A few months ago the decision was made. You could call it a Captain’s call. Such things always end well, sometimes! It was more of a gut feeling thing, than any tangible incident which could be pointed at. Like the difference between encountering a hungry bear in the forest when you’re just about to eat lunch and the bear knows it, to that of the situation where you’re intending to eat lunch out in the forest and you hear an unidentified sound – was that noise the breaking of a stick nearby? We may be down under, but we’ve see those bear-human interaction videos. If you have bears in your corner of the planet, please do keep them there, or we’ll send the super deadly local snakes, just sayin’. Whatever, the call had been made – less soap boxing, just focus the blog now on what we’re doing. The videos arose from that time.
Still, it can be very hard to ignore the sheer weirdness of unfolding events in this enlightened era of decline. A recent article here, alerted me to the fact that apparently the banksters announced that they would lower the interest rates paid on new deposits. Such moves makes any new deposit sourced financing for them, cheaper. Nice for some. Turns out the improved margin from this latest banksters heist, will apparently be used to supply new loans, with I’m guessing honeymoon rates, which will most likely revert to the higher variable rates at some point in the future. Yipee, what a great idea! The more sensitive person wonders what will happen when the honeymoon is over.
Back in 1997 it was with a sense of dismay and foreboding that I observed the house price bubble begin to inflate. And it’s just kept on going, on an on since then, longer even than my worst nightmares imagined it could. Speaking of dreams, last night a remarkably vivid dream popped into my awareness. Usually my sleep is deep and long, but following on from that dream, the now pre-dawn awakened mind cogitated upon what it all meant.
My grandfather was in the dream, and he had a full head of hair too. In my memory, he was always bald, the stress of World War II will do such things. But there he was in my dream, replete with good hair and accompanied by a younger lady, who presumably was his daughter and thus my mother. The last I spoke with her, she was way younger than I am now. And they’re both long dead. Anyway, it wasn’t a nightmare, and my mother failed to spoil the moment and instead quietly enjoyed the dream sunshine. My grandfather and I were having a lovely chat whilst making repairs to a brick fence. The dream was an odd metaphor.
Were the fence repairs representative of rebuilding the memories of relationships? The old timers always used to bang-on about mending fences as a metaphor. Heck, for all I know, it may even have been a warning to build a fence, for the zombies are coming. Thinking about the economic news, sometimes I do wonder. Unfortunately I’m not much of a fan of massive fencing in these forested parts. People don’t generally keep stock around here, and the fences merely impede the movement of the wildlife.
Mind you, sometimes a dude wants to impede the movement of the forest critters. The other morning the big dog Ollie, accompanied by my good self, chased off a herd of Sambar deer. They’d been chewing on the bark of some of the pear and apple trees. Pesky and hungry critters. This morning Dame Plum (the Kelpie dog) and I escorted several kangaroos out of the orchard. A farmer around these parts once amusingly said that: we’d created a supermarket for the wildlife. Yes, very funny.
Long term readers will know that there are actually some areas of the property which are fenced off so as to keep out the forest critters out of our productive gardens. About a year ago, we constructed a 600m2 / 6458ft2 fenced off area for the many citrus trees along with a large area set aside for vegetable rows. The idea was to have enough area so that rows could be used, then left fallow for a few years, only to be used again. It’s one of the ways we’re adapting our systems to incorporate crop rotation practices. Hang on a second, do you reckon my grandfather was telling me to fix the fence for that large enclosure? Hmm.
Anyway, since the large growing area was set aside, I’ve been regularly feeding the soil there. Every couple of months, I would chuck some of the coffee ground mixture onto the soil surface, then spread it in with a rake. There’d also been applications of compost applied. It was interesting to observe that during the coldest weeks of winter (not all that long ago), the repeated frosts failed to kill off the grass in that well fed area. The grass looked lush and green, and even grew ever so slowly if the sun shone.
Earlier in the week, I took the scary old rotor-tiller out for a spin, and carved up four garden rows in that rich grassy area. With the potential for economic zombies, it’s always wise to get a decent garden planted out with stuff you can eat. In previous years we’d merely dabbled with growing potatoes. The tubers previously grown were tasty, and hardy enough, but this year we mean business, and business be crackin’.
Once the soil was tilled up, we added: compost; coffee bean husks; coffee grounds; blood and bone meal; and granite rock crusher dust. The tubers were planted reasonably deeply, and the additions were all mixed in with a rake. Easy enough to do. We made a video so you can see for yourselves the process of converting a patch of grass to productive garden rows.
That’s me jovially leering at the camera. It was a nice day for working outdoors, which is not always the case in the winter months. The other reason for my good cheer is that there were no zombies and/or Triffids in the immediate area (the dogs would have warned me). But, also there was still ample room in the large enclosure should we decide to create or need a further two garden rows this season.
Observant readers will note from the earlier photo that we’ve allowed plenty of space between the garden rows. That space can be allocated in future years for garden rows, whilst the currently used rows are allowed to return to grass, thus resting the soil up in an easy to recall cycle. The rows line up with the citrus trees which are planted in the other half of the enclosure so it is obvious where the rows had been. Will the arrangement work? Were ghosts from my past warning me of some unknown folly? I have no idea, but if it all works, the experiment sure will be worthwhile.
For those who are interested, the rock crusher dust is known in this corner of the country as ‘bluestone’. It’s a remarkably similar granite to the stuff used in Stonehenge. My understanding of the use of granite in gardens is that the darker the colour, the greater the variety of minerals which will be supplied to plants. Here it is in the trailer before application so you can see the original colour for yourselves:
The other week we noticed that a particularly vigorous fruit tree was in fact rootstock. The grafted section of the tree had died and so the rootstock had to go.
It was a good excuse to get the chainsaw, pole saw and scary old wood chipper out for a spin. Some of the fruit trees are getting quite large!
Pole saws are complicated bits of equipment, not to mention dangerous. It’s always unwise to drop branches onto your head. The height of the tree was much reduced, and then the chainsaw could do the rest.
Removing the vigorously growing tree will free up more space in that area. Over time the other nearby trees, which have been leaning away from the monster, will straighten up and produce more fruit. Cutting the tree down was the easy bit. We then spent four hours (in two sessions) feeding all of the branches into the scary old wood chipper.
The trunk and all of the larger branches will be used as future firewood. Nothing goes to waste here, and even the mulch will be used to fertilise garden beds.
As I mentioned, after more than a decade and a half, some of the fruit trees are getting quite large.
The garden sure is slowly waking up from its winter slumber. Even the ferns are sending forth new fronds, like this Mother Shield Fern in the next image:
We also made an update video for the sake (Japanese rice wine) production. It’s really interesting to see the process over time:
Onto the flowers:
The temperature outside now at about 10am is 9’C (48’F). So far for last year there has been 645.6mm (25.4 inches) which is up from last weeks total of 620.0mm (24.4 inches)
Yo, Chris – What happens when the bank honeymoon is over? A rhetorical question, I’m sure. People lose their homes. And have nothing to show for the mad cash, and any improvements, they’ve plowed in.
I occasionally dream of people who have passed on. When I wake up, I think, “Oh, yeah. They’re dead.” I often dream of job situations. LOL. I have to remind myself, on waking, “You’re retired.”
Sad, in a way, about the rootstock tree. But, needs must. Don’t step on the Daffodils! 🙂
Both videos were very good. Are the subtitles, new? I quit like subtitles. Whatever I’m watching, I always turn on the subtitles. But, just as a small mention, they need work. There were a couple of howlers. And the spacing was a bit … spacey, sometimes.
I love the black Hellebore. It’s so … Victorian way of death. 🙂 Lew
Hi Lewis,
It is a rhetorical question, but all that same is one worth asking. Few people seem to want to consider the: What next? issue. Perhaps both you and I ain’t wired right! 😉 But more probably, most people are just muddling on through hoping for the best. And you’ve hit the economic nail on the head, nobody wants negative equity. Yet in my lifetime I’ve experienced a sudden 40% fall of house prices and know that what has happened once, may occur again. I’ve no wish for a crash because I got to live through the resulting hard times, but the geniuses who engineered that mess and the many who went along with it, have they gone away? Yet another rhetorical question. Must be something in the water… 🙂
Oh my! At this point in the conversation the sensitive person has to clarify the hard question: Is dreaming of work a pleasant dream, or a nightmare? Or some other in-between state of mind? Most of my work dreams I’d probably put into the nightmare category, although trying to classify such things is always problematic. It’s funny how recalled dreams impact upon our day to day lives, like your moment of recollection.
The rootstock tree was planted out over fifteen years ago, and truly it was my lack of oversight which allowed the situation to occur. The old timers may have quipped: Fail to act, repent at leisure, although now I think about it a bit, I reckon I made that saying up, and the old timers said something else altogether about haste. What was it again: act in haste, and stuff in a crisis gets done, although it may not be entirely good? I dunno.
Lewis, thanks so much for the feedback, and I’ll look into the subtitles. What do computers know, if anything, let’s find out! Turns out the things produce howlers.
Ooo, the black hellebore would almost be the perfect flower for funerary rites. I like how your brain works as I’d not considered that aspect. There’s a hellebore specialist nursery not too far away which breeds such fascinating plants.
I’ve actually visited that particular crater lake, and in town there is a cave which is open for guided visits. It’s a very bucolic part of the country. But your crater lake is the whole next level. Wow, not only is it physically stunning, but also very deep – and possibly still active. A lot of steam if it ever went off, best if you were nowhere nearby at the time. And I tend to agree with you, that eruption day things would have been rather difficult.
It’s a bit unsettling to learn that there is a fault line leading from the south island of New Zealand to more or less around these parts. There’s excitement and thrills, then there are massive geological events. Not good. You could say that the 5.9 earthquake shook my complacency about such matters. 🙂 As no doubts the many even more exciting events in your part of the world has done for you. Honestly, I’m not sure I’d like to be close enough to witness a volcanic eruption.
Ha! Have to laugh, each year we get to a certain point where the weather is more or less the same here and in your part of the world. Looks like that time has come around again. Tomorrow will be another sort of warmish day, then it will turn slightly cooler and looks like the rest of the week will be windy. Changeable huh?
Good to hear with the beans, and I reckon they’ll be enjoying your weather. They’re not demanding of the summer warmth like a lot of other plants. And I’ve observed that plants tend to grow overnight when the conditions allow.
Yeah, it’s an intriguing legal issue. Back in the day, it used to be known as the concept of ‘quiet enjoyment’. It’s been my observation over the past few decades that this err, common law right, has been slowly eroded. When I was a young bloke renting a flat, inspections where at annual intervals, and such things always struck me as a lack of trust. But recently the inspections have doubled to every six months. But far out, with the new phone, there are new and interesting notifications, like why would the phone think it is a good idea to disturb my sleep to notify me about the issue of disturbed sleep with some wellness notification? Fortunately I have mastered the ‘do not disturb’ function and set hard boundaries on such matters. Did you ask for this invasiveness? I don’t recall asking for it! 🙂 I guess that’s progress for us all.
