Here, but still in my sick bed. I’m amazed I remembered what day it was.

The native frangipani is out……there is heavenly perfume in the air.

a bit quiet in here….

bluegreen said:

a bit quiet in here….

WE are all busy watering because Huey has forgotten us.

Nah, we are busy mowing, because we had some warm days, a couple of inches of rain and some more warm days. Things are growing well this season, so far. Although my tomato seedlings have suffered from the heat today. At two leaf stage, they have not appreciated being dehydrated.

buffy said:

Nah, we are busy mowing, because we had some warm days, a couple of inches of rain and some more warm days. Things are growing well this season, so far. Although my tomato seedlings have suffered from the heat today. At two leaf stage, they have not appreciated being dehydrated.

Yes about tomatoes suffering.

same here. No about the couple of inches of precipitation.. not happening.

Morning green ones. Catching up again :)
It’s a cold rainy day today.
I’m still crook but getting better. Still on antibiotic meds and if I miss a painkiller tablet I really feel it. Dunno if I’d said it before I think, but panadol osteo sheets all over the opiate painkillers.

I enjoyed those couple warmer days to get out in the garden and do a few things. I have a mini garden event on thurs with about 20 people from a local gardening club coming to see my fruit trees and veges.
I had the help of a lovely friend AJ to fix a few things and do a tidy up: she is incredible. I feel awful about being rather invalid from my crook back as well and needing the help. But AJ couldn’t wait to get here and kept saying ‘if this were my place I would…….’, so I told her, look do what you want, however you want it, I will love it anyway. That’s what she wanted to hear. The patio has been transformed, once again!, and over the past 2 days we’ve been repotting and pruning and moving things. It’s going to look terrific. I had a list of things to get and I started off in the morning, then AJ got here at 11 am.

2 am this morning we called it a ‘day’: both covered in mud and leaves and looking like we’d crawled for a few kilometers up a muddy creek bed, lol. The midnight trek past the fernery and up into the pot storage area was a hoot. With torches, we sniffed out some ceramic pots that had not been used in years. And of course they were right at the the bottom of a mountain of garden stuff and rolls of fencing and a motorbike in parts under a tarp, heaps of rolls of poly hose and tons of pots. Much shrieking from AJ, then me.. discovered AJ is terrified of cockroaches! lol! I thought she’d seen a snake and I was ready to scale the bloody fence! Gimme a bloody heart attack girl! The roaches natives and I won’t let anyone kill them. Sooo I’m a roach lover apparently, lol. We got back into the inside light and did a check for cuts and scratches and any missing limbs. All good :)

A disaster has befallen the aquaponics system. Watersnails… in the grow beds and everywhere. I am devastated. Until I work out how to clean them out and prevent their return, everything growing in it is being fed to the chooks. I cleared out one bed entirely and threw all the greens into the hens pens. My many lettuce seeding’s waiting to be planted into the grow beds will now go into a raised garden bed. It will be a snail no go warzone. I’m going to net it with sheer curtaining, nothing gets through that, and lined both sides with a rainbow of snail bait coloured pellets.

That’s a project for another day. If I have to I will use chemicals.

In the meantime the whip cracking roach fearing AJ is back today at 11 and I gotta get a few things on a new list, lol.

Need coffee!

Happy Potter said:

The midnight trek past the fernery and up into the pot storage area was a hoot. With torches, we sniffed out some ceramic pots that had not been used in years. And of course they were right at the the bottom of a mountain of garden stuff and rolls of fencing and a motorbike in parts under a tarp, heaps of rolls of poly hose and tons of pots. Much shrieking from AJ, then me.. discovered AJ is terrified of cockroaches! lol! I thought she’d seen a snake and I was ready to scale the bloody fence! Gimme a bloody heart attack girl! The roaches natives and I won’t let anyone kill them. Sooo I’m a roach lover apparently, lol. We got back into the inside light and did a check for cuts and scratches and any missing limbs. All good :)

Wish I could have been there! lol!

When I read what you get up to when you are sick and in pain, the mind boggles what you could achieve if you were whole and hardy! Go girl!

Shame about the water snails. Do they make stuff inedible? You can’t just wash them off? Wondering why the chooks get all the goodies.

Thought I’d pop this in here – Unless there is anyone who wants to take it over, I’m going to delete the Scribblygum Wiki – It’s getting some spam, and the domain name is due for re-registration in December. I might leave it up til then, in case anyone wants to grab any mementos from it … almost all of the links are now broken – the saddest of these being rustic’s rambles.

:(

http://scribblygumwiki.net/

bluegreen said:

Happy Potter said:

The midnight trek past the fernery and up into the pot storage area was a hoot. With torches, we sniffed out some ceramic pots that had not been used in years. And of course they were right at the the bottom of a mountain of garden stuff and rolls of fencing and a motorbike in parts under a tarp, heaps of rolls of poly hose and tons of pots. Much shrieking from AJ, then me.. discovered AJ is terrified of cockroaches! lol! I thought she’d seen a snake and I was ready to scale the bloody fence! Gimme a bloody heart attack girl! The roaches natives and I won’t let anyone kill them. Sooo I’m a roach lover apparently, lol. We got back into the inside light and did a check for cuts and scratches and any missing limbs. All good :)

Wish I could have been there! lol!

When I read what you get up to when you are sick and in pain, the mind boggles what you could achieve if you were whole and hardy! Go girl!

Shame about the water snails. Do they make stuff inedible? You can’t just wash them off? Wondering why the chooks get all the goodies.

I wish you could have been there too BG! AJ is ex defense, takes charge of proceedings, and has a voice to match! lol. When I’m whole and hardy I tend to be a lonely gardener. I won’t be in the future though. Except when I want to be :)
When I was well’er, we both designed and put her garden together. I supplied most of the materials via freebies and ‘it’s who you know’ sorts. She was extremely appreciative. She has 3 layabout whinging teens. I’m going to sort them! lol!

Snails, marine or otherwise, churn my stomach. I kept seeing those ‘almost impossible to kill’ parasitic flukes they carry. Slimy revolting disease carrying horrid things, I’d sooner swallow a blowfly I think. I don’t want either on my food.

Hello Gardeners. I did my Sunday bike ride, but only the short one today. Then I did some weeding and went for breakfast at the cafe. Since then I’ve done more weeding, carefully pricked out two of my precious tomato seedlings (Black Krim and Rouge de Marmande) and planted them out. They are the first to go out and they really are a bit young, but they’ve gone into the most protected spot. They have a ring of carrot/basil/marigold seed around them. They are going to grow together. I’ve made a careful list of pairs as I am going to plant two in one hole with the tomatoes this year and I needed to pair them so it is obvious which is which. Like a big fruit with a cherry, or a black fruit with a red. I belted three stakes in around them for later stringing up, and they all went crooked. We are on volcanic stuff here, including buried scoria and boulders. I suspect I hit the edge of a boulder….three times. Or three boulders.

The sun is coming and going here today. Presently it is here, so I’ll head outside again for a while.

Happy Potter said:

Snails, marine or otherwise, churn my stomach. I kept seeing those ‘almost impossible to kill’ parasitic flukes they carry. Slimy revolting disease carrying horrid things, I’d sooner swallow a blowfly I think. I don’t want either on my food.

Ah yes. I remember your parasite experience. I understand now.

Boy, if AJ and I were tired from yesty’s gardening until 2 am, today we are completely stuffed. We worked like trojans again, filled raised bed for the lettuces and planted the sides with a long list of herbs. Repotted a monster birds nest fern, changed a few pots around that we filled yesty, cleaned the chick temp pen areas in the rear mini orchard, netted the raised bed and folded and put away the pens. And about 100 other small jobs too many to list. We had a drinks break at 2pm and sat to survey the work, then found we couldn’t get up again, lol.
She will be back Tuesday. I have a few little things to do tomorrow.

Nanna nap is in order. The mans gone grocery shopping.

Morning all. It’s sunny but crisp, needed my big warm jacket on to feed the chickens.
My friend and I moved the Sussex chicks brooder box in the patio pots move and I think the cord to the light got damaged on the way as the bulbs keep blowing. The last one only lasted 20 minutes. They are old enough to be without lights during the day but the nights are still cold. I’ll get the man onto it soon as he gets home.

I’m planting out about 50 cos lettuces today in the raised bed. I’m armed with my rainbow colours of snail baits to go round the sides and between seedlings.

I get these big fat yellowish slugs everywhere and someone suggested they may be native slugs. Nope, they are not. Snail bait is the only pest control I am using these days, everything else I stopped using, even organic sprays like white oil. There’s plenty of good bugs about and they are working well. I never see too many of one pest like I used to do. The plague of earwigs was one of the most memorable. It rained earwigs.

I have a dentists appt for mon 11th. It turns out the abscess is in the molar that I had root canal treatment on. The fix is to treat that deep root with a surgical procedure to the side of my gum and remove it. It’s not that far under my cheek bone so it is really deep.
I hate teeth.

you know there are some days that you should never get out of bed….

well this morning I had an appt with the chiro and went to pay but it got rejected – forgot about something I bought the other day which emptied the account for the week. Promised to pay Wednesday (I get paid today but banks are closed tomorrow for some reason.)

on the way home I ran over a fox cub that suddenly changed direction on the road. Badly injured but not dead. Trying to work out how to put it out of its misery when a gentleman stopped and did it for me. Now don’t get me wrong. One less chook killer is a good thing, but doesn’t mean you let it die a lingering painful death. Doesn’t mean I don’t feel bad about it either.

After this week I will only be working 8 hrs/w instead of 12. They have not made any sales for a while so are running low on the means to pay me with.

on the up side I am making my first batch of Elderflower cordial from cuttings I brought up with me 3 years ago. It’s 3 years this coming Sunday that I have been here.

bluegreen said:

you know there are some days that you should never get out of bed….

well this morning I had an appt with the chiro and went to pay but it got rejected – forgot about something I bought the other day which emptied the account for the week. Promised to pay Wednesday (I get paid today but banks are closed tomorrow for some reason.)

on the way home I ran over a fox cub that suddenly changed direction on the road. Badly injured but not dead. Trying to work out how to put it out of its misery when a gentleman stopped and did it for me. Now don’t get me wrong. One less chook killer is a good thing, but doesn’t mean you let it die a lingering painful death. Doesn’t mean I don’t feel bad about it either.

After this week I will only be working 8 hrs/w instead of 12. They have not made any sales for a while so are running low on the means to pay me with.

on the up side I am making my first batch of Elderflower cordial from cuttings I brought up with me 3 years ago. It’s 3 years this coming Sunday that I have been here.

I can so relate, re some days you should not get out of bed.

Congrats on the 3 year anniversary:) How you have grown, quickly adding, in every good way!

Of course animals shouldn’t ever be left to die in pain. Living creature, even if it is a hated animal. I got a strange comment from a woman about me holding a young chicken with a broken leg inside my jacket on a bitterly cold day, even though it was moments from being culled. Because the chick was shivering from the cold!

Trade you.. some elderflower cordial for a Sussex roo?? ;)

Happy Potter said:

Trade you.. some elderflower cordial for a Sussex roo?? ;)

Haha.. well that be the other way round, bluegreen :D

Happy Potter said:

Trade you.. some elderflower cordial for a Sussex roo?? ;)

If it turns out I will be happy for you to have some :)

Weekend work.

roughbarked said:

Weekend work.

Looks good in the photo :)
What sort of tree are these? Are they destined to be sold at nurseries?

bluegreen said:

roughbarked said:

Weekend work.

Looks good in the photo :)
What sort of tree are these? Are they destined to be sold at nurseries?

They are Valencia of three varieties. Destined for a citrus orchard.

http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3702/10682875144_720da6ab95_z.jpg
a closer look. by roughbarked, on Flickr

that soil is really red!

bluegreen said:

that soil is really red!

Most of it is around here.

roughbarked said:

bluegreen said:

that soil is really red!

Most of it is around here.

Must be where the red centre starts ;)

Happy Potter said:

roughbarked said:

bluegreen said:

that soil is really red!

Most of it is around here.

Must be where the red centre starts ;)

Sorta, yeah.

Morning. I’m all ready for tomorrows garden club visit. I have heaps of veges planted out now, all the summer favourites.

I must take pics of the areas, broadbeans too, will do that today. They are covered in gorgeous red flowers and they got a lot taller than I was told they would, given that I planted them late. There’s about 100 leeks planted between the b’ beans. And I have lots of tiny fruit on the papaya. Yay.

Yesty my gardening friend AJ came over to help me finish off bits and pieces. That girl works like a Trojan. The bee hive at my place must have had too many bees in it. It divided… the queen flew off for new pastures with half the hive and a swarm happened in my driveway, directly over AJ’s silver coloured car. By the time the swarm moved down the street her car was spattered with yellow pollen spots, lol. It was amazing to see!
I rang various bee hive peoples and they were last seen following the swarm to retrieve it, lest someone spray them with poison.

My jaw is still sore, getting better but still on antibiotics. Stuff fixing the tooth, it’s coming out. Because I said so.

roughbarked said:

Happy Potter said:

roughbarked said:

Most of it is around here.

Must be where the red centre starts ;)

Sorta, yeah.

Natural top soil in my locale.

Love that red road pic RB.

Morning green ones. It’s a perfect day to have a mini open day for a private gardening club :) They will be here 10.30 ish. I have some morning tea jelly slice and will set the patio table up pretty.
The garden looks nice.

I’m still getting better, ok enough to get back to it now.
But Max has to get yet another full blown ear infection on one side. We have a once a week standing appointment at the vets now, every Wed for a check up. He is on antibiotics too and has an ear wash and ear drops. Between he and I, one side of my desk looks like a chemists shelf.

