Nice people thread part 5 - nicely does it

lostinrates

Davesnave wrote: »

Couch grass.

1/2 an acre.

Farmer's strength Roundup.

Job's a long -un.

1/2 acre brambles, half acre gound elder, couch and celandine. Seververal so acres thistles, docks, buttercups, and rubble. :p

Trying to be organic:think::think::rotfl::rotfl::rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:

misskool

lostinrates wrote: »

1/2 acre brambles, half acre gound elder, couch and celandine. Seververal so acres thistles, docks, buttercups, and rubble. :p

Trying to be organic:think::think::rotfl::rotfl::rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:

:rotfl: :rotfl:

If I had that problem, I would get out the napalm, sorry, there is only so much handweeding one can do.

I was going to go and torch the lesser celandine but it's raining today so they get a grace period I guess.

GDB2222

chewmylegoff wrote: »

I inherited (half of) a house when I was 24. 4 bed semi in SE London which needed to be completely gutted. I realised at a pretty early stage of the project that I didn't want to be a property developer! I enjoyed it for the first month when I was between jobs but as soon as I started working again there was no ways I was going to spend all my free time working on it (although it may have been different if my sister, who owned the other half and was travelling abroad at the time) had been actively involved. I didn't really enjoy working on it knowing that I was only accumulating half of the benefit.

I did learn a lot but have forgotten everything I learnt (apart from the realisation that it's all too much effort!)

Building is a very undervalued profession, IMHO.

zagubov

GDB2222 wrote: »

Building is a very undervalued profession, IMHO.

Fed up with doing up houses (not that I did any of the building stuff myself). Had a house whose kitchen was microscopic so we extended it forward into the hall.

Must have increased its value but that was swamped by the rapid increase in all house prices at the time.

Actually the location was important as we were in the catchment for a good primary that got lots of kids into the local grammar schools. Eveery house for sale in our street had a school uniform hanging up or a school photo on display!:D

A big plus on our current house was that it was already extended so not much work needed. I'm too old now to accept living in a building site.

PasturesNew

Davesnave wrote: »

We can't do that because we need to be on site, but we're intending to live in a portacabin, or similar, as we've a spare septic tank and leccy supply.

Like viva, I'm not particularly into development, and I'd never have bought the place if I'd known what I was letting myself in for, but it makes sense to make the most of it now.

Yeah, with a bit of land a mobile home/similar's the best bet.

PasturesNew

River Cottage just started. More4, freeview channel 14

One of the things he is doing is helping a family to clear huge swathes of land with grasses and brambles on them. Thought this might be useful to those of you mentioning similar jobs in the past 24 hours.

Downside is you have to watch though the very very annoying programme until it gets to that bit.... I DO find him a right annoying middle class twit.

PasturesNew

Didn't have to wait long. He's got 1.5 acres of land on a town edge that is covered in brambles - and has recruited five local families to clear it, to prove to the Council it's viable as growing land.

They're in there now with hand cutters and croppers.

PasturesNew

Five families:
Hogg family - annoying woman
Swainger - fat family eating on the floor of their living room
Joyner - he hates veg
Bright - one's nearly tearful when saying the words "they want us to work"

I must have missed the last lot.

One week on - half an acre cleared. It's clay soil, so now they've got to turn it over and pull the roots out.

He's supplied wheelbarrows and horse muck.

Hugh Twitty-Poshgit said they are renting derelict council land - 1.5 acres at a rate of £164 for the first year.

Edit: oooh I just got a mention... he said he was "passing on the broad bean baton to pastures new...." and I am, it seems, a small sticky boy.

Davesnave

lostinrates wrote: »

1/2 acre brambles, half acre gound elder, couch and celandine. Seververal so acres thistles, docks, buttercups, and rubble. :p

Trying to be organic:think::think::rotfl::rotfl::rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:

I'm selective. I ignore the buttercups & dandelions and give the docks & thistles both barrels. The cows & sheep eat the couch, but not in the garden, of course.

We took about two tonnes of blocks out of the soil down by the stream a few weeks ago. I'd barrowed a couple up the slope, but decided that as they were the 6" thick ones, with a liberal coating of plaster, it was better to use the digger & dumper.

Not many brambles here now, but we had bracken. I'm using the past tense in anticipation of success against that.... I'll find out soon!

misskool

sorry pn *posh alertage*

just had a lovely snack of oysters from waitrose. 50p each