Thanks for mentioning the link and I’ll check it out. The fat and food colouring issues were the issues which turned up in such searches. News to me. And the mayonnaise price hike is not good. It’s a staple. It seems remarkably easy to make, and we have all the ingredients here. Hmm. Are our fortunes to be made in that starved market?
Please save us all from the dessert recipe which takes 91 steps. Man, a few years ago it was a ‘thing’ in this corner of the planet, and perhaps the book is tapping into that market? I’m very much with you in this matter. Too hard, and life is too short. Moving on, and to think I was feeling like I’d missed out there. 🙂 Thanks for crushing that regret.
The Skint cookbook is more to my style, but I see what you mean there. 🙂 You may have noticed my loose preference for close enough measurements? Speaking of skint food, in front of me is a dinner of Shola-e Ghorbandi and a freshly baked focaccia bread. Yum! Mung beans have never before been so tasty!
Had a bit of a shandy day today: a bit of paid work, and a bit of work around here. We’d been putting off processing the out of control lemon harvest for a while, and today was the day we processed them all. And the tree still has hundreds of fruit hanging off it. Why did I plant another couple of lemon trees?
Cheers
Chris
Hi Lewis,
Thanks for mentioning the subtitles and I had a bash at adding them in. Would you mind if I used you to roadtest the subtitles on this unpublished video? Never used the method before.
How to use lots of lemons ep 13
Hopefully the link works!
Cheers
Chris
Yo, Chris – The video – I got the message: “Private Video: Sign in if you’ve been granted access to play video.” Sooo … I signed in using my e-mail address … it accepted it. Clicked on the captcha, to prove I wasn’t a robot. Then, they wanted a password. I used my e-mail password. No dice. Lew
Yo, Chris – But it will be different, this time 🙂 . Maybe it’s the rhetorical season? Maybe we need a rhetorical holiday? With all kinds of flash, expensive tat.
I’d heard “Act in haste, repent at leisure.” But the origin is … “Marry in haste, repent at leisure.” 🙂 It’s from a stage comedy, written in 1693 by William Congreve. It was titled, “The Old Batchelour.”
One thing I noticed about the video subtitles, is, if you pause at the end of a sentence, and add a final word, it starts a new line. Maybe you need a teleprompter? Although how you’d haul one down to the orchard, I know not.
We never got to see Crater Lake, when I was a kid. Too far off the road, for Dad to detour. It might have been nice, back then. I suppose it’s overrun with tourists, now.
The high yesterday was 73F (22.77C). The overnight low was 52F. Forecast for today is 80F. We had a morning fog. First fog of autumn? It still doesn’t small like autumn.
I did a little research into Scarlet Runner beans. You don’t eat the pods, as with green beans. Young pods could be eaten, but should be cooked, as there’s some kind of enzyme blocker. Same with the beans. They’re a sort of perennial, which I need to look into.
I picked another quart and a half of blueberries, last night. They’re on trays in the freezer. I now have 12 very plump gallon bags, of blueberries. Five more in the freezer, that need to be topped up. I’d like to have 18, as that would be 1 1/2, per month.
The Master Gardeners were here, this morning. I discovered to take apart my bed, and move it, I need a ratchet set. I don’t have one. But, had a brainstorm, and Ted, one of the Master Gardeners will lend me his, when the time comes.
I had rice, with frozen mixed veg and broccoli, last night. cubed up the last of the yellow crook neck squash. The caregiver gave me another one, this morning. She promises I’ll get cucumbers, sometime, today. Those she grows at home. Lew
Hi Lewis,
Apologies for having wasted your time with the video. Oh well, I’m learning the software fast, but clearly still have a long way’s to go. The software was asking for my login details, which is why you were denied. The lemon video will not release until next Sunday at 7pm, my time. Ook! Sorry.
Man, that’s a seriously good question to ask. Will it be different this time? The ‘what next’ question is something which I often ponder, but also absorb in other people’s perspectives and opinions. Weigh them all up, sort the chaff from the grains, and then just consider. The scouts had a good take on the future, was it be prepared, or get prepared, or something about zombies. 😉 I dunno. Don’t you think it’s weird how the big questions always come back to zombies? But yeah, maybe it is rhetorical season. Far out, I almost typed ‘rhetorical zombie season’, which displays a sort of incoherence which can be faced after a long day of paid work.
But more likely, the incoherence comes from not having had a break from paid work for longer than a week and a half for about six or seven years now. Mustn’t grumble. This Christmas, things will be different on that front I can assure you. The folks which made me work through the previous traditional Christmas holiday breaks are now gratefully out of my life, hopefully. It is one of my nightmares that I’ll hear from them again asking me to help them out a bit.
A rhetorical holiday would be super awesome, and the cheer from the tat would be muchly appreciated. 🙂 Is the word ‘muchly’ grammatically correct? At face value it appears not and if the spell checker refuses outright to consider the word, it raises the question: Does the word even exist? But you’ve got me wondering now, what would a rhetorical holiday even look like?
What a fun tale. Thanks for mentioning it. Clearly the American author Jack Vance was familiar with this late 17th century tale. Courtship and matrimony were complicated matters in those restoration days – and I also bet that the theatre folks were relieved that the err, puritans, had been more permanently relieved of their heads, or at least enough of the nuisances to send a strong message: Don’t mess with the theatre folks, and also gingerbread men. Plus, I learned a new word ‘uxorious’.
If you’d not pointed the idiocy of the computers choice out, I’d never have known. Proving you can’t trust computers, the thing switched out the word ‘Kennebec’ (a variety of potato) for that of ‘Candy BS’. Was the machine making a value judgement there?
But I appreciate you pointing it all out. Feedback is a good way to learn. You don’t seem to have the option to correct the computer, mostly because the algorithm wants you to add the text, probably so the machine can learn. It took 40 minutes to add text to the lemon video, and I’m not sure I have that free time, but we’ll see. I’ll have a think about how to do this task.
Hehe! A teleprompter indeed. Dude, I might accidentally say, “End of line”
Your father had some ideas, which I’d not have enjoyed either. And that’s the thing with tourism, as you correctly noted a week or so back, there was once a golden age.
Your weather sounds very pleasant, but get this, at a bit past 9pm outside is still 55’F. There were warnings on the national radio today about some sort of storm in this part of the world. They don’t usually provide such news. Hmm. Oh wow, it’s windy outside right now, but looks like it will get windier tomorrow afternoon. Saw a few trees downed in the area earlier today, but so far we’re doing OK. Damaging winds to hit five Australian states in next 48 hours. Morning fog is a definite sign that autumn is either there, or will be soon.
A bit of reading suggests that the bean and the word triffid may be used in the same sentence, or at least the same paragraph. Do you reckon you’ll shell the beans or try and consume the pod?
Yikes! There’s still plenty of work ahead of you with the blueberries. Do you believe that the bushes will deliver, or will you have to go and grab some flats?
A dude needs tools, but borrowing them is one way of obtaining access to them. Do they do tool libraries at your library?
Hope the cucumbers turned up. Nice to have contacts for such things. Had a salad for dinner myself.
Cheers
Chris
Yo, Chris – No drama 🙂 . Although, that’s two minutes out of my life, I’ll never get back. And at this late date … 🙂
“This Christmas, things will be different…” Weren’t we just talking about that?
Muchly: “Because much functions as an adverb (in addition to being a noun and an adjective), the adverbial suffix –ly adds nothing, and muchly is a superfluous word. It was common several centuries ago, but in modern English much has taken over all of muchly‘s territory, and muchly now has an archaic and sometimes humorous ring.” So, if anyone objects, just say you were being funny. LOL. Leering into the camera, indeed. You look demented. And, you have a wood chipper.
There were a lot of playwrights kicking around, in the 16th and 17th century. People we’ve never heard of. Family friendly warning! Ta-tas are on display …
https://w.wiki/B2co
Better keep an eye on those potatoes. They were maybe developed in Kennebec, Maine. Stephen King country. You’ve been warned …
Sounds like you’re going to get a bit of weather. I suppose you could call it Firewood Weather. Our high yesterday was 77F (25C). The overnight low was 54F. Forecast for today is 69F.
When I walked H this morning, it was really nice. Big white fluffy clouds drifting by, and a good stiff, cool breeze. So, I decided to pick another quart and a half of blueberries. These should bring me to 14 plump gallon bags. I’ve been taking a handful, here and there, to go in my oatmeal. Might as well use the fresh, and stay out of the frozen stuff. Three more bags to plump up, and that will give me 17. I’d like one more. Make it an even bag and a half, per month.
The commercial blueberry season seems to be winding down. I see less and less, in the stores. I got that quart and a half, off two bushes. And there’s still plenty of green ones, coming on. I picked up a few Roma tomatoes, at the veg store. $1.99 per pound. I don’t like it, when I don’t have a full dehydrator. I can fill in, with those.
I watched a few short videos, about Scarlett Runner beans. Wow! They are a perennial, and you can eat the seeds, leaves and tubers, and flowers. Yup. They have tubers. The young lady talking about the beans, lives here in the Pacific Northwest, and is in the same climate zone, as me. More research will be required.
In news of the world, a sweaty old Babe Ruth baseball jersey, sold at auction, for 24 million dollars. Set a record for highest price paid, for any piece of sports equipment. But there was another article about a Danish coin collector …
https://www.cnn.com/2024/08/26/style/denmark-le-bruun-coin-collection-auction
Interesting. A self made man. Who had some interests, beyond butter.
I’d better get on those blueberries. Time, and blueberries, wait for no man. Lew
Hi, Chris!
It will be the same, but it will be different. History repeats itself, but there are always nuances. I had a couple of IRAs invested in the stock market. The stock market was making me nervous, which it always does. I recently decided to put them in Certificates of Deposit because the interest rates have stayed “high”, that being a relative term. They will eventually mature over the course of the year, and I hear that interest rates here are going to be cut soon. But what does that mean? A tiny bit? A lot? Then what to do? We shall see.
I consider that dream a blessing. I sometimes dream of people departed this life, who had given me trouble while still living. The funny thing is that in my dreams they are always nice and helpful. A sign that they are in a better place?
That is funny – “a supermarket for wildlife”. My garden now requires a machete and a pith helmet to travel through it. It is not Fernglade Farm. More like Jungle Acres. I hope to do better next year. Wait – didn’t I say that last year? I am glad that you are growing lots of potatoes. You won’t go hungry with those. Not that you would go hungry with all of the other things you grow. I am eating some of our homegrown potatoes right now. That is a smart idea to leave spaces for whole new rows between the ones you just planted.
It is a shame whenever you get stuck with rootstock. We had a pear tree where the grafted part died and I let the rootstock just grow because it was such a nice-looking tree anyway, and was on the side of the barn and not in the way (at least, at that time). It had beautiful bright red leaves in the fall.
Ruby, surely you don’t like Plumcotts? I see the magpie!
Speaking of bears, the bear is back and just about scared the pants off Mr. Baby.