Happy Potter said:

But Max has to get yet another full blown ear infection on one side. We have a once a week standing appointment at the vets now, every Wed for a check up. He is on antibiotics too and has an ear wash and ear drops. Between he and I, one side of my desk looks like a chemists shelf.

Get well soon, Maxie!!

freak said:

Thought I’d pop this in here – Unless there is anyone who wants to take it over, I’m going to delete the Scribblygum Wiki – It’s getting some spam, and the domain name is due for re-registration in December. I might leave it up til then, in case anyone wants to grab any mementos from it … almost all of the links are now broken – the saddest of these being rustic’s rambles.

:(

http://scribblygumwiki.net/

Losing Rustic’s Rambles is unthinkable…I remember these from about 10 years ago…!

Dinetta said:

freak said:

Thought I’d pop this in here – Unless there is anyone who wants to take it over, I’m going to delete the Scribblygum Wiki – It’s getting some spam, and the domain name is due for re-registration in December. I might leave it up til then, in case anyone wants to grab any mementos from it … almost all of the links are now broken – the saddest of these being rustic’s rambles.

:(

http://scribblygumwiki.net/

Losing Rustic’s Rambles is unthinkable…I remember these from about 10 years ago…!

agreed.

Argh. woke with a severe muscle spasm on my right side upper back and shoulder. Any movement hurts..I’ve taken muscle relaxant and having a cuppa now then back to bed for me.

Ps garden open day yesty couldn’t have gone better. There was 25 members from a gardening club. We had a terrific day and every visitor left happy and with gifts of my home made jams, and/or sauces and herbs, seeds and cuttings. I nearly died when an elderly teacher of horticulture, who had taught overseas, walked through my gate. I had met him before, Lex…. can’t remb his surname, will find that out later, but he paid me the ultimate compliment saying it’s not often he’s been inspired by gardens he has visited, but that my garden had indeed. Especially the set out and taking advantage of shade and sun light and careful spacing’s. He is of the ‘old school’ where poisons were often used, but was very pleased my plants are thriving with no chemicals used at all. I am chuffed to say the least :D
He especially loved how my garden is chocker’s but at the same time low maintenance, keeping water in an area by way of borders and paths and moisture holding manure mulches, the guttering water holes and the inground ‘no harvest’ worm farms feeding the trees directly. I told him I’m a lone gardener with a crook back and I can’t lift the worm trays, so leaving them onsite was just a way of making it easier for me. He said that made a lot of sense.

My lovely friend AJ, new to gardening herself, had called in earlier and I made her stay for the visit. She had a blast making new friends and asking questions. We both received an invitation to attend the clubs xmas luncheon in early Dec. That was very nice of them.

:D

Happy Potter said:

Argh. woke with a severe muscle spasm on my right side upper back and shoulder. Any movement hurts..I’ve taken muscle relaxant and having a cuppa now then back to bed for me.

Ps garden open day yesty couldn’t have gone better. There was 25 members from a gardening club. We had a terrific day and every visitor left happy and with gifts of my home made jams, and/or sauces and herbs, seeds and cuttings. I nearly died when an elderly teacher of horticulture, who had taught overseas, walked through my gate. I had met him before, Lex…. can’t remb his surname, will find that out later, but he paid me the ultimate compliment saying it’s not often he’s been inspired by gardens he has visited, but that my garden had indeed. Especially the set out and taking advantage of shade and sun light and careful spacing’s. He is of the ‘old school’ where poisons were often used, but was very pleased my plants are thriving with no chemicals used at all. I am chuffed to say the least :D
He especially loved how my garden is chocker’s but at the same time low maintenance, keeping water in an area by way of borders and paths and moisture holding manure mulches, the guttering water holes and the inground ‘no harvest’ worm farms feeding the trees directly. I told him I’m a lone gardener with a crook back and I can’t lift the worm trays, so leaving them onsite was just a way of making it easier for me. He said that made a lot of sense.

My lovely friend AJ, new to gardening herself, had called in earlier and I made her stay for the visit. She had a blast making new friends and asking questions. We both received an invitation to attend the clubs xmas luncheon in early Dec. That was very nice of them.

:D

Sounds like it was a lovely and affirming occasion. I concur that you are an inspiration :)

Apparently Indian Tonic Water is a good remedy for cramps. I know muscle spasm has a different trigger but I wonder if it would also help? Something to do with quinine. However too much quinine can produce side effects but the amounts in Tonic Water usually do not.

bluegreen said:

Happy Potter said:

Argh. woke with a severe muscle spasm on my right side upper back and shoulder. Any movement hurts..I’ve taken muscle relaxant and having a cuppa now then back to bed for me.

Ps garden open day yesty couldn’t have gone better. There was 25 members from a gardening club. We had a terrific day and every visitor left happy and with gifts of my home made jams, and/or sauces and herbs, seeds and cuttings. I nearly died when an elderly teacher of horticulture, who had taught overseas, walked through my gate. I had met him before, Lex…. can’t remb his surname, will find that out later, but he paid me the ultimate compliment saying it’s not often he’s been inspired by gardens he has visited, but that my garden had indeed. Especially the set out and taking advantage of shade and sun light and careful spacing’s. He is of the ‘old school’ where poisons were often used, but was very pleased my plants are thriving with no chemicals used at all. I am chuffed to say the least :D
He especially loved how my garden is chocker’s but at the same time low maintenance, keeping water in an area by way of borders and paths and moisture holding manure mulches, the guttering water holes and the inground ‘no harvest’ worm farms feeding the trees directly. I told him I’m a lone gardener with a crook back and I can’t lift the worm trays, so leaving them onsite was just a way of making it easier for me. He said that made a lot of sense.

My lovely friend AJ, new to gardening herself, had called in earlier and I made her stay for the visit. She had a blast making new friends and asking questions. We both received an invitation to attend the clubs xmas luncheon in early Dec. That was very nice of them.

:D

Sounds like it was a lovely and affirming occasion. I concur that you are an inspiration :)

Apparently Indian Tonic Water is a good remedy for cramps. I know muscle spasm has a different trigger but I wonder if it would also help? Something to do with quinine. However too much quinine can produce side effects but the amounts in Tonic Water usually do not.

Quinine is also in Schweppes lemon.

bluegreen said:

Happy Potter said:

Argh. woke with a severe muscle spasm on my right side upper back and shoulder. Any movement hurts..I’ve taken muscle relaxant and having a cuppa now then back to bed for me.

Ps garden open day yesty couldn’t have gone better. There was 25 members from a gardening club. We had a terrific day and every visitor left happy and with gifts of my home made jams, and/or sauces and herbs, seeds and cuttings. I nearly died when an elderly teacher of horticulture, who had taught overseas, walked through my gate. I had met him before, Lex…. can’t remb his surname, will find that out later, but he paid me the ultimate compliment saying it’s not often he’s been inspired by gardens he has visited, but that my garden had indeed. Especially the set out and taking advantage of shade and sun light and careful spacing’s. He is of the ‘old school’ where poisons were often used, but was very pleased my plants are thriving with no chemicals used at all. I am chuffed to say the least :D
He especially loved how my garden is chocker’s but at the same time low maintenance, keeping water in an area by way of borders and paths and moisture holding manure mulches, the guttering water holes and the inground ‘no harvest’ worm farms feeding the trees directly. I told him I’m a lone gardener with a crook back and I can’t lift the worm trays, so leaving them onsite was just a way of making it easier for me. He said that made a lot of sense.

My lovely friend AJ, new to gardening herself, had called in earlier and I made her stay for the visit. She had a blast making new friends and asking questions. We both received an invitation to attend the clubs xmas luncheon in early Dec. That was very nice of them.

:D

Sounds like it was a lovely and affirming occasion. I concur that you are an inspiration :)

Apparently Indian Tonic Water is a good remedy for cramps. I know muscle spasm has a different trigger but I wonder if it would also help? Something to do with quinine. However too much quinine can produce side effects but the amounts in Tonic Water usually do not.

Thankyou for your kind comment :)

I resorted to having a sports drink before going to bed and it helped with my severe lag cramps. But there’s too much sugar in that, so I saw a dietician and now just having a powdered blackberry flavoured rehydration drink sachets.
I’m not dehydrated, I drink plenty of fluids, it’s about the edema I get in my legs and the fluid shifting off my legs at night and the electrolyte balance going out of kilter. I knew it wasn’t anything I was doing wrong.

Muscle spasm however is different again. I get them now and then, thankfully rarely. I had out of date valium and took one. It worked tho, got just a teeny bit woozy. I take it only for this prob, one a day for 3 days and it goes away.

Later, when I can drive, I have a haircut appointment, then off to a friends place. She’s going to put a different colour in my hair, and a single streak. Maybe red. I’m game.. you only live once, lol.

Hello Gardeners.

Oh dear….I should not be let loose in Spotlight. I bought all the things on my list for the projects to be done (and now I have some laying out and cutting out to do for three dresses), but I also accidentally noticed some red brocade with black dragons on it. How could I go past that? I now have to go through my patterns and work out the best way to configure a stylish oriental style jacket with it. I got the black satin to line it too.

buffy said:

Hello Gardeners.

Oh dear….I should not be let loose in Spotlight. … I …accidentally noticed some red brocade with black dragons on it. How could I go past that?

… the mind boggles…

Good morning Gardeners. Alternating between sunny and showery here at the moment. I have a jumper on, so I guess it must be around 10 degrees.

Just found a first in the garden……the stockings holding up the broad beans have broken. Never had stockings do that before. I might blame slaters. Or something. Anyway, I’ve harvested the biggest pods and tied the things up again. Tonight will be broad beans and carrots and snow peas with the roast lamb.

Oh yes, another first for me……one of the leeks I hadn’t pulled did not throw up a flower spike, but developed a bulb.

Hmm, I wonder if the leek is actually an elephant garlic seed that came with the leek seeds…..

I’ll make potato and onion/leek soup with it anyway.

Morning. I’m running about like a hairy goat, again. Making comfrey ointment later, I’ve steeped the leaf overnight in a double boiler. Next step, straining the oil and re warm it, add grated beeswax and mix and let it set. Then I’m off to slather it on son in laws broken leg and instruct him on it’s use.

I know they will be tender and sweet, but I have to say……double shelling broad beans is tedious!

We have all my own veggies tonight. Potato and onion/leek bake. Carrots. Snow peas. Broad beans.

(The meat is leg of lamb….I’ve got some mint leaves steeping at the moment in vinegar and water for mint sauce)

Sounds delicious Buffy…why would you have to double-shell the broadbeans?

>>why would you have to double-shell the broadbeans?<<

I don’t like the taste of the bean skin. So I pop them out of the pod, nuke them for a minute and then remove the beanskin. Then just heat enough to melt a bit of butter over them, add garlic and lots of chopped parsley…..and they ain’t half bad.

:)

Anybody been in touch with Pomolo?

It looks like I’m getting a new chest freezer today, the old one has sprung a leak besides one side not freezing…not bad for a refrigeration unit over 30 years old…

Arvo all. I’ve been working in the garden in the drizzly rain. I was rugged up but still got soaked through. Raining heavier now so that’s it for the day. I’ve been shifting compost from the layer hens run into two low raised beds. The compost had been piled up and covered with mesh so the chooks couldn’t dig it out. Bucketful by bucketful, I have shifted what would amount to a half meter, or a good trailer load. It’s now being watered in and the next fine day will be planted out with capsicums, and tomatoes the other spot. looks like a few days of rain though. The toms are tall in their pots and screaming out to be planted up.
After a warming cuppa, I’m going to bottle some marmalade currently reducing in the jam pot. It smalls lovely.

This part of my Casterton garden is coming along very nicely:

And the veggie garden and orchard look beautiful when you’ve just done a mow with the catcher on. Usually I mulch mow, which is good too, but I wanted to mulch around the fruit trees, so I used the catcher:

buffy said:

This part of my Casterton garden is coming along very nicely:

The parkland effect. Nice.

buffy said:

And the veggie garden and orchard look beautiful when you’ve just done a mow with the catcher on. Usually I mulch mow, which is good too, but I wanted to mulch around the fruit trees, so I used the catcher:

I share the lawn clippings between the lawn and the garden.

buffy said:

This part of my Casterton garden is coming along very nicely:

it is indeed :)

Good morning Gardeners. Cool and damp here. Nice.

buffy said:

Good morning Gardeners. Cool and damp here. Nice.

same here :)

bluegreen said:

buffy said:

Good morning Gardeners. Cool and damp here. Nice.

same here :)

And here :) The rain was very welcome.

roughbarked said:

buffy said:

This part of my Casterton garden is coming along very nicely:

The parkland effect. Nice.

Well said, RoughBarked…

Well I’m back with a new freezer…P is having cold shoulder and hot tongue at the moment…I know the silly galoot of a shop “assistant” at Hardly Normal was a nosey parker but as I said in the car on the way home, he could have suggested we go “look” at the furniture and discuss the purchase…just to get away from the “assistant”. P wanted me to buy one size, it was $400 or $450, but I said it was too small. “There’s only you most of the time” quoth he…red rag to a bull…I’ve been checking prices and volumes and styles on the internet…so we left Hardly Normal with nothing…found a “Betta” Electrical and Furniture store we’d forgotten about over the years…only 2 electrical goods stores in town…I acquired my brand (Westinghouse) and my size (210 litres) for $150 less than the same item at Hardly Normal…P informed me that I got “half as much volume again for $200”…sheesh!! so we fought to the half-way mark home…

My point is the 160 litre is in the same category as the freezer on a fridge: with the 210 litre you’ve got room for emergencies and you don’t have to pull everything out to get what you want. Saw a 205 litre by HiSense, it’s configuration was beaut (longer, narrower, stuff can be more spread out therefore more accessible), much cheaper too, but I decided to stick with Westinghouse.

