Rain stopped play

This morning I woke to find that the wind had scattered the
garden furniture. Even Henry the Heron looks fed up

It rained and rained 

and rained and rained,

the average was well maintained,

and when our fields had turned to bogs

it started raining cats and dogs.

Contrary to the image portrayed in holiday brochures, it used to rain quite often in Cornwall during June; indeed the whole month was occasionally rain-soaked and storm-tossed.  But I was working full-time and it seemed not to matter too much. If I did need to trudge around some clay pit or refinery, there were wellie boots, waterproofs and hard hats to don, whilst control rooms could always be relied upon afterwards as places for a steaming cuppa.

Retirement has brought a greater awareness of the weather as it's apt to stop me doing what I want. "You should get a dog," friends tell me. The daily 'walkies' will do you good!" I'm unimpressed and unmoved.  I may be an enthusiast for rambling but draw the line at deliberately going out for a soaking, just to keep the pooch fit and healthy. My dog-owning friends will understandably now be protesting loudly, but I'm unrepentant. I like cats.

A week of wet weather has knocked my fitness target into the long (and wet) grass. Forget 10,000 steps a day; I didn't even average 2000. It would have been even worse, had the sun not shone on Saturday.

After a drought of half an hour

there came the most refreshing shower,

and then the queerest thing of all –

a gentle rain began to fall.

One day of sunshine will, I know, banish my gloom and my fitness levels will recover. I'm not so sure, though, about the garden.

Our clay soil certainly retains the water; parts of it are like a mud bath. We've planted two varieties of courgette in the row nearest the camera. Some (which will be yellow) are doing well, but just look at the others. 

The whole beans have made a good start, though I'm concerned about the last few. They're extra-fine bean plants that I bought from Suttons and I suspect that they need warm weather to mature.  Hedging my bets – because I really love extra-fine beans – I've also planted some in the greenhouse.

In the background, the peas are thankfully loving this weather.

The three pots nearest the camera contain sweet potato plants. We have never tried growing sweet potatoes before and when I placed my order I expected them to come as tubers, like ordinary potatoes. Instead, what arrived were these slips. Like the fine beans, they're supposed to be kept warm – 14° minimum. At this rate, all they'll probably produce is leaves. 

Finally, here's a sorrowful view of my plum tree, which I planted 5 years ago. Two years ago it produced two plums; last year none, and was under sentence of death if it didn't fruit this year. We lovingly pruned and fed it, and – lo and behold – it's loaded with fruit.  However, one by one, they're shrivelling up and dying. Is it down to the weather? Did it not like the plant food? Is it the wrong sort of plum tree?  I wish I knew.