Thanks for the cheerful flowers – and the intriguing funereal one, too.
Pam
Hi again, Chris!
I just watched your potato growing video. Very nice; I enjoyed it. Okay – next year I have to add all that stuff. I am beginning to sound like New Year’s resolutions that never come to fruition. I enjoyed the dogs, as always, too.
I haven’t watched the sake videos, being a bit short on time.
Pam
Chris,
Gotta keep this short. Windstorm. Dust storm. Sinuses. UGG.
Meanwhile, Dame Avalanche got another mouse. Well, she cornered it for me to finish off. She is now Dame Avalanche the Rodent Slayer.
DJSpo
Hi DJ,
Oh my goodness, Professor Mass also noted that many locations in your part of the country broke weather records for cold maximum temperatures at this time of year. An enviable achievement.
Hope the storm settles down, and it is very windy here today as well. Must be something in the water. Bummer about all that dust, but such is the way nature fertilises large swaths of land, although that is no good for your presently assaulted sinuses.
In the far north western corner of this continent, there has been conversely record breaking winter heat. According to the article I’m about to provide a link to: prior to 2024, 40°C had only been observed in Australia four times during winter. Over the past four days, this threshold has been breached 16 times at weather stations located in Western Australia and the Northern Territory. I’d say that is a worrying development: Back-to-back record hot days in Broome
All hail and salute the great Rodent Slayer, Dame Avalanche! Well done dog, and you go girl! 🙂 Respect and cordial tail wags are extended to the notable husky from the fluffies.
Cheers
Chris
Hi Pam,
Thank you for taking the time to watch the video, and I appreciate your lovely words.
That’s the wonderful thing with gardens, we all learn as we go and next year promises great expectations to which we can hopefully enjoy some of the produce. Surely Mr Baby would never dare dig up your potatoes, nor use the friable soil as a giant kitty litter tray? 🙂 How funny was it when I opened the bag of blood and bone meal, and from out of nowhere, Ollie appeared.
One of the sake videos has somehow randomly been promoted. All very curious and mysterious. Probably only worthwhile watching if you were considering making the stuff, but then – and here we all must spare a thought for the folks placed under my tutelage, I try to keep them laughing along. Even today. Is there a better way to learn?
Strange acronyms make my head spin Exorcist style. I thought that the IRA was something to do with Ireland? Hang on a second, does the acronym have another meaning in the financial world in your country? Oh my gawd, Pam I began reading about the subject then my head spun full around 360 degrees and the dogs ate the resulting pea soup. Although last evening I’d had mung beans for dinner which are of the pea family of plants, but is it the same?
However as to your comments after the acronym, yes, that potentially speculative system makes me nervous as well. Exactly, what does it all mean, and will they do what the loose talk about interest rates suggests? So far the track record this year has not been good on that front. I guess we’ll all find out. I tend to keep a sharp eye upon the system because it seems prudent to do so.
Thanks, and as far as dreams go, I felt pretty much the same way. Such entities touch upon the consciousness for a reason. Well, that’s the whole point isn’t it? Time out in the naughty corner to reflect upon their deeds and perhaps cause them some serious pain by having to make amends. Yes, as they say: “That’ll learn ’em!” 🙂 Pam, like you do, I take the golden rule very seriously, other folks, well that’s on them.
It was a pretty funny observation, and the old timer farmer who made the comment is a real live wire. A very quick wit.
Pam, I’m pretty sure you said exactly that last year, but then you do need to cut yourself some slack because you have a lot on your plate, and have had to deal with even more than that in recent times. You’re in my thoughts. So, the machete work can wait for next year, although I must say, the two stroke Stihl hedge trimmer which cut a walking path to a distant locale earlier in the year is an absolute champion. Hmm. The pith helmet would look smashing and be jolly good for such work! Such language is perfect for the jungle attire don’t you reckon? 🙂
After eighteen years, we won’t go hungry now. However, I may get very bored of the diet, especially at this lean time of the year. And it all depends upon the number of mouths required to be fed.
It is a shame, and sometimes the tree graft just gets outcompeted, or is too weak to survive. Most grafted trees do survive, so cutting one out is no big deal. But yes, that was the exact experiment I also ran with the rootstock – will it produce a beautiful tree. You got lucky there with the pear.
Ruby as a Kelpie of the finest breeding, she would never touch a plumcott, but the magpie is another matter altogether. Fortunately I let the magpies know in advance that Dame Plum and Ruby are loose.
Your bear scares me… Mr Baby is clearly a stalwart. There are cat versus bear videos, and felines are tough.
It’s a pretty awesome colour that flower. The plant came from a speciality nursery not too far from here.
Cheers
Chris
Hello Chris
Haven’t had time to read it all yet.
Yesterday Son drove me into town for my weekly shop. A journey that should take 15 mins, took an hour. We crawled and stopped nose to tail the whole way. Traffic on the Island is insane, particularly during the holiday season. Anyhow, we were behind an open truck and Son suddenly said ‘ That’s a lovely load of stone in there’. It showed how differently we and you lead our lives compared to most of those around us.
Inge
Hi Lewis,
I know! I know! And feel much the same. Life is short and the minutes do count. 🙂
Hehe! Technically speaking, suggesting that ‘things will be better this Christmas’ is a classic example of what is known as ‘provisional living’, although the term appears to have fallen out of fashion these days. However, I’m serious in this regard and it is no mere talk. 🙂 I’ll shut down the business for three or maybe even four weeks later this year. They used to say that the work you do, performs subtle alterations to your personality. Hmm. The actor Rick Moranis played an accountant in the 1984 Ghostbusters film, and wasn’t he turned into a dog? Albeit a very scary looking dog.
That’s a great excuse with the word, he says whilst noting it down for later use. Hehe! It’s a good look isn’t it? 🙂 You could call it demented facial expression overdrive number five, and people would know what you mean. And yes, it has been known occasionally for wood chippers to be put to such nefarious tasks, as you’re averring to. A handy bit of kit, now that I think about it. The err, video market is very over supplied, so I’ll keep trying stuff to see what works. You never know what might strike a chord. I’m hoping once the trees are in leaf that I’ll do a walk around of the property over several parts. Yours and my attention spans are very good, but what I’m discovering with the video statistics is that this does not seem to be the case with much of population. Probably not such a great idea, but nobody asked for my opinion!
Charles II had impeccable tastes and as you say, was probably a lot of fun, much to the dismay of say, the society for the restoration of manners. A truly tiresome lot.
Holy carp! If I’d known about the mysterious origins of that humble spud variety, I may have reconsidered the purchase. 😉 I’ve read many of Mr King’s delightful, always good, yet sometimes thoroughly scary books, and to think I’ve now invited some more of the energy from that part of the globe to here. Hang on though, if spuds rise from the earth like the undead, that will be a good thing. All up, I’d have to say that my life is richer for the energy, despite the uncertainty of the undead, aliens, psychopaths etc.
Hehe! That’s a great way to describe large fallen branches which land on the ground without inconvenience. Man, it was super windy here today. Did mostly paid work today, a very good day to be inside the house.
That’s what we do with preserving fruit. Most goes into canning, jam making or the dehydrator, but plenty ends up fresh on the plate. Yum! I’m envious of your blueberry harvests. The plants grow well here, but the birds love the fruit. You’re getting very close to your annual goal.
I’m not entirely certain about the effect of running the dehydrator slightly less than full. But I see what you mean there, the machine is running, so why not ensure that all the trays are full. Roma tomatoes are available in this part of the world too when in season. Presumably the flavour gets more intense as the Roma dehydrates? The kiwi fruit we dehydrated were as sweet as candy. Incidentally I managed to track down some seeds for ‘sugar beets’, and will plant out a decent sized crop of them in a few weeks. Supply was very limited, so I hope I can grow enough to save seed.
That’s what I read too about the pea in relation to the tuber and/or root system. Don’t believe I’ve ever grown one of that variety.
What an interesting and complicated will! It possibly sends a strong message to his immediate heirs. An impressive coin in astounding condition. Gold is on the up, which is essence suggests that paper is on the down. There’s also been some talk about silver, which has possibly been under priced for a long time.
Cheers
Chris
Hi Inge,
As always thanks for taking the time to drop by, and I’m always curious as to your thoughts and opinions.
Hehe! Inge, the nearby town of Gisborne is likewise growing (although this is a more permanent occasion than holiday makers) and there are times during school pick up and drop off runs that I fear to travel into the regular traffic jams. And the main mountain road over in the more fashionable end of the range during leaf change tourist season is very much like what you described. It is not an enjoyable experience.
Oh yes, I can also appreciate stone for the solid resource which it is. Lovely stuff, and funny you mention it, but if the weather co-operates tomorrow, I intend to do some work with the local rocks.
Incidentally, as an amusing side story, there was a sign in the local General Store requesting local stone if any were available. I don’t think so, or at least not from here. Every rock has a use. 🙂
Hope things quieten down on your island.
Cheers
Chris
Yo, Chris – A couple of things I didn’t get to … Work dreams. Usually, I’m in a bookstore or library. One I’ve never seen before, with people I’ve never met. Go figure. I’m usually wrestling with some bit of technology, that won’t do right. 🙂 Related are dreams where I’m late to work. Which is bizarre, as, during my entire working life, I think I could count the times I was late, on one hand.
Does the library loan out tools. They have a “Library of Things.” I didn’t take to close a look, but they seem short on basic tools, and long on electronic testers, and such. There was a section for kitchen kit, but I didn’t explore it too thoroughly.
Someone was speaking of kitty litter. I went to the Club, the other night. Left at 5 and got home at 7. So, I get out of my truck and there’s a terrible smell. There’s a bare patch between the parking lot, and the grapes. Someone had dumped a load of kitty litter. I reported it. Little Mary Sunshine was not pleased. I suppose she’ll mention it, in her next monthly news letter. Fat lot of good that will do. We should DNA test, all cats in the building, then we’d know who the culprit, is.
“Provisional living.” AKA (Also Known As), “Wishful Thinking.”
Chris: Soon to become a major internet influencer. 🙂 Careful. A lot of them seem to end, badly.
I’ve mentioned it before, but the movie “Restoration” is a great, fictional snapshot of The Merry Monarch. Speaking of movies, I’ve got a pile to pick up at the library, this afternoon. And, a couple of books. The new “The Dry,” is among them. Probably won’t get to it for a few days. I don’t know if the library will get it, but there’s a new zombie / comedy out. “We Are Zombies.” Trailer looks pretty good. They’re zombies, but no danger to humans. Sort of takes the edge off.
Hmmm. You might be onto something. “Return of the Spuds.” “Spud Resurrection.” Frankly, the way they volunteer around here, popping up in all sorts of unexpected places, not too far off the mark.
It was 68F (20C), yesterday. Overnight low was 45F. Forecast for today is 73F.
I feel dirty. I did some shopping for the Club pantry, last night. Picked up a 2 pound clamshell of blueberries. $6. Product of USA. That will give me a leg up on the 18th gallon bag. Getting ready for the inspection, and New Year’s Day auction, comes at an inopportune time.