It’s in the kitchen, cooling down by heating up…I’m not sure how much I’ve lost in the old freezer but that’s life I guess…Shadow was a “farm” dog on the way back, as we brought it back in Sonny Jim’s ute…

Dinetta said:

Well I’m back with a new freezer…P is having cold shoulder and hot tongue at the moment…I know the silly galoot of a shop “assistant” at Hardly Normal was a nosey parker but as I said in the car on the way home, he could have suggested we go “look” at the furniture and discuss the purchase…just to get away from the “assistant”. P wanted me to buy one size, it was $400 or $450, but I said it was too small. “There’s only you most of the time” quoth he…red rag to a bull…I’ve been checking prices and volumes and styles on the internet…so we left Hardly Normal with nothing…found a “Betta” Electrical and Furniture store we’d forgotten about over the years…only 2 electrical goods stores in town…I acquired my brand (Westinghouse) and my size (210 litres) for $150 less than the same item at Hardly Normal…P informed me that I got “half as much volume again for $200”…sheesh!! so we fought to the half-way mark home…

My point is the 160 litre is in the same category as the freezer on a fridge: with the 210 litre you’ve got room for emergencies and you don’t have to pull everything out to get what you want. Saw a 205 litre by HiSense, it’s configuration was beaut (longer, narrower, stuff can be more spread out therefore more accessible), much cheaper too, but I decided to stick with Westinghouse.

It’s in the kitchen, cooling down by heating up…I’m not sure how much I’ve lost in the old freezer but that’s life I guess…Shadow was a “farm” dog on the way back, as we brought it back in Sonny Jim’s ute…

Hehe. It’s usually the other way round here with him wanting the bigger flashier job and me saying we don’t need one that big. In the end it’s who does the shopping and cooking who knows best with kitchen-y stuff. That shuts him up.
We’re making a killing on the mega solar panel sys’ while gas prices go up an up. So I’ve been making use of the old electric frypan, but need a new one.

Happy Potter said:

Dinetta said:

Well I’m back with a new freezer…P is having cold shoulder and hot tongue at the moment…I know the silly galoot of a shop “assistant” at Hardly Normal was a nosey parker but as I said in the car on the way home, he could have suggested we go “look” at the furniture and discuss the purchase…just to get away from the “assistant”. P wanted me to buy one size, it was $400 or $450, but I said it was too small. “There’s only you most of the time” quoth he…red rag to a bull…I’ve been checking prices and volumes and styles on the internet…so we left Hardly Normal with nothing…found a “Betta” Electrical and Furniture store we’d forgotten about over the years…only 2 electrical goods stores in town…I acquired my brand (Westinghouse) and my size (210 litres) for $150 less than the same item at Hardly Normal…P informed me that I got “half as much volume again for $200”…sheesh!! so we fought to the half-way mark home…

My point is the 160 litre is in the same category as the freezer on a fridge: with the 210 litre you’ve got room for emergencies and you don’t have to pull everything out to get what you want. Saw a 205 litre by HiSense, it’s configuration was beaut (longer, narrower, stuff can be more spread out therefore more accessible), much cheaper too, but I decided to stick with Westinghouse.

It’s in the kitchen, cooling down by heating up…I’m not sure how much I’ve lost in the old freezer but that’s life I guess…Shadow was a “farm” dog on the way back, as we brought it back in Sonny Jim’s ute…

Hehe. It’s usually the other way round here with him wanting the bigger flashier job and me saying we don’t need one that big. In the end it’s who does the shopping and cooking who knows best with kitchen-y stuff. That shuts him up.
We’re making a killing on the mega solar panel sys’ while gas prices go up an up. So I’ve been making use of the old electric frypan, but need a new one.

Thanks for the support, Happy Potter, and you are so right: it’s who does the shopping and cooking who knows what fits with the kitchen. I did ask P how often he had to use the freezer and the top of his skull nearly came off…

Here’s the URL to show you what I bought

Nothing flash and I certainly hope it lasts a long time.

The price I paid is close to what’s available online…I’ve got it beside the oven, so I’ll probably pick up some of those laminated glass heat stands to put down one side, catch the grease…

still alive.

pain master said:

still alive.

Good to know!

How goes it PM?

pain master said:

still alive.

Wonder of wonders that be.. :) good to see your words.

Morning all. The sun shines. At least now and then there’s a glimpse of it. Still cold but.
It’s Giant Sons 22 nd birthday and while the big lad sleeps, his gf and I are decorating his cake. It’s a 4 pack chock ripple cake with a ton of cream and then we threw everything glittery at it., literally. It’s covered with dollar fives, holographic edible glitter, 100s and 1000s and has his name in silver cashous. It looks terrible! lol. He will love it!

The kiddlywinks and grandies will all be here this evening to partake, then after tea the man will drive GS and gf home. Thank goodness because they have been here since Tues and driving me mad, lol.

The home made comfrey ointment is coming a very close second only to pawpaw cream for healing properties.
The man came home from work early a few days ago with a badly pulled hamstring, climbing ladders at work. He went to the drs on his way home, work requirement, was given a cert for a week off and told to rest it.
Him underfoot for a week? No way! I want my peace to tinker and potter about, tend to seedlings and talk to chooks, whatever I do, when I want to do it. He’s a chatterbox who does not understand that when I’m typing on a PC, I’m talking to someone! I’m not rude, I just want to be alone, lol.

Right, gimme that leg..I slapped the comfrey ointment on three/ four times a day. Day two and he’s up walking with no limp. Day three and he’s striding along trying to catch up with me trying to get away from him at the shopping centre.
Today is day four and he left for work at 6 am. Peace, arhhh :D

My scratched cut and bruised forearms have never looked better too!

Happy Potter said:

The home made comfrey ointment is coming a very close second only to pawpaw cream for healing properties.
The man came home from work early a few days ago with a badly pulled hamstring, climbing ladders at work. He went to the drs on his way home, work requirement, was given a cert for a week off and told to rest it.
Him underfoot for a week? No way! I want my peace to tinker and potter about, tend to seedlings and talk to chooks, whatever I do, when I want to do it. He’s a chatterbox who does not understand that when I’m typing on a PC, I’m talking to someone! I’m not rude, I just want to be alone, lol.

Right, gimme that leg..I slapped the comfrey ointment on three/ four times a day. Day two and he’s up walking with no limp. Day three and he’s striding along trying to catch up with me trying to get away from him at the shopping centre.
Today is day four and he left for work at 6 am. Peace, arhhh :D

My scratched cut and bruised forearms have never looked better too!

Comfrey is good stuff but for slightly different uses than pawpaw. I would also say the same thing about Calendula.

Happy Potter said:

Morning all. The sun shines. At least now and then there’s a glimpse of it. Still cold but.
It’s Giant Sons 22 nd birthday and while the big lad sleeps, his gf and I are decorating his cake. It’s a 4 pack chock ripple cake with a ton of cream and then we threw everything glittery at it., literally. It’s covered with dollar fives, holographic edible glitter, 100s and 1000s and has his name in silver cashous. It looks terrible! lol. He will love it!

The kiddlywinks and grandies will all be here this evening to partake, then after tea the man will drive GS and gf home. Thank goodness because they have been here since Tues and driving me mad, lol.

The cake sounds fantastic….

I know what you mean: you love to see them come visit and then you love to see them go home again…

Arh, calendula officinalis, got heaps of them coming up from the seeds I saved from last years flowers. Once I’ve got heaps of flowers and more beeswax, I shall make some salve.

Happy Potter said:

Morning all. The sun shines. At least now and then there’s a glimpse of it. Still cold but.
It’s Giant Sons 22 nd birthday and while the big lad sleeps, his gf and I are decorating his cake. It’s a 4 pack chock ripple cake with a ton of cream and then we threw everything glittery at it., literally. It’s covered with dollar fives, holographic edible glitter, 100s and 1000s and has his name in silver cashous. It looks terrible! lol. He will love it!

The kiddlywinks and grandies will all be here this evening to partake, then after tea the man will drive GS and gf home. Thank goodness because they have been here since Tues and driving me mad, lol.

Happy Birthday to GS :)

Happy Potter said:

Arh, calendula officinalis, got heaps of them coming up from the seeds I saved from last years flowers. Once I’ve got heaps of flowers and more beeswax, I shall make some salve.

Yup. That’s the one.. and.. you can make a tincture which is highly efficient in healing wounds from the bottom up.

bluegreen said:

Happy Birthday to GS :)

…oh yes, and from me as well…

Well I have taken the shredder back to the newsagent with an explanatory letter. She tried to tell me that cross cuts don’t take as much paper as the straight cut, what bollocks. I said my previous straight cut took only 4 sheets of plain paper and this cross cut is supposed to take eleven. The old straight cut had no problems with the newspaper, it went through like falling water. The “anti-jam” is the BIG feature of this shredder and it failed first up.

I seriously think the article is faulty.

Anyway I’ve given then 10 working days to come up with something, that’s what the Dept of Fair Trading told me to offer.

Morning all… I wonder if I could possibly sum up what’s been happening in a few words? Unlikely. Have been busy, but still taking some photos and have in particular this year been blown away by the image quality of a point and shoot camera I received last February. It has its limitations, but I can suffer those because of its awesomeness in other areas. Have caught up a few times recently with Longy and while I feel my life is busy, Longy offers a world that is chaotic and challenging and I respect how he has finally started to know when to stop working and when to chase fish with rod and reel.

more in a sec…

spent some time recently on a dig. It was like having a live version of time travellers and it real time. We would spend our days under tent in a hole in the ground scratching around and discussing soil profiles, certain rocks and iron oxide. In the evening we would retreat to the local watering hole to slake our thirsts and discuss the days findings and quite possibly what we would hope to find the next morning. Some of us would troll the interwebs for tidbits of information that perhaps could answer a question or 6…

pain master said:

spent some time recently on a dig. It was like having a live version of time travellers and it real time. We would spend our days under tent in a hole in the ground scratching around and discussing soil profiles, certain rocks and iron oxide. In the evening we would retreat to the local watering hole to slake our thirsts and discuss the days findings and quite possibly what we would hope to find the next morning. Some of us would troll the interwebs for tidbits of information that perhaps could answer a question or 6…

So, What were you digging soil profiles for? A new plantation? You are aware that relations between PNG and Australia are in a twist?

roughbarked said:

pain master said:

spent some time recently on a dig. It was like having a live version of time travellers and it real time. We would spend our days under tent in a hole in the ground scratching around and discussing soil profiles, certain rocks and iron oxide. In the evening we would retreat to the local watering hole to slake our thirsts and discuss the days findings and quite possibly what we would hope to find the next morning. Some of us would troll the interwebs for tidbits of information that perhaps could answer a question or 6…

So, What were you digging soil profiles for? A new plantation? You are aware that relations between PNG and Australia are in a twist?

Have noticed in the paper that O’neill is standing up for his people, whether he believes inwardly what he is sprouting to the media is questionable. The last thing he wants to do is to commit political suicide by showing support to the big provider of ‘boomerang’ Aid. The Indonesians are required to take up a similar stand over similar issues.

pain master said:

Longy … … has finally started to know when to stop working and when to chase fish with rod and reel.

That’s odd, I thought of all of us he was the best at that ???

pain master said:

spent some time recently on a dig. It was like having a live version of time travellers and it real time. We would spend our days under tent in a hole in the ground scratching around and discussing soil profiles, certain rocks and iron oxide. In the evening we would retreat to the local watering hole to slake our thirsts and discuss the days findings and quite possibly what we would hope to find the next morning. Some of us would troll the interwebs for tidbits of information that perhaps could answer a question or 6…

Jelly…

Dinetta said:

pain master said:

Longy … … has finally started to know when to stop working and when to chase fish with rod and reel.

That’s odd, I thought of all of us he was the best at that ???

he fell into some bad habits when he came to PNG. Working every minute of the day when awake except for a beer with the painmaster once in a while was not great form.

pain master said:

he fell into some bad habits when he came to PNG. Working every minute of the day when awake except for a beer with the painmaster once in a while was not great form.

Oh yes I could imagine PNG would do that to you…having been in that kind of situation myself (but not in PNG)… plus the cultural outlook of PNG would not be conducive to relaxation just for the sake of it…where Longy is working is isolated, isn’t it?

Sonny Jim is finally looking around for an apprenticeship again…I think that last mung-eye of a boss knocked Sonny Jim around psychologically…SJ is in his 3rd year but the coal prices have dramatically reduced employment opportunities here…SJ is working for a fencing contractor but jobs are becoming fewer…

As I said to Sonny Joe, he’s got the ability to go to Uni (but I think he wants to tidy up his sparkie’s ticket before he goes there)….

he had a lovely time yesterday helping his uncle “pull up a bore” (whatever that means) and they were very happy to see a hole rusted in a pipe somewhere because otherwise the pipe would have blown up…I guess I would have had to be there…

pain master said:

Dinetta said:

pain master said:

Longy … … has finally started to know when to stop working and when to chase fish with rod and reel.

That’s odd, I thought of all of us he was the best at that ???

he fell into some bad habits when he came to PNG. Working every minute of the day when awake except for a beer with the painmaster once in a while was not great form.

So is he in PNG full time now? He used to come back to Aus. regularly before.

Dinetta said:

Sonny Jim is finally looking around for an apprenticeship again…I think that last mung-eye of a boss knocked Sonny Jim around psychologically…SJ is in his 3rd year but the coal prices have dramatically reduced employment opportunities here…SJ is working for a fencing contractor but jobs are becoming fewer…

As I said to Sonny Joe, he’s got the ability to go to Uni (but I think he wants to tidy up his sparkie’s ticket before he goes there)….

he had a lovely time yesterday helping his uncle “pull up a bore” (whatever that means) and they were very happy to see a hole rusted in a pipe somewhere because otherwise the pipe would have blown up…I guess I would have had to be there…

hope he finds someone who will provide what he needs to finish of his apprenticeship and provided decent conditions. It would be good if he got his ticket after all he has had to put up with.

