Helpful and kind and passionate about their cause. Lots of support , ideas and information. Unfortunately, they're overwhelmed with cats and kittens and feral cat rescues. The SPCA was not up and running till later this month. Most places were strapped for space and resources. I was on my own with  this. Purrrrrrrrrrrrr.

 "PAW PRINTS"  told me to keep feeding "Bagheera" as I had named her. Keep loving her for a day or two longer, till something could be found.

Smokey had decided, in the meantime, that he would keep an eye on things. "Bagheera" liked Smokey. She would toddle after him non stop. They would lie on the ground together. Eat  snacks together. Then go off together. They spent a lot of time puttering around.

Not sure what Spencer thought of it, because only Smokey was with her. Smokey must have thought this was great. Lots of snacks all round. "Bagheera" was no longer alone. Or hungry.But still no home. Till yesterday. The neighbours beside us came over to say that they had been to visit a former neighbour who had moved away. The lady was missing her Charley. Her indoor  2 1/2 year old little black cat.  It was a total fluke that our neighbours went to visit her in the new house, blocks away.The indoor cat had gotten lost in the move. Even more amazing that Charley's owner came over to see if  this WAS  Charley. No Charley hanging about. She was always around. Till then. Of course.

                                   Five hours later, Charley and Smokey showed up for snacks about 3:30. Was easy to scoop up the little cat, pop her into the bathroom, and call her mummy on the phone. Purrrr purrrrr purrrrr. The rest is history. "Charleeeeeeeeeee," said her mummy when she saw her." Oh Charleeeeeeeeee babeee".  We were sad to see Charley go. She was so sweet. So friendly.

Rescuing a cat is not easy sometimes. You get attached. I would have kept Charley I think, in the end.I think of the nights she had spent outdoors. I would check on her through the night.  The nights have been warm, the days hot. She always stayed by the bench and the water bowls.  Now she has gone home, to soft couches, happy family, and this won't even be a memory.  Except for us. Happy life, Charley.....

TAKE DOWN with Bagheera

 Never fails, I head outside to dig and delve and cats show up. This time it's a new one. We named her Bagheera. Of course. The black panther from  Jungle Book. Only she doesn't roar. She purrs. Incessantly.

 Time to lay the garden to rest. For the most part. Sad. Everything has bloomed so well. But things are starting to get woody, or gooey, or yukky. Even though in a photo they look perfectly fine. Ohhhhh the power of the lens......What you see is not always what is there...

So, there it is, one last look at the corner unit. What's left of it. I've been picking at it for a couple of weeks, pretending like fall is not around the corner.

  Cordelia. High above. Watching Bagheera. ( Well, that's what I imagine her name to be) . She showed up a few weeks ago. Silly thing. She was trying to eat the bird seed on the ground. I couldn't help myself.....gave her some treats instead. She's about 8 months. Someone's lovely little pet.  Silly thing. Bounces around like a ball.

 All pots, all flowers torn up, uprooted. Stuff to put away.Looks so barren.It all gets packed away in the greenhouse, or at the back of the porch. I even save the dirt in the pots.

        I did keep a few geraniums out. Just a few. Just for the week. So I can pretend that it's still growing season. I took time out to watch Smokey plop in front of the new cat. He wasn't sure what to make of her.

       Time to tackle the porch. The begonias have grown stalky, and slightly gooey. I don't over winter much any more. I've tried all the different techniques; stuff in a paper bag with just the roots, recut, soak, stuff in soil. No thanks.   Time consuming, and half the time  they don't make it to spring. They end up rotting, or falling apart.
 Years ago I would line up pots of geraniums, all over the house. Every window had geraniums.  Place started to smell mouldy. Cats dug in the dirt, looking for bugs and worms. Dirt everywhere.

So, now I choose about three to save. Ivy geraniums, repotted, on the windowsill in the upstairs bathroom. Last year they did GREAT. Chopped their leaves and stalks back after wilting; by Feb  regrowth started, and flourished. With the door closed the cats won't start excavating. Much.

