Gardening in ususual places

When the cats slumber during the day, the weather is going to be wet. Its a sure weatherforecast in this house. They are brothers, half wild and yet very affectionate. Difficult to tell them apart though.
DS 3 decided in between showers to go and tackle a bit of undergrowth. This is an area next to the house that is not developed. It would make a lovely seating area and the plan is to make it a rock garden and herb garden. There is little soil underneath, its generally bedrock. It will need raised beds to ensure that the cultivated and wild get separated a bit.Our garden is about 1/2 acre and lies within an old stone quarry. About 12 metres higher lies a large field in which generally sheep graze. We own a small piece of land at the top of the quarry but that is definitely the wildest place, untouched for decades and is the ideal place for beekeeping I think.
The beauty of gardening in unusual places is that it has a life of its own.It was a secret uncultivated garden for many years. Jackdaws come and nest in springtime, bees swarm around the sallowtree in spring and housemartins and swallows make a home here too. It is sheltered from the northwinds and a haven for birds and insects. our buddleias show plenty of butterflies and moths over the summer. The cats have culled some of the bird population but that was before I knew they were so horrible to wildlife. I am happy for them to deal with vermin ( rats and mice) if they are around, but I am sad when they catch a robin. We feed them well, they are halfwild and they just do what they think is right.

The weekend was very soggy here but we took part in the village breakfast which is held every month. The whole village has the opportunity to go and have cereal, cooked breakfast and toast, served by men in bowties for the princely sum of £ 4.00 per person. Its a good place to meet up, chat and network. It felt very autumnal and we were tempted to put the woodfire on. Not in July surely? Instead we put on a sweater and socks and drank hot chocolate together and took the opportunity to go and visit friends.