Dinetta said:

pain master said:

he fell into some bad habits when he came to PNG. Working every minute of the day when awake except for a beer with the painmaster once in a while was not great form.

Oh yes I could imagine PNG would do that to you…having been in that kind of situation myself (but not in PNG)… plus the cultural outlook of PNG would not be conducive to relaxation just for the sake of it…where Longy is working is isolated, isn’t it?

Not anymore, Longy tends to be located here in the ‘city’

Dinetta said:

Sonny Jim is finally looking around for an apprenticeship again…I think that last mung-eye of a boss knocked Sonny Jim around psychologically…SJ is in his 3rd year but the coal prices have dramatically reduced employment opportunities here…SJ is working for a fencing contractor but jobs are becoming fewer…

As I said to Sonny Joe, he’s got the ability to go to Uni (but I think he wants to tidy up his sparkie’s ticket before he goes there)….

he had a lovely time yesterday helping his uncle “pull up a bore” (whatever that means) and they were very happy to see a hole rusted in a pipe somewhere because otherwise the pipe would have blown up…I guess I would have had to be there…

That reminds me…. I gotta pull up my bores.

bluegreen said:

pain master said:

Dinetta said:

That’s odd, I thought of all of us he was the best at that ???

he fell into some bad habits when he came to PNG. Working every minute of the day when awake except for a beer with the painmaster once in a while was not great form.

So is he in PNG full time now? He used to come back to Aus. regularly before.

it would appear he is dedicating more and more time up here. His boat is now here.

pain master said:

it would appear he is dedicating more and more time up here. His boat is now here.

It would seem that PNG either grabs you by the short-and-curlies, or it doesn’t…that’s fatal, the boat is now there…how did he get it up there, did he drive it himself over the ocean waves?

Morning all. I’ve been potting up lots of calendula seeds.
The sun is shining and I have peoples calling in for packs of composting worms, $15 a go, about 1500- 2000 in each. The proceeds go toward chooks grains. I noticed that the in ground worm farm worms are larger than the container farm worms, so I’ve been grabbing those ones for the packs. Eventually I will move the container ones next to fruit trees. The ground ones are easier to look after and harvesting is not necessary.

Other than that I’ll be pulling front yard weeds for the chooks.

Interesting garden project :)

trichome said:

Interesting garden project :)

some people are very clever :)

trichome said:

Interesting garden project :)

(Y)

Oh I’m good! Real good. Supa good..LOL..well for bartering anyway, hehe. 3 litres of organic locally grown first press olive oil, for a tub of 3-4 thou’ compost worms
We both think we got the better bargain :)

Hello Gardeners. Not much in the way of gardening to report this weekend. We went to Melbourne to have further discussions with my Mum about her memory problems. I’ve still got my Interfering Daughter hat on and I intend to keep on interfering. I told her not to just keep on going for more and more tests and scans that tell her she is normal. I have pretty much bullied her into going to her GP and telling the GP she is going to stop taking her Lipitor for a trial period to see if her memory improves. She was quite willing just to stop on my sayso, but it does need to be monitored…we need a blood cholesterol test done in about a month to see what happens there without the statin. As her levels are low to very low anyway, I suspect she will easily remain in the ‘normal’ range. I was blunt enough to tell her that my view is that even if the lipids rise again, if her memory improves, she will need to decide to stay off the statins and have a clear mind, or go back on them, perhaps live a bit longer, but be muddle-headed. She’s 83. She agreed with me.

I find it very disconcerting to see my matriarchal mother being frightened inside. I could see it in her eyes.

Dinetta said:

trichome said:

Interesting garden project :)

(Y)

yes who ever did this is very talented, i saw this on another forum, i think it may have been from Canada somewhere.

Happy Potter said:

Oh I’m good! Real good. Supa good..LOL..well for bartering anyway, hehe. 3 litres of organic locally grown first press olive oil, for a tub of 3-4 thou’ compost worms
We both think we got the better bargain :)

That’s GOOD!

buffy said:

I find it very disconcerting to see my matriarchal mother being frightened inside. I could see it in her eyes.

At lease you are giving her some choices and she’s allowed to make up her mind and hopefully even discuss the issues with you further. It’s about them making informed decisions but sometimes I wonder if they just want somebody they trust to do the right thing for them so that they feel comfortable…

Good morning Gardeners. I’ve been busy before the heat sets in. I’ve been for a bike ride, done some weeding in Auntie Annie’s garden next door, been for brekky at the cafe and then done some mowing next door. I should do a bit of my own garden before lunch. I’ve decided this afternoon should be a sewing afternoon as I’m already sweating and it’s only 10.30 by the sun. And look what Mr buffy just brushed underneath on the ride-on because we didn’t know they’d arrived…..

buffy said:

Good morning Gardeners. I’ve been busy before the heat sets in. I’ve been for a bike ride, done some weeding in Auntie Annie’s garden next door, been for brekky at the cafe and then done some mowing next door. I should do a bit of my own garden before lunch. I’ve decided this afternoon should be a sewing afternoon as I’m already sweating and it’s only 10.30 by the sun. And look what Mr buffy just brushed underneath on the ride-on because we didn’t know they’d arrived…..

My goodness, great photograph! Is this what they call “swarming”?

Please define “heat”…go on, humour me…

buffy said:

Good morning Gardeners. I’ve been busy before the heat sets in. I’ve been for a bike ride, done some weeding in Auntie Annie’s garden next door, been for brekky at the cafe and then done some mowing next door. I should do a bit of my own garden before lunch. I’ve decided this afternoon should be a sewing afternoon as I’m already sweating and it’s only 10.30 by the sun. And look what Mr buffy just brushed underneath on the ride-on because we didn’t know they’d arrived…..

Pity you live too far away, I’d be there with a box to take them away

Yes, it’s a swarm. They are looking for a new home. Not in my walls! A friend is a local beekeeper, he’ll come tonight to look at them. They may hang around for a few days. Or they might be gone before he gets here. They are scouting. We’ve just put surface spray along the area we know they have looked at before to dissuade them.

>>Please define “heat”…go on, humour me…<<

OK. It’s 23 in the shade here now. I’ve been mowing in and out of the sun and I am drenched in sweat and look like a beetroot.

:)

My ideal working outside temperature is between about 10 and 15 degrees, with a slight breeze.

buffy said:

My ideal working outside temperature is between about 10 and 15 degrees, with a slight breeze.

I stop work if I am able, when it gets past 36ºC. Many times I’m still working when it is 46ºC but then that is when the work absolutely has to be done.

roughbarked said:

buffy said:

My ideal working outside temperature is between about 10 and 15 degrees, with a slight breeze.

I stop work if I am able, when it gets past 36ºC. Many times I’m still working when it is 46ºC but then that is when the work absolutely has to be done.

Today I stopped when it was 25ºC but that is because all the work is done, for the moment.
45,000 citrus trees are all done to the stage they need to be done for the moment..

I’m pleased to report that although I was dubious, and it took some thinking to identify the zipper foot, I am still capable of sewing in a zip. Seems like a very long time since I made a dress with a zipper down the back.

:)

buffy said:

I’m pleased to report that although I was dubious, and it took some thinking to identify the zipper foot, I am still capable of sewing in a zip. Seems like a very long time since I made a dress with a zipper down the back.

:)

It isn’t a task for the faint hearted. ;)

buffy said:

Good morning Gardeners. I’ve been busy before the heat sets in. I’ve been for a bike ride, done some weeding in Auntie Annie’s garden next door, been for brekky at the cafe and then done some mowing next door. I should do a bit of my own garden before lunch. I’ve decided this afternoon should be a sewing afternoon as I’m already sweating and it’s only 10.30 by the sun. And look what Mr buffy just brushed underneath on the ride-on because we didn’t know they’d arrived…..

nice swarm there :)

roughbarked said:

buffy said:

Good morning Gardeners. I’ve been busy before the heat sets in. I’ve been for a bike ride, done some weeding in Auntie Annie’s garden next door, been for brekky at the cafe and then done some mowing next door. I should do a bit of my own garden before lunch. I’ve decided this afternoon should be a sewing afternoon as I’m already sweating and it’s only 10.30 by the sun. And look what Mr buffy just brushed underneath on the ride-on because we didn’t know they’d arrived…..

Pity you live too far away, I’d be there with a box to take them away

I know a couple of people who might have been interested too.

buffy said:

I’m pleased to report that although I was dubious, and it took some thinking to identify the zipper foot, I am still capable of sewing in a zip. Seems like a very long time since I made a dress with a zipper down the back.

:)

:D :D

I haven’t done a zipper for ages. I can do it, but sometimes it is more convenient to think of an alternative so I don’t have to drive into town for one.

Bee man about to arrive. Don’t know if he wants the bees or not yet.

roughbarked said:

Today I stopped when it was 25ºC but that is because all the work is done, for the moment.
45,000 citrus trees are all done to the stage they need to be done for the moment..

Well done!
Buffy 25C in the sun would be hot if you are engaged in manual labour…

Roughbarked I hope they’re paying you well!!

buffy said:

I’m pleased to report that although I was dubious, and it took some thinking to identify the zipper foot, I am still capable of sewing in a zip. Seems like a very long time since I made a dress with a zipper down the back.

:)

Zips!! Even my mother, an extraordinary dressmaker, hated them…but I believe zips have improved since then…

Ordered some vacuum bags today over the WWW… a mirror fell over and broke and I’m sure I’ve got all the fine glass but that’s my last bag and I want to get rid of it before there’s a tear…

That was interesting. The bee man smoked them a little bit, put on his hood and then cut the branches down and slowly put them into a box. The loose ones are heading into the box now, which will be in the backyard until Wednesday and then F will come and take them away.

He said it’s possible it’s a swarm from one of his hives up on Mt Rouse.

buffy said:

That was interesting. The bee man smoked them a little bit, put on his hood and then cut the branches down and slowly put them into a box. The loose ones are heading into the box now, which will be in the backyard until Wednesday and then F will come and take them away.

He said it’s possible it’s a swarm from one of his hives up on Mt Rouse.

Good they are being saved :)

Bee hives can split if they get too big. Mine did. The original queen bee allows another queen to be ‘born’, then once she is big enough she signals for half the hive to follow her.

HP, are you going to be home Sat 7th December? I might be able to pick up the chicks then. I have been invited to a party in the evening in Glen Waverley.

Happy Potter said:

buffy said:

That was interesting. The bee man smoked them a little bit, put on his hood and then cut the branches down and slowly put them into a box. The loose ones are heading into the box now, which will be in the backyard until Wednesday and then F will come and take them away.

He said it’s possible it’s a swarm from one of his hives up on Mt Rouse.

Good they are being saved :)

Bee hives can split if they get too big. Mine did. The original queen bee allows another queen to be ‘born’, then once she is big enough she signals for half the hive to follow her.

I thought I had a swarm wanting to nest in the holes of my besser block house and the local bee guy was there like greased lightning…but the bees must have heard him coming and bolted…

bluegreen said:

HP, are you going to be home Sat 7th December? I might be able to pick up the chicks then. I have been invited to a party in the evening in Glen Waverley.

I would say so :)

Re bees, tonight I was telling a visitor that I’m looking for beeswax and my son JJ pops up and says there’s an old hive with a massive comb in his mates meter box at the side of an old bungalow. He said there’s so much comb the meter box door wouldn’t shut and he went there, a few streets away, to grab it for me. Cool. Only when he got there he went to get some and there was this ‘loud buzzing, lol! It is a live hive! He took off lol.
I’ll get my bee friend onto it asap. He can have the bees, but the wax is all mine :D

Good morning Gardeners. Lovely crisp and sunny morning here at the moment. I’ve just picked an armfull of roses – Double Delight, Remember Me and an unnamed white one – to take to the practice. Our patients expect us to have flowers now. Many years ago I paid for an arrangement each week from the local florist, but that one closed and I never bothered to reorganize myself. So we just bring in whatever we’ve got in our own gardens. My receptionist has a lot of Double Delight bushes, so there will be an abundance perfuming the place.

Well I’m busy attempting to clean my shed/workshop/seed store. I’d simply thrown my hands in the air and shut the door after the last rodent plague managed to gain entry to what I had previously thought was the safest place for seeds.

If it was raining I’d probably broadcast new forests.

Happy Potter said:

bluegreen said:

HP, are you going to be home Sat 7th December? I might be able to pick up the chicks then. I have been invited to a party in the evening in Glen Waverley.

I would say so :)

:)

bluegreen said:

Happy Potter said:

bluegreen said:

HP, are you going to be home Sat 7th December? I might be able to pick up the chicks then. I have been invited to a party in the evening in Glen Waverley.

I would say so :)

:)

I have another large piece of the shade cloth too, if you want it? A couple people I know have used it to replace the flywire in their screen doors and love it. pets clews slide right off. And it keeps the tiny insects out.

Happy Potter said:

bluegreen said:

Happy Potter said:

I would say so :)

:)

I have another large piece of the shade cloth too, if you want it? A couple people I know have used it to replace the flywire in their screen doors and love it. pets clews slide right off. And it keeps the tiny insects out.

Claws, even. Haven’t had a coffee yet.

Was just hitting the snooze button again when I heard a truck in the driveway and a knock at the door. A surreptitious look out the window revealed it was the fellows contracted to prune my lily pilly which was getting too close to the power lines over my property. There was a good metre still but they like to have two metres clearance. I had been given notification of the precise window of sometime in November! Thought I had better get dressed before I went out and greeted them. I told them I would be interested in the mulched prunings if they weren’t already taken so after they have done a couple of more jobs in the area they are going to drop it off for me.

