The Spring clean is an age old ritual that helps us to adjust to the passing of seasons. It is the gentle stepping out of doors from our winter hibernation. In the garden it is the pulling up of the weeds so we can lay down new seedlings & then we take this action & cleansing energy of renewal indoors & around the home because you can’t help it, when the energy of Spring is upon you it only seems right that everything get’s a freshening up. & this year our Toca Spring clean has extended to the digital realms as this, our website, has also had the benefit of a long awaited update & this archived blog gets to have a voice again!

Toca breakfast
Nothing helps Spring cleaning like a washing machine!
Toca teamwork

This past winter was unusually dry for Portugal & for a while we we’re worried about our water supply for us & the garden, but April has certainly brought its showers & the gardens are looking luscious & green & the blooms bright & colourful. Seeds have been sown, seedlings planted & still more to transplant. Spring is a great time for muddy fingers. The days are lengthening, the evenings becoming mild & there’s energy all around. You can really feel this is the time for doing before the summer heat arrives.

Papa Rabbit certainly has the right gardening technique

 

 

 

The seed babies are growing!

 

& in this time for new growth & fertility (it is Beltane tomorrow) it wouldn’t be the season without a few spring chick’s. & okay we don’t have chicks but we do have newborn kittens! The three kittens are doing well, getting nice & strong & starting to explore.

New kittens Nala, Mali Bagheera

This brings our current cat total up to Seven, alongside two dogs & two ducks. We are very much outnumbered & if the animals ever start an uprising we’re doomed, so we must keep feeding them & being nice & loving carers.

Jefferson

Peggy Leggy
Crappy Flappy
Yuki
Anu
Pão

Down at the bottom of the garden there has been a structure growing for some months & it now operable & safe to mount! Toca has a decking, a lovely space to gather & twirl & stretch & stargaze. This amazing space is a great source of excitement & inspiration, there are many plans for activities & events we hope to host down in this corner of the garden beside the river.

& speaking of new structures, the Toca tool room (courtesy of Peiter & Doina) is fantastic! It was a long needed operation to move the tool room out of the house & this lovely space is keeping (relatively) tidy! Tools can be expensive to find in Portugal so its important that they have a special home here at Toca where they can be kept safe. (Yet more things that need care…) If you happen to have an excess of tools in your life & want to offload Toca is alway grateful for useful donations.

Sending much love & hugs & kisses to everyone who helped Toca to complete achieve these projects. & of course it doesn’t  stop there. Looking ahead to the next month there is much more work to do! Our projects over the next month include:

  • Whilst the decking is up, it is still in need of a roof/sun shade for the sun can be mighty fierce. We are still searching materials to achieve this, (if you can help with this please message/comment.)
  • & the neck step of a decking dream is an outdoor kitchen & clean  water access at the bottom of the garden.
  • The new tool room has freed up space in house. This room will be redesigned into a new guest room so that we have more space for lovely visitors!
  • Planting pretty plants. Because it is alway nice when things grow.

But if you were worrying that we are working too much never fear because the local village, Alferce, has a new bar: Al-faris. Opened by our dear friends they are keeping us well entertained with plenty of live music & exciting foods.

If you would like to come get involved with our project & hang out at the bar with us just get in touch via the Visit Us page. We would love to meet you!

^^This is how Toca does Spring cleaning^

 

Thanks for reading, this has been Enja from wilde wolle.

With Toca Love x

Spring Clean – April Update
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