Apologies to The Garden Smallholder readers lately (especially Do What You Love) for my lack of posts. Aside from my love of the outdoors, gardening and our small scale smallholding, I am in fact a dab hand at decorating. I can now be found most days head to toe in dust, paint and old wallpaper scraps. Attractive huh?

Our bedroom was crying out to be redecorated. I thought I could live with the way it was for at least a little while longer than I have, but my hands started getting that itchy feeling. I could not help myself, before I knew it I had grabbed the stripping knife and the hideous wallpaper was no more. All the walls have been stripped and I am in the process of getting them prepped. The other chore was to removed the polystyrene ceiling tiles. I have aches and pains in the muscles of my arms that I never knew existed. The ceiling is in a bit of a mess now so it needs to be skimmed over by a plasterer at some point when we are feeling a bit flush. Its going to cost a fair few pounds but the end result should look great and far safer than having a fire hazard above our heads! Trouble is I have started eyeing up our sons bedroom. OK, I have gone past the eyeing up stage and whipped the wallpaper from the walls of that room too, but you already guessed that right?

Anyway, on to the garden smallholding which im sure is far more interesting than my decorating woes. I grabbed my camera from its dusty shelf on Sunday and took some snap shots of how the vegetable garden and mini orchard looks now. As you can see its all very messy indeed. I would dearly love to get the ground cleared but im so afraid of disturbing hibernating animals. That would never sit easy with me, the death of a hedgehog or some other poor creature from my doings would really upset me. Good things come to those that wait as they say, so wait I shall.

I think its hard to visualise from these photos and angles how large this area is, it will take some back breaking to get it looking anything like a vegetable garden and orchard let alone plant anything. I guess that’s all part of the excitement. In a strange sort of way I am glad that we did not inherit a beautifully planned, planted and well tendered vegetable plot when we bought the house, because then it would not really feel like ours. Its not all doom and gloom out there though, the main garden is beautiful and has been very well cared for over the years, but there is still plenty of room for us to stamp our wellies all over which is nice. No, its the last section of the garden that we have dedicated our little dream of the good life to that needs all the help it can get.

The sheer hard work, passion and determination to get at least something in the form of a vegetable or fruit tree in the ground this year is all there, bubbling away inside of me. I pray it will be possible, the photos shout “You need a miracle!”

The good news is I have managed to secure offers of help from some big strong lads in the form of my father, brother and of course Richie so roll on late spring I say! Im not work shy, I shall be pulling my sleeves up and mucking in just as much as them. Cannot wait.