Today is Gardening Group day and we are visiting a friend’s rose garden. She moved here about the same time as me and bought a property with hundreds and hundreds of roses and lemon trees and some olive trees. The rose petals are distilled into rose water which she will sell at Farmer’s Markets and she also makes some awesome shortbread biscuits flavoured with rose petals and some flavoured with Lemon Myrtle. I call them aromatherapy in a biscuit. Yummmmm. I expect she will have some there for morning tea. She hasn’t done anything with the lemons yet but has had her olives pressed for oil for her personal use.

I made a Saffron Cake last night to take. I think the recipe is from HP? The recipe said flour and baking powder so I assume it was plain flour? Seemed to turn out OK. I wasn’t sure how much saffron to use either. The recipe said a pinch or 1g and the half gram pack was much more than a pinch but I put it all in. LOTS of flavour. Maybe the recipe meant point one gram? Anyway it is nice so I will take it. Need to get moving as we are meeting across the road at the store in 15 minutes and I have still to let the chooks and ducks out.

Happy Potter said:

I have another large piece of the shade cloth too, if you want it? A couple people I know have used it to replace the flywire in their screen doors and love it. pets clews slide right off. And it keeps the tiny insects out.

Might do if I can think of a use for it. Thinking I need to put my lot up on the west side again now it is warming up, but not sure if my shoulder can cope with the weight. Thanks.

roughbarked said:

Well I’m busy attempting to clean my shed/workshop/seed store. I’d simply thrown my hands in the air and shut the door after the last rodent plague managed to gain entry to what I had previously thought was the safest place for seeds.

Oh what a shame RoughBarked…were they the native plants type?

Dinetta said:

roughbarked said:

Well I’m busy attempting to clean my shed/workshop/seed store. I’d simply thrown my hands in the air and shut the door after the last rodent plague managed to gain entry to what I had previously thought was the safest place for seeds.

Oh what a shame RoughBarked…were they the native plants type?

Yes. Apart from my vegetable seeds, all my interest was in Native plant seed stocks.

I’m hampered by this shoulder and neck injury that won’t go away.. Not a happy chappie but then nobody is really interested in that part.

I never would have imagined that I could have managed to have good organisation turned into a complete and utter chaos.

roughbarked said:

Dinetta said:

roughbarked said:

Well I’m busy attempting to clean my shed/workshop/seed store. I’d simply thrown my hands in the air and shut the door after the last rodent plague managed to gain entry to what I had previously thought was the safest place for seeds.

Oh what a shame RoughBarked…were they the native plants type?

Yes. Apart from my vegetable seeds, all my interest was in Native plant seed stocks.

I’m hampered by this shoulder and neck injury that won’t go away.. Not a happy chappie but then nobody is really interested in that part.

I never would have imagined that I could have managed to have good organisation turned into a complete and utter chaos.

Injuries suck. So do feral rats. I hope your shoulder prob gets sorted soon and you can clean up the seed mess. I can only imagine it.

bluegreen said:

Was just hitting the snooze button again when I heard a truck in the driveway and a knock at the door. A surreptitious look out the window revealed it was the fellows contracted to prune my lily pilly which was getting too close to the power lines over my property. There was a good metre still but they like to have two metres clearance. I had been given notification of the precise window of sometime in November! Thought I had better get dressed before I went out and greeted them. I told them I would be interested in the mulched prunings if they weren’t already taken so after they have done a couple of more jobs in the area they are going to drop it off for me.

Today is Gardening Group day and we are visiting a friend’s rose garden. She moved here about the same time as me and bought a property with hundreds and hundreds of roses and lemon trees and some olive trees. The rose petals are distilled into rose water which she will sell at Farmer’s Markets and she also makes some awesome shortbread biscuits flavoured with rose petals and some flavoured with Lemon Myrtle. I call them aromatherapy in a biscuit. Yummmmm. I expect she will have some there for morning tea. She hasn’t done anything with the lemons yet but has had her olives pressed for oil for her personal use.

I made a Saffron Cake last night to take. I think the recipe is from HP? The recipe said flour and baking powder so I assume it was plain flour? Seemed to turn out OK. I wasn’t sure how much saffron to use either. The recipe said a pinch or 1g and the half gram pack was much more than a pinch but I put it all in. LOTS of flavour. Maybe the recipe meant point one gram? Anyway it is nice so I will take it. Need to get moving as we are meeting across the road at the store in 15 minutes and I have still to let the chooks and ducks out.

Lovely! all of it :)

Happy Potter said:

roughbarked said:

Dinetta said:

Oh what a shame RoughBarked…were they the native plants type?

Yes. Apart from my vegetable seeds, all my interest was in Native plant seed stocks.

I’m hampered by this shoulder and neck injury that won’t go away.. Not a happy chappie but then nobody is really interested in that part.

I never would have imagined that I could have managed to have good organisation turned into a complete and utter chaos.

Injuries suck. So do feral rats. I hope your shoulder prob gets sorted soon and you can clean up the seed mess. I can only imagine it.

Yes. This particular injury is taking longer than fractured bones to heal and in the order of magnitude is still way more uncomfortable than any sanity level can comprehend. I’ve been popping all my better half’s drugs and they are having as much effect as sugar pills.

As for the seed mess, it is largely a write off. Decades of collecting identifying and cataloging destined for nothing less than being returned to the environment to see what that agent can do with it. At least that is an organised chaos.

It is all a bit like this image. A no longer there, type of thing.

This is of what used to be a rice paddy but is now a huge vineyard all watered by drip.

bluegreen said:

Happy Potter said:

I have another large piece of the shade cloth too, if you want it? A couple people I know have used it to replace the flywire in their screen doors and love it. pets clews slide right off. And it keeps the tiny insects out.

Might do if I can think of a use for it. Thinking I need to put my lot up on the west side again now it is warming up, but not sure if my shoulder can cope with the weight. Thanks.

Have a think then. That’s the last bit of it for a little while so if you haven’t a need for it I have a few interested in it lined up. The fellow who gets it was rapt when I told him you used some to shade the western side of your house.
Perhaps you can get some of those locals to help you put it up?

At the moment I have the noise and dust from some travelling fire management crew that is attempting to slash everything outside my fence. At least they are aware that I wish they’d avoid the young trees and shrubs that naturally regenerate.

It doesn’t seem to matter to them that green shrubbery doesn’t burn as well as dry grass or that the removal of green shrubbery only leads to greater expanses of dry grasses.

Happy Potter said:

bluegreen said:

Was just hitting the snooze button again when I heard a truck in the driveway and a knock at the door. A surreptitious look out the window revealed it was the fellows contracted to prune my lily pilly which was getting too close to the power lines over my property. There was a good metre still but they like to have two metres clearance. I had been given notification of the precise window of sometime in November! Thought I had better get dressed before I went out and greeted them. I told them I would be interested in the mulched prunings if they weren’t already taken so after they have done a couple of more jobs in the area they are going to drop it off for me.

Today is Gardening Group day and we are visiting a friend’s rose garden. She moved here about the same time as me and bought a property with hundreds and hundreds of roses and lemon trees and some olive trees. The rose petals are distilled into rose water which she will sell at Farmer’s Markets and she also makes some awesome shortbread biscuits flavoured with rose petals and some flavoured with Lemon Myrtle. I call them aromatherapy in a biscuit. Yummmmm. I expect she will have some there for morning tea. She hasn’t done anything with the lemons yet but has had her olives pressed for oil for her personal use.

I made a Saffron Cake last night to take. I think the recipe is from HP? The recipe said flour and baking powder so I assume it was plain flour? Seemed to turn out OK. I wasn’t sure how much saffron to use either. The recipe said a pinch or 1g and the half gram pack was much more than a pinch but I put it all in. LOTS of flavour. Maybe the recipe meant point one gram? Anyway it is nice so I will take it. Need to get moving as we are meeting across the road at the store in 15 minutes and I have still to let the chooks and ducks out.

Lovely! all of it :)

her garden is awesome. Make that thousands of roses! Yes her yummy shortbreads were on offer and the saffron cake went down well also. We got to see the still where they make the rose water and today they were trying it out with the lemon myrtle leaves. Pictures soon.

roughbarked said:

Yes. This particular injury is taking longer than fractured bones to heal and in the order of magnitude is still way more uncomfortable than any sanity level can comprehend. I’ve been popping all my better half’s drugs and they are having as much effect as sugar pills.

soft tissue injuries are more painful and take longer to heal than broken bones. especially if they don’t get any rest which I suspect yours doesn’t.

Happy Potter said:

bluegreen said:

Happy Potter said:

I have another large piece of the shade cloth too, if you want it? A couple people I know have used it to replace the flywire in their screen doors and love it. pets clews slide right off. And it keeps the tiny insects out.

Might do if I can think of a use for it. Thinking I need to put my lot up on the west side again now it is warming up, but not sure if my shoulder can cope with the weight. Thanks.

Have a think then. That’s the last bit of it for a little while so if you haven’t a need for it I have a few interested in it lined up. The fellow who gets it was rapt when I told him you used some to shade the western side of your house.
Perhaps you can get some of those locals to help you put it up?

If you have others interested then give it to them. I have no great need of more right now.

bluegreen said:

roughbarked said:

Yes. This particular injury is taking longer than fractured bones to heal and in the order of magnitude is still way more uncomfortable than any sanity level can comprehend. I’ve been popping all my better half’s drugs and they are having as much effect as sugar pills.

soft tissue injuries are more painful and take longer to heal than broken bones. especially if they don’t get any rest which I suspect yours doesn’t.

That’s the problem. I would have no chance of ever sitting comfortably for all these weeks.

roughbarked said:

I never would have imagined that I could have managed to have good organisation turned into a complete and utter chaos.

Rats are ever so determined…I recall where we went to a slab hut to show the kids there was life without TV, and the resident rats tried to chew their way into the biscuit tins…we still have the teeth slide marks on the lids…

roughbarked said:

It is all a bit like this image. A no longer there, type of thing.

This is of what used to be a rice paddy but is now a huge vineyard all watered by drip.

Are grapes so much more commercially valuable than rice these days?

Dinetta said:

roughbarked said:

It is all a bit like this image. A no longer there, type of thing.

This is of what used to be a rice paddy but is now a huge vineyard all watered by drip.

Are grapes so much more commercially valuable than rice these days?

It is more about water, water tables, salinity, evaporation and more permanent land usage.

That we have to give up eating to become drunks, is a matter of little consequence in the scheme of things.

roughbarked said:

Dinetta said:

Are grapes so much more commercially valuable than rice these days?

It is more about water, water tables, salinity, evaporation and more permanent land usage.

That we have to give up eating to become drunks, is a matter of little consequence in the scheme of things.

Laughed so much I upset the dog…

Dinetta said:

roughbarked said:

Dinetta said:

Are grapes so much more commercially valuable than rice these days?

It is more about water, water tables, salinity, evaporation and more permanent land usage.

That we have to give up eating to become drunks, is a matter of little consequence in the scheme of things.

Laughed so much I upset the dog…

Glad that at least someone comprehends my sensauma. ;)

Dinetta said:

roughbarked said:

Today I stopped when it was 25ºC but that is because all the work is done, for the moment.
45,000 citrus trees are all done to the stage they need to be done for the moment..

Well done!
Buffy 25C in the sun would be hot if you are engaged in manual labour…

Roughbarked I hope they’re paying you well!!

There’s the rub. They don’t pay well and they don’t pay on time or for many months.

roughbarked said:

There’s the rub. They don’t pay well and they don’t pay on time or for many months.

I get cranky on your behalf when I read that…

Dinetta said:

roughbarked said:

There’s the rub. They don’t pay well and they don’t pay on time or for many months.

I get cranky on your behalf when I read that…

That happens here everyday and Mrs rb keeps telling me to get a real job.

…but you love plants and gardens…

Define a “real” job…what about the local council, ours is always advertising for labourers in the gardening division…

Dinetta said:

…but you love plants and gardens…

Define a “real” job…what about the local council, ours is always advertising for labourers in the gardening division…

Have you seen the paperwork that a labourer has to fill out and all the certification he has to have to get onto the local council?

roughbarked said:

Dinetta said:

…but you love plants and gardens…

Define a “real” job…what about the local council, ours is always advertising for labourers in the gardening division…

Have you seen the paperwork that a labourer has to fill out and all the certification he has to have to get onto the local council?

OH yeah, councils have become the face of WH&S these days…a few weeks back I reported a faulty fire hydrant outside the neighbour’s house, the council receptionist wanted my name…OK…then she wanted proof of ID!!! I said that’s stupid, everybody driving down X road (heavy traffic road) can see it, you don’t need proof of my ID…she was most put out…

Dinetta said:

roughbarked said:

Dinetta said:

…but you love plants and gardens…

Define a “real” job…what about the local council, ours is always advertising for labourers in the gardening division…

Have you seen the paperwork that a labourer has to fill out and all the certification he has to have to get onto the local council?

OH yeah, councils have become the face of WH&S these days…a few weeks back I reported a faulty fire hydrant outside the neighbour’s house, the council receptionist wanted my name…OK…then she wanted proof of ID!!! I said that’s stupid, everybody driving down X road (heavy traffic road) can see it, you don’t need proof of my ID…she was most put out…

Not only that. They’ll send two blokes to dig the hole. They’ll go away, possibly without even fencing the hole the an inspecting type person will come past and want more ID and your grandmother’s bra size. Then a couple more blokes will come and put the orange fence up. A week or a month later, three blokes will take two weeks to fix the hydrant. Then they’ll leave the fence around it for another couple of months until the fence people come back to pick it up.

roughbarked said:

Dinetta said:

roughbarked said:

Have you seen the paperwork that a labourer has to fill out and all the certification he has to have to get onto the local council?

