Rubbish in the burn – and lifted

Hiya again

When the rain stopped two days ago, your Blogger went to have a look at the state of the burn and found it full of rubbish -- chockablock!It doesn't help that there's a culvert or duct running below the concrete platform of the footbridge, where everything gets caught. But why anyone would toss a traffic cone into the burn is beyond me, or a big MDF panel.This morning, some members of the Oban Employability Team came in to lift the rubbish…… the platform of their small pickup was almost full by the time they were done!

How much effort and energy went into clearing this rubbish. Shame on anyone who uses the burn as a rubbish dump.

Flood no 7

Hiya
Scotland has seen some massive flooding in the past few days, and our hearts go out to those who have lost their homes. Here's hoping that no-one will lose their life.

Here, at Lynnside, the garden is flooded yet again today. The heavy rains and a high tide pushed inland by strong winds have conspired to flood not only the garden but also the lane that runs along its bottom end.

Today, 11:38AM
11:48AM12:01PM

As I type these lines, the bottom part of the garden and the lane are fully submerged and the water is running down the car park.
Having watched the rising water, it is quite clear to your Blogger that the obstacles underneath the wee bridge are choking up the burn. But the flooding is exacerbated by the fact that this is just about high tide in the harbour and all of the Black Lynn backs up, especially when the wind pushes the tide inland.
Nonetheless, the Council should do something to give the burn more space -- deepen the riverbed, widening a catchment basin further upstream, ...
The Council does not regard this as a matter of priority – anyone can tell by the dire state of the Black Lynn further downstream, by the car parks and super markets, where it is choked up and infested with shopping trolleys and all manner of large-scale rubbish.

Fruit and Flowers

Hello again
Your blogger is so glad to have made the most of an almost sunny window in today's weather pattern to snap a few photos of the gorgeous flowers and fruit that grace our garden. See for yourself.

Runner bean blossom -- perfect white

Greenish cream of sweet corn

Sweet peas bring a splash of crimson

Blackberries in various stages of ripeness

One of several sunflowers
This bashful one just wouldn't let me see her face
Graham must have planted at least four different variations of nasturtiums, all of which are doing very well

The fence along Dalintart Lane has almost exploded with flowers and colours

Happy bedfellows - tagetes keep pests away from leeks

Very soon now, the cherry tomatoes will be ready, too
Nasturtiums are excellent ground cover to keep weeds in check --
and their blossoms add a wonderful splash of colour and fire to any salad or exotic dish.