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Re: Spring proper, Bits and Bobs.

Posted: Sun May 12, 2019 5:33 pm
by oldherbaceous
Now you are making good progress, Clive.....

Re: Spring proper, Bits and Bobs.

Posted: Sun May 12, 2019 10:46 pm
by Geoff
Also spotted and heard skylark, whilst walking the dog on the moors. The swifts are back and we've eaten our first strawberries, only three between two but very nice, so things are looking up.

Re: Spring proper, Bits and Bobs.

Posted: Mon May 13, 2019 8:06 am
by robo
It must be thirty years since I heard a skylark it's one of the things I miss this time of year

Re: Spring proper, Bits and Bobs.

Posted: Mon May 13, 2019 12:00 pm
by tigerburnie
We are lucky up here that the farming is mostly less intensive, so we still have good numbers of field birds including Corn Buntings, Yellowhammers, Linnets and Skylarks, I can hear Skylarks in my garden when the village is quiet and the kids are not in the play ground.

Re: Spring proper, Bits and Bobs.

Posted: Fri May 17, 2019 8:14 pm
by Westi
They promised rain, it didn't come so I went down & watered - you guessed it, almost as I finished down came a gentle rain that has continued for about 2hrs. I can compensate though as the tunnel didn't get the natural & was pretty dry & if those ants don't leave soon I might not have any sweet peppers or chillies! They have their dripper bottles but the ants are pretty much ignoring the damp & pretty sure their nest has grown even though they have been swamped!

Re: Spring proper, Bits and Bobs.

Posted: Fri May 17, 2019 8:40 pm
by tigerburnie
I've re- roofed our summer house over the past two days, then trimmed the privet and watered the raised beds, greenhouse is now getting fuller with pots coming from the conservatory ready for planting in the borders, Tomatoes, Cucumbers and Butternut Squash are all acclimatizing now

Re: Spring proper, Bits and Bobs.

Posted: Sat May 18, 2019 8:37 am
by Colin2016
I too have ants Red ones that love to bite me.

Tried different remedies which have failed so borrowed a stove to boil some water to give them a hot wash...If that does not work I can have always have cuppa.

Re: Spring proper, Bits and Bobs.

Posted: Sat May 18, 2019 2:28 pm
by Stephen
Ants usually move on when disturbed. Fork over the nest and they fork off! :lol:

Re: Spring proper, Bits and Bobs.

Posted: Sun May 19, 2019 1:48 pm
by Primrose
I appreciate some gardening help these days and this morning my husband (who hates gardening) offered to help with some diggong so I asked if he could dig out the remaining leeks which had all gone to seed.
Left him to go back into the house for a few moments and came out to find him digging out my garlic plants!!

I admit the two species do look quite similar but after staring out at them from from the kitchen window every day I would have hoped by now he might have recognised the difference!

Anyway I now have a nice bare patch so have been able to sow some Cavalo Nero and Swiss Chard. I worry i'm a bit late this year but guess they will soon catch up now the weather is hopefully warming up.

I have limited growing space and in the past have sown my vegetables quite close together but now weeding is a problem am realising that leaving enough space between rows for hoeing weeds will probably save me a lot of bothersome kneeling down to hand weed.

Re: Spring proper, Bits and Bobs.

Posted: Mon May 20, 2019 8:11 am
by Shallot Man
On lifting the lid on my water barrel. Noticed a slug some inch & a half long [ sorry still imperial ] green & grey. Tipped it into the barrel and watched it sink to the bottom. Low and behold some time later it was climbing back up to the top. Again sent it to the bottom. Which must raise the question, do they breath, or can they hold their breath. :? :? :?

Re: Spring proper, Bits and Bobs.

Posted: Mon May 20, 2019 9:22 am
by Primrose
Shallotman. This is a question that has often puzzled me after throwing slugs into a bucket of water, only to find them climbing out later. So this is not an effective way of killing them unless you add something of a killing agent to the water and then you can,t necessarily throw it onto the garden afterwards.
I think they obviously have some means of retaining oxygen in their bodies but how long they can stay submerged I don't know. Yiu have to give them 10 out of 10 for their resilience and survival techniques.
Maybe we should be harvesting them as a viable food product! Yuk

Re: Spring proper, Bits and Bobs.

Posted: Mon May 20, 2019 3:58 pm
by Diane
:shock: I saw, on the telly (so it must be true) that our next food source will be jellyfish.

Re: Spring proper, Bits and Bobs.

Posted: Mon May 20, 2019 4:16 pm
by robo
There are turtles in our seas that swim up to 2000 miles to feed on them so they can't be that bad

Re: Spring proper, Bits and Bobs.

Posted: Mon May 20, 2019 4:49 pm
by alan refail
Diane wrote::shock: I saw, on the telly (so it must be true) that our next food source will be jellyfish.


Plenty in Oriental stores.

Image

Re: Spring proper, Bits and Bobs.

Posted: Mon May 20, 2019 8:26 pm
by Westi
I'm not sure! Got stung by one when a teenager & my midriff looked like a cauliflower! Trip to the Ambulance station for treatment (not UK Obvs)! It cannot taste nice as too jelly like with no texture & that package is not appealing to me either! And how to they ensure the sting is out - my chance encounter hurt like hell, but wouldn't want that in my stomach.