OH yeah, councils have become the face of WH&S these days…a few weeks back I reported a faulty fire hydrant outside the neighbour’s house, the council receptionist wanted my name…OK…then she wanted proof of ID!!! I said that’s stupid, everybody driving down X road (heavy traffic road) can see it, you don’t need proof of my ID…she was most put out…

Not only that. They’ll send two blokes to dig the hole. They’ll go away, possibly without even fencing the hole the an inspecting type person will come past and want more ID and your grandmother’s bra size. Then a couple more blokes will come and put the orange fence up. A week or a month later, three blokes will take two weeks to fix the hydrant. Then they’ll leave the fence around it for another couple of months until the fence people come back to pick it up.

Haha, that’s exactly what happened here to a problem footpath part. They wanted to know everything!

Fancy that..finding a relative on facebook. A cousin, and she is the mad chicken lady/ chook whisperer in her (Qld) town, lol :D

Happy Potter said:

Fancy that..finding a relative on facebook. A cousin, and she is the mad chicken lady/ chook whisperer in her (Qld) town, lol :D

Most of my small number of relatives are on fb but I won’t find them, because I’m not.

temp dewpoint r/h
33.0°C -1.4°C 11%

Methinks that since it will be 37ºC shortly, I should be making sure things are wet.

roughbarked said:

Not only that. They’ll send two blokes to dig the hole. They’ll go away, possibly without even fencing the hole the an inspecting type person will come past and want more ID and your grandmother’s bra size. Then a couple more blokes will come and put the orange fence up. A week or a month later, three blokes will take two weeks to fix the hydrant. Then they’ll leave the fence around it for another couple of months until the fence people come back to pick it up.

Have you got a spy-cam on the lamp post next door to my place???

Happy Potter said:

Fancy that..finding a relative on facebook. A cousin, and she is the mad chicken lady/ chook whisperer in her (Qld) town, lol :D

Oh wow, must be in the genes! Anywhere near here? Could do with the acquaintance of a chook whisperer a bit closer to home…

roughbarked said:

Happy Potter said:

Fancy that..finding a relative on facebook. A cousin, and she is the mad chicken lady/ chook whisperer in her (Qld) town, lol :D

Most of my small number of relatives are on fb but I won’t find them, because I’m not.

I’ve been trying to lose my family on my mother’s side…however my (half) sister has told me that now that The Boyz (her grandsons) are close to finishing the school year, she’ll be able to find the time to visit…The Boyz catch a bus to and from school, about an hour each way I think…suspicious me thinks sis wants info on the family tree but that’s OK. Always did prefer my father’s family. As P says, they don’t ask to see your bank balance before they shake your hand…Sis is from Dad’s first family, her mother died due to medical incompetence when sis was 8.

roughbarked said:

temp dewpoint r/h
33.0°C -1.4°C 11%

Methinks that since it will be 37ºC shortly, I should be making sure things are wet.

That’s warm. Much humidity?

We’re expecting 35C apparently. Hot in the sun but the breeze makes the shade cool…

Dinetta said:

That’s warm. Much humidity?

10%

roughbarked said:

Dinetta said:

That’s warm. Much humidity?

10%

Bearable…

Dinetta said:

Happy Potter said:

Fancy that..finding a relative on facebook. A cousin, and she is the mad chicken lady/ chook whisperer in her (Qld) town, lol :D

Oh wow, must be in the genes! Anywhere near here? Could do with the acquaintance of a chook whisperer a bit closer to home…

Mackay.

The tree lopping co is taking down two of the massive gums out front on the corner. They better have been diseased….the trees are over a century old, I was told.
The intersection does need maintenance and a lake that forms on that corner everytime it rains. I have sawdust everywhere, covering my windows, cars, and every plant and even the chooks.

Happy Potter said:

Dinetta said:

Happy Potter said:

Fancy that..finding a relative on facebook. A cousin, and she is the mad chicken lady/ chook whisperer in her (Qld) town, lol :D

Oh wow, must be in the genes! Anywhere near here? Could do with the acquaintance of a chook whisperer a bit closer to home…

Mackay.

Close, but I won’t intrude…

Dinetta said:

Happy Potter said:

Dinetta said:

Oh wow, must be in the genes! Anywhere near here? Could do with the acquaintance of a chook whisperer a bit closer to home…

Mackay.

Close, but I won’t intrude…

Why not, if it is about chooks?

roughbarked said:

Dinetta said:

Happy Potter said:

Mackay.

Close, but I won’t intrude…

Why not, if it is about chooks?

The coz doesn’t know me from a bar of soap…but if I was really desparate for the chookens’ sake, I’d ask through Happy Potter if I could approach the coz … if that makes sense?

Dinetta said:

roughbarked said:

Dinetta said:

Close, but I won’t intrude…

Why not, if it is about chooks?

The coz doesn’t know me from a bar of soap…but if I was really desparate for the chookens’ sake, I’d ask through Happy Potter if I could approach the coz … if that makes sense?

yeah.

roughbarked said:

Dinetta said:

Happy Potter said:

Mackay.

Close, but I won’t intrude…

Why not, if it is about chooks?

Yeah?
She sounds lovely, homely, friendly. Knowledgeable about our feathered friends.

Dinetta said:

roughbarked said:

Dinetta said:

Close, but I won’t intrude…

Why not, if it is about chooks?

The coz doesn’t know me from a bar of soap…but if I was really desparate for the chookens’ sake, I’d ask through Happy Potter if I could approach the coz … if that makes sense?

Of course :)

Oh I am fuming! I asked the fellows lopping the trees if they could drop a load of that mulch on my nature strip, or driveway, and it’ll be cleared by the morning. I had several people lined up ready with trailers and tools and bags to come and get it. They agreed but had to ask for permission from the pen pusher at council.

They then came back to me with ‘that’s a no unfortunately, but ring the council and ask’. So I did. That bloke needs a slap. He told me they aren’t allowed to put it in residence’s driveways as the truck might break the concrete. I protested, I’ve had those trucks in my drive before and there was no problems at all, and I told him all about who wants the mulch and why. He said we can get free mulch from the tip. As if! It’s full of rubbish with diseased and invasive stuff! He was adamant though. While I was there I asked if I could get some of the short cut logs, good seat size, and again he said no. I chucked a tanty and told him they haven’t been named as the most incompetent council in Aus for nothing!

Pfft, can’t have the logs hey.
The moment they left for the day we converged on the site, along with several other carloads. People came from everywhere to get the logs. A kinda teacher wanted some big long smooth ones for kids to sit and climb on so hubby and son and others helped load a couple for her. Others just wanted firewood. I wanted some seat size for under the almond tree for my granddaughter.

This ones got a backrest, just for me :)

How old was this tree ? :(

Happy Potter said:

Oh I am fuming! I asked the fellows lopping the trees if they could drop a load of that mulch on my nature strip, or driveway, and it’ll be cleared by the morning. I had several people lined up ready with trailers and tools and bags to come and get it. They agreed but had to ask for permission from the pen pusher at council.

They then came back to me with ‘that’s a no unfortunately, but ring the council and ask’. So I did. That bloke needs a slap. He told me they aren’t allowed to put it in residence’s driveways as the truck might break the concrete. I protested, I’ve had those trucks in my drive before and there was no problems at all, and I told him all about who wants the mulch and why. He said we can get free mulch from the tip. As if! It’s full of rubbish with diseased and invasive stuff! He was adamant though. While I was there I asked if I could get some of the short cut logs, good seat size, and again he said no. I chucked a tanty and told him they haven’t been named as the most incompetent council in Aus for nothing!

Pfft, can’t have the logs hey.
The moment they left for the day we converged on the site, along with several other carloads. People came from everywhere to get the logs. A kinda teacher wanted some big long smooth ones for kids to sit and climb on so hubby and son and others helped load a couple for her. Others just wanted firewood. I wanted some seat size for under the almond tree for my granddaughter.

This ones got a backrest, just for me :)

How old was this tree ? :(

So pleased you got something out of it…some of these pen-pushers live in world that might as well be another planet…need Dr Who to take ‘em for a whirl, that’d sort them!

Hope you’re going to write to the council about this waste of good mulch? And underline the bits about the rubbish that’s at the green recycle part of the tip…

Happy Potter said:

While I was there I asked if I could get some of the short cut logs, good seat size, and again he said no. I chucked a tanty and told him they haven’t been named as the most incompetent council in Aus for nothing!

Pfft, can’t have the logs hey.
The moment they left for the day we converged on the site, along with several other carloads. People came from everywhere to get the logs. A kinda teacher wanted some big long smooth ones for kids to sit and climb on so hubby and son and others helped load a couple for her. Others just wanted firewood. I wanted some seat size for under the almond tree for my granddaughter.

This ones got a backrest, just for me :)

How old was this tree ? :(

Pull up a stump and siddown! Great to see the tree with a “new” lease of life…

Happy Potter said:

Oh I am fuming! I asked the fellows lopping the trees if they could drop a load of that mulch on my nature strip, or driveway, and it’ll be cleared by the morning. I had several people lined up ready with trailers and tools and bags to come and get it. They agreed but had to ask for permission from the pen pusher at council.

They then came back to me with ‘that’s a no unfortunately, but ring the council and ask’. So I did. That bloke needs a slap. He told me they aren’t allowed to put it in residence’s driveways as the truck might break the concrete. I protested, I’ve had those trucks in my drive before and there was no problems at all, and I told him all about who wants the mulch and why. He said we can get free mulch from the tip. As if! It’s full of rubbish with diseased and invasive stuff! He was adamant though. While I was there I asked if I could get some of the short cut logs, good seat size, and again he said no. I chucked a tanty and told him they haven’t been named as the most incompetent council in Aus for nothing!

Pfft, can’t have the logs hey.
The moment they left for the day we converged on the site, along with several other carloads. People came from everywhere to get the logs. A kinda teacher wanted some big long smooth ones for kids to sit and climb on so hubby and son and others helped load a couple for her. Others just wanted firewood. I wanted some seat size for under the almond tree for my granddaughter.

This ones got a backrest, just for me :)

How old was this tree ? :(

maybe they sympathised but officially their hands were tied, so they “accidently” left some logs behind?

bluegreen said:

maybe they sympathised but officially their hands were tied, so they “accidently” left some logs behind?

Maybe they thought “Oh we have to be ‘somewhere else’ just now. Fancy that! We’ll come back and pick these up later” …. wink wink

How opportune they needed to be “elsewhere” just then….

Dinetta said:

bluegreen said:

maybe they sympathised but officially their hands were tied, so they “accidently” left some logs behind?

Maybe they thought “Oh we have to be ‘somewhere else’ just now. Fancy that! We’ll come back and pick these up later” …. wink wink

How opportune they needed to be “elsewhere” just then….

They put many logs like the ones I grabbed through the huge mulcher, but then it started raining so work stopped. We swopped like magpies within seconds of them picking up the last road cone and driving away. They’d told me earlier I can have a few that they’d leave at 5 pm tomorrow. We will swoop again: the 3 end trees are all going. The main one in the photo is but a stump now.

You clearly didn’t think to bribe the tree loppers with a carton of beer. I’ve never had any trouble with that method. They’ll find a way and a place to put it if the price is right.

Once they were lopping trees in a main road in town. I asked the Parks and Gardens Supervisor if I could have some poles. One of the workers tried to protest and the supervisor said, “c’mon mate you have not got enough ground to put all the free firewood you take home. Let the lad have a few sticks.”

roughbarked said:

You clearly didn’t think to bribe the tree loppers with a carton of beer. I’ve never had any trouble with that method. They’ll find a way and a place to put it if the price is right.

Once they were lopping trees in a main road in town. I asked the Parks and Gardens Supervisor if I could have some poles. One of the workers tried to protest and the supervisor said, “c’mon mate you have not got enough ground to put all the free firewood you take home. Let the lad have a few sticks.”

I didn’t have a slab handy, nor the means to buy one. But in any case the mulch pile at the reserve was raided by the garden fairies overnight. Big fairies with trailers ;) Much muffled giggling and snorting when one ‘fairy’ showed up wearing a black balaclava.

roughbarked said:

You clearly didn’t think to bribe the tree loppers with a carton of beer. I’ve never had any trouble with that method. They’ll find a way and a place to put it if the price is right.

Once they were lopping trees in a main road in town. I asked the Parks and Gardens Supervisor if I could have some poles. One of the workers tried to protest and the supervisor said, “c’mon mate you have not got enough ground to put all the free firewood you take home. Let the lad have a few sticks.”

Sonny Jim tells me many a tradey will turn up if you offer him a carton…depending on the job of course…

Good on the supervisor…

Happy Potter said:

I didn’t have a slab handy, nor the means to buy one. But in any case the mulch pile at the reserve was raided by the garden fairies overnight. Big fairies with trailers ;) Much muffled giggling and snorting when one ‘fairy’ showed up wearing a black balaclava.

Ahahahahaha!

Check out today’s Google Doodle :)

bluegreen said:

Check out today’s Google Doodle :)

Got to “L” with David Tennant…wasted a whole 56 minutes without realising it…!!

Awesome!

bluegreen said:

Check out today’s Google Doodle :)

Completed!! 82 minutes of my life…a success story!

Just realised I have a bar fridge under the house….will start it to store the mangos…the old Electrolux needs “rubbers” so I’ll ring the fridge seal man next week for a rough quote and time frame…

What is a handy size for a power lead, only domestic use? 3 metres, 5 metres?

Arvo, buddies. Sorry I haven’t been around for a few weeks. Had 3 trips to Lithgow in one and a half weeks recently, firstly to visit my sister-in-law who was in the final stages of cancer and then following her death. Needless to say it’s been a harrowing time, but I am now back on deck and getting a bit done in the garden.

