Car Wash

Our lovely son was feeling strapped for cash.
"Mum, what can I do to earn some money?"
"Wash my car!" came the immediate response.
This time, to my surprise, he didn't blanch or change the subject, but got straight to it.
Since then he has done four more cars, and has earned enough to buy the new DS games he craved.
Here he is on the final vehicle:

I had to hide behind a bush to take this - hope no one was watching!

And just to prove the car was clean enough to see reflections in...

Its so good to see the kids grow up and take initiative. Talking of which, Joel has just informed me that he will be charging me legal fees for posting pictures without permission!!  Clearly a good business head there.

Bunny irony

My dear friend Anne gave me these little stone rabbits when we first told her we were moving back to the UK.  She thought they looked very "English Country Garden"-ish.

They do don't you think?

Here's the irony: we get loads of little grey rabbits in our garden - about the same size too- but they have all fallen victim to our cats, who mostly leave a little fur and the entrails as a present for us.

We were devastated at first, and of course tried to rescue the poor little things, but they died anyway.
Then before long, the cats had dispatched 50 rabbits, at which point we realized there might have been rather a lot of them out there....

Our neighbours have been thrilled, since the bunnies would eat all their home produce, and for the past two seasons they have not had a problem.
Well, I guess it saves on cat food.....

By the way, Anne, there is the peony you sent me in the back ground....it is looking very healthy!

Hive Mentality

Last Saturday was Hive making day.
It was like being at a rock concert - loud banging leaving your ears ringing, huddled up close to a load of other people!
I completed a bee-keeping course run by the Cambridge Bee Keeping Association this spring, and part of the course was a 101 on building a flat packed "National" hive at a nearby scout hut.  

Of course I took along my trusty woodwork expert (and his tools), thinking:
"We should be done in no time - how hard can this be?"
Ha ha. Well, not so bad if you have an expert hive maker, an expert woodworker and access to tea and coffee....but it still took 5 hours!!!

First we had to pick up the basic kit which was tidily stacked into a hive lid.

It looks a bit weird in this photo - but this is a stack of lids all containing pieces of flat pack.

 The first job was to take out all the pieces and sand off the splinters.  Mark was much faster at than me of course....so I swanned about taking pics!

And here he is drilling pilot holes. There was a very specific way to put it all together, and the reasons became apparent as we went on....mostly we got it right first time!

First assembly was the Brood box where my future queen will lay her off-spring, and her workers will store honey and pollen to feed and nurture them.  It is all glue and nails. Mark was itching to get some screws into it, but he had to be good and do as he was told.

just proving I am handy with a drill too...

Here is the finished hive safely stored in the garage awaiting paint job.
We had to assemble one wax frame too, as nothing is obvious from the kit!

The pressure is then on to finish the rest of the frames - 11 for the brood box, and 11 each for the 'Supers" where my honey harvest will be stored. When a swarm is sighted, it's a question of dropping everything and getting it home, so I have to be ready...

MJ and me finishing up the frames. It went so much quicker with a production line!

Meanwhile Mark got busy with the paintbrush and wood preservative.
We decided against the traditional white paint job, as this is not a pretty traditional hive.
It is all about function and economy....so the paint job had to match!

Now all I need is a custom made stand to keep it off the ground, and...bees!!

Paper pots with occupants!

Here they are....my babies are growing!

So far, globe artichokes (to the left) and courgettes have burst their way through.
The Patty Pan Squash are creating pimples on the surface, ready to burst with green any moment.
I never tire of seeing the first signs of life!

Newspaper pots in action

Here are the pots all full of compost, with a seed or two in each one, and watered in.
(See previous post in case you missed the significance of newspaper pots to my life!)

They are sitting in the greenhouse catching warm rays and missing out on the incessant wind that is whipping away the cobwebs of winter in literal and metaphorical fashion!

