Incredible New Vegetable Garden | Small Scale Self-Sufficiency... again saving to watch... no time... lol

Dr. Said She’d Die, Instead She Bought a Farm... saving to watch later

no dig gardening.. thoughts

  'no dig' subject. is a wonderful idea, I find digging difficult now, BUT.... I grow in small beds in a small area surrounded by mixed hedge which would  take over the whole garden if the long sucker roots are not dug out . The beds that are already 'going' were bastard trenced about 20 years ago and now are dug over to one fork depth.... just a turn over... to find any roots near the surface and get them out. The 'planned' bed(was a bed before,,, also bastard trenched 20 years ago,  but has overgrown to look like lawn now) will need grass taken off and again will be turned over to one forkful depth. I'll add a photo later when I've time as I would like to document the re-making of the Pole Bed.. its next to a clothes-line pole... lol. 

i'm halfway through this video so just a link here to get back to it https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HXsYPLzyiE4

JIMMY CARR: HIS DARK MATERIAL | Brand new Netflix special coming 25 Dece...

What I'm sowing in December and January,

house sparrow

female house sparrow on the bird seed feeder

this is the best I can manage with the camera.. really missing having a good camera.
 

more daffodils

more daffodil bulbs into some pots, these were intended for putting out in the garden but didn't get around to it... so at least they are planted and they can be transferred into the garden after they have flowered

a couple already showing that they are starting to grow... poor things left in a bag....

and they are topped off with compost and a layer of stones and left outside. hmmm... think maybe a couple could go in the greenhouse to see if they'll flower earlier.

cold. very windy storm over Friday night... a couple of panes of the greenhouse have suffered... but patched up now. surrounding area has seen fences and trees down, so I'm thankful there wasn't more

Casper getting tucked up on my bed, under the blanket in the sun. he looks pleased . lol. bless him.
 

NEW Flower Pot Heater - Costs Just 4 Cents An Hour To Run... saving to remember how it works

 

they look great..... just watch this video as well as they are  not all problem free

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fnna1PAakV4

Cozy Cabin Vibes in this TINY Van | Ford Transit Connect DIY Conversion ...

 

this is a really cute little van

garden

I planted the bigger pot up with daffodil bulbs and topped all four of these off with little stones. I love this look and it  stops the soil getting washed out with heavy rain .

also a couple of smaller pots planted with daff bulbs, and all of the others topped with stones. I use this to show that there is ''something'' in the pot, it could be a cutting or something with a lost label, a couple of these have acorns in them and they can take a couple of years to show sometimes, and the stones mean 'don't tip this out'. it works for me.

I'm really pleased this wood fitted inside the car, I could have driven with it hanging out the back as it was only a few streets away but now that I know an 8ft plank will fit inside the car I can look for more wood and be confident I can pick it up even from a distance away.   I do try to get everything free or recycled   but I've had to spend some money  for these,  really good thick wood, and will be used to start renewing the edges of the veggy beds. it'll do one bed all round and two long sides of another.  

interesting lactose intolerance article

Mongolian Heritage

 thankfully this doesn't affect me, such an interesting article, my own thoughts are 'we are too clean and too far removed from nature'

so there is something to being horsey and gardening.... such as making and eating a sandwich without washed hands..... I'm not off work with any illness as much as everybody else in the workplace. 

people are wimps now as well.. going to A&E with the slightest little thing. 

I'm tired and looking forward to a week off work from Friday.

autumn garden

 lots of leaves off the tree, it hadn't been windy so they were landing on the grass... I cut the grass after this so they were gathered up by the mower, as you can see in the video

Casper always has to star. 💖😻

I just need a raincoat....Billy's weather forecast.....

 

I just need to put on my  raincoat, and to practice having a glass half full instead of a glass half empty......

weary of the weather

I've bought a set of  Lister Star Clippers, so Quince has just had her fourth clip, its surprising how fluffy she gets very quickly. there's not been much nice weather recently, its not particularly cold, just damp and drizzly, not keen on going out riding, can't get anything done in the garden.
 

 

a dinners worth of vegetables. , two yellow beetroot, two good size carrots and two tiny, one long parsnip hiding under the big carrot... a long skinny leek..  tied it in a circle to fit it into the photo, and some chard leaves. I've still a few tomatoes ripening in a drawer, and there's probably more dinners out in the garden, not a lot though its nice to have what comes.

saving to remember, warm milk recipe

 https://www.motherearthnews.com/natural-health/my-natural-sleep-aid-zbcz2101?fbclid=IwAR1KGFVqriJ_M4DFRsincATtOq3TzQVhRJkO1oF798p05r54GTBhG4kvX8k

Her Adorable DIY Tiny Home for Retirement - Divorce To Living Simple

new to me...

 

I introdude Biscuit Spider Gump.

came with lucky charm already in place, and a choice of packed lunch spots.

spider web, flat on the passenger door... interesting... 

