Wednesday, January 18, 2012
Geese tweet
Yesterday to Painshill for a stroll around this splendid 18th century garden, which as well as having lots of trees and plants also has a range of grottos, ruins and other fancies.
Like on Epsom Common, there were signs of a fair amount of chain saw action. But in this case I did not mind: the place is an old, fake natural garden which needs to be maintained; it is not a piece of rough woodland which does not. Furthermore, we came across a couple of gardeners pruning some laurel by hand and they were properly shocked at the idea that one might use a flail on such things. As they do on sundry hedges in our Borough of Epsom & Ewell.
The one lapse of taste was the presence of a permanent marquee in or behind the walled garden. To me, a marquee as a temporary affair for summer receptions is fine. But to have the thing up permanently seems a bit off, a bit of a fraud. Maybe a wheeze for evading the planning consents which might be withheld from a permanent structure.
That apart, the important feature of the visit was the tweeting of two geese sitting high up in a large cedar tree. Geese which were said to be Egyptian geese, which are really a sort of duck. The first time I have seen either geese or ducks sitting in a tree. Later that day off hot foot to TB to announce this amazing tweet, to be told that ducks in trees is not particularly odd at all. They do it down Longmead Road and they also sit on the roof of the school there, along with the seagulls. Now I have seen plenty of seagulls sitting on roofs and they have webbed feet like ducks so that is perhaps OK. But I have never seen a seagull sitting in a tree.
Somewhat deflated, settled for a few jars.
Like on Epsom Common, there were signs of a fair amount of chain saw action. But in this case I did not mind: the place is an old, fake natural garden which needs to be maintained; it is not a piece of rough woodland which does not. Furthermore, we came across a couple of gardeners pruning some laurel by hand and they were properly shocked at the idea that one might use a flail on such things. As they do on sundry hedges in our Borough of Epsom & Ewell.
The one lapse of taste was the presence of a permanent marquee in or behind the walled garden. To me, a marquee as a temporary affair for summer receptions is fine. But to have the thing up permanently seems a bit off, a bit of a fraud. Maybe a wheeze for evading the planning consents which might be withheld from a permanent structure.
That apart, the important feature of the visit was the tweeting of two geese sitting high up in a large cedar tree. Geese which were said to be Egyptian geese, which are really a sort of duck. The first time I have seen either geese or ducks sitting in a tree. Later that day off hot foot to TB to announce this amazing tweet, to be told that ducks in trees is not particularly odd at all. They do it down Longmead Road and they also sit on the roof of the school there, along with the seagulls. Now I have seen plenty of seagulls sitting on roofs and they have webbed feet like ducks so that is perhaps OK. But I have never seen a seagull sitting in a tree.
Somewhat deflated, settled for a few jars.
# posted by Jim @ 11:03 AM 