   The front bed  I left almost as is.Ripped up some to give the roses air. Shame to tear it all down. But the back is bare . Manageable. I dislike "manageable". It's so so so dull.

  Bagheera was ever so helpful. Never stopped purring. And the back is much larger than I remembered. Still with some geraniums to wilt and wither. So I will know when fall hits. And it WILL hit with a gale storm. Or ice pellets. And the cats will no longer be hanging about on the warm grass, chasing snakes and slugs. Or purring. Not loud enough to hear indoors, over the raging rain.

PEACE ROSE 1945

 I can tell that fall is nudging at the gate. The light is low, and the deer have started to bring their babies, their big babies at that,  up the hill to nibble on yummy things. And the Peace Rose, which was named  the Best Rose of the World, in 1976,  is blooming again. It is an amazing rose with a fascinating history. Smuggled out, during war time, on one of the last planes out of France, it has survived.

 The gardener who created the Peace Rose once wrote that he could not believe that one simple seed would created such a beauty that might have been overlooked or forgotten, due to the events of the second World War.

It blooms basically free of blemish or disease. It is perfect.

   The longest living peace rose  has lived since 815 A.D., over a thousand years , in Hildensheim, Germany.In 2012 the rose was given a special title "Herb of the Year."

 In 1935, the Peace Rose was created by Francis Meilland. On April 29, 1945, the rose formerly known as Goiai, was re-named the Peace Rose, for obvious reasons.

It is paired with the  Black Eyed Susan, or Rudbekia , a cone flower, flowering at this time of year. It's known as the Maryland state flower, since 1918. Bees LOVE Rudbekia.

 Black Eyed Susanis easy to grow, prolific and keeps growing and growing year after year.

 Drought tolerant and resistant to most ikky diseases. Leave the leftover blooms for the birds. They will love the dried seeds as the season winids down.

 The Peace Rose has been called the "Rose of the Century". We can be thankful that Francis Meilland saved the seeds from the original Peace Rose, when World War 2 began. He smuggled the seeds out of France to different countries. After the Liberation of France, Meilland discovered that his rose seeds were safe. He wrote to Field Marshall Allan Brook, asking him to name the rose.

 When Berlin fell officially on April 29th 1945, the rose was given its new name by one Robert Pyle. "We hope the Peace Rose will influence men's thoughts for everlasting peace."

"Blessed are the Peacemakers on earth." ( William Shakespeare)

MUERBE TEICH

 

Plums.  So many. Everywhere. Dropping from trees . Chicken Little would have to wear a helmet. A chance to make thick, brilliant purple jam. And a chance, at last to make Muerbe Teich

 ( Plum Cake). 

While waiting for the cake to bake, you can make  plum jam. I follow the recipe on the Certo box. Only I double it.Says you're not supposed to double it, but where's the fun in that? Double away.  Ended up with about 19 jars. Couldn't fit them all on the windowsill.......

But I digress.....Muerbe Teich is more like a coffee cake. It's not too sweet, crumbly, but not too much so, and the plums are tart, but not too much so. It's just about perfect with coffee, tea, whipped cream, plain.....

 

BASE:

3 cups flour

2/3 cup sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 eggs
1 cup butter/margarine

 Mix first 5 ingredients till crumbly. Cut in butter with pastry cutter till dough is soft and workable. I added leftover sour cream, about a 1/2 cup, to help the dough along. Press into a buttered 10 x 13 inch pan, forming a slight lip on the edges with the dough.

FILLING:

Cut up 24-30 Plums. Lay these on the dough, tightly packed, like sardines, side by side, skin up.

  TOPPING:
2 ½ cups flour
2/3 cup sugar
½ cup butter

 Mix all together and sprinkle over plums to make a crumbly top. Squeeze some together to make lumpy nodules so the topping doesn't look too uniform.

    Bake in a 375 degree oven for 35-40 minutes till golden around edges. Sometimes this cake can be underbaked, so watch it carefully, or the centre will be doughy.Test with a knife to check periodically.