No T Words mentioned at all - a fresh start

prepareathome

MrsLurcherwalker wrote: »

PAH - having consulted the resident gardener at Chez Nous he says yes, you could harvest while they are still in flower, but probably best to leave them as long as possible in the ground unless they show signs of the dreaded blight. If you do decide to harvest as you need the space they will be fine, just little ones. Cheers Lyn x. Hope you had a nice birthday yesterday x.

Thanks will leave them then a bit longer but will keep a daily check on them.

Had a fairly quiet day but we did take a run out to a charity shop for YMCA in a village not to far away that I had wanted to go back to - went once years ago and ended up buying a lovely pitcher and basin - just a reproduction - says its ironware on bottom but I doubt it, but full size for £10 which I was very happy with as I have a thing about them - have a small bone china one on window ledge of downstairs toilet I bought many, many years ago for £5, then a middle size modern decoration one from another charity shop that was £10 but its was nice and bright and cheerful and perfect for window ledge of upstairs toilet and bathroom. New one is all pink and red roses and very Victorian looking and jug is really unusual shape and bowl ovalso it will live in either my bedroom ( if I can make space )or living room - hubby says he is happy to have it there as he likes it.

When hubby was carrying it to the counter a woman who was just paying for a lot of things - bone china cups, saucers, collectable plates etc - came to £79 + £7.50 for delivery, looked round and saw what he was carrying and her eyes nearly popped out of her head and asked him where was it, so I said, it was in full view and I saw it as soon as I walked into shop and went straight to it. She asked me if I wanted it and I said yes and she stroked it a couple of times and sighed, maybe she thought it was original or going by her purchases she thought she could pass it off as one, but I don't care who made it I just love it. If it lives in living room I might use it as a planter with some pebbles at bottom and a plant in a pot inside as its wider than usual ones and not as tall, make a real feature of it.

So that was part of my birthday present as really cannot afford such luxuries these days but ohhhhhh I love it

[Deleted User]

PAH -Glad you found something beautiful at the CS, saw the picture on the other thread and experienced much envy as it is lovely. Enjoy it!!!!! I must admit to much prefering rescued things to new ones and I found a lovely blue and white Jug and Bowl set at a boot fair a few years ago and it lives in my kitchen and gets used for things like elderflower cordial making as it is nice and big. The bowl holds all my ripening tomatoes in the autumn too. Have a good evening Cheers Lyn x.

[Deleted User]

FTM, wonderful, absolutely wonderful news. Congratulations

PAH, harvest the potatoes when you want to eat some. They taste their best when small. I generally have a furtle for smallish ones and then leave the rest to grow. Trouble is that we have just had our fifth blight watch warning and it really is imminent, some areas already have it. Get stuck in and enjoy them

I am very ready to cut the haulms and take them home to destroy if there is any sign of blight. I cannot believe that potatoes will keep this year.

I have been killing slugs, never been able to do it before but it is them or my veg!! I was on the allotment this afternoon and the weeds are taking over, even though I go regularly. Hands and knees stuff on slippy compacted clay this time and I didn`t like it, so I can see me getting a couple more raised beds to make 12. The soil in the beds is so much nicer to work and no-one walks on it and it is nice to have a definite area to work on

Broad beans are almost all picked and frozen and strawberries un-netted as it is just something else to contend with in order to get 8 part eaten fruits. I am throwing dozens away so it isn`t birds that I am fighting but mould

I have a cold, not as terrible one but I am now bunged up. The nights are the worst but I bought some of the old formula actifed when we were abroad. Lol they make me sleepy so I only take one at night. Its bliss when they knock me out

Keep safe everyone, it looks as though the NE and some central areas are on a met office amber alert for rain. Have a mental action plan in case the worst happens

littlecal

FTM - What lovely news,welcome to Emma (probably the youngest MSE'er):D

Caroline-Encore

FTM - congratulations:) Welcome to Emma and hope Heather heals quickly (ouch)
Caroline

[Deleted User]

point 2 down the link
http://www.weatheraction.com/displayarticle.asp?a=471&c=5

this is it and released to public
http://www.weatheraction.com/docs/WANews12No31.pdf

