Joining in with Amy for her weekly Five on Friday (scraping in at the last minute, thank you, Amy!).
One I begin or end of most of my dog walks by standing here and admiring this view, noticing whether it’s low or high tide, whether the sea is rough or calm, watching the ships and ferries, listening to the birds. Up until last week there was a waist-high froth of Alexanders and cow parsley in front of the gate but it’s been cut, along with the verges around the junctions on the main road to keep sight lines clear for drivers. The coastal path and clifftops are safe from the cutters – over the next few weeks there will be pyramidal orchids, viper’s bugloss and other gorgeous wild flowers.
Two What a difference a week makes – the first photo was taken last Thursday, the second was taken yesterday. More daisies, more hawthorn blossom. It’s as though someone has shaken white petals all over the place with sheer abandon. I can’t remember ever seeing as many daisies and buttercups as there are this year. It’s quite thrilling.
Three I made this Rhubarb Shortbread. Let’s just say it’s more-ish and leave it at that. I saw the recipe recommended on CT’s blog and she got it from CJ. Sharing fabulous recipes is one of the many wonders of blogging 🙂
Four There was no school today (it was a teacher-training-day). The younger two were at home but my eldest still had to go in for the second half of his English Literature GCSE (you can imagine how delighted he was about that). My youngest managed to persuade me to take her in to Canterbury to meet some friends and I decided to stay there while they went off to look around the shops. I do like Canterbury. I sometimes miss the anonymity of the city, crowds of people and hustle and bustle, and Canterbury is where I get my quick fix. While I was waiting for the girls I decided to have a mooch around the cathedral grounds. The bells were ringing as there was a wedding in the crypt, there were large groups of tourists looking round, gardeners and builders working away (the cathedral is undergoing major repairs at the moment) and a definite air of purpose about the place.
Five The wild patch at the bottom of our garden where we sowed a chalk wildflower mix last spring is suddenly thigh-high. We have our own oxeye daisies! Loads of buds and some in flower. I’ll have to dig out the list to remind myself what else there should be.
Have a splendiferous weekend.
acoastalplot 
What a beautiful part of the world you live in! I would love to be able to take a walk and then a pause with that view! The rhubarb shortbread looks wonderful. Everyone is sharing so much good food this week – it’s like visiting for tea!
Have a lovely weekend
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What a lovely five! I think I would stand for hours looking at the view of the cliffs. Beautiful! Isn’t everywhere glorious at the moment. The daisies and hawthorn are prolific. Enjoy your weekend. B x
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the hawthorn is amazing.
Do you have that in your garden?
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Ah, no, sadly not Diana. It’s just up the road though 🙂
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Lovely, such a splendid potpourri of images and verbal sketches. I’m saying goodbye to my very large hawthorn tree soon — I love them especially when the old year’s rich red berries and the new spring-white flowers spar against the fresh green foliage. . .
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Beautiful photos! Glad you enjoyed your walk about Canterbury Cathedral. The one and only times I’ve been there was in the summer of 1973. I was in awe. Your dog walk view is breathtaking!
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That ‘s a view you could look at all day. It’s been many a year since we’ve been to Canterbury.
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That rhubarb shortbread sounds and looks simply divine!
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such beautiful views and flowers xxx
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I absolutely love your garden wildflower patch. I’m inspired to try to copy it somewhere on my allotment for next year (around the apple trees maybe?). Would love some guidance on when and how to sow in a grassy patch like mine.
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I think benign neglect is the best way with wildflower patches. They do like an impoverished soil. You could try planting wildflower plugs into a small area to see how they go. They will seed and spread if they’re happy.
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A very calm selection of photos! Your wildflower patch is very pretty and has come up really well – gorgeous!
I like Canterbury: I trained there in the eighties – please don’t do the maths – I like visiting and remembering. GCSEs on inset days? Don’t go there…!
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I know. I’d like to have a chat with the person who does the exam timetabling…
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I shall have to download the rhubarb shortcake recipe. Hope you have a good weekend too.
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A real delight to visit, such beautiful views and flowers. The rhubarb shortbread certainly looked wonderful.
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I love those white flowers – definitely looks like May.
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I adore those rampant daisies Sam, and the wild patch in your garden. All so soft and pretty! Canterbury looks picture perfect x
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What a gorgeous view on your walk, absolutely breathtaking, especially at this most beautiful time of year. Thanks for the mention, I’m glad you’re enjoying the shortbread. The cathedral grounds are looking beautiful, the gardeners must be working hard. Love the wildflowers in your garden as well, they’re so pretty all together. I bet you’ll get loads of wildlife. Enjoy the rest of the long weekend Sam. CJ xx
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I’ll have to make time to sit near the wildflowers on a sunny day and see what’s about. Hopefully we’ll have another sunny day some time soon…
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I enjoy disappearing into the city now and then to get my fill of people watching, large farmers markets the farmers drive in for, and a nice lunch. I’m glad you enjoyed the trip!
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I love the comparison of flowers over a week. It’s amazing how they just explode with life this time of year. Lovely dog walk! I’d get lost in that view.
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You have some wonderful views and scenery to enjoy on a daily basis. Lucky you! Thanks for sharing your photos. I love oxeye daisies, with their wiry stems holding them up to catch the breeze.
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Watching the sea is a wonderful way to begin or end a walk. What lovely views you have. And the petals flying in the air would be stunning.
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Lovely post Sam – I particularly liked your two shots of the grass track with the daisies and hawthorn taken a week apart. And congratulations on your own wildflower meadow!
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What a lovely place to live along the coast. We do too but it’s a much different landscape here – wilder. I love the look of that recipe. Our rhubarb plant is just a dream at the moment but hopefully by July we can cut some stalks. I love Canterbury. Nice to see it again!
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Glorious post, Sam. I love all the photos, but especially the coastal view and the shots of Canterbury, a really beautiful city. Hawthorn drifts in the hedges here too, and it would be worth checking your ox-eyes for white Crab spiders. Having a wildflower area in your garden is so exciting, I’m sure you’ll be checking it daily to see what is new in there :o) XX
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Thank you CT. I must have a proper look at the oxeyes when the weather improves!
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I envy your views! When I walk our dog I have to walk through roads of endless semis before reaching the canal or woodlands. I must make this rhubarb shortbread, we have more rhubarb than our entire neighbourhood can consume. Hope you had a lovely Bank Holiday weekend. My son had an exam on Friday (the other three were off school), and on the Bank Holiday Monday and I can very well imagine how delighted your teenager was to go in for English Literature… mine finished his last exam yesterday and is now determined to sleep through the rest of study leave.
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Great that your exams are over. Hurrah. Hope he enjoys the rest of the summer. The rhubarb shortbread is def worth making. x
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