I buried some kitchen scraps, this morning, and picked cherry tomatoes. More than I thought were there. An overflowing quart. They’re in the fridge, and I’ll pick day after tomorrow, and then dehydrate. There were a few other things I wanted to do (stake up a Tomatillo, save some lettuce seed), but the garden was overrun with Inmates. Maybe, this evening.
I soaked the cucumbers and onions in brine, overnight. The finished product is in the fridge. I really like it over cornbread, and succumbed to temptation, while I was out. Picked up a box of corn bread mix. Oh, well. At least I have to add an egg, and milk. The ingredients list is a bit daunting, but they’re an old company, with a pretty good reputation.
I was considering dinner, and, frankly, a bit bored with more rice and veg.. I saw a tin of “Seasoned Butter Beans.” Also known as Lima beans. They call them Butter Beans, mostly in the south. Part of the Trans Columbian exchange. The Spanish discovered them near Lima, Peru. Hence, the name. It’s estimated they’ve been cultivated for around 4,000 years. I’ll have to ask the Master Gardeners, if we can grow them, here. Any-who, I had the tin with rice, a chopped up Roma tomato, and some frozen broccoli. Tasty, and different.
Maybe you could grow a couple of blueberries, in your fenced inclosure. Or, your next greenhouse 🙂 .
Scarlet Runner beans have been mentioned in several of the segments on wartime or Victorian kitchen gardens. But I don’t remember them mentioning they were so versatile.
And, from the Wonderful World of Paleontology (there are two alternative spellings) …
https://www.cnn.com/2024/08/26/science/dinosaur-footprints-south-america-africa
I got curious about the difference between paleontology, and archaeology. Paleontology is the study of pre-human history. I should be able to remember that. Although, I wonder if there’s some overlap? Inquiring Minds Want to Know! Lew
Chris:
I forgot I could watch for the comedy. Thanks!
Pam
Hi Pam,
🙂 If you’re laughing, you’re probably learning. Spare a thought for the many poor graduates I’ve trained over the years who never knew that accounting could be amusing.
And sometimes the humour is entirely unintentional. The stupid AI subtitles misheard the word “Kennebec” for one of the variety of potatoes, and instead suggested my Aussie accent said “Candy BS”, whatever that means.
Hope the weather there is really nice now, or at least far less hot and dry. And that you have fully recovered.
Cheers
Chris
Hi Lewis,
Ooo, work dreams could just as easily become nightmares. That is interesting about the different places and people. Do you recall if the libraries and stores were of the same era that you worked? Speculation based purely upon what you’ve told me over the years with library technology, your dream wouldn’t be too far off the mark in terms of reality. I’m astounded every time you mention that they change the catalogue software because that must be an expensive process. And how many innovations can the software introduce to what is essentially an ordering and tracking system for inventory?
Like you, I am also punctual (and will call ahead if there has been a problem just to let people know of the unexpected situation) and also stick to arrangements. There is a certain level of display of respect for relationships when employing those values.
Interesting, I suppose the electronic testers are quite expensive and probably only needed rarely, so that makes sense for a ‘library of things’. Do you reckon useful tools like that ratchet set we spoke of the other day make it back to the library if loaned out? It’s a bit of a theoretical discussion really. Those more basic tools are quite affordable, so perhaps they have no place in a ‘library of things’. You’ve got me thinking about what stock of books would a library even maintain, and what would be sold off? There seems to be a plethora of new books, so library stock would turnover a bit. Like who makes those sorts of decisions in the hierarchy?
Had to laugh, an IA (that’s the flipped around computer language software thingee) comment just turned up in the inbox. Very dull reading, and in one section there was even some code left over which the program failed to act upon. It referenced some of the text in the blog. Man, it’s a harsh cruel world when even the computers are too busy to read the blog essay. 🙂
That’s nasty. Kitty litter stinks and presumably by your description using the word ‘dumped’, I get the impression that there is a pile of the stuff? If it were at least spread out, the stink would be far lower. Given all the potential stuff used in making kitty litter, I’m not even sure I’d want it mixed into the compost. Probably not a good idea. Hmm, wonder what people on the interweb are saying about that idea… … Oh man, what a minefield that question raised, and err, if you could guarantee what folks were using it’d be OK, but my gut feeling says that is impossible, so the stuff is probably best put into the bin. What’s your take on that? Did you just go CSI on the cat poop? 🙂
I don’t think so about the influencer bit. Some of the earlier videos had a lot of views, and one of the more recent ones has taken off, but you know me, I’d prefer a smaller more intimate audience. What I’ve learned over the past two months is that utub wants short videos.
Oh hey, I managed to track down some sugar beet seeds. Yay! And they’re now on their way. I’ll plant them out by adding a further two rows below the recent four potato rows. With the varroa mite now well established on the continent, the bees will perhaps not do so great, until they adapt (which they eventually will), and in the meantime a dude might want to consider sugar alternatives. Speaking of insect issues, in Clarkson’s Farm, even ‘he’ noted the lack of insects, then set about a portion of his farm to provide beneficial feed and housing for insects. There were a lot of naysers, but that dude has a level of self belief that I’m frankly envious of. It’s a great show and hope you get a chance to watch it sooner or later.
Charles II had a lot to be happy about: Enemies, beheaded; Brought back by popular demand; and of course let’s not forget the restoration of the pies, theatre and gingerbread men. After the unpleasant Cromwell, I would have voted for him as well. 🙂
I’ll be curious to hear your opinion of the most recent: ‘The Dry’, film. Ooo, the zombie film looks like fun so I added it onto the to-watch list. I couldn’t find it at the cinemas so it must be a streamed thing. Hmm.
The humble spud volunteers here as well. My overall understanding of the concept is that if grains are no good or marginal in an area, tubers will step into the role. Mind you, I’d not want to rely on the humble spud as my only edible tuber, just saying that the history there is not so great. The indigenous folks grew native yams, and I was talking to a friend the other day who’s managed to raise a couple of them from seed – the germination rate for the seed was terrible.
Our seasons are crossing over and we’re nearly having the same sort of weather, although it is a bit cooler here still. Dunno whether you are having the wind though, it is feral windy here. And that’s rather unusual, although things are far worse in other parts of the state.
Couldn’t quite work out whether it would be a nice day to work outside today, as this morning was drizzling. Anyway, braved the weather and cleaned up the mess we’d made last week chipping up that tree. Moved a huge amount of mulch the scary old wood chipper had made last week, and placed it on garden beds. Also cut up all of the branches put aside last week into firewood lengths. It was surprising how much firewood the rootstock fruit tree produced. And, we also poured the first concrete step in a new staircase pushing through that garden bed near to the rootstock tree. I kind of figure that if there are things going wrong in that area of the property, like the rootstock fruit tree, we probably don’t have enough access there. What can I say, I like fixing things around here to make my life easier in the future. 🙂
Hehe! A dude’s gotta do, what a dude’s gotta do. 🙂 Hope you feel better now, confession being good for the soul and stuff. Hey, I buy fruit too.
The weather in your part of the world is probably ideal, thus the crowd. I won’t say anything about fair weather gardeners, but you may be able to guess my thoughts there in that matter!
Going to have home made pizza for dinner this evening.
Yum! When I was a kid, they used to sell onions pickled in white vinegar, and they were very tasty treats. I’ve only rarely eaten corn bread, but you’ve piqued my interest. Aren’t all ingredient lists on boxes daunting?
Lima in Peru is a bit warmer and drier than where you and I are. The beans are good for ones health and managing blood sugar levels though. I’ll be very interested to hear what the master gardeners have to say to you about them.
Alas, greenhouse space is limited, and even with a second greenhouse it will be limited. There are easier berries to grow here than blueberries.
The dinosaur tracks on different continents is pretty amazing, but you can kind of see how the continents once connected up together. Looks like they drew a line in the sand and then split the difference, but why is what I wanted to know. 🙂
Cheers
Chris
Chris:
I thought that maybe that was some Australian variety of potato . . . Or maybe a Chris-bred one.
I am all better now, thanks for asking. Hot as the hinges, though about to change tonight with some cold air (and rain) coming in.
Pam
Yo, Chris – Usually, my bookstore dreams take place in a mall. Though no mall I’ve ever been in. It’s odd, architecture in my dreams is usually … larger. When I dream of Uncle Larry’s house, it’s more a mansion. When I dream of the Institution, it’s very large, with things like escalators. Atriums. More stories than three. LOL. The other reoccurring dream I have is that I’m in a city, somewhere, and can’t find where I’ve parked my truck.
When I stopped by the library, yesterday (picked up 11 DVDs and one book), the clerk commented that the catalog had been acting up, all day. Same here at home. Pages that wouldn’t load. Pages that froze. Do they really need a picture of every item, on offer? An elaborate, social media type feedback and rating system?
I stayed up way too late, reading the book. “Not Your China Doll: The Wild and Shimmering Life of Anna May Wong.” (Salisbury, 2024). She was born in a Chinese laundry, in LA, in 1905. She did silent films, and successfully made the transition to talkies. LOL. My Uncle Larry used to refer to some people, in a pejorative way, as “Thinking they were Anna Mae Wong.” I think he liked to throw it out there, as no-one remembered who she was.
I also watched a documentary, “The Giant Pacific Octopus.” About the giant octopus who pulled down Galloping Gertie (The Tacoma Narrows Bridge.) 🙂 It was more about the octopi that live in Puget Sound. And a bit about octopus wrestling, in the late 60s and early 70s. Soon to be a major Olympic sport, I’m sure.
Whoever dumped the cat poop thinks their mogie can do no wrong. I’m sure Little Mary Sunshine will mention it in her monthly missive. I’ve decided to apply peer pressure, instead. I’ve mentioned the incident to several inmates. They’re appalled, and word will get around that it’s not a “done thing.”
Speaking of creatures who their parents think can do no wrong ….
https://www.cnn.com/2024/08/28/style/israel-haifa-museum-boy-breaks-artifact-hnk-intl
Good luck with the sugar beets. Back during the Depression, my Dad’s family would go out, during the week, live in a hut, and thin sugar beets. Weekends they’d go back to the house, in town. I saw a lone honeybee, in the garden the other day. but, luckily, there are other pollinators around. The Master Gardeners plant lots of flowering things, to keep them interested. And though I think it’s ill advised, some of the Inmates plant their entire garden spaces, with flowers. So do I, but in small amounts, in out of the way places. It’s a good year for dragon flies. There are a lot of them, about.
The high yesterday was 72F (22.22C). Overnight low was 48F. Forecast for today is 82F. There’s some breeze, but it’s quit pleasant. I went out and bought petrol, this morning. $4.30 a US gallon, regular. Interesting, that price is with a 10% discount, if you pay cash. And it’s a major oil company. Quit a few of them, do. When I got back, I picked some blueberries. Just enough for my every third day, oatmeal and four fruits for my breakfast / lunch. I may pick another quart and a half, this evening, when it’s cooler. The berries from the store are on trays, in the freezer.