AnneS said:

Arvo, buddies. Sorry I haven’t been around for a few weeks. Had 3 trips to Lithgow in one and a half weeks recently, firstly to visit my sister-in-law who was in the final stages of cancer and then following her death. Needless to say it’s been a harrowing time, but I am now back on deck and getting a bit done in the garden.

harrowing indeed. glad to hear you are now back on deck.
(((HUGS)))

Hello Gardeners. I got into the garden at Casterton just after 6.00am this morning, so I am feeling all virtuous. I did about 4 hours of weeding, digging and mowing. My veggie patch over there is looking good. Belted in some stakes for the tomatoes, despite the fact they are barely 2” tall yet! But growing apace. And if all the leeks come to fruition, I’ll be inundated (pun intended). I let a couple of leeks go to seed and now when I am weeding I keep finding leek seedlings. So, because I can’t bear to waste, I plant them out. I have leeks all over the place!!

:)

bluegreen said:

AnneS said:

Arvo, buddies. Sorry I haven’t been around for a few weeks. Had 3 trips to Lithgow in one and a half weeks recently, firstly to visit my sister-in-law who was in the final stages of cancer and then following her death. Needless to say it’s been a harrowing time, but I am now back on deck and getting a bit done in the garden.

harrowing indeed. glad to hear you are now back on deck.
(((HUGS)))

Thanks bluegreen

AnneS said:

Arvo, buddies. Sorry I haven’t been around for a few weeks. Had 3 trips to Lithgow in one and a half weeks recently, firstly to visit my sister-in-law who was in the final stages of cancer and then following her death. Needless to say it’s been a harrowing time, but I am now back on deck and getting a bit done in the garden.

Harrowing all right…hope the gardening provides you with therapy…

lemons, sugar, butter, eggs.

Guess what I made today?

lemon butter?

lemon meringue pie?

wouldn’t be that lemon pudding that has a cake layer on top, you’d need flour…

Dinetta said:

lemon butter?

lemon meringue pie?

wouldn’t be that lemon pudding that has a cake layer on top, you’d need flour…

need flour for pie too. Lemon Butter is correct. Making it for Christmas presents.

bluegreen said:

lemons, sugar, butter, eggs.

Guess what I made today?

Scones? lol.. with lemon curd? :)

Morning. I’m having trouble keeping up at the moment, so apologies if I was asked a question and didn’t see it.

Between babysitting the banana murderer and looking after others and animals and whatnot, I haven’t had time to put a brush to my hair. Re ‘banana murderer’.. the little tike squashed a banana into my shoe and I now have a vinegar fly fanclub following me everywhere.

Youngest daughter has spiraled into a serious depression, took too many anxiety pills and ended up in the ed. Work related, but she will not see the relevant work authority about it, but mental health people may take that decision out of her hands. This has been coming for a long time. She’s not being left alone and she is here so I can look after her. She’s been accepted into a mental health program, a govt initiative youth suicide prevention, that means lifetime support, for free. Psychologist, psychiatrist, life coach, and others, she will be very well supported. It’s a rope at the end of the tunnel.
It’s sad that there’s only two such placements offered, per week. We were told, rather bluntly we thought, it’s only for those who have hope.

Back later with garden stuff, broad beans and prickly marionberries going nuts. Pancakes for brekky :)

sorry to hear about youngest daughter. glad to hear that she has got into the program though. between you and the program I am sure she will get the best help she is able, and I hope the workplace situation gets exposed and dealt with appropriately.
(((HUGS)))

Happy Potter said:

Morning. I’m having trouble keeping up at the moment, so apologies if I was asked a question and didn’t see it.

Between babysitting the banana murderer and looking after others and animals and whatnot, I haven’t had time to put a brush to my hair. Re ‘banana murderer’.. the little tike squashed a banana into my shoe and I now have a vinegar fly fanclub following me everywhere

Heh heh … memories in the making…hope it wasn’t a good shoe….

Happy Potter said:

Youngest daughter has spiraled into a serious depression, took too many anxiety pills and ended up in the ed. Work related, but she will not see the relevant work authority about it, but mental health people may take that decision out of her hands. This has been coming for a long time. She’s not being left alone and she is here so I can look after her. She’s been accepted into a mental health program, a govt initiative youth suicide prevention, that means lifetime support, for free. Psychologist, psychiatrist, life coach, and others, she will be very well supported. It’s a rope at the end of the tunnel.
It’s sad that there’s only two such placements offered, per week. We were told, rather bluntly we thought, it’s only for those who have hope.

Back later with garden stuff, broad beans and prickly marionberries going nuts. Pancakes for brekky :)

She’s lucky … something seriously needs to be done about her workplace…where I was working once, I heard first hand of attempts by bosses (in another department) to undermine the mental health of the employees…this was 35 years ago but human nature stays the same…

Has anyone here grown the climbing sour Mexican cucumbers? I hadn’t read up on them properly and went to dig where I had them last year – to no avail as far as fruit go – and discovered that they are actually a perennial. I found the root, not yet resprouted. So I hurriedly replaced it in the soil, scattered a few new seeds around it and left it be. I wonder if I will actually get something to taste this time!

buffy said:

Has anyone here grown the climbing sour Mexican cucumbers? I hadn’t read up on them properly and went to dig where I had them last year – to no avail as far as fruit go – and discovered that they are actually a perennial. I found the root, not yet resprouted. So I hurriedly replaced it in the soil, scattered a few new seeds around it and left it be. I wonder if I will actually get something to taste this time!

are they the grape sized ones with stripes? had a couple of goes with them with no great success. My fault for not watering them though.

That would be them. I decided to try them for something different.

buffy said:

That would be them. I decided to try them for something different.

What do you do with them? Are they good eating, or just for pickling? My lot love pickled cucs.

Morning. A
Thanks ladies, alls good, awaiting an appointment for the girl.

It’s going to be a sunny day and I have much to do in the garden. For the first time ever I’ve grown a snow pea! But it was only because I completely forgot I even planted it. Yes, one single plant, out of three that I planted. It’s even got two pods on it, lol. I planted them on the mesh fence at the back of the broad beans. I think the chooks discovered the other two, that is if they came up at all.

The duckweed in the pond is growing madly. I get two scoops of it every second day in a net and throw to the chooks. They can’t get enough of it. Free chicken food, yay.

Happy Potter said:

buffy said:

That would be them. I decided to try them for something different.

What do you do with them? Are they good eating, or just for pickling? My lot love pickled cucs.

you can eat them fresh or pickle them. They naturally have a bit of sourness to them. Also known as Mouse Melon.

bluegreen said:

Happy Potter said:

buffy said:

That would be them. I decided to try them for something different.

What do you do with them? Are they good eating, or just for pickling? My lot love pickled cucs.

you can eat them fresh or pickle them. They naturally have a bit of sourness to them. Also known as Mouse Melon.

Thanks, will seek them out :)

Morning green ones. Another sunny one and I will be out in it tending to seedlings and staking and foliage feeding tomatoes with seaweed liquid.
The girl has an appointment with mental health people today. I am taking her to it.

I finally got this demijohn bottle cleaned out last night. The rubbish that was in it was horrid. It had coloured stones in the bottom, then this plaster like stuff and plastic plants. It was awful. I filled it with water and got the plastic crap out, then put the karcher stick in it to break up the plaster stuff. It went jelly like. Tipped it on it’s side, ew, gloop went everywhere, what a mess.

Now, what to do with it?

My thoughts are: fill with white tube fairy lights wrapped in clear cellophane, or fill with those soft water activated clear marbles. Or what?

Happy Potter said:

Morning green ones. Another sunny one and I will be out in it tending to seedlings and staking and foliage feeding tomatoes with seaweed liquid.
The girl has an appointment with mental health people today. I am taking her to it.

I finally got this demijohn bottle cleaned out last night. The rubbish that was in it was horrid. It had coloured stones in the bottom, then this plaster like stuff and plastic plants. It was awful. I filled it with water and got the plastic crap out, then put the karcher stick in it to break up the plaster stuff. It went jelly like. Tipped it on it’s side, ew, gloop went everywhere, what a mess.

Now, what to do with it?

My thoughts are: fill with white tube fairy lights wrapped in clear cellophane, or fill with those soft water activated clear marbles. Or what?

Oh and it’s holds about 30 litres.

What do you want it to do? When it looks pretty, what kind of visual effect do you expect? Ambience? Conversation starter? Highlight some particular plant or grouping thereof?????

Dinetta said:

What do you want it to do? When it looks pretty, what kind of visual effect do you expect? Ambience? Conversation starter? Highlight some particular plant or grouping thereof?????

Yep, just a feature, but I see lights in it. The patio can be very dark and needs a night light. Another idea is to get one of those fake trees with led lights on the branches that I saw in the B shop to sit in it. Glass bubbles in the bottle. Hmm.

Happy Potter said:

Dinetta said:

What do you want it to do? When it looks pretty, what kind of visual effect do you expect? Ambience? Conversation starter? Highlight some particular plant or grouping thereof?????

Yep, just a feature, but I see lights in it. The patio can be very dark and needs a night light. Another idea is to get one of those fake trees with led lights on the branches that I saw in the B shop to sit in it. Glass bubbles in the bottle. Hmm.

Oh I C…I would be looking at replaceability…like how easily can you remove whatever you put in it, if it goes poof!?

Dinetta said:

… if it goes poof!?

my energy levels have gone “poof!”

well, more than usual.

bluegreen said:

Dinetta said:

… if it goes poof!?

my energy levels have gone “poof!”

well, more than usual.

I’m sitting in airconditioning here…while my chookens swelter…

You could just feed in some solar LED fairy lights. I have a hanging basket on the verandah that just has a length of them tossed into it and dribbled over the sides. It looks quite effective at night.

buffy said:

You could just feed in some solar LED fairy lights. I have a hanging basket on the verandah that just has a length of them tossed into it and dribbled over the sides. It looks quite effective at night.

Yes I was thinking along those lines. That sounds pretty :)

my neighbour is baling hay in the dark (has lights on the tractor though). Must be expecting rain. He only cut it a couple of days ago, wouldn’t have thought it was quite dried out yet but no good at all if it gets rained on.

Good morning Gardeners. I am going to Casterton consulting today and the forecast is for 34 degrees over there. It’s a sleeveless top day.

And I hope that hay is dried enough, or there might well be a haystack fire…

Gee whiz Buffy, I hope the elderly and the very young have nice cool spots for the day, and plenty of water…positively sweltering for down your way…

Yes that hay is better sold even as garden mulch than rotting in the paddock…surely hope it’s not gonna spontaneously combust later…

>>positively sweltering for down your way<<

Not really, pretty standard for January and February with a few practice days in the preceding months. It would be easier if it worked up to it though, instead of just flinging one in after days of 20ish. Slept with only the sheet all night last night. It was 15 degrees when I got up.

I’d better head off over that way.

(By the way, it is not unusual for Casterton to be hottest in the state during Summer…and it always happens on a Wednesday when I am over there! Except for a couple of weeks ago when I worked Hamilton instead of Casterton on the Wednesday that got hot….fooled the Heat Gods on that one!)

Consider Fleabane. Now imagine it wall to wall like a forest@ more than a metre tall and coming into flower. Now imagine trying to remove the fleabane with a hoe and find the young tender grafted orange trees amidst the fleabane. The fleabane is in strips between the rows of orange trees in an orchard and there are two rows of grafted orange seedlings down the middle.

This is what I’ve been doing of late. Happy to announce that no orange tree died in order to surrender the fleabane.

roughbarked said:

Consider Fleabane. Now imagine it wall to wall like a forest@ more than a metre tall and coming into flower. Now imagine trying to remove the fleabane with a hoe and find the young tender grafted orange trees amidst the fleabane. The fleabane is in strips between the rows of orange trees in an orchard and there are two rows of grafted orange seedlings down the middle.

This is what I’ve been doing of late. Happy to announce that no orange tree died in order to surrender the fleabane.

I can imagine that, because I have fleabane here. One plant gone to seed = thousands of new plants the next season.

bluegreen said:

roughbarked said:

Consider Fleabane. Now imagine it wall to wall like a forest@ more than a metre tall and coming into flower. Now imagine trying to remove the fleabane with a hoe and find the young tender grafted orange trees amidst the fleabane. The fleabane is in strips between the rows of orange trees in an orchard and there are two rows of grafted orange seedlings down the middle.

This is what I’ve been doing of late. Happy to announce that no orange tree died in order to surrender the fleabane.

I can imagine that, because I have fleabane here. One plant gone to seed = thousands of new plants the next season.

It is going to ruin farms and the bush. The way it has taken over in such a rush.

looks like summer is back.. 39°C 27°C 29°C 33°C 38°C 38°C 37°C

roughbarked said:

looks like summer is back.. 39°C 27°C 29°C 33°C 38°C 38°C 37°C

yep. that looks like summer.

roughbarked said:

looks like summer is back.. 39°C 27°C 29°C 33°C 38°C 38°C 37°C

Looks like it!

Evening all. It’s been drizzly rain all day but it didn’t stop myself and helpers do a few things in the garden.

We moved some of the logs into place in front of the almond tree. It’s a great spot to sit to catch a breeze on a warm evening. No doubt the chooks will find them nice resting spots too.

This time it was Lottie helping herself to the pond weed. People think it’s strange that Lottie and Dottie are identical, but that I can tell them apart.

Oh and my latest freebie! A small raised garden bed with the dome and net, new still in the box. I couldn’t believe it..went to this fellows place to get a bargain consisting of several gardening tools, garden fork and spade, rake and secateurs, several hand tools, all fiskars, and a hose with the fittings and a bag of gypsum. All for $20.
Then he said could you use this raised bed..I sure could! :D They were moving and selling very cheap or just throwing out heaps of things. Chooks be gone. I think this would be good for some salad greens.

