Another blazing NGS day.

It’s been over a week since my last update and it feels like months. Sunday was our second NGS day of the year and we spent last week in a sprint to get ready. Debbie and Peter focussed on the garden, while Janet and Tracey worked with me on the nursery. My two main practical concerns were parking and refreshments. We had the meadow to use for parking but only if the neighbouring farmer could mow it in time. With the weather turning dry, he was catching up with hay cutting and only got to us on Saturday which would have been fine…

…and the meadow got mowed, but then the baler broke down. So on Sunday morning, with up to 250 people about to arrive we had a meadow full of cut grass. With no other options, Dave got stuck in with a pitchfork under the blazing sun. With help from Andy, Heather and their boys (who thought they were coming to practice putting their tent up!) he got a large area cleared before the first cars arrived. And arrive they did. By 2pm we had filled all the space on the meadow, plus a chunk of the neighbours land and were slotting them in on a one in, one out basis. We just about got away with it. Dave is sporting a blistered hand to show for his endeavours.

Catering proved just as eventful. Two days beforehand, the forecast was for heavy rain, so we scaled back our cake and ice-cream buying plans. But on Saturday evening this changed to sunny all day, and that’s what we got. Against an expectation of 200 or so for which we reckoned on 150 portions of cake, 325 people turned up, every one of them an avid cake eater, or so it seemed. So we sold out of cake by 3pm, which isn’t what’s expected at an NGS day, but what can you do? Let them eat ice-cream, of course! At least it was ice-cream weather!

But with the fridge, freezer, urn and kettle on full blast all afternoon we blew the trip switch on the tea room fuse box. Armed with just the kettle and enough Liverpudlian wit to keep the visitors happy, Eileen and Ellie struggled through and no-one left thirsty or starving, as far as we know.

So what with the NGS day, two painting days and a day at college, I’ve not really stopped since Tatton. I did have half a day off yesterday though – and what did I do with a half day off? Clean the house and do some washing, naturally. I knew there was a reason I always end up in the nursery!