It's been one of those weekends you wish wouldn't end. The weather has been glorious, lots of sunshine, and a breeze just to keep things tolerable. We have been clearing out lots of surpluses at home, and have managed to sell lots of things we have salvaged along the way developing the cottage and gardens here. Huge slabs of Welsh slate were collected by 2 young men doing up a cottage in Kent, who plan to use it as the hearth and back for a stove they are installing.  A large pile of Staffordshire blue diamond stable pavers will soon be making a reappearance on active duty as part of the refurbishment and restoration of Broadway Station 

This afternoon, as part of our Allotment Association's contribution to National Allotment Week  , we held a bring and share tea party on the Oak Common adjacent the allotments at Vicarage Hill, using produce we had grown at the allotments. The range of offerings was immense, from 30 year old Bullace wine which was incredibly smooth, Blackberry Wines, Courgette Fritters, any number of chutney and jams. Various cakes, with unusual ingredients, salads, bread, fresh fruit - a  veritable cornucopia.  My contribution was home-made scones, using the eggs my hens lay, home-made Rhubarb and Stem Ginger Jam, and clotted cream in the picture above.

I packed the basket on my trust ancient Dawes bike, a relic from the 1970s, with a blanket, the scones, jam and cream, and some fruit juice, and Kevin and I cycled the mile into the village, and found the rest of the party goers. Allotmenteers from both the allotment sites in the village were there, the original Vicarage Hill site where I have mine, and 20 new allotments that had been created this year at Dilly Lane.

A few competitions 'medals' were up for grabs too, though this was more a bit of fun, than the serious competition some hold. Longest bean, heaviest marrow,  prettiest plate of fruit, loveliest posy and so on. Much amusement followed as the co opted judge, a Parish Councillor by day, had the impossible task of picking a winner in each category.  The criteria  for a winner was simple in most cases - which would she most like to eat!

A fun and relaxed time was had by all, recipes swapped, tips on growing various veg and fruit shared, and a real old-fashioned sense of community and shared purpose which seems so rare these days, for a brief 2 and a half hours, welded us all together as a gardening family. It was a wonderful way to spend a lazy Sunday afternoon.

I suggested a communal apiary, and this wasnt rejected and the Parish Councillor promised to give it some serious consideration. I also suggested that it might be a good idea if we had a better method of communicating with one another, rather than the haphazard chances of bumping into someone at the allotment, or leaving messages on the gates into the site, or in the community shed, which invariably get eaten by mice, or buried under piles of magazines and surplus seeds and plants we all share. I am going to set up a Facebook Page, and see how that goes for now. If it takes off, then I may try a Ning site.

Anyone else noticed the autumnal nip in the air as the sun goes down? Its feels like we are not only having a late summer, but maybe it will be all too brief and Autumn will set in early too?