It will be BAD

the wheat field behind me is tuning yellow and with all this wet, his crop will likely be very poor. Grains, potatoes, veg in general will be poor

[Deleted User]

it is dry here but clouds are getting thicker so am going to do my allotment stint right now. Flipping touch and go every day re weather and have serious polytunnel envy but absolutely no area for one. Early dug shallots are on garden table drying but I daren`t leave them while my back is turned.

http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/homeandleisure/floods/3days/125305.aspx

latest re potential floods and remember it can happen on the top of a hill if the drains don`t cope. First thing I would do if flood is coming is stuff pillows down toilets and put bricks on top as what comes up is too bad to speak about

Just made lunch, roasting two lovely thick lamb cuts in a mini tabletop oven I bought from lakeland in the sale. It cost £19.99 and I use it almost every day. Its footprint is smaller than a microwave and it is so very useful. I`ve had a lot from their sale this year but all useful stuff

I haven`t been hanging washing out this summer because of pollen sticking as well as bad weather but I put my lakeland 50w towel airer on in the utility, where I have a pull out set of lines plus a very useful smalls dryer hanging down. Everything dries so quickly in there and dh hasn`t had any asthma attacks this year. Must have been a nightmare previously when the sheets must have been full of pollen dust

ooh, bright sky coming. I`m off, on my bike with tools and bags

[Deleted User]

We've had a lovely day down here and sun most of the time, I've actually managed to get two wash loads dry and DH has re-proofed the breathable waterproofs and they are drying nicely too. We are lucky and don't seem to have a problem with pollen. My SIL was funny yesterday, we showed the polytunnel to her for the first time and she stood by the peas eating them out of the pods like sweeties, then I offered her some strawberries which had ripened nicely in the patch and you'd have thought it was christmas, she was so pleased. The weather forecast for the next few days looks to be most unpleasant so hope you all take care, and hope everyone's produce survives the downpours. Have a good evening Lyn xx.

scottishminnie

Good evening all.

FTM - congratulations - brilliant news, hope mum and baby are doing well.

Kittie - that's horrendous but forewarned is forearmed I guess.

I'm just home from a trip south today - 23 degrees when I boarded the plane to come home - 13 degrees when I arrived at Glasgow. Summer really has arrived in Scotland!

Scotland's main music festival is due to take place this weekend and I heard that the site is a swamp already. 2 of the local agricultural shows which were scheduled for this weekend have been cancelled which is a real blow for some of the small businesses who normally get a bit of a boost from their attendance.

MrsLM - I love peas straight from the pod so I would have been delighted too. I also planted by first strawberries this year however I don't think there will be any fruit from them which is disappointing.

My potatoes do seem to be growing furiously so I really should pay them some attention this weekend. It's going to be a busy one - our bricklayer friend is coming to create some raised vegetable beds for me which will finally get my kitchen garden moving. Of course the weather may well put paid to the best laid plans - will keep you posted!

[Deleted User]

well we have been very lucky as it is always a gamble when you have to get a tradesman. We needed a sweep and we have a flue with bends. They have just been and were so professional and nice, they worked so well and then we found out that one is also a plumber who is going to do hetas. I have told them that when he qualifies he can service our wood pellet stove and I don`t mind if he has the servicing book in front of him. What a very lucky find and they have gone into our house book. We are going to recommend them. They work together as they said they can do a better job. Found them on
http://www.instituteofchimneysweeps.com/

£35 thats all 40 mins, two people plus drive out. Last years service and sweep cost £300 and he never even had the flexible rods needed. Stove service is being done on monday and now is £185, same person and includes sweep, which we don`t need now but we had already booked the local sweep and weren`t going to let him down. The installing service/stove company was taken over. We were ripped off last year but they retained the service engineer. We have to go the engineer route rather than diy because it is a specialist stove

We will use the two who came today from next year. I really felt like asking how much the hetas course was, I could have lent him the money and he could have paid me back by servicing over the years. If he hasn`t got it together by next year then I will ask him if I can help. They were two good people obviously hard working and trying to get their business going. I hope he gets the hetas qualification this next year