Daydream thread... without the rose-tinted specs

Rummer

CTC That is a tricky one as the person may genuinely have been trying to be kind, misguided but if they didn't notice the waterers they could have been trying to help. Signs will make it clear though that the help is not necessary as they have everything they need

Dry and reasonably clear here today

COOLTRIKERCHICK

you are right, they think they are helping, and thinking the pigs have no water etc, BUT they they have automatic drinkers which are plumbed into the main water supply, which at the back of their run.. which is the place they have always been..


What I am worried about, is the quality of the water that they tried giving them ( I know this sounds stupid when they snuffle, slurp and eat god know what from the ground) and the grass that they put in, is most prob been piddled on by upteen dogs..


silly as this might sound, but if you give them a hand full of grass they are not to keen on it, but things like dandilions, sticky w.illy, jap knot weed etc and they love it..


I suppose this is another thing you got to get used to when you have a footpath going through your land... but the pigs have been there forwell over a year and a half... and nothing has changed.. (except they have rooted up the land) but the pig they tried giving water to we moved into the run next to where he used to be, as that run had been rested for a while, so had new growth in there, and the run he has in, is now resting.... cant flipping win lol..


At the how we got talking to the local bee society, and there is a lady right at the top of our road.. who keeps bees, think she was hinting about being aloud to put a hive or two on our land, there is a quiet spot right down the far end, which in all honestly will be quite a few years until we do anything with it, which might be a good spot, but then again even though it is out of the way, I am sure some booger would complain... even though it is away from anyone lol...

Rummer

CTC I think you are right to be concerned and the signs should educate people I only meant that at least it wasn't a malicious interference just someone who was trying to be helpful. However you can't have people giving them water and food especially food as it may not be good for them. The signs will highlight the excellent care they are receiving.

We had to put signs up when someone put grass clippings in our horses laminitis paddock :eek: mercifully someone saw it happen and cleared them before the horses ate them. The person was trying to be kind as had seen them grass free when dog walking, however they did not realise the harm that grass clippings could cause.

I think you should write a book about your journey from dreamer to smallholder and the events along the way

COOLTRIKERCHICK

HAHAHAHA Rummer, if I wrote a book, with what has happened with us, people will be running and staying in the cities lol..


I know there was no malice, and this person 'thinks' they are doing the right thing, BUT they are not... we have also told umpteen people that have down the path with a bag of peelings for them, that it is illegal to feed kitchen scraps to them.. I am sure they think we are lying to then when we tell them this..


Alfie has been here and I am sure if there was ANYTHING wrong, she would be down on me like a ton of bricks...


With what is going on, I think it is time seriously start doing some of the ideas I have thought about and looked at, regarding trying to have some sort of income from the place, so that means one of us would more or less be up there during the day..

pink_poppy

CTC, my first thought when you said about someone feeding the pigs grass & giving them water was that it was something a child would do, completely innocently of course.

Rummer

I didn't know it was illegal to feed them kitchen scraps, there is so much to learn!

A book with the honest truth would be a great idea, I think that many people assume that living on a small holding will be wonderful and freeing and that you will float about in Laura Ashley clothing scattering corn for the chickens and placing freshly grown veg in a basket for dinner.

While I am sure those moments may exist people forget the realities of tramping through the mud in the rain/hail/sleet/snow with the flu to feed the animals. Endless unforeseen costs, unusual neighbours, legal issues, passers by and many many other things too numerous to mention!

A real life experience with highs, lows and your warm humour would be a joy to read!

ukmaggie45

Forgot to mention this, last Thursday OH put up our new archway in the garden. We bought it at the Chelsea Flower Show (well, ordered it - weighs a ton! ) when we were there 2 years ago. It arrived in about 3 large boxes that have been sitting in the loft ever since!

May 2014 by ukmaggie45, on Flickr

The idea is to grow red climbing roses up it... And possible a clematis? We have Rosa The New Dawn in the front garden, which is a very very pale pink, ideally I'd like something similar but with deep red flowers, I prefer the smaller flowers of TND to the very big and blowsy flowers some roses have. Any suggestions?

We actually planted 2 of TND to replace the laurel hedge in the front garden... I think we'd have done better to just plant one, as the rose hedge has gone berserk this year! :rotfl:

May 2014 by ukmaggie45, on Flickr

And since I'm doing such a photo heavy post I thought I'd show you my tree peony which is getting nicely bigger year by year, and more flowers year by year too. :j

May 2014 by ukmaggie45, on Flickr

May 2014 by ukmaggie45, on Flickr

The bright pink azalea in the back garden has flowered its socks off this year, yesterday we rooted out the perennial geraniums that were in danger of smothering it, we now have about half a dozen large pots of them to move elsewhere! Might go behind the shed at the lottie, but we'll have to clear more ground before we can do that.

May 2014 by ukmaggie45, on Flickr

lostinrates

Maggie, if you hang on a couple of weeks I can show you my reds in pics to see if you like any of them.

Mine tend to be blowsier old fashioned or 'English' types though.

Maybe Have a look at princes trust. Rather wee blooms, but neat and good repeating for me in a pot ATM. There are lots of good climbing reds.

Its not neat, but ena harkness is hard to beat on length of season and scent and colour....

Edit, I love high grove, too messy for you? Also a rose that's not for me but that I have just thought might beg worth you looking at is Dublin Bay

COOLTRIKERCHICK

Maggie those are lovely fab flowers..beautiful

alfie_1

hi all
i had some bee keepers round today that had advertised for sites..
the woman was one of those people that come across as pompous looking down on the "oiks"....
luckily its not HER that would be siting the bees, she's just the "look out"....
anyway she found a site which is a strip of land hedged my side and stock fenced t'other. about 4ft wide.. she seemed to think ideal. i did ask if there was a chance of them going rogue and attacking my animals.. she paused and said unlikely... now im not sure !! :cool:

ive been painting and spraying furniture all afternoon and am as high as a kite on fumes ....:D :rotfl:

i hope you did well at the show CTC

re piggy food... thier diet has to be exact when in the meat chain. mabel used to have allsorts cos she wasnt.
my grandad used to go out with the swill wagon to schools ,hotels etc , boil it all up and feed his pigs but regs have changed [long ago] as our human food chain has altered so much re chemicals etc.

ctc's piggies are gorgeously looked after... if you could see hubby's interaction with them... think child with a gaggle of puppies....:D :rotfl: