Monthly Archives: June 2016

On the second day

Free seed and nature watch

Julia had a quick word with the man we refer to as The Gamekeeper today.

Before you run away with the idea that we’re bankrolled by a rich farmer (as several local projects have stated),I’d better point out that we aren’t, and that we are very far from a sporting estate. Go somewhere like the Elveden Estate, as we did a while ago on our trip to Thetford, and you will see a big difference. Elveden is brilliant and clearly well-un and well-financed. You also have an immediate feeling for the generations of forelock tugging that have gone into making it what it is. No criticism, not (much) jealousy – it’s just like being in a different world compared to the chaos and cheese-paring that is my daily life.

Our shoot is run by a man who pays to run a shoot on the land and, with a group of shoot volunteers, controls vermin, plants hedges and wildlife cover and does a variety of odd jobs around the place at weekends and in the evenings.

He’s more a nature warden than an old-fashioned type of gamekeeper, though he does make a hole in the magpie, fox and rabbits populations.

Considering that a fox killed 40 chickens in one night a few years ago, have trimmed the free range guinea fowl flock and ate Nelson the one-eyed cockerel not so long back, I don’t have a lot of sympathy with them. I wouldn’t like to exterminate them, I wouldn’t chase them to exhaustion and rip them to pieces with a pack of hounds but I don’t see that it’s my job to maintain the population by feeding them my poultry.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Same with the rabbits – they are nice enough, but I’m not here to provide them with a banquet of salad every night.

Magpies – the jury is out. Some people think they are responsible for the decline in songbird species, some don’t. They have certainly spread over the years, being common now in places I never saw them as a youthful birdwatcher. Like buzzards and curlews they were birds I only saw on holiday or visiting grandparents in the north-west.

Anyway, it was a fruitful conversation (to get back to the main subject) and he has offered us free bird seed for the winter, which is good.

He also told her that he saw a large group of young blue tits on the feeders a few nights ago, so at least someone has seen them since the nest box went quiet. We thought it was a bout time they went but weren’t quite sure. He also said he sees little owls at night – they roost on the rails of the fence that runs behind the feeder – something else to look out for!

Hatching egg report – we now have 5 so we are on stream to start hatching next Wednesday.

Keets and curly sandwiches…

10 Replies

Having had quite a lot of sandwiches left over from yesterday’s high tea, I didn’t need to make too much effort for lunch. In fact all I had to do was peel back the cling film. They had started to dry out a little and curl at the edges, bit let’s face it, having eaten in a number of typical English cafes in the 60s and 70s, and enjoyed the legendary hospitality of British Rail, I’m no stranger to dry, dodgy sandwiches.

We have saved today’s eggs from the Polish bantams and will start to hatch them in a week or so – you can generally keep them a week without a problem.The main problem is making sure we get good quality eggs and making sure they don’t get put in with the eggs for sale. You know how it is round here…

It will probably take that long to strip down the machine and get it ready to use as I don’t think it was actually washed after being hauled out of the back of the barn.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

We started the day with egg collection and brought the keets in to the centre so everyone could get a good look. After that it was salt dough (we need around 750 of them in the next couple of months) and musical accompaniment selected by Emma (I believe it was some popular modern female singer called Jess Glynne). I have, of course, never heard of her. As a middle-aged man I am freeing up large amounts of brain space by refusing to learn the names of modern singers, or listen to their music.

This afternoon we planted a variety of stuff out and set some late seeds. Also swore at the slugs who ate their way through the lettuces in one of the planters.

Let’s see, what else? Well, we found Edie running round with a lead on, and had to find the farmer to check we weren’t missing a dog-walker. It’s apparently part of her training programme to be left to “stay” as the farmer walks away. But she didn’t. I think this part of the training might need a bit more work.

I seem to have spent a fair amount of time making an ID badge for one of the group. (That means it took me longer than I was expecting and longer than I would like Julia to know.) Shame it relates to another group. Same goes for the rubber bands she’s been cadging off me all afternoon – seems she can’t garden but she can sort plant labels for another project and use my bands to bundle them up. I’m all for cooperation but I’m definitely having second thoughts about this. 😉

Alasdair and I have just filled the bird feeders again. The peanut feeder at the front had been knocked off again and the elastic band had slipped so most of the peanuts were gone.

I’m beginning to wonder if the jackdaws have an answer for everything.

Nearly got a good picture of a mint moth – they are flying when nothing else seems to be about – but can’t quite master the macro capability of the new camera.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Quick nature note from yesterday – Julia spotted goldfinches eating seeds from the bergenias (Elephant Ears). I always think of them as being dull plants for municipal planting (they were actually donated by a local park). However they are tough as old boots (which we need for our wind-blasted clay soil) and if they feed goldfinches I’m not going to hear a word against them.

That’s about it for the day – just some paperwork and a phone call to do. And a cup of tea.