Today I planted courgette (zucchini) patty pan squash, marrow, artichoke, basil, coleus (decorative not edible!) and a few sunflower seeds from last year's sunflowers.

I am trying my hand at a Mendelian experiment.
Last year I had white sunflower seeds from a sunflower I had grown the previuos year.
I planted only a small number of seeds, and the result was one white and one  black - seeded sunflower head.
I assume this means the black seeds are a recessive gene.
So, this year I am planting equal amounts of black and white seeds (4 pots of three seeds each) in pots to see if the ratio of black to white resulting confirms my theory.
Should have half black and hlaf white form the white seeds and only black from the black ones if my hypothesis is correct.
Watch this space!

Lots of Pots

If you know me at all well, you will understand that the following pictures represent deep excitement and fulfillment to me!

Lovely aren't they?
What's that?
Just a bunch of folded newspaper?
Well of course its a bunch of folded newspaper....
but I plan to use them instead of peat pots for planting seeds and cuttings!
Free, eco-friendly, don't need washing and sterilizing...
How cool is that?


I saw a natty little wooden - er - thing - to help you make these in a National Trust shop once.  It cost a lot of money, so I had a little fiddle about today, and this is how I did it:

 

 Step one: cut some roughly 10" square bits of scrap paper. Newspaper is ideal because it is nice and thin, but does not tear up too easily.
Place the sheets on top of one another, but with their corners not lined up - as if you were making a star.

 Step two: find a good sturdy plastic cup or plant pot.
Sit it in the centre of the paper (when in Britain, spell center like a Brit. Especially if you are a Brit.)

 Step three: fold up either side of the paper around the cup. Crease the folds and squash them flat against the cup.

 Step four: fold the excess newspaper into pleats until they are tucked snugly against the cup.  Press the creases firmly all the way up to the tips of the paper corners.

 Step five: carefully shake the cup out of the paper, holding the creases in place with one hand.  Now fit the base of the paper into the cup. This should hold your creases in place for step six.

 Step six: Fold the pointy corners down into the inside of the paper pot. Take a little bit of the pleated part of the pot too as you fold. This will make the pot more rigid and stronger.

 Here is mine all folded down, ready to take out of the cup....

 Step seven: and just because I am pedantic, I pushed the paper pot back onto the outside of the cup to make the creases firmer on the inside.

Here is the finished product, all ready to fill with compost and plant seeds.

I used the "i" newspaper - not too bad on the black finger front!

It has been such a long, long, dark and dismal winter that the current rush of sunshine, wind and the odd shower has meant that I can't wait to get planting!  I hope there will soon be more pics of things growing. 

My Budding Bard

Anna has taken to writing recently. She writes stories - some by herself, some with a friend.  She often won't let me read her writing because she seems to think it is embarrassing
"It's got too much violence in it Mum," says she. Hmmm!
Maybe she is more worried that I will correct the spelling or something - I won't, honest!

Two days ago , she brought me a poem she had written. I melted.
Here is it:

"My Mother" by Anna (Aged 12)

My Mother likes to do things like gardening in the sun,

But stops when the kettle boils; she likes her tea does Mum.

She also takes great delight in growing fruit and veg,

And one of her great qualities is she likes to tease and jest.

One thing I love about my Mother is that she makes life fun,

And I have to admit that if it weren't for her I'd never get anything done!

Here is another one she has written:

"I've Got Your Back" by Anna

You've been my friend for goodness knows how long,

You've stuck with me through whatever's gone wrong.

If I could repay you in any small way,

Give back some of the kindness you've given away,

Then I would do it...you need only ask,

Even the longest most arduous tasks.

If you need someone to listen, someone to tell,

Just come and find me and I'll listen well,

I'm here to listen and to give advice,

But if its not wanted then I won't think twice.

I will stick with you through thick and thin,

It seems a small price to pay for the comfort you give.

Through arguments, fights or our enemies attack,

You don't need to worry... I've got your back.

Anna being a Cairn gopher