A dreary summer so far, grey skies and much wind. A few weeks ago at one of the more elevated gardens on the estate I was actually blown over by a gust of wind.....very June. The tender plants I put out were being tossed about most cruelly but out they had to go. Much rain also recently and I must say all the gardens are looking healthy and lush especially the lawns. The greatest consolation for dull summers is the lack of hayfever. I usually start in early May and go on until July but this year I only started two weeks ago and I am thrilled to have saved so much money on medication each week.

In the spring I sowed a very large lawn at one of the farmhouses. The soil was as dry as dust and eventually I was forced to irrigate. Then came foul weather and the grass seed was washed away into little heaps leaving huge bare areas. Re seeding was followed by more rain and so on and so on. I have now given it the first cut and all the annual weeds have been cut down and we have stripes, the whole thing looks promising. I bought a new mower for this garden, electric start, 21 inch cut, with a driven roller and very expensive. It was delivered promptly, I used it for six minutes, the clouds of white smoke grew denser and then the engine packed up. Back came the mower suppliers, away went the mower. Much head scratching, manufacturers consulted and it seems we have a very rare fault, the oil. bleeder (never heard of it) had no hole. Well at least it was nothing I had done. Whenever machinery goes wrong I usually blame myself, I am mechanically incompetent and disinterested and so felt pathetically relieved when I heard it was nothing to do with me. This new mower looks and is very complicated to use, it is chunky and noisy. At another estate garden I have the same model only twelve years old and very basic in comparison. It is a much better machine, so light and responsive. Why does this happen, surely a new generation of mowers should (like the mobile phone) become sleeker, lighter and more efficient. Manufacturers should stop showing off and think of the poor gardener for a change.

For this new farmhouse garden I have bought, unseen apart from photographs, three old washing coppers. One is large and round and late nineteenth century, another is small and round with an unusual brass tap, probably early nineteenth century and the other is not a 'copper' at all but large and rectangular and about four and a half feet deep and possibly late eighteenth century, they are all the most wonderful blue green colour. The round 'coppers' are standing either side of the front door against the timber and stone walls and I have filled them with tender and rather exotic plants at the centre of which I have used large specimens of Abutilon 'Nabob' which is deep red. The large tank, which is what I suppose it must have been I have had placed on a huge salting stone which was originally in the cellar of the farmhouse and which I had set into the ground. It is a perfect match and as the garden is so windy I have filled it with fancy grasses. They wave about at the slightest breeze and look wonderful.

My jack russell, Daisy rarely leaves my side now, I keep shooing her away but back she comes and hisses at me for attention. I leave the tailgate of the car open and she spends a good deal time sleeping inside. She does not like getting wet so perhaps when the good weather arrives she will get out and about more. The brown patches on the lawn are as usual making me cross but recently someone said that dosing bitches with a spoonful of tomato juice every day solves the problem. I will certainly try this though she is bound to hate it and there will be more hissing and probably spitting as well. It is only a real problem in a dry summer so what am I worrying about.