I had corn bread with cucumber salad slopped on, for dinner last night. Really not enough batter for an 8×8 pan. If I do that again, I’ll get two boxes of the stuff. But, I really prefer my homemade. I usually use yeast, to get a rise, and a squirt of honey, to feed it.
That was an interesting article. Shows how plants that grow on different continents had their roots in a common land mass. 🙂 Lew
Chris,
The wind finally quit. The dust eventually settled. Got back to normal activities today.
Although we had some high temperatures near 22C, that is well above the record low high temperatures for this time of year. 8C this morning was pleasant but also above record low temperatures. Back to 30C and higher tomorrow for another week. Our August average high temperatures have been well above normal.
With the longer nights and cooler evenings, the grasses are slowly recovering…from shaded areas outwards. So far the dryland grasses are following this trend. More updates to follow.
The larger fires in the Washington Cascade mountains are mostly out now. A lot of rain fell on them. Mudslides ensued as a result. It appears that the worst of smoke season is over.
Dame Avalanche is in a major hair shedding season. I gave her a thorough brushing today. I’ll have repeat that a few more times.
One of my favorite birds is the nuthatch. One of my first pyrography projects was a nuthatch. Their distinct “Yonk yonk yonk” call is fun to listen to. Some have moved into the neighborhood the past few years. One flew near me, settling 5 feet away in a tree. Usually it’s only the chickadees that get that close.
DJSpo
root stock- yeah, I had a couple pear trees get girdled by rabbits, but the hardy root stock didn’t care, and sent up a healthy stem. I haven’t wacked them yet, just curious to see what happens, and they are not in the way. I generally always buy trees with standard root stock, not dwarf or semi-dwarf.
Sure seems like about any plant we have not domesticated or fiddled with is more vigorous in all conditions. This was a warm wet year, and much of the wild side of our land is just feral, but the Juneberries, Chestnuts, young apple trees did not join in the green riot. I have much learning remaining to do.
Lowered interest rates is at least still a net positive, and higher returns that that the money crowd is always searching for are also riskier. I continue to move into hard assets. The assessed value of my house goes down? I don’t care, it’s mine, and I have no intention to sell.
Back during the GFC, there were rumbling of haircuts all around as a partial remedy ( to save the banks, of all things!), and if things go off the rails badly, I could see that happening.
Kudos to you for all the goodies you add to the soil. I need to do more than chicken poop and mulched leaves, though we did start with soil a bit better than what you started with.
The tomato harvest is in full swing, green beans just finished today, many of the dry beans will be ready to pick this week, and I started picking hazelnuts today. So why did we go canoeing this past weekend??? Gonna be quite busy for a while.
Hi Pam,
🙂 Nah, that variety (the correctly named one, of course) has it’s origins to the north east of you in Stephen King country up in New England. Should I be worried? Mind you, Candy BS would be a great name for a super sweet variety of the humble potato!
For your interest, potatoes do set seed here, and there are a few locations where feral potatoes have established themselves in the garden beds. But what lies beneath the surface there is something of a mystery. There are local varieties of the nightshade family of plants due to Australia once being connected to South America a long time ago. The local varieties are edible, but taste like soap to me.
In other garden news, I’ve decided to set aside another two rows for sugar beets. And can you believe this, but the naughty rabbits have ring barked two young fruit trees. Not happy, and where are the foxes? Those pesky wabbits are their job!
Glad to hear that you are feeling better. It’s awful getting sick. Did the rain arrive, and has it refreshed your place?
Cheers
Chris
Hi DJ,
Good to hear, and the reduced wind and dust sure would be a relief to your assaulted sinuses, not to forget Dame Avalanche and her asthma. It’s been very unseasonably windy here too, although conditions are not what I’d describe as warm. If anything, the strong wind made things feel far chillier. Still, we’re made of tough stuff (maybe) and braved the conditions and enjoyed a stroll around the Diggers Club garden over in the township of Blackwood (which is so named after a reference to the local Acacia tree) at the Garden of St Erth. Had an enjoyable lunch, restocked the seed collection and all was good with the world.
Speaking of above average temperatures, I note that today the city of Sydney which is in the state to the north of this one, enjoyed a 30’C day in winter. Ook! And that’s rare. Seems to be something in the water, right across the planet. It’s good for you and your household that you’re at least enjoying some cooler over night temperatures. Man, I dread to think what this summer will bring. Oh well, I’m doing my best to adapt as fast as I’m able to.
That’s great news, and plants do most of their growing at night. It makes sense that the shaded areas are the first to recover. Have you noticed if Dame Avalanche munches upon the dryland grasses now that they’re greening up a bit? It’s always weird to note the different plants that the dogs here dine upon. The very weedy plant cleavers is an absolute favourite of the dogs and chickens. Go figure… Hmm, I note that traditionally the plant has had herbal usage. See, dogs know their stuff!
Oh yeah, that happens here too after big fires. You’d think that with the long history of poor forest management and the dire consequences, our civilisation would learn to get ahead of the fire matter with better land management techniques, but no. We’re simply not smart enough for that. At least the smoke has reduced.
Dame Avalanche has a super thick double coat and would appreciate your brushing efforts. The Kelpies are a bit like that as they try to hang onto every hair ever grown, but Ollie on the other hand has a shorter coat which he blows all year around. Dust bunnies, we know the origins! 🙂
The nuthatch are a lovely bird, and also very useful in the garden. Do we really want big spiders and other insects crawling around your fruit trees? And incidentally, you’ve solved a problem I’d had with one of the local bird species. The problem was, what the heck is this bird? Although the species looks a little bit different here, a bit larger if anything, but it is this: Silvereye. Always something new to learn!
Cheers
Chris
Hi Steve,
Oh man, the fricken rabbits are a total nuisance with young fruit trees. And they’ve managed to kill two of the young fruit trees growing in the citrus enclosure by girdling them – just like you were saying. Tomorrow I plan to pull those trees out and replace them, the rootstock will be no good for my uses. Speaking of whacking them 🙂 , the question I wonder about is: do you go out and shoot all the rabbits, or do you let some sort of balance settle in where the owls and foxes slowly pick them off? I’m in a bit of a bind because I can do just that, but then what are the foxes and owls meant to eat in the meantime, and before you know it, there’ll be rabbits everywhere! I really don’t know and am making it up as I go along. If there were a lot of rabbits, I’d step in and do something, but that is not the case and there are only enough to produce the occasional nuisance.
I appreciate hearing of your experience, and I do likewise with the selection of rootstock for fruit trees. Sometimes it takes a bit of hunting around to find the right fruit tree because most people want the dwarfing root stocks which are suitable for backyards with access to town water. The trees here need to be big enough so that the roots are deep enough to survive the occasional drought and/or dry period. Incidentally, how did your fruit and nut trees fare during the recent dry spell?
Hmm, I see you’ve addressed that question. There’s always a lot to learn, absolutely. You know, I’ve observed the fruit trees for over a decade and they always surprise me as to their requirements for growth and/or production. The best harvest I ever enjoyed was the super hot and dry summer of 2019/2020 (the so called Black Summer). On the other hand, pear trees seem to relish the warm and wet summers. Planted out another seedling chestnut recently so as to assist with the pollination of that variety of nut trees. Hope it helps. The burrs were empty, just like Goran said they would be.
Hehe! But of course, and I feel very much the same way. However, things will possibly correct should the prices only grow ever so slowly, it perhaps may not even require a fall to precipitate dramas. That’s the problem with relying upon ever more debt.
And my experience this week with the lower deposit rates suggests exactly what you said. Anything will be thrown under the bus, just hope it ain’t us.
Soils in your country are a lot better than the ancient and impoverished stuff I have to deal with. However, there’s been so much disturbance of the land right across the planet that who really knows what we’re all having to deal with? Steve, we started with absolutely nothing other than hard sun baked clay and have not stopped adding minerals and organic matter since day one. What I wonder about is: Is it enough? Dunno, I really don’t.
If you’re bringing in feed for your chickens, especially seed mixtures, well that’s importing minerals right there. Not to forget food scraps and other organic imports which end up in your soils.
🙂 You sure are going to be busy, but that’s the fun stuff too. As to the question ‘why’, I’ll respond by asking another question: Why not?
Cheers
Chris
rabbits- We have a reasonable equilibrium right now. They were quite plentiful in years past, and actually hunting a few is us helping out the foxes and such if they got too numerous. Three “outdoor” cats ended up living here, and are more or less tame, so I feed them a bit to keep them hanging around. We had them “fixed”, and they get to sleep in the barn, but other than that, they are free range. They supplement the kibbles with various rodents and rabbits, so the bunny count is lower now, and not much of a problem. The normal predators have plenty of other hunting grounds nearby, so they aren’t miffed ( that I can tell) at the competition.
trees in a drought- The trees did fine, and the hazelnut harvest was same as usual. Mast trees seem to follow a clock unknown to us, and will bear heavy all together in one year to overwhelm the seed predators. This seems to be the main variable on whether they have a big crop or not.
Unfortunately, the apple trees this year got a bad case of apple scab because the extra rain and warmth were really encouraged all things fungal. Just as many apples as usual, but they are small and badly marred. We’ll take a pass this year, but we still have apple sauce and cider, so can get by till next year. Always pays to be a generalist and eat a wide variety.
I wonder what would happen to the cabbage moths if we didn’t plant brassicas next year? For that matter, how did they find us in the first place? We call them moths, but I guess they are actually butterflies. Maybe they know the difference?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pieris_rapae
Hi Lewis,
Ooo, that’s really fascinating as I’d not personally experienced that differing scale in dreams. You piqued my curiosity, and I began wondering what the dreams could possibly imply. Man, turns out every man and his dog has a different perspective 🙂 as you’d imagine, but most provided rather positive interpretations in your case. The one I settled on was “omen suggesting high value, ethic or a strong foundation”. Especially as work was involved in your dreams. Hey, as to the truck, that can happen in the real world in which we all reside if we fail to pay proper attention to where the thing was parked. Was it level three, or level four? I don’t venture into shopping malls, but they have extraordinarily complicated parking lots.
Oh my, and those sorts of issues with the catalogue have been exactly what we’ve been discussing for years. Exactly, do we really need to see an image of the book cover, and what if they don’t match up with the reality of the actual book? Does the library then argue it out with the borrower – this is not the book we lent you! What a nightmare problem. I’m not really seeing the benefits there.
As to the social media rating system, might it be used to inform decisions as to future book and/or other media purchases? That’s another minefield, because what if people don’t leave feedback? I’ve noticed recently that many folks on ebuy are rather slack when it comes to providing feedback.
Education these days… Pah! I’d never heard of Anna May Wong either, so your Uncle Larry was likewise improving peoples general education, one insult at a time. 🙂 Some folks can get tickets on themselves. And if my reading of the actresses history was anything to go by, she’d most likely approve of your Uncle’s appreciation. What a time for such a strong person to work in that industry, and I can well comprehend who the lady became a fashion icon. The line about photography and theft of souls was a touch unsettling, but the sensitive person could make a similar claim in relation to creative words.
