Stubbornness is a gift

Stubbornness is a gift. I’m not joking when I say this. If I wasn’t stubborn, I’d have given up months ago and grown cress on a windowsill. Trying to find a replacement for Will has been a nightmare. I’ve been so lucky with Katie Kitchins and Dexterous Designs for my socials and website that I thought groundworks would be the same — quick, easy, straightforward. But nothing could be further from the truth. The mower leak, the delays, the company I bought it from having terrible customer services, the endless waiting… it’s been driving me steadily up the wall.

Today that changed.

Today Taylor came back from his sabbatical, and we finally collected the woodchipper that’s been sitting in the Howardsw’ garage like a forgotten side quest. Then I got them to pick up the mower — and that’s where the story turned. Because instead of another frog, I got a prince. Not the fairy-tale kind, but the practical kind: Harvey, who has stepped up to run the family business while his dad, Howard, is unwell. Harvey owns the same machine as me, knows it inside out, and has that calm, capable confidence of someone who grew up fixing things properly. Even though he is young and still in his 20’s he is most capable and strong, hauled my ride into Mordor mower about like a dinkytoy.

His website is here if you want to see the business: howardsw.co.uk https://howardsw.co.uk/ A proper local outfit, and exactly the kind of people who keep rural life functioning.

For the first time in weeks, I felt the universe stop throwing obstacles and start offering solutions. The mower is in the right hands. The chipper is home. The field suddenly feels manageable again.

And all of this sits under the accidental banner of No Mow May, which for me became No Mow May, and a fair chunk of June thanks to technical chaos. But the land didn’t mind. In fact, it thrived. The grasses shot up, the wildflowers took their chance, and the butterflies arrived like tiny inspectors signing off on the whole operation. This weeks top chart

🦋 Gatekeeper (Hedge Brown)

The rusty‑orange butterfly with the dark border and the little white spot on the wing. Gatekeepers love hedgerows and rough field margins — exactly what I’ve accidentally created by not mowing for two months. Their caterpillars feed on coarse grasses, and the adults nectar on bramble and ragwort. They’re mid‑level in the food chain, feeding birds and spiders while pollinating the plants that hold the field together. Their presence means the edges of the land are healthy and functioning as proper wildlife corridors again.

🦋 Green Hairstreak

The tiny pistachio‑green jewel flickering low over the grass. Green Hairstreaks are specialists — they only appear where the habitat is clean, chemical‑free, and structurally diverse. Their caterpillars feed on gorse and bird’s‑foot trefoil, and the adults take nectar from whatever small flowers they can find. They’re prey for birds and parasitic wasps, and they’re important pollinators for the overlooked plants that keep a field’s ecology running. Seeing one means the land isn’t just recovering — it’s becoming interesting again.

🦋 Peacock Butterfly

The big one — the show‑off with the eye spots. Peacocks are ecological heavyweights. Their caterpillars live communally on nettles, which means my nettle patches are doing exactly what they’re supposed to do. Adults feed on thistles, dandelions, and anything with decent nectar. They’re prey for birds, but those giant eye spots give them a fighting chance. Seeing a healthy Peacock drifting across the field is a sign of a functioning, resilient ecosystem.

And honestly, having a six‑foot wall of nettles suddenly doesn’t feel like a failure anymore. It feels like an asset. Think of the compost tea and nettle feed I can make before I even start processing the fibres. I’ve got a little bundle of processed nettle fibre here — silky, surprisingly soft, and ridiculously strong. Mix in less than 5% with wool and you get knitwear that could probably survive a nuclear winter. I’ll pop a short video below so you can see the fibre up close — and, inevitably, the moment Head of Security decided it was HIS toy.

Because of course he did.

This cat cannot resist anything silky running between his claws. It’s his favourite sensation in the world. He’s got a whole drawer of ribbons that mummy dutifully rags about so he can experience the full ecstasy of silky smooth fibres gliding between his toes. Heaven. For a very old, slightly sticky tom, he’s living his best retirement-pouncing on nettle fibre like it’s the height of luxury enrichment.

And honestly? If the butterflies, the nettles, the fibre, and the cat are all thriving… then so am I. Another early start tomorrow, and I’ll be off to bed while it’s still light outside — lined curtains or blackout blinds are an absolute must for anyone working unsociable hours.

I bid you a good night, and I’ll see you next week. Thanks for dropping by to see what fifteen acres plus parking actually looks like in reality.