 

edited .... reserve the right to change the name as i please.... lol

wow

''He directed dozens of sheep as a filmmaker, forming a heart captured by a drone. An Australian Shepherd's emotional homage to his deceased aunt is making its way around the world. As he told local media, Ben Jackson was unable to attend his aunt's funeral in Brisbane due to borders closed by Covid. For this on the plateau of Guyra, he decided to pay homage to his dear aunt by creating a huge heart with the help of his sheep. The video has been shared on social media thousands of times.''

https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2021/aug/25/a-love-heart-made-out-of-sheep-australian-farmer-pays-tribute-to-his-aunt

Dance of the Thistledown

saving to remember to look up this artists work

Incredible Small Off-Grid Earthship Home

Wabi-Sabi Modern Japanese Inspired Small Home

70 Year Old Builds Innovative Off-Grid Tiny House For Debt Free Retirement, to watch later

Ultimate Stealth Camper Van Tour | Nissan NV200 Self-Converted Build Wal...to watch later

rain rain rain

yipee... there are two aubergines, just about three inches long, i'll let them fatten up for a few days , then eat them.. lol. there are also a few sweet peppers about the size of my thumbnail, hope they get to eating size soon. both aubergine and peppers in the greenhouse and are infested with greenfly...

this is a lemon cucumber and about as big as you want them, this one and two smaller ones made it into a pasta salad yesterday.

the constoluto tomato monster !! most of them are single ones, this seems to be three squashing together! all the tomato plants now have fruit on them, but not anywhere near ripe. I'm cutting off all the extra growth now, just let ripen whats already there.

the courgette planted outside was decimated by slugs, this is a second planting, kept in the greenhouse in a bucket, its just started to flower so I hope it will produce . I'm glad it was kept inside as the second planting of pumpkin again was decimated... even with slug nematodes applied...

this is a sparrowhawk, sitting on the roof of a house opposite, probably the reason there are very few little birds to be seen anywhere.... 

after a too hot two weeks its now been thunderstorms and heavy rain for about four days, I got the front grass cut yesterday but the back is thicker and too wet... it'll have to wait till it drys up during the week.. if it drys up, this is typical of when I have a week off work, the weather does not play fair. I got some of the blackthorn branches removed from the back hedge yesterday, the main part of them will need a chainsaw massacre.... if my friend has time to do that, there's so much big stuff needing tamed all over the garden.

as I was typing , saw the sparrowhawk  fly over the top of the gardens.

good eating...

 at last some tomatoes, a constoluto type, squiggly, lovely. theres a few tomatoes now on all the plants. 

I've harvested a couple of handfulls of sugarsnap peas, eaten immediatley. and I've picked a few of the savoy cabbage leaves, leaving the plant to still grow, just cooked with potatoes and butter. lovely. also eating chard , kale  and collard leaves.

greenhouse video mid july

very much a jungle, the aubergine has flowers but no fruit, the peppers not even flowered, the lemon cucumber is taking over, and I've eaten a few of the small round cucumbers it produces, the tomatoes are flowering but no fruits yet.... and I've two friends report that they have tomatoes growing... so I don't know why its all so different.

the potatoes looked healthy enough but only produced three small potatoes from the bag... think a bucket would have been better as the soil that came out of the bag was very wet. i'll leave the oustide potatoes for about another month or so before seeing whats in there. 

the cougettes and pumpkin in the garden have failed totally... being eaten from underground and the tops. they started off well but can't cope with the slug population. slug nematodes are not available to buy anywhere and i won't use chemicals. there's a couple of beer traps out and i go hunting with a pair of scissors, lifting bricks to see whats under ,,,, also in the evening if its wet/cool and i can find them out and about.... cut them in half. leave the bits for the birds.... i've seeded another courgette and pumpkin , the pumpkin planted out this morning, not sure if i want to plant the courgette out or try to stuff it into the greenhouse in a bucket.

using the temporary coldframe..carrots and beetroot sown directly have done reasonably well, peas and beans that were sown directly under the coldframe are looking good , it was lifted off them when they started to touch the glass. the beans planted out.. gifted... haven't grown at all. the broccoli , cabbage, all the greens... all looking reasonalby good... have been eating a few chard and kale leaves.

Oprah’s What Can You Live Without Experiment (Pt. 1) | The Oprah Winfrey... to watch later

greenhouse , updated with video

seems that laptop will upload today. maybe its the connection.... 

 in the greenhouse, potted into growing spaces are... two fat tomatoes, two cherry tomatoes, one each of pink and green tomatoes. Two cumcumbers, two green peppers and two aubergines. There are some potatoes growing in a compost bag.. hopefully some ready to eat soon, some carrots in a pot which are small but can be eaten, and a tray of lettuce that I've just started eating, it should do a few days. 

No Dig Garden - saving to watch later

this mornings garden.

 Casper prefers to go back inside.

Equine Metabolic Syndrome ... save for reference

Peaceable Kingdom - The Journey Home (2009)

 

to watch later

from garden diary. photos in a week maybe... lol

 

8/4/21                   19.6        5.6          -1.5

10/4/21                23.8        22.3        -1.2

11/4/21                20.5        18.3        -1.2        out of room in the greenhouse, no more seed trays.. lol... I’ve a few old yellowing lids in the shed, will dig them out. Turned over the middle bed with horse poop, need to get more worms too.