It did not. No way. 🙂 I tell you what though, after that bridge fell into the water, the rest of the structure stopped swaying around so violently in the wind! Oh my, you’re serious. Had to laugh, what kind of sport produces this comment from a contestant: he knew full well the futility of trying for a crotch hold on an opponent with eight crotches There’s something not quite right about that sport. I’m sure the Olympics folks missed their chance with that one.
Very clever, and if you’d inadvertently alerted the miscreant moggie owner, your problem got solved then and there.
What the heck? Everyone seems to be super casual and relaxed about the hapless destruction of a 3,500 year old urn. If that was my responsibility to look after that collection, there’d be some very potty mouthed family unfriendly expletives which can’t be printed here due to certain rules. I dunno man, are you sure it isn’t a publicity stunt? I think a touch of contrition might be warranted in that circumstance. Wow, whatever will they think of next?
Yeah, exactly, thinking back to what worked in the past, I came up with the idea of sugar beets. It’s too cold here for sorghum, the bees are most likely in trouble, and without masses of global warming, sugar cane stands zero chance of survival here. So go back to what works. Your folks were lucky to have access to land during that time of general deprivation. The honeybees will be fine, it’ll just take decades before they recover in significant numbers, and they may well be different. Some of that species are tough and grumpy insects – not the sort of thing you’d want to disturb in a garden.
I’m with you about the use of the plot space, but it happens – and I mentioned to you a conversation I had during you-know-what about gardening where the other person mentioned they were thinking of growing more native plants. Yeah, sure, if you think that’s a good thing to do. I dunno! There has to be a mix of both. Dragon flies are a good sign for the health of your place.
It still sounds like nice weather to me. 🙂 Far out, the wind continues to blow hard here. Thar she blows, or whatever that means. Your gas is cheap, but I’ve noticed that fuel prices have dropped recently. Probably something to do with your coming election, which is getting closer. I’ll be glad when it’s all over because our media follows the goings on. There are probably other issues the local media could address.
Mostly had the day off work today. Went to the garden club’s open garden (The Garden of St Erth) and had a good walk around. It’s looking good, and we’re slightly ahead of them climate wise. Picked up a good supply of radish and beetroot seeds, and the Editor is determined to plant out some random heritage varieties of both plants. Hope they don’t cross breed with the ones we’re saving seed from. Oh well, whatever the case, the genetics may be improved, maybe…
Not much else happened. Had a bit of shut eye late this afternoon, and that was a good thing because it is super windy outside so no point spending too much out there. I’m a bit over the wind, you may have noticed? 😉 It should ease off by next Thursday.
What? Such loose advertising may attract the notice of the taxa man, because not even credit curd commissions cost that much of a percentage. Hey, it could be an innovation of the employees? We won’t put this transaction through… Far out.
Isn’t it good consuming fresh and sun ripened fruit and berries from the garden? Tasty stuff.
Interesting. I didn’t know you could get the stuff to rise. The cornbread I’d consumed long ago reminded me a bit of a fluffy pancake, although that word ‘pancake’ can mean many different things in your country. When I was a kid, a pancake was a very flat slightly doughy substance of no particular taste. Although we’d add jam, honey and/or lemon and sugar. Yum! Your homemade is probably better.
Cheers
Chris
Hi Steve,
The Cabbage moth is a rather unfussy critter here. 🙂 I didn’t know that they were actually classed as a butterfly. Thanks for mentioning that. When the tall surrounding Eucalyptus Obliqua trees were in flower during the past summer, the moths were heading way up into the forest canopy to feed upon the pollen or nectar. Just going with my gut feeling as to your thought experiment with the Brassica’s in that the Cabbage moth population would boom right back with the following season. They’ve been on this continent for almost a century and presumably arrived via the port of Melbourne. I honestly don’t know how people in other parts of the world cope with the constant feeding of those critters.
I’ve given up planting Brassica plants in the summer months (it’s too hard), but those plants do grow well in the cooler months, so that’s fine with me as there is now a well established down season with the moths. There is a parasitic predator which lays eggs in the green caterpillar I believe, and they live here too, but in no great numbers to make any real difference. Dunno about your place, but some summer days the air is filled with the white butterflies.
Thanks for providing your experience with the rabbits, and I’d do the same with hunting them if that were the case. The deer here can be an issue due to lack of any predators other than vehicles. Some years the local farmers will organise a deer cull. Interesting. For your info, there is only ever less than a couple of rabbits at any one time here, and they have to exit the property and escape into the surrounding forest so the playing field is sort of even-ish. The dogs will hunt out and dig up the burrows which I’m good with because other critters move into them, like snakes.
Good stuff with the cats, and that’s a fortuitous job vacancy for the trio. The local council gets a bit weirded out so if I did let cats roam here there’d be consequences I don’t wish to face. Put it this way, they’re not fans of felines in bush areas down this way.
Trees do follow their own paths. It’s weird isn’t it? And I find that the apples in particular tend to bear well every second year, regardless of the climate. And somehow they mostly seem to all be able to agree on that biennial output, although that may be due to cross pollination issues which they need to produce fruit, but I have no idea really and am just guessing.
I’d not considered the idea of challenging the seed predators through that fruit production strategy. Thanks for mentioning it because it is a clever adaption.
Hazelnuts are one of the finest tasting of nuts. When I was at the garden today I discovered a last seasons hazelnut laying on the ground. Picked it up as it would have received plenty of cold winter stratification weather, and then took it home and planted it out in the orchard. We’ll see what happens with that. All of the hazelnuts have had catkins this winter. Yay, maybe…
Man, there’s always something. For your interest, we don’t get nearly as many plant diseases, but far out, the intense bird population more than makes up for that. I usually use the birds as a guide to when a crop is near ready to harvest. The parrots in particular have an uncanny knack to know when a fruit is slightly just under ripe.
Cheers
Chris
Hi everyone,
Things seem to be getting serious on a warming front: Unprecedented winter heat in Queensland as records fall in several states.
Other than the persistent wind here at this south easterly locale (which is highly unusual) the days have been only slightly warmer than what you’d expect for this time of year. Not so elsewhere, and the island state of Tasmania will soon cop a drenching. A foot or more in some parts is what I’d call a lot of rain.
Some weeks are feral when it comes to the weather. Hope you’re all doing well.
Cheers
Chris
Hi Chris,
I have had problems with rabbits biting off newly planted trees and shrubs at rabbit height. What works for me is encircling the newly planted tree with hardware cloth, the stuff with 1/2 inch by 1/2 inch openings. I take a piece of hardware cloth about 2 feet by 3 feet and shape the piece into a rough cylinder about 2 feet high and 1 foot in diameter, using short pieces of thin wire to tie the ends together near the top, middle, and bottom. I set the hardware cloth cylinder over the tree I want to protect so it surrounds the tree from the ground up and insert a bamboo stake into the ground, taller than the cylinder, so it stays in place in the wind. The cylinder is too high for the rabbits to reach over. I never had any trouble with rabbit girdling or eating with this set-up. The hardware cloth cylinders can be flattened and put into storage for reuse as more trees and shrubs are planted.
Hot and dry here, hoping for some rain later today.
Claire
Yo, Chris – I finally gave up on dream interpretation. Seems to be all over the place. Look long and hard enough, and you’ll come up with whatever meaning you’re looking for.
I used to be pretty good about feedback. But, there were some things I bought, that only time would tell if it was a good product, or not. So, I got out of the habit.
They talked about how Anna May Wong’s mother believed all the movies and photos would slowly sap her soul. There are a lot of cultures, with those beliefs. I’m seeing a lot of movies, now, with trigger warnings that you may see, or hear the name of someone who has died. We need to develop a blanket trigger warning. Something along the line of: “This book, movie, website, may contain content that may offend, someone, somewhere.” Needs work, but you get the idea.
No octopi were injured in the execution of this wrestling. 🙂 Mostly, they shoveled (poured?) them into a burlap sack, weighed them, and then released them back into the Sound. The giant octopus story, is somewhere between a folk tale, and an urban legend. I was surprised to discover that most octopi have short lifespans. I learned a new word: semelparity. Creatures that mate once, and die.
Yes, that was a pretty low key approach to the broken urn. Maybe people are getting numb to tourist misbehavior? What with people leaving graffiti all over Pompeii, and humping marble statues. One of the caregivers told me she and an Inmate caught a woman helping herself to our gardens. Knowing the caregiver, and the Inmate, I’d say she was thoroughly reamed out.
Oh, my Dad’s family didn’t own the sugar beet land. They were hired farm laborers. And probably not paid much, either. I was pretty young, when we visited, but I do remember their place in town had chickens. And, I have a vague recollection of a veg garden. My Dad also talked about walking railroad tracks, during that time, looking for lumps of coal that had fallen off the coal trains.
I’m thankful that most of the pollinators we get here, are pretty benign.
Sounds like your weather is getting a bit rough. Our high yesterday, was 81F. (27.00C). Overnight low was 52F. Forecast for today is 87F. We’re heading into a warm stretch. I don’t care for it, but the garden will 🙂 I picked another quart and a half of blueberries, yesterday afternoon.
Cabbage butterflies. A pain in the … ear. I’m seeing quit a few right now. They seem really interested in the reddish I’ve let go to seed. Think I better throw those seed pods in the freezer, for a few days.
The petrol station I go to is owned by Big Oil. They do as they please.
My friends over in Idaho pay almost a dollar less, for a gallon of petrol. Cost really depends a lot on state and local taxes.
You’re not the Lone Ranger. 🙂 I was watching a documentary, last night. “Hollywood: The Fabulous Era.” Usually, subtitles are pretty good. But for some reason (different company?), there were some real howlers. The one I jotted down, was, “Shangri-La” was translated as “changer love.”
I’m sure I’m not the first person, to get a rise out of cornbread by adding yeast. I started doing that, because some recipes call for both baking powder, and baking soda. Which occasionally bothers my stomach. Corn meal as a baking product is crazy versatile.
https://w.wiki/B4Cy
Called so many different things, and made in so many different ways, in different places. Sounds like you had a corn flapjack, or pancake. LOL. Sometimes I think corn meal products are used as a delivery system, for tasty things. Lew
Chris,
Astute observation regarding Avalanche. She had a rough day with her asthma due to the wind. She got over it quickly and is in fine fettle.
Garden of St. Erth looks wonderful. Flowers, a pond, lots of things to look at. Spokane has Manito Park which features Duncan Garden among other things. https://www.visitspokane.com/things-to-do/recreation/parks/manito-park/
30C in winter. Sydney? That IS warm for winter. My grandparents took two cruises to Tahiti, New Zealand and Australia. Their stay was in Sydney both times, which they really enjoyed. That was back circa 1970.