Heavy rain and hedgehog rolls

8 Replies

I thought Monday was rainy, but it was almost dessicated compared to Tuesday.

Julia cooked scones for tea and practised with one of the bread kits we were going to use. It takes 17 minutes from opening the packet to being ready to shape, which makes it easier to use than starting from scratch. Not sure how they do it, but it makes things easier. She made hedgehog rolls, as you can see from the picture.

After a morning of threatening black clouds our visitors arrived. One was 96, and the other didn’t tell us. We started off in the kitchen with bread and reminiscence and the rain still held off, but just after 4.00, with the ladies full of scones and safely on their way back to the home, it happened.

It wasn’t so much rain as solid water descending from the sky. The water butts overflowed, the gravel area flooded and we won’t need to water the outside beds until 2017. Oh, it was wet.

In general the only inconvenience for us, working in the centre, was the noise and it felt quite good to sit inside and watch the rain. Until we had the phone call.

“Can you check the kitchen isn’t leaking?”

We had a leak when it rained a couple of weeks ago so we’ve been checking every time it rains.

It’s fair to say that my day took on a wetter aspect at that point. Good news was that the kitchen wasn’t leaking. It looks like it was a one-off combination of rain and wind that caused the problem.

You can probably guess the bad news, but I should dry out by Friday.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

We had a text this morning on the way to work – the events organiser from the home telling us that the two ladies had enjoyed themselves and hadn’t stopped talking about the visit.

It seems they particularly liked the chicks, which just goes to show that as long as you have lambs and chicks everything else falls into place.

As a result we are now booked to run a baking session at the home next month.

Rainy Monday and a feeling of Doom

6 Replies

Well, the elastic bands sort of worked. Only one feeder was knocked off over the weekend, and it retained its contents. On another feeder the band had snapped and was lying in the water container. It makes refilling the feeders a bit more complicated but as it seems to have saved a feeder of Nyger seed it’s worth it.

We had a blue tit visit the feeder I stuck on the window. It announced its presence with an irritating irregular tapping sound, which tends to suggest it might be a bit of a mixed blessing.

Out in the cherry trees down the drive Alasdair spotted a green woodpecker. We’ve had a bit of a chequered history with the species, having some good sightings locally but none round the centre. We hear them all the time and sometimes see something in the distance that flies like one but we’ve not had a good sighting. Alasdair is usually very good on IDs like this, so I added it to the list. A bit later I saw it too, as it rose from the ground and flew down the drive just as Alasdair had reported. Of course, I didn’t have my camera with me.

As I write this there’s more irritating tapping on the window. Julia says it’s a blue tit but as soon as I moved it spooked and flew off.

The keets are all keeping well, as are the two chicks that are in with them. We’ve called it a day with the eggs in the incubator as they were showing no signs of life and were well overdue. That’s what happens when you put dirty eggs in a dirty incubator. I know there’s a skill to it too (It’s not like the monster incubators we used to have at work) but basic attention to detail goes a long way to ensure hatchability.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

There are around 17,000 pores in an egg shell. That is 17,000 places for a pathogen to enter. As the egg cools the contents contract and air and is drawn into the shell.

If your egg is laid in a dirty nestbox, or on the floor, the cooling process will suck in germs, which will find the mix of nutrients and warmth in an egg a very good environment.

When I worked in a hatchery we used to candle the eggs at 18 days and transfer them to a hatcher, which had a different environment for the last three days. It was dark in there, it was cramped and , above all, it was 37 degrees C (about 99 degrees F).

Just to add to the excitement, an egg would would occasionally explode when you pulled a tray of eggs out of the rack. These “bangers” were eggs that had incubated a full load of pathogens and, on being disturbed, burst under the pressure. When that happened we used to grab a disinfectant spray and mist the incubator in an attempt to stop a build up of germs. They used to work continuously, so there was never a time when we could switch them off. In fact those machines only stopped three times in 30 years – once when we moved them to another building, once when we programmed a major maintenance programme and once when we switched them off for the final time.

Anyway, backed to the cramped darkness and the stench of a burst egg. It wasn’t pleasant, and it was bad for the other eggs. Sometimes you could see this when candling as you could see a central egg and a spreading ring of eggs around it where it had infected the others.

And so, as my wife gradually draws me back into dealing with poultry, and into incubating more eggs, you can see why the feeling of doom is creeping up on me.

Two of the pictures are from today – the wet one with wheelbarrow and the red one with keets under a heat lamp. The others with poultry are from last week – look how the goslings have grown! Look at the way one of the parents (probably the gander) is thinking of having a go at me. He is going to end up with a shiny jacket and a couple of hours in a low oven if he isn’t careful.

The goats, looking like butter wouldn’t melt in their mouth, are planning an escape. I know that because I had to spend 20 minutes getting them back in the pen later that afternoon.

Great days! 😉

Entering the modern era

11 Replies

Yes, I’ve finally done it, after being let down twice in a week I’ve drafted the letter about non-returnable deposits.