16/4/21                29.3        14.3        -1.9

17/4/21                27.9        11.3        2.2          greenhouse gets too hot. Poor germination with onions and red/green sweet peppers, have re-sown Walla Walla and Rossi  oninons , also Asti Rossi and Frigitello sweet peppers.

19/4/21                30           14.5        4.2

20/4/21                37.7        13.8        8.3

21/4/21                45.5        ...            5.5    eeek. hot hot hot

24/4/21                greenhouse reaching ridiculous temperatures during the day.. but is cold in the shaded part.. is a conundrum... .  have seeded today, in the house but intend to put them in the greenhouse tomorrow... Tomatos.... Pomodoro Costoluto Fiontentino.....Pomodoro Ciliegino a Grappolo(F1 Red Bunch)...Tomato Tigerella.. Tomato Raspberry Oxheart. .

a couple of pics from Saturday

in the greenhouse with the sun on his back.

 filling up the shelves with seed trays.

April

 

todays pickings of purple sprouting broccolli and chives, about to be made into an omlette and eaten for dinner. 

I'm tired out from work, weary of the changing weather. 

following are temperatures and what's been sown in the greenhouse, as typed into my garden diary adn copied and pasted to here.

22/3/21                18.7        11.8        3.8

27/3/21                19.1        9.9          2.2          sown  ===some more Cipolla Rossa Di Tropea Onion as they just don’t look like germinating, Blumen Sapore Italiano. === Pepper Largo De Reus Pairal, More Veg.=== Pepper Quadrato  Asti Rosso, Blumen Sapore Italiano===Carrot Ideal, baby type.. for little first carrots.Suttons===Courgette Black Beauty===Pumpkin Small Sugar===Cucumber Lemon===Leaf Beet Perpetual Spinach, More Veg===Spinach Giant Nobel===

31/3/21                21.2        9.7          4.2

2/4/21                   21.9        2.1          0.3

3/4/21                   27.3        21.9        2.1

4/4/21                   20.1        12.8        1.5          sown === Cauliflower Romanesco, Suttons === Cauliflower Snowball Y Improved, Sow n Grow===  Broccolli Continuity,Suttons === Broccoli Walthan, Sow n Grow=== Kale Vates Blue Scotch Curled, Sow n Grow=== Cabbage or Kale Cavalo Nero di Toscana,  Blumen Sapore Italiano  === Cabbage Winter Jewel, Suttons === Cabbage Savoy Perfection, Sow n Grow=== Green Pepper Pepperone Friggitello, Blumen Sapore Italiano=== Chard Ruby Red, Sow n Grow === Chard Lucullus, Sow n Grow=== Collards Vates, Sow n Grow=== Brussells Sprouts Long Island Improved, Sow n Grow === Arugula, Sow n Grow===  Anise, Sow n Grow===Fennel, Sow n Grow===

Sundays gardening

greenhouse temperatures. max 23 c   current 18.5   min 2.5c    seeding herbs and wild flower mix into new seed tray/propagator; coriander, sage, rosemary, thyme, parsley and re-sown onion seeds, Cipolla Rossa Di Tropea.

old propagator lids on the left.. look how yellow they are compared to the nice new clear ones. will use the old ones till they fall apart, they've given good years of use.

 bookmark from Wildside, keeping place

favourite gardening book. I reccomended this to a friend who unfortunately bought the 'new edition' which I've looked at and don't like at all.. the author has changed his views and ways of doing things over time.. so I'll only recommend the old edition, not the new one... what suits some people doesn't suit others.

I've been piling horse poop on top of this bed for a couple of weeks, bringing home a couple of bags at a time in the car.

that's it dug in now, weeds removed, stones removed. I know its not been tended well for a number of years but the soil seems such poor quality.. like its never been dug over before... oh well, it can only improve with work and time.

these are snakeshead fritillary which were coming up underneath the twisted hazel... its the right time to move snowdrops.. but not these... but, being on my knees removing the snowdrops from under there, I just thought well move them while I'm there... as not likely to want to crawl under again.... hope they survive. snowdrops and fritts now in a place where they can be better seen when they come up next year.

March

hyacinths, smell wonderful.

snow on the hills, weather is changeable with some warm days and some not

a good day, out riding.

in the garden, the first little daffodil to flower, its about six inches high, and the purple sprouting broccoli, making a nice colour and providing some to eat, I eat the leaves too, and the last leek, which is a skinny one, but tasty all the same.

Sowing Fava Beans and Planning for the Hungry Gap

rain on a Saturday

 Empire Biscuit from a local bakery, my favourite. 

not taken record of temperature every day, max 21.9, current 11.5, min 3.9.    Not been the nicest weather though its not freezing,  typical of my days off .. its raining and cold.         

seeds planted today,  7 of Aubergine de Barbentane (More Veg)  and 6 of Pepper Quadrato Asti Rosso (Blumen Sapore Italiano).. these are in a wee mini plastic propagator from B&Q on the windosill in spare room.