Between the cool nights and the lack of smoke, we haven’t had to run the air conditioning much for 10 days now. With this current heat wave, we button up the house mid-morning and turn on the fans to bring cool basement air to the main floor. That filters a lot of dust out, and we also have the air purifying fan running too. Then at night, open the house up and cool it off. That is how we did things here when I was young. The changes, especially on how things didn’t cool as well at night, were very apparent starting about 20 years ago.
Avalanche has no access to the dryland grasses. Yet. The dryland grasses are in the front. Avalanche owns the back. Once I get the front stabilized, then I will start on the back.
Wonder what your dogs see in Cleavers? We don’t see much of that here. Of course, there are other weeds that drive Dame Avalanche to distraction.
Yes, those dogs with short coats. Killian the Doberman has a short coat. I don’t see much of his hair, but unlike Avalanche, Killian likes being groomed by his human. Cheyenne the Finnish Spitz was similar to Avalanche in that regard.
Thanks for the link to the Silvereye. What a remarkable looking bird! That eye is cool.
DJSpo
Hi Claire,
Hope you get some rain soon, but the heat would be good for the garden, maybe. It’s super windy here. Just had a wind gust buffet the side of the house and the weather station recorded it at 50km/h at ground level. The tall trees are swaying around like crazy, but so far seem to be keeping to the vertical. Only a few more days to go of this wind.
Thanks very much for the description as to how you protect young fruit trees from rabbits. There’s a story here. I use heavy duty gauge chicken wire in a similar fashion to protect the fruit trees, but I made a rookie mistake. Incidentally the wire comes in two heights (or diameters really) of 1200mm and 1800mm. Young fruit trees are at particular risk from the wallabies until they grow at least 3000mm, maybe more depends on the thickness of the tree trunk and whether they can pull them over.
Anyway, that enclosure is fully fenced to keep out wallabies, except that the wombats learned out to burrow under the fence, and the rabbits promptly followed. Now I don’t have a lot of experience with rabbits, and had not realised that they’d consume the bark of young fruit trees. The trees had been in the fenced enclosure for about a year and a half, and also each tree has it’s own steel chicken wire cage (similar to what you described).
As you do, a while ago I was brush cutting the grass away from the fruit trees and lifted the cages upwards so that I could get the brush cutter head under the cage and nearer to the trunk of the tree. My thinking then went, well, the trees have been fine for a year and a half so I’ll leave the cages in the slightly raised position, what could possibly go wrong? Rabbits, that’s what.
I removed the two now deceased stone fruit trees earlier today, and relocated into their spots a North American pawpaw and a Fig of uncertain parentage. They’ll be fine and grow well there. The top soil is now about a foot deep and the soil was damp, but well drained.
Lesson learned, don’t under estimate the rabbits. Now I’ve gotta work out how to stop the Sambar deer from scratching their antlers on the pear and apple trees. Oh well, never thought it would be easy. 🙂
Cheers
Chris
Hi DJ,
Good to hear that the unflappable husky recovered rapidly from the dust storm. Please don’t let Dame Avalanche know, but I had the fluffs out with me working today, and one by one they weren’t sent back inside the house in disgrace. The potato bed soil mixture has proven to be too great of a temptation for each of them. DJ, after being told off, they look at me with total remorse. We’re so sorry! the eyes say. The first time I caved in to such pressure, turned my back for but a moment, and they were back onto the stuff again. Ruby turned out to be the best of the lot, but truthfully I’d gotten sick of walking back up the hill so as to deposit each of them inside the house.
It’s a lovely place to while away some time, and the garden there has just been getting better over the many years. Hey, that’s a decent sized park at 90 acres, and one I’d certainly check out and enjoy. The Duncan section was very formal, and the rose garden looked great. There was a link to the falls which showed a before and after photo around the ’74 world expo held in the city.
For a winter temperature, 30’C in Sydney is right up there. Other parts of the country have been 10’C hotter again, and have broken long standing winter maximum records. Down here it’s still very much winter, but crazy windy. A 50km/h wind gust slammed into the side of the house a while ago – at ground level. A bit higher up in the atmosphere and the wind speeds are way off the charts. The whole mess is caused by heat from the north (the equator and tropics) smashing into a cold front spreading up from the south originating in Antarctica. At this location, we seem to be the proverbial meat in the climate sandwich. A bit of calm would be nice. 🙂
Your grandparents visit would have been really interesting. I’ve heard people say that we’re like 20 years behind your country in some respects, and I’ve always taken that to be a compliment.
Man, that’s how we cool this place during the summer months. Lock it up during the day, then open the house to the cooler night air. Mostly that strategy works because the house is super insulated and eschews thermal mass, except when you get three days in a row in excess of 40’C with an overnight low of 29’C – that’s not good. Not much you can do then. The warmest I’ve ever recorded inside the house was 31’C after that run of days, and that is an unpleasant experience to say the least. After a while, you admit defeat and just open the house up to let in fresh air, no matter how hot it is.
The build up of your city would most certainly produce the ‘heat island effect’, all that man made thermal mass of city stuff. Melbourne has that issue too, but the population there is in excess of 5 million. Summer nights are hot there and far hotter than here, mostly, except when they get the off shore breeze, then it ends being hotter here at night.
Probably a good thing that Avalanche can’t get to the dryland grasses, yet! I believe that the herb / weed / whatever Cleavers, has a decent protein content in the leaves. The chickens absolutely destroy the plant.
Haha! Huskies know their own business, and it doesn’t involve being groomed. 🙂 I’ve never known a dog not to enjoy being brushed. Far out, your challenge should you choose to accept it is… What sort of brush do you use? Do husky coats get lots of tangles?
I like the Silvereye birds and you can watch them climbing up and down the tall Eucalyptus trees consuming the spiders and other insects they find there. The eye addition is large isn’t it? The Kelpies have little white patches near to their eyes so that from a distance I’m guessing, they’d look like their eyes are open when they are asleep.
Cheers
Chris
Hi Lewis,
I hear you about that! What does this ‘ere dream mean? I dunno either. Given your dreams in relation to the size of the buildings are not ones I’d personally experienced, I was however curious to see what people thought. Candidly the interpretations were a bit of a smorgasbord – pick your favourite. On the other hand, most of the interpretations were remarkably positive.
That is a risk with the feedback model. What do you do? Lots of things are shoddily made these days, but there are also plenty that aren’t. I tell ya what though, that expensive vacuum which broke a fortnight ago should have lasted longer than it did. Is that a battle I wish to fight? Probably not, and incidentally the el-cheapo replacement generic vacuum head is not as good, but it’s only one-fifth the price and looks like it will last longer. The original design was no good in my books. We’ve got a vacuum which is decades old, and still goes strong. It’s a real mixed bag don’t you reckon? I don’t think I’ve ever given good feedback where it was incorrect, that I recall.
How do we know that Anna May Wong’s mother was wrong? Although I’d like to believe that the lady was incorrect in her belief. Yes, that happens down here, and the indigenous folks have a taboo in relation to such matters. It may apply for a year after the death (maybe), and again, those folks may also be correct. Warnings are a bit like signage really, some people really, really, like signage, more of it, lot’s of it. There’s a middle ground in there where a person probably needs to exercise some common sense caution. Do I really need to be warned that I could potentially fall off a ladder? Anyway, that has happened in the past to me so the sign clearly didn’t produce the necessary result. 🙂 Although my legal recourse was perhaps rather limited.
Don’t laugh, but one of my machines has a cover all situations warning, which goes something along the line of: experts believe that any machine is dangerous to operate. Sound advice! Incidentally when I fell off the ladder I landed fine probably due to the experience of being thrown around by the Sensei in my formative years. After that experience though, we do have a firm rule in place: Don’t talk to, or otherwise distract whomever is up the ladder. The Editor was involved in the incident, and we had some words afterwards. Oh well, no great harm done and lesson learned. Boundaries and limits are much tougher than mere signage.
How’s this for a warning: “Experts believe that anyone can get upset and/or offended, by anything”? That should just about cover it, maybe. I tell ya what, there have been times I’ve gone into a social situation with good intentions, and the whole darned thing just blew up horribly. It happens, and I’m sure you’ve been there yourself?
Had a quiet day to myself today. Just pottered around fixing this and that. Worked out how to get the replacement spring installed on the chainsaw clutch, you know stuff like that. Pulled out the two rabbit killed young fruit trees, and then relocated to that enclosure a North American pawpaw and a fig of uncertain parentage. Tried unsuccessfully to keep the dogs off the potato bed soil minerals – that proved too hard. But mostly everything just worked nicely. Had the radio going blasting the tunes. It was a very pleasant and relaxed day.
The wind is still feral though. Took the dogs for a walk up the road and kept a very close eye on the trees which were being thrashed around in the strong wind gusts. I’d hate to be anywhere near one of those if they fell, and not to forget they could fall on the powerline. Seemed to avoid being squashed or electrocuted, and maybe even both during the walk. The dogs enjoyed it.
Good stuff with the octopi, and did I read correctly that some of the octopus were planted in the general area so as to provide err, continuance of the sport on the day it was held? 🙂 No point running out of octopi is there? I’d never heard that word either, but some of the critters around here perform that trick. You’d hope the experience was worth the outcome? Anywhoo, the small marsupial native mouse known as the Antechinus, the blokes do just that. I reckon Dame Plum may have found one of these males a few days ago. It was dead and didn’t quite look like the rat I thought it may have been.
Dude, it’s possible people have become numb to badly behaved tourists, but that urn breakage would have stressed me out. The cost of presumably gluing the 3,500 year old urn would be no small matter. And yes, I saw the images of the tourist humping the statue with a sense of dismay. Seriously is that the best behaviour they’ve got? In Italy they’ve threatened some of those misbehaving tourists with jail time – you know, sometime an example has to be made of what not to do.
Ah, I’d not realised that, and thought they’d had access to a plot of land for such purposes. That used to be common. In the depression, they would have been paid stuff all, but at least they presumably would have had access to some food. Not always the case in those days. Did you know that during the depression, the rural population actually had a significant increase? When I was a very young kid, such things as veg gardens, fruit trees and chickens were common. It was as the working and middle class became wealthier that such good habits were lost. Incidentally, the houses nowadays have eaten the land, so I’m not entirely sure how much that could be reintroduced.
Whoa! The strongest wind gust I’ve recorded with the weather station just slammed into the side of the house. 52km/h at ground level. That’s about 31 miles per hour. Didn’t have the weather station the day the minor tornado hit, or was a bit too busy to grab the camera. That was feral that day.
Most of the pollinators here are likewise benign. The main exception are the European wasps, and I don’t encourage their presence.
🙂 Good luck with those moths. I admit defeat with them – there are so many during summer, it’s too much.
Professor Mass was writing about your state taxes on petrol.
Hehe! That’s funny about the subtitles, and yes that example is a hoot.
Ah, I’d not known that the heat and humidity of the south turned European varieties of wheat flour rancid. I’d wondered about this matter. So do you use a portion of wheat flour in your mix? I don’t actually like the flavour of baking soda, although people swear you can’t taste it, you can.
