Guzzgoggery and other tales

Where does the expression 'playing gooseberry' come from?  Why should a spare part at a date be compared with a small, hard, hairy fruit?  Is it because they lurk in obscurity beneath the leaves and spitefully scratch as you try to detach them from their friends?  Or is it because they're rather sour and very prickly?

Whatever the reason, the guzzgogs picked today have now had their nature sweetened with three pounds of sugar and are now resting as 6 warm jars of delicious jam.

Summer pudding, made with redcurrants, strawberries, raspberries and the first ripenings of my best ever cherry crop (i.e. more than 6 fruits), is chilling in the fridge, and my vases are overflowing with sweet peas.

I had a new 'wow' today as I had my first sighting of blooms on a new dahlia 'Witteman's Best' - a lovely deep red on a long, strong stem.  Am willing them to produce lots more for cutting over the next few weeks.

Blackcurrants are also fast a-ripening in the abundant heat, and I'm hoping to be able to pick them in the next week or so. Found a recipe for making creme de cassis, so will add this to my boozy repertoire this year, along with more litres of damson gin.

My blog silence is testament, I suppose, to the amount of gardening that needs doing at the moment (both for myself and others) - seem to have little time to write as I'm either gardening, picking flowers or fruit, or dealing with the aftermath of these various activities.

Three weeks of glorious sunshine, unbroken by rain.  When was the last time we had that?  Welcome back summer - we've missed you!

Faffing with currants

Picked all the blackcurrants and goosegogs today - what a palaver to harvest these tiny globs of juice!  Doesn't help that the whole currant patch is being invaded by scratchy cleavers and the outriders for imminent invasion of blackberries as well.  My arms are a mass of scratches and cuts but at least I have some jam to show for my troubles.  Tastes rich and delicious - dark purple rhubarb and blackcurrant, and ruby red raspberry. Yum yum yum.  The children have scoured out the jam pans with slices of bread, so I'll take that as a vote of confidence in my preserves.

I had intended to go down to the allotment on a weeding mission, as this is the only fine day forecast in a while, but instead ended up picking and harvesting.  Time consuming objects all these soft fruits.  Didn't get much done in the way of tidying, so the plot still looks like a gardening disgrace.  Must try to get down there of an evening over the coming week whenever the rain holds off (which will probably put paid to ANY evening weeding looking at the weather forecast).

One day I will get it all under control - but it seems a way off as yet.

Parsnips are starting to look promising but not much else in evidence.