Preparedness for when

elaine241

Just reading the duck related threads, my 4 go "slugging" whenever there is a little rain and are currently in the orchard ferreting about. If you want to see something hysterical feed your chickens left over spaghetti, its like watching a cartoon!! my chooks are totally free range on the farm but it is the ducks that always surprise me with the distance they travel, several fields away from their home. I love duck eggs especially poached on toast but my OH cant eat them, shame!!!! :-)

[Deleted User]

OK, so we're 28 hours into the test, and the light output has definitely fallen, to maybe a little below its usable light level.

Based on that, I'm going on a usable battery life of 24 hours, continuous, so probably a little longer when used for a few hours per day.

So, working on a 24 hour life, and with me arriving home a little after 1800hrs, and going to bed at around 2200hrs, a set of batteries should last around 6 days.

I will, of course, run the batteries completely down, just to see how long they actually last.

pm2326

Evening

Camping stove arrived yesterday, just need to test it works before putting it away for emergencies, will try it tomorrow. Decided I'm going to empty the little cupboard behind my kitchen door and store the emergency/survival stuff in there, means I know where it all is if I need it.

I also managed to get some long safety matches so will keep them in the drawer above said cupboard (don't like idea of keeping gas canisters and matches in the same cupboard)

On the slug chat...I dont have ducks or chickens but 2 nights ago I saw a huge slug making an attempt to reach my backdoor step so I salted it....last night when I looked outside there were 4 or 5 slugs eating the remains :eek:

jk0

pm2326 wrote: »

Evening

On the slug chat...I dont have ducks or chickens but 2 nights ago I saw a huge slug making an attempt to reach my backdoor step so I salted it....last night when I looked outside there were 4 or 5 slugs eating the remains :eek:

I wonder if the salt makes them tastier.

moneyistooshorttomention

pm2326 wrote: »

On the slug chat...I dont have ducks or chickens but 2 nights ago I saw a huge slug making an attempt to reach my backdoor step so I salted it....last night when I looked outside there were 4 or 5 slugs eating the remains :eek:

So they like a bit of added seasoning with their meals as well then?:rotfl:

With taking a leaf from GQ's book and doing slug patrols, I've just left the corpses at the spot where I "dispatched them to meet their maker" so to say and am finding the corpses still there a couple of days later. I'm hoping its not a case of "watch out for slimy remains for however long it takes them to disintegrate of themselves.

Can anyone correct me if I'm wrong, but I thought birds liked to eat slugs (well if chickens and ducks do, it stands to reason yer common or garden birds would too). Have I got that right and its just a case of waiting for some blackbird, seagull or the like to come along feeling a bit peckish and...bingo...one vanished slug corpse?

Also wondering generally what natural predators slugs and snails have please?

COOLTRIKERCHICK

BB, have you ever done a test with Duracell batteries? was just wondering if there was a diff in the life span of diff batteries?


went to B&M, couldn't find a cooker, so had a look through Amazoon and there is one there with 2 rings and a grill for £25 odd, so might take a proper look at that one, I have swagbuck points to convert, and in a few days I will have enough for a £25 amazon voucher code.. so might go for that one... I know my parents will laugh at that present, BUT I an sure when the power goes out for whatever reason.. they will be glad of it..

COOLTRIKERCHICK

I thought not many wild birds eat slugs, because of the slim??, maybe you haven't got the right type of wild birds in your garden... how did you kill them? as if you killed them with salt, then you will prob kill any livestock that eats them too..or maybe this is why they are leaving them well alone


hedgehogs, badgers eat slugs and snails..

moneyistooshorttomention

My slugs are having "death by sword", ie I chop them in half or thereabouts (rather than using salt). So they come "ungarnished" for anything that wants to eat them.

GreyQueen

COOLTRIKERCHICK wrote: »

I thought not many wild birds eat slugs, because of the slim??, maybe you haven't got the right type of wild birds in your garden... how did you kill them? as if you killed them with salt, then you will prob kill any livestock that eats them too..or maybe this is why they are leaving them well alone


hedgehogs, badgers eat slugs and snails..

When roaming the allotment, if I have spade in my hand, I kill slugs with a sharp downwards blow, a la Madame Guillotine.

If I don't have a spade in my hand, I will fetch it from the shed.

If I'm clipping the grass path with my grass shears, they also function very nicely to chop them in half.

Gardening books can be a bit off-centre with slugs, I've read in one of them which insisted that slugs only eat decaying plant material, not yer actual fruit and veg. Soooo, when I caught slugs hollowing out courgettes or chowing down on my strawberries, I was clearly having some kind of halucination. I've even seen them climbling row marker posts in order to climb the broad beans in order to rasp their way through the pods.

Have had a happy bootsaling session this morning and have brought a brand new single egg frying pan for 50p. And found a £1 coin in the grass. Plus got a galv metal bucket for £2.50.

Tisn't new but in pretty good condition but I've got it sitting with a few inches of water in it to see if it leaks. Pretty pleased with that so far.

I'm aiming to move to longer-lasting materials than plastic, such as metal and glass and wood, as part of living a greener life and spending a bit more up front to save money in the longer term.

Saw lots of stuff I could have brought (passed on another pitchfork, alas) but I restrained myself admirably.

Off to have a cuppa now and check on my pail..........

jk0

My galvanised steel mop bucket is so heavy, I can't lift it out of the sink when it contains water. I have had to install a 'hosepipe tap' in the utility room, so I can fill the bucket on the floor.