It is a tasty delivery system, yeah! 🙂 We don’t see a lot of corn products down under, the plants being heavy feeders so presumably the infertile soils tend to limit their range. Cane sugar is more commonly seen and that’s grown up in the tropical north east of the country. Hey, there was some call to get locals up in that part of the country to plant some coffee shrubs. Hmm.
Cheers
Chris
Yo, Chris – You asked the other day about thinning out library collections. It’s called “weeding” in Library Land. I suppose, these days, a computer just prints out lists of things that haven’t circulated, in a long time. But in theory, a licensed librarian has to make the final call.
Warning labels, on products, can be pretty funny. For some reason, there were tags on mattresses that said “Do Not Remove Tag.” For years, it was a running comedic joke, as to the dire consequences of removing those tags.
That’s quit a bit of weather, you’re having. I saw you mentioned cold fronts hitting warm fronts. That’s tornado weather. Watch the skies! And I’m not talking about aliens. Our high yesterday was 86F (30C). Overnight low was 52F. Forecast for today is for 90F. I was going to mention Prof. Mass’s post. There you go. Why our gas in this state is so expensive. The way things work in this state, is, occasionally, the legislature passes taxes, without a vote of the people. Or, any other bit of nonsense. If you get enough signatures, it becomes a referendum, and at the next general election, the people vote on it. Mostly, a good system, though there have been some pretty wild referendum topics, in the past. Also, sometimes the legislature votes some program … but doesn’t provide money for it. Costs fall to local governments. Some of those are also repealed.
Just for idle curiosity, I did a search for “Why are subtitles so bad?” Interesting results. One actually called out U-Tub for their “…notoriously nonsensical auto-captions.” Unfortunately, that article was mostly behind a pay-wall. But, there were others.
I saw an article, this morning, that movie theaters are running some old movies. To great profit and acclaim. Some, over the years, have become cult classics. “The Babadook” only played two theaters, here, when it was released. Well, 20 years on, it’s going to be released in 500 theaters, across the country. There was a mention of a “Shaun of the Dead” anniversary re-release. As far as new stuff goes, I see there’s another Jurassic World movie, in the pipeline.
I didn’t see any references to “salting” octopi. But I’m sure it happens.
Cabbage butterflies will probably survive the apocalypse. I noticed that the organic pest control company, which seems to have something to knock back every critter under the sun, has nothing for cabbage butterflies.
It’s pretty common knowledge, that folks in the country, did a lot better than folks in the city, during the Depression. Except for the Dust Bowl. For a couple of reasons, I think. Not only was there just more food growing, in general, but also wild foraging for game or plants. And, more long established community networks.
Cornbread is usually a 1 to 1 mix of all purpose flour, and corn meal. I usually increase the liquids, a bit, and sometimes toss in sunflower and pumpkin seeds. Maybe a bit of oatmeal. Maybe whole kernel corn. Some people add peppers, of one sort or another. It’s pretty flexible stuff.
I gave H a bath, this morning. I’ll probably take her to the groomer, this week. It’s like cleaning the house, before the maid shows up. 🙂 Lew
Hi Chris,
A quick stop in here. Life continues to have it’s challenges – mostly family drama. Two of my sisters and I did get away for 3 days to a rural county in southwest Wisconsin. Of course that just puts me more behind at home. The assisted living facility has sent me 27 pages of documents to fill out. Marty has moved from 23 to 13 on the waiting list so better get cracking. The bluebird monitoring is over but all the data must now be submitted.
We had hot and humid weather up to yesterday when we got about .8 inch of much needed rain.
Been following the conversation on Ecosophia regarding the varroa mite. Doug uses oxalic acid but is still losing his hives. I’m going to send him some of the commenters suggestions. Honey production way down mostly due to rain washing off the nectar.
I am behind on your video but hopefully one day …
Margaret
Hi Margaret,
🙂 Say, that’s a lot of family drama, but life is like that. Do you know what? I reckon if all the drama suddenly ceased tomorrow, it’d probably be too quiet for you. You do get used to a certain level of such things, although nowadays I prefer the quieter life. On the other hand, you need a medal for all the different situations you’ve navigated over the years, and I don’t recall you ever saying, even once, that it was too much. Respect.
The 27 page document is an administrative hurdle, which most people would struggle with, thus why Marty is rapidly moving down the list. Hope it gets sorted out for him. How’s he doing anyway?
Margaret, that sort of monitoring makes you what is known as a citizen scientist. Out of curiosity, what are they doing with the data? You’d hope they clean the birds area up a bit so that there is more feed for them in future years.
Nice! And the rain is just at the right time for your autumn crops. The wind continues to roar here today whilst the cold rain arrives in intermittent splats. I’m a bit over the recent bout of Antarctic weather really, whilst other parts of the country are scorching hot. A truly crazy fortnight of winter weather. Serious people suggest it will snow tomorrow, but I’m not seeing that possibility looking at the forecast.
Oh my gawd, that was one topic I wish I’d never mentioned. My views in the matter are perhaps rather unpopular. Anyway, that’s right, the persistent rain last summer here had a similar effect.
I’ll be interested to hear what you have to say!
Cheers.
Chris
Hi Lewis,
Ah, ‘weeding’ is a good enough term for the process of reducing the load of books on the library shelves. Presumably the books are auctioned and/or sold off? It’s rare, but once or twice I’ve encountered such book treasures from time to time, and have inadvertently purchased hardback (with catalogue codes and dust jackets) with origins from your country. I wasn’t entirely certain that the books weren’t err, borrowed permanently then sold off? Although the return from such an activity would be hardly worth the effort, I’d imagine. Maybe?
You’d hope that computers and a popularity contest weren’t ultimately deciding what stays and what goes on the shelves? But it might be the way things go.
Are you entirely sure that isn’t bureaucratic over reach? But far out, you’re right there are hundreds of gags about: the lawmen in three states coming for us should any of us foolishly remove the tags from a mattress. Who knew? On first reading, I actually thought that the mattress tag removal gag would refer to warnings about getting pregnant. Shows where my brain is at! 🙂
Yeah, it’s tornado weather for sure, although I’ve not heard of any reports, yet. Mostly the minor tornadoes down here land in out of the way places, and I’ve only ever experienced one direct hit, and seen another from a discreet distance. They’re common, but the population is rather concentrated in the cities so they generally miss people. If they splat some remote mountainous area, would anyone notice? I think not. However, I’ve read that people are taking their four wheel drive vehicles out on remote bush tracks in increasing numbers nowadays. The Editor has some relatives in this remote alpine town, and it hit the news recently for those sorts of reasons: Overtourism in Dargo? Try parking there on long weekends. That is seriously one very remote town in the middle of nowhere. The relatives moved there long ago because the land was cheap and the lifestyle was very relaxed.
Did it end up getting as hot as the forecast promised? The forecast here for tomorrow (Monday) promises snow at this elevation, but I just can’t see that working out with the warmish temperatures. It’s still however feral windy outside. If I had to summarise the weather here for the past week, the word ‘unpleasant’ keeps popping into the consciousness.
As a casual observation about petrol taxes in your state, it perhaps looks as though someone is making mad cash somewhere, and it ain’t you sorry to say. 🙂 Not to worry though, things could be worse, we pay heaps more for gas.
I must say though, your system has some good checks and balances when crazy stuff gets introduced, it can be repealed via that process.
There were some fun articles as to the subject of: ‘Why are subtitles so bad?’ One suggestion about mumbling actors perhaps hit a sore nerve!!! Nah, when people pay for the videos, I’ll take elocution lessons. 🙂 Only fair. Actually, mumbling actors can be quite interesting if it is a deliberate strategy. What’d he say again? I actually know of someone who mumbles, and I really struggle trying to understand him. Dude, he could be saying anything to me. Long ago, to thwart his natural tendencies, I lied and told him I was hard of hearing and suggested he speak louder and more clearly, but that didn’t last. Nowadays we enjoy conversations, and I have no idea what is being said. Might be for the best you know.
Movie theatres have done that down here for quite a while. The cult films attract a paying audience and sometimes at super late in the evening sessions, and I see no reason at all why cinemas would limit their screenings to only current films. What if they’re all duds?
There was a trailer for a very creepy looking thriller film I thought you might be interested in: Heretic – Official Trailer (2024). Might go see that one on the big screen where I don’t have access to a pause button. 😉
Dude, salt and pepper calamari tastes so good. That’s squid. Yum! Probably not the same as what you meant by the word ‘salting’ but why mince the squid, they’re much tastier diced. Oops…
That’s funny, yes, Cabbage butterflies will outlast our species. Next summer, I should get the camera out and simply show how many of them there are here. The air is thick with little white wings flying around, and that convinced me that the Brassica family of plants are a no-go choice during the summer months.
Yes, the dust bowl was hard on small farming families during that era. And I noted in the ‘Grapes of Wrath’ that the land was not left fallow, it was bought up by larger interests. And absolutely, the connections you’ve made in a rural area, pay dividends at such hard times. But you have to be careful of your reputation as that will proceed you and shade all of your doings. Still, it is not possible to get along with everyone, and that’s community.
Ah! Did you know that in the southern parts of your country, the wheat flour is not normally added to the cornbread mix, thus the requirement for baking soda? But yeah, it sounds pretty flexible. Corn production will eat your soil minerals fast though.
🙂 That happens with cleaners from what I’ve heard. Hope that H behaved herself?
Cheers and better get writing!
Chris
Yo, Chris – Library “discards” are a problem. Some libraries have a stamp, stating same. Some libraries sell off their discards, to raise money for other projects. But in some places, the tax structure is such that since books are bought with public monies, they can’t be sold off for profit.
Let’s hear it for bureaucratic over reach. Or, not. 🙂 It does make for some funny stories.
That was an interesting article about Dargo. Not that much different from your stories about the leaf peppers. Seems as if you want a little peace and quiet, one would best stay home. Or stick to the off seasons. The most pleasant time to visit the ocean, here, is in winter. As far as I’m concerned.
It was 90F (32.22C), yesterday. Overnight low was 57F. Forecast for today is 86F. We’ll have a cooling trend, starting tomorrow. Which is a national holiday, by the way. Labor Day.
I think I’ll pass, on “The Heretic.” As I get older, I tend to favor lighter fare. I’m currently watching season three of “The Madam Blanc Mysteries.” An English antique dealer moves to a picture post card French town, and helps the local police solve crimes. Which usually have a bit of a tat trade slant. I see the series has been renewed for a fourth season.
Salting, as in, a confidence trick. “In mineral exploration, salting is the process of adding a valuable metal, especially gold or silver, to a sample from a mine to change the value of the sample with intent to deceive potential buyers of the mine. Examples are the diamond hoax of 1872 and the former Canadian gold company Bre-X. Salting is an example of a confidence trick.”
H was pretty good, when it came to giving her a bath. I took her down to the Club, last night, as she was fit to greet her public. I need to get out, this morning, and pick some blueberries, for another round of oatmeal. Before it gets too warm. Lew