The garden here at Casa Debbio is looking glorious. Filippo has mowed the terraces again. The grass grew quickly after the last rain and a couple of days of wet weather gave the rest of the plants a boost. Everything is looking so beautiful that I want to stop it right now.
There are tiny pears on the trees, of course I want them to grow.
The raspberry bushes have flowers, soon to be raspberries.
The gooseberries are growing.
Kiwi fruit are forming.
Developing cachi, or persimmon, look like wontons.
The changeable weather doesn’t seem to have suited the cherries. Their development has stalled.
The olive trees all have lots of baby olives.
I still haven’t been able to get a photo of the gorgeous green lizards, but this fellow was happy to pose for me.
The lavender is growing bigger by the day.
Acanthus flowers are popping up everywhere.
A couple of allium I bought in Helsinki are about to open.
Filippo has built steps between the terraces to make it easier to climb up…and down.
The wisteria has finished flowering and is getting thicker by the minute.
It is a lovely place to have lunch.
The view in the early evening is stunning.
Heavenly roses are blooming. The banksia roses were knocked around badly in the rain and wind, but they are beginning to recover.
Hydrangea flowers are opening.
The flowers I really want to freeze frame are the peonies. I love them!
Not all peonies have a fragrance, but the one below has the most delicious perfume. I could hold it to my nose all day.
Some have found their way inside.
The garden bed is coming along after a slow start. Birds ate most of the seeds I planted, snails chewed through a few other things, small animals have actually slept in the bed and the wild goats like to nibble the pansies, but it is growing. Filippo cut some planters from chestnut logs and they now sit beside the bed…there can never be too many flowers.
Lockdown restrictions have been relaxed a lot. I can now travel freely within our region and eat out, with careful measures in place. It is great to have a bit of freedom after more than 2 months.
I have enjoyed morning coffee with a friend at Bar Italia in Ponte a Serraglio.
Coffee and sfoglia at Catene Cafe in Fornoli.
Dinner with friends at Circolo dei Forestieri in La Villa.
Lunch with friends at Ristorante Alfonso in Barga.
I have also been to Lucca with a friend. It was great to see people about. The shops were open and the traders were upbeat and happy to be working again. There is hand sanitiser at every door and beside every cash register, numbers in shops are limited and it all seems to be working well.
There were no crowds and people were keeping a distance from each other. Nobody wants to go back to lockdown after sampling freedom.