Preparedness for when

[Deleted User]

ELONA just HUGS pet, lots of them and whenever you do need them,sending you both all the happy thoughts and love I've got, Lyn xxx.

Frugalsod

Just to demonstrate some old techniques are still the best.

http://digg.com/video/scythe-demolishes-weed-whacker-in-grass-cutting-competition

GreyQueen

Frugalsod wrote: »

Just to demonstrate some old techniques are still the best.

http://digg.com/video/scythe-demolishes-weed-whacker-in-grass-cutting-competition

:T Brilliant. And look at the simple elegance and economy of movement versus the hunched-posture and wasp-sounding drone of the appliance. Which would have been belching out petrol fumes, and costing money to run.

I detest being up on the lotties on a summer's day and having these things going on and on in the background. I haven't got a scythe but someone two doors down has, and offered the loaner of it if necessary. I did give my whole allotment a radical haircut when I first took it on with my late Grandad's hand sickle. There is also a hand-tool called a 'scythette' which is like a sickle but instead of a crescent-shaped blade going into the handle, the metal part of the scythette is two pieces, with the cutting edge a smaller version of the scythe's blade.

Either sickle or scythette are handly tools, widely available at bootsales, for the gardener, although they would make proper haymaking painful on the back due to stooping.

Have been up the lotties putting wood treatment onto my shed whilst it was warm and sunny, gotta keep those chores ticking over.

Frugalsod

GreyQueen wrote: »

:T Brilliant. And look at the simple elegance and economy of movement versus the hunched-posture and wasp-sounding drone of the appliance. Which would have been belching out petrol fumes, and costing money to run.

I detest being up on the lotties on a summer's day and having these things going on and on in the background. I haven't got a scythe but someone two doors down has, and offered the loaner of it if necessary. I did give my whole allotment a radical haircut when I first took it on with my late Grandad's hand sickle. There is also a hand-tool called a 'scythette' which is like a sickle but instead of a crescent-shaped blade going into the handle, the metal part of the scythette is two pieces, with the cutting edge a smaller version of the scythe's blade.

Either sickle or scythette are handly tools, widely available at bootsales, for the gardener, although they would make proper haymaking painful on the back due to stooping.

Have been up the lotties putting wood treatment onto my shed whilst it was warm and sunny, gotta keep those chores ticking over.

They have other advantages. They are free to run, no need for fuel, much less maintenance (you still need to sharpen the blade). No moving parts that could fail. And great for slicing the heads off vampires or zombies if necessary. No noise is another plus.

Alternatively having a herd of goats or sheep to eat the grass also provides manure and meat.

GreyQueen

My Dad was working on a rather old-fashioned farm when he first left school in the 1950s. There were plenty of ole country boys thereabouts and scythes were sometimes used for odd-jobs. One of the tricks when a haymaking gang was working back when teams of men scythed fields was to slyly run a penny down someone's freshly-sharpened scythe blade to blunt it, then go wide-eyed when he found it blunt and say the devil must've done it.

They used to sometimes work for another farmer who was notoriously tight-fisted. Back then, it was customary to provide free beer to help the harvest. This farmer wouldn't and heavy hints about thirst were met with a dour plenty of water at the pump. Of course, this same farmer wasn't best pleased when a labourer working on his roof remarked that he could see there were no rabbits in yon field, on account of the barley being so thin.:rotfl:

Karmacat

I used a scythe during the summer of 1971, when I was doing voluntary work at a local country park during the summer holidays the handle wasn't that long, and I wasn't that good, but its certainly efficient

And a few local authorities in the south of England have reintroduced sheep on the common land, fenced in with an electric fence, to "mow" the grass - the leccy fence has a notice attached showing the mobile phone number of the shepherd
http://ww3.brighton-hove.gov.uk/index.cfm?request=c1246294&node=20571

[Deleted User]

Living seasonally and using home grown produce doesn't have to be boring I'm finding out. When I came up with the idea of doing that in a limited way I was worried that gluts of things might mean jaded palates. Yesterday I made a lovely pasta dish for supper by sweating an onion and 2 leeks until they were very soft, adding in some sliced mushrooms until they were cooked and then adding 2 tablespoons of leftover soured cream and half a pack of light soft cheese with garlic and herbs. A glug of white cooking wine and some black pepper made a very tasty dish with a scattering of cheese on top. Today I'm making leek and potato soup to last us a couple of days and tomorrow I'm using an idea from NurseMaggie to use flattened leek leaves instead of lasagne sheets to make us lasagne for lunch. Rhubarb is also prolific at the moment, so I've got a wartime crumble in the oven with some jackets to reheat later and also some rhubarb in orange juice and a little sugar to have cold with yoghurt for breakfasts. I've a lovely recipe too that I'll make later in the week for a spicy rhubarb upside down cake that will be both cake and pudding for a few days. Anyone got tried and tested recipes for either leeks or rhubarb they would be prepared to share? I'm interested to see what you all make with a glut of things?

anakat

I tried Tom Kerridge's idea of cooking Rhubarb in Grenadine and it was lovely

Baileys_Babe

MrsLurcherwalker would you be so kind as to share your recipe for spicy rhubarb upside down cake, sounds delicious.

[Deleted User]

Surely can BAILEYS BABE

Spicy Rhubarb Upside Down Cake

1 lb rhubarb washed and sliced thinly
4 tablespoons drk brown sugar

for the cake
4 oz soft margarine/butter
4 oz dark brown sugar
2 eggs beaten
8 oz wholemeal flour (self raising)
1 teaspoon baking powder
freshly grated nutmeg to your liking
1 teaspoon cinnamon
good pinch of ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 pint milk
margarine for greasing the tin

Pre heat oven Gas Reg 3/140 degC fan oven/160 degC conventional oven

grease an 8" cake tin with the extra margarine and sprinkle over the 4 tablespoons of brown sugar then arrange the rhubarb slices evenly over the top of it. Cream the margarine and 4oz sugar together until soft then add in the eggs a little at a time. Gradually mix in the flour, spices and baking powder, stir in the milk and mix well. Pour over the rhubarb and smooth the top. Bake for 1 hour - 1 and a1/4 hours until golden on top and a skewer comes out clean.

Turn out onto a flat plate and either serve hot with custard/cream as a pudding or leave until cold and serve as a cake.

Hope you enjoy it, Lyn xxx.