Happy Potter said:

Evening all. It’s been drizzly rain all day but it didn’t stop myself and helpers do a few things in the garden.

We moved some of the logs into place in front of the almond tree. It’s a great spot to sit to catch a breeze on a warm evening. No doubt the chooks will find them nice resting spots too.

This time it was Lottie helping herself to the pond weed. People think it’s strange that Lottie and Dottie are identical, but that I can tell them apart.

Oh and my latest freebie! A small raised garden bed with the dome and net, new still in the box. I couldn’t believe it..went to this fellows place to get a bargain consisting of several gardening tools, garden fork and spade, rake and secateurs, several hand tools, all fiskars, and a hose with the fittings and a bag of gypsum. All for $20.
Then he said could you use this raised bed..I sure could! :D They were moving and selling very cheap or just throwing out heaps of things. Chooks be gone. I think this would be good for some salad greens.

all wonderful stuff :)

Happy Potter said:

Evening all. It’s been drizzly rain all day but it didn’t stop myself and helpers do a few things in the garden.

We moved some of the logs into place in front of the almond tree. It’s a great spot to sit to catch a breeze on a warm evening. No doubt the chooks will find them nice resting spots too.

This time it was Lottie helping herself to the pond weed. People think it’s strange that Lottie and Dottie are identical, but that I can tell them apart.

Oh and my latest freebie! A small raised garden bed with the dome and net, new still in the box. I couldn’t believe it..went to this fellows place to get a bargain consisting of several gardening tools, garden fork and spade, rake and secateurs, several hand tools, all fiskars, and a hose with the fittings and a bag of gypsum. All for $20.
Then he said could you use this raised bed..I sure could! :D They were moving and selling very cheap or just throwing out heaps of things. Chooks be gone. I think this would be good for some salad greens.

good find.

Some people throw away good stuff all the time.

Happy Potter said:

Chooks be gone. I think this would be good for some salad greens.

I think it would be, too!

Argh. frustrations! My whinge for the day, people not communicating, grr. One would think that with the multitude of communication devices we have at our fingertips, people would actually use them!

Problem: The bigger inverter for the solar panel system needs a different connection lead to the meter. It’s a warranty thing. Well the solar sparky coming out to fix it is a bit worried that the beehive is too near the meter box. He’s not allergic to them, just a bit nervous.

So I said ok, let me know the day before you come out to do the work and I will put a board across the hive entry late at night so there are no bees about. Then I could take the board away once he’s finished the job.
No call. They are coming out in 2 hours. I said to the company, you have my email, mobile, land line and instant messenger, and hubbys, and you couldn’t contact me?

Prob #2. Eccentric fellow who refuses to have a mobile phone or a computer and lets an answering machine get every call, and doesn’t ring you back until he is ready, sometimes a week or more, is furious because people are not ringing him or returning his calls. I told him you best become updated with the 21st century deary.

What is the matter with people?

Happy Potter said:

Argh. frustrations! My whinge for the day, people not communicating, grr. One would think that with the multitude of communication devices we have at our fingertips, people would actually use them!

Problem: The bigger inverter for the solar panel system needs a different connection lead to the meter. It’s a warranty thing. Well the solar sparky coming out to fix it is a bit worried that the beehive is too near the meter box. He’s not allergic to them, just a bit nervous.

So I said ok, let me know the day before you come out to do the work and I will put a board across the hive entry late at night so there are no bees about. Then I could take the board away once he’s finished the job.
No call. They are coming out in 2 hours. I said to the company, you have my email, mobile, land line and instant messenger, and hubbys, and you couldn’t contact me?

Prob #2. Eccentric fellow who refuses to have a mobile phone or a computer and lets an answering machine get every call, and doesn’t ring you back until he is ready, sometimes a week or more, is furious because people are not ringing him or returning his calls. I told him you best become updated with the 21st century deary.

What is the matter with people?

The bees constitute an OH&S problem.

The bees constitute an OH&S problem.
———————————-
Yeah they do. But they could have called me so I could make it safer.

Update: They’re here already. They sent a different duo, one of them keeps bees himself. Good.

Happy Potter said:

Prob #2. Eccentric fellow who refuses to have a mobile phone or a computer and lets an answering machine get every call, and doesn’t ring you back until he is ready, sometimes a week or more, is furious because people are not ringing him or returning his calls. I told him you best become updated with the 21st century deary.

That’s arrogance, that is. When people ring, it’s because they know they need to deal with something of immediance…(if that’s a word)… Letters are the way to go if you’re not going to handle something for a week.

I have that problem with my menfolk, they tell me I “complicate” things because if I’m organising something, I ring around maybe several times to ensure we’re all “looking at the same picture”. The other day there was spitting and snarling because P made one phone call to Sonny Joe, who “didn’t realise” Sonny Jim would not have a car available, because Sonny Jim told Sonny Joe nothing (keeping it simple – need to know and all that) about what was happening with work cars…so I found myself getting home at 23:00 hrs that night instead of before dinner…as we had to wait for Sonny Jim to finish work to bring his ute home, then they had dinner ….

We got there in the end but there was furious “I wasn’t told…I didn’t know” phone calls that could have been avoided …

The sparky problem down your way would be the organising person having no customer relations skills …

Happy Potter said:

The bees constitute an OH&S problem.
———————————-
Yeah they do. But they could have called me so I could make it safer.

Update: They’re here already. They sent a different duo, one of them keeps bees himself. Good.

Then he brought the relevant bee gear..?

Happy Potter said:

The bees constitute an OH&S problem.
———————————-
Yeah they do. But they could have called me so I could make it safer.

Update: They’re here already. They sent a different duo, one of them keeps bees himself. Good.

How lucky could you be?? LOL

Dinetta said:

The sparky problem down your way would be the organising person having no customer relations skills …

I take that back, maybe the organising person knew about the sparky’s bees?

Dinetta said:

Happy Potter said:

The bees constitute an OH&S problem.
———————————-
Yeah they do. But they could have called me so I could make it safer.

Update: They’re here already. They sent a different duo, one of them keeps bees himself. Good.

How lucky could you be?? LOL

It could prove that they thought about the situation and actually sent someone with the right knowledge and equipment?

Dinetta said:

Dinetta said:

The sparky problem down your way would be the organising person having no customer relations skills …

I take that back, maybe the organising person knew about the sparky’s bees?

methinks, yes.

roughbarked said:

Happy Potter said:

The bees constitute an OH&S problem.
———————————-
Yeah they do. But they could have called me so I could make it safer.

Update: They’re here already. They sent a different duo, one of them keeps bees himself. Good.

Then he brought the relevant bee gear..?

No he didn’t, just waved away any concerns. He has been joined now by a none too bright co worker. Hubby asked this one if he was ok near the hive. Fella replied, ‘bees? what bees? I didn’t even know they were there, haha’. He’s doing the meter box cable connecting work for 30 mins now. No, he’s not worried at all.

Happy Potter said:

roughbarked said:

Happy Potter said:

The bees constitute an OH&S problem.
———————————-
Yeah they do. But they could have called me so I could make it safer.

Update: They’re here already. They sent a different duo, one of them keeps bees himself. Good.

Then he brought the relevant bee gear..?

No he didn’t, just waved away any concerns. He has been joined now by a none too bright co worker. Hubby asked this one if he was ok near the hive. Fella replied, ‘bees? what bees? I didn’t even know they were there, haha’. He’s doing the meter box cable connecting work for 30 mins now. No, he’s not worried at all.

Good.

Always good to know he brought the relevant bee knowledge and gear.

You’d know that if he put the gear on, that there was actually a problem.

I thought it a sound decision for our farmers, myself

Dinetta said:

I thought it a sound decision for our farmers, myself

Many farmers may disagree.. but for one.. I wouldn’t.

Australia should focus on being the one nation capable of thinking and being the cleverest and greenest. There exists the opportunity yet we we tend to waste it at election time.

Happy Potter said:

No he didn’t, just waved away any concerns. He has been joined now by a none too bright co worker. Hubby asked this one if he was ok near the hive. Fella replied, ‘bees? what bees? I didn’t even know they were there, haha’. He’s doing the meter box cable connecting work for 30 mins now. No, he’s not worried at all.

lol that’ll be one for the end-of-week beers tonight…

roughbarked said:

Dinetta said:

I thought it a sound decision for our farmers, myself

Many farmers may disagree.. but for one.. I wouldn’t.

Australia should focus on being the one nation capable of thinking and being the cleverest and greenest. There exists the opportunity yet we we tend to waste it at election time.

Well after watching that movie Food Inc, I think it’s a hugely sound decision to keep the Yanks out…all they see is $$$$$$$$$$$ (but so does Monsanto, which I believe was originally French?)

Because I’ve got the link at the moment….Long is 1 year old now:

buffy said:

Because I’ve got the link at the moment….Long is 1 year old now:

Handsome devil!

His legs look long?

Fixed the sprinkling system along MrsB and my fence…it was well done in the first place…I’m looking to replace one of the sprinkler fittings as it’s not the right type for there…have some spare irrigation hose (the type you stick the little sprinkler thingies into) so I’ll look at it in daylight with a view to setting it up to drip water the roses…all 3 of them…

I’m still amazed that the other bed (that I transplanted into this afternoon) had some respectable sized wormies…started thinking of the chookies as my Cleanup Crew…

I think it’s mostly the camera angle doing the long leg thing.

buffy said:

Because I’ve got the link at the moment….Long is 1 year old now:

looking good too :)

Good morning. I have been gardening. Just weeding, tidying. I need to go and pull out the parsley which is going to seed. And put in some seed for the next batch. I’ve left one of the Italian parsley plants to go to seed, but there is a curled parsley in an inconvenient place, so that can go into the compost.

I seem to have pruned back lemon scented geranium and netted the loganberries. I don’t think that was what I went out there to do….

buffy said:

I seem to have pruned back lemon scented geranium and netted the loganberries. I don’t think that was what I went out there to do….

:)
Same. I went out early in my pj’s, still in them, only now they are dirty aye. I only went out to feed the chooks. I hadn’t intended to tie up the broad beans, find dirt mixes and compost and manures to fill the netted raised vege bed, nor plant out another 30 or so silverbeet seedlings.

But seeing as I’m already dirty, I may as well use the freebie hose and fittings to add yet another hose reel nearer the main vege beds. That way I don’t have to have hoses laying on the path and forever having to drag them back.
Then I will no doubt test it for any leaks and water the veges :D

Arvo. I have been out in the garden for a bit this morning and now having lunch featuring the results of my spud bandicooting. Had a Spunta spud with sweet chilli sauce, shredded cheese and and a yoghurt/thickened cream combo (cause I didn’t have any sour cream).

Feeling pretty chuffed. Usually at this time of year I barely have the spuds planted!

AnneS said:

Arvo. I have been out in the garden for a bit this morning and now having lunch featuring the results of my spud bandicooting. Had a Spunta spud with sweet chilli sauce, shredded cheese and and a yoghurt/thickened cream combo (cause I didn’t have any sour cream).

Feeling pretty chuffed. Usually at this time of year I barely have the spuds planted!

applause

Dinetta said:

AnneS said:

Arvo. I have been out in the garden for a bit this morning and now having lunch featuring the results of my spud bandicooting. Had a Spunta spud with sweet chilli sauce, shredded cheese and and a yoghurt/thickened cream combo (cause I didn’t have any sour cream).

Feeling pretty chuffed. Usually at this time of year I barely have the spuds planted!

applause

Thanks Dinetta. As usual I have heaps of the LHC to catch up on….probably too much to comment on though. Have I missed any special news?

AnneS said:

Thanks Dinetta. As usual I have heaps of the LHC to catch up on….probably too much to comment on though. Have I missed any special news?

BlueGreen’s cockatiels had a baby, Rolly..

ooh,thanks for reminding me with that picture. I dug some King Edwards today and I haven’t bagged them yet.

buffy said:

ooh,thanks for reminding me with that picture. I dug some King Edwards today and I haven’t bagged them yet.

Yes. Different potatoes have different harvesting times. I’ve been trying the royal blues but they seem to prefer a cooler climate I think.

I just plant whatever is sprouting, whenever it sprouts. Sometimes they grow. Sometimes they don’t. I read some companion planting stuff about putting potatoes under broad beans which I think I’ll do next year as they should be frost protected that way.

buffy said:

I just plant whatever is sprouting, whenever it sprouts. Sometimes they grow. Sometimes they don’t. I read some companion planting stuff about putting potatoes under broad beans which I think I’ll do next year as they should be frost protected that way.

Yes I tend to plant what’s sprouting too. Yes Potatoes and beans or peas get on well.

buffy said:

I just plant whatever is sprouting, whenever it sprouts. Sometimes they grow. Sometimes they don’t. I read some companion planting stuff about putting potatoes under broad beans which I think I’ll do next year as they should be frost protected that way.

Inneresting…

That’s me sprinkler system set up, on one bed, the chookens have been industriously digging up the thick wads of newspaper I laid down to protect the newly transplanted “Dr Huey” and also the late Marion Mary ….I may have to replace it as they dig it..

Beats me why chookens eat paper? Especially fond of newsprint…

The little sprinkler thingies are not quite right, I think I might have to shop elsewhere, the original “heads” are much better for that location…

roughbarked said:

buffy said:

ooh,thanks for reminding me with that picture. I dug some King Edwards today and I haven’t bagged them yet.

Yes. Different potatoes have different harvesting times. I’ve been trying the royal blues but they seem to prefer a cooler climate I think.

My King Edwards haven’t done as well this year as in past years, but the Spunta seem to be going ok and the Dutch Cream. They are so much nicer than store bought.

I tried spunta and don’t like them. They are sort of gritty, or something.