One of them was a no-show, so we’d bought materials and planned the day, putting several hours of effort in. The second was the day before, but I was away that day and only checked my email this morning, by which time I’d spent several hours planning, bought materials and ingredients and generally psyched myself up.

So we’re now in the grasping, lecturing, materialistic modern world and have a document detailing our deposit requirements and defining “14 days”. I haven’t moaned, I’ve just pointed out that we can’t keep incurring costs and suffering late cancellations.

I’m reasonably happy with it but I’m sure that the management committee will have a go at mangling it.

Coming, as it did, the day after the lady at Brierlow Book Shop taught me how to pay contactlessly. I’m really feeling like a child of the 21st century. She says she can also pay with her phone and her watch. I still think anything other than cash is a bit suspect, but I suppose I’m one of a dying breed.

The keets are all happy, though I’m not sure what we’re feeding them on. It looks a bit floury and the mill we use to grind wheat for school visits seems to be full of pig pellets. Call me suspicious but if there was such a thing as an Olympics for cutting corners we would be weighed down with medals and people would call on us to commentate at the Christmas Scrooge Championships and the Tightwad Derby.

I’ve got the new feeder up, though I can’t afford a big one like the bookshop has. Nor could I afford to fill it. I’ve also put the window feeder up, but so far nobody has found it. I thought that if it works it’s worth a fiver, and if it doesn’t I’ll give it a wash and give it somebody for Christmas.

The old feeders all have a new feature – an elastic band over the top. It’s not pretty but I’m hoping it might work. The plan is that even if they do get mugged by jackdaws the tops should stay on. If the jackdaws can’t get to the contents they may stop wrecking them. How many times have I said that?

One of the goats escaped, but it’s now captured and penned again. I’d have left it to get in by itself (they do when they get bored) but someone called and asked for help.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

He caught me at a bad time – I was just contemplating allowing the three guinea fowl in the allotment to escape from their pen. A moment later and I may have been spotted. I’ll do it tomorrow.

The pigs seem happy too, but in the absence of foresight I suppose they would, They may be the 4th most intelligent mammal, behind men, apes and dolphins, but they have never really concerned themselves with the meaning of life.This is probably a good thing.

Given food, friends and the occasional scratch behind the ears they seem content.

Added later – can anybody tell me if the plant still standing near the pigs (the only thing they have left standing, is hemlock? The main picture isn’t as clear as it could be – do these help?

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Meanwhile the cereal trial is confusing me – the plots with chemicals seem greener, and have fewer weeds, but the ones without chemicals seem just as tall and productive, though a bit paler, or even yellow round the edges. The chemicals must help by providing all the nutrients the grain needs, but I’m wondering whether they are cost effective.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Wet, wet, wet

1 Reply

When we got to Sheffield we made sure Number Two son had groceries and then I hauled out the map to look for Wigtwizzle. It wasn’t there. It may be very small, it may be like Brigadoon, or it may only appear on maps that weren’t purchased from discount book shops. So we decided on Plan B and zipped up the M1 to Wakefield for an hour at Hampsons Garden Centre.

It was, as usual, over-staffed and manic, with a car park full of plants on trollies and a cafe full of staff impersonating zombies. Despite this the hot beef sandwiches were excellent, and we escaped after buying books, bird feeders, meal worms, pies and cheap tat. No plants – we are suffering from gardening overload. Despite the generally unwelcoming air in the cafe (including notices about not eating your own food and not abusing staff on pain of being reported to the police) it’s always a decent meal. I’d give it 4 stars as the home-made pies, occasional cheery service and reasonable prices (especially breakfast) make up for a lot.

After that it was off to the Peak District, where it started raining as we crossed the boundary into the National Park and continued until we arrived home. Sometimes it was so loud we had to turn the satnav up to hear directions. Yes, I hate it but I used it, as the route from Glossop to the bookshop was not exactly direct.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Waiting for a group of 20 Guides now so will finish with a few photos and continue later.

Just discovered that the Guides cancelled yesterday by email. We got back late and I didn’t check my mail. Am still going to go as I need to feed chickens and stop swearing.

Will be back later with a more positive attitude.

Bread, Birds and Butterflies

5 Replies

I just caught the end of the Bread Group today. Gail is at a conference in London (as is Prince Charles, though I’m not one to gossip…) so they ran their own session today. The result was a variety of loaves baked using a focaccia recipe. I use those words carefully.

I’m sure they will all taste great, even the ones that look like illustrations from a medical textbook (due to the inclusion of sun-dried tomatoes) but if you were expecting focaccia that looks like the picture in cookery books you won’t find much of it here. I was actually left with the impression that the bakers of the flatter ones were generally thought to lack imagination by the rest of the group.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

My favourites were the ones that looked like small loaves. I bet they will taste really good with a bowl of soup. I made that observation several times but ended up leaving without other bread or an invitation. I may have to investigate Photoshