Daydream thread continues.....

lostinrates

Well, we spent another morning hacking back privet. This afternoon popped out to the local independant garden centre (where i have hought some good wuality plants and the people actually know something about them). We were talking about hedges and my long term plans to replace with you and they shrugged and told us to bite the bullet and buy cheapest bare roots they offer, offered me a deal on them again, and told us to start removing the hedges here next month.

The privet should be easy enough. The elders might be harder.

What chance do you all think there is in moving hawthorn if we get it with a root ball. Its not THAT old......eighties maybe? (going from photos where there was no hedge here in about the eighties. ). Would be useful to plug gaps in the field.

Also, i guess we will use that bright green screening for privacy...but woven hurdles would be nicer...but too pricey by far. Alfie, if you see some old forester weaving away metres of hurdle for sixpence please tell me!

I have never planted hedge like this, or come to think of it, cleared for it. I am guessing that weed membrane is a good way to go? I think i remember its been discussed here as some being better than other stuff? We laid membrane with gravel down around it where we put the bees, but noticed in the last year weeds have over taken, so i recognise its damage limitation nt prevention and we still need to maintain somewhat.

rhiwfield

Right, life goes on!

Rozee, I tried shredding the brash for paths and it worked OK, but it was a sight easier to get a bunch of free chippings from the tree surgeon. As RAS posted, you do get some interesting fungi growing in the paths!

And although I do compost a lot, especially with the chooks (Lotus-Eater look away now) I also bag up the thorny/perennial weed stuff to go to our local composter (2 miles away) and we are able to get unlimited amounts of free compost from them. Let it mature a few weeks and its good enough to plant in direct (my toms love it)

I'd guess each of us has local possibilities to supplement income. A medium size garden can produce a lot of crops to cut down fruit and veg purchases and/or generate some cash via gate sales/car boots via produce or seedling sales. But the consensus on here is that smallholdings are more a lifestyle choice than a source of income, though if well managed they can reduce the need for a high level of alternative income.

I'll be fascinated to hear how Alfie does at the auto jumble. I've had one or two people advising me (at the car boot!) to sell at antiques fairs, to maximise profit. Maybe it would max gross profit, but the cost of stalls and travel could be substantial. And I'd need a van rather than the small frugal car I use atm. The other thing I need to find out from Alf (and Choille?) is whether its better to source from car boots or auctions. That'll mean swapping achieved mark ups and buying quantities.

And even though we're careful with money, I didnt notice that Eon hadnt paid our Spring FITs, until I chased late payment of Summer FITs. Nice surprise in bank account though!

lostinrates

Rhiwfield, i sometimes go to the big fairs at bath and west (more often the fle markets than the antique stalls). Lots of people have big old vans, but a precious few have cars and trailers.

Alfie and i went to one this year and it was not as good as normal, or i am getting fussier.

Does make me wonder if you could not go in collaboration with other people selling stuff.......so, half a pitch each, with, for examplle, someone near you who sells stuff and needs cash to feed her pigs with?

The other bonus of that would be you could break the day up with taking rests (important for you and your dW rhiwfield) if you had done a good job of pricing stuff up and labelling it, and offer the same to the other party if they had done the same. I think ctc has done bath or bristol? If you did any of those three, i am sure i could lean not very heavily on alfie and then she would drive as far as me and i would drive the rest of the way and we could shop and get ideas and bring you picnic and the obligatory cuppa tea and a biscwit.

rhiwfield

What a lovely idea, definitely worth exploring!

Rummer

Oh if I was nearer I would love to come too!

Things here are really tough and so wearing, it would be lovely to have some light relief and witty banter

Alfie, I think you already have my details, if they have got lost I am happy to give them anew.

lostinrates

Oh for more hours in the day!

We ran out of chicken feed this morning, showipng how scatty i have been in the last few months......never knowiongly understocked, thats me.


The bases of our two lime trees need to be cleared of their many, many shoots (does this sort of shoot at the base of a pollarded tree have a special name?).

Next week i am going to get some plans of the garden and start designing the north bit at least.

I want a menolith. Like they did not get all the way to avebury with it, for my front garden. Will cost a bomb right?

lostinrates

Its the other jobs that suck up time, the ones not on the list.

Some how, half the soil/compost has disappeared from around the biggest fig and the second biggest one. My guess is not enough crock over the holes in their huge pots. Dh has gone to fell a big wheel barrow of stuff to replenish fig one with right now, and i hiave just watered it in preparation for the assault. I can imagine this unplanned endeavour will be the best part of an hour all in.

lostinrates

Done, how long was that? It looks much better, but bet it will sulk now. T'other one another day.

Davesnave

CTC, the piggies are great! They're all heads up and exploring....and there is (was?) some grass.

We had one fig this year, lir, but I split the plant last year, so more to come. We have the ideal place for them in the bottom yard, but I just have to get round to it.

Will come back later and maybe show you what I've been up to......:cool:

Might find out then how alfie has done at the Autojumblie....;)

Davesnave

Rummer, this came into my inbox today via a nice lady in the village, but it's for anyone who needs cheering up a bit:

If you yelled for 8 years, 7 months and 6 days you would have produced enough sound energy to heat one cup of coffee.
(Hardly seems worth it.)



If you farted consistently for 6 years and 9 months,enough gas would be produced to create the energy of an atomic bomb.



(Now that's more like it!)



The human heart creates enough pressure when it pumps out to thebody to squirt blood 30 feet.



(O.M.G.!)



A pig's orgasm lasts 30 minutes.



(O.M.G.!!!)



A cockroach will live nine days without its head before it starvesto death. (Creepy)



(I'm still not over the pig.)



Banging your head against a wall uses 150 calories an hour.



(Don't try this at home; maybe at work.)



The male praying mantis cannot copulate while its head is attached to its body. The female initiates sex by ripping the male's head off.



(Honey, I'm home . What the...?)



The flea can jump 350 times its body length. It's like a human jumping the length of a football field.



(30 minutes. Lucky pig! Can you imagine?)



The catfish has over 27,000 taste buds.



(What could be so tasty on the bottom of a pond?)



Some lions mate over 50 times a day.



(I still can't believe that pig ...quality over quantity.)



Butterflies taste with their feet.



(Something I always wanted to know.)



The strongest muscle in the body is the tongue.



(Hmmmmmm.......)



Elephants are the only animals that cannot jump.



(Okay, so that would be a good thing.)



A cat's urine glows under a black light.



(I wonder how much the government paid to figure that out.)



An ostrich's eye is bigger than its brain



(I know some people like that.)



Starfish have no brains.



(I know some people like that, too.)



Humans and dolphins are the only species that have sex for pleasure.



(What about that pig? Do the dolphins know about the pig?)

There was more, but it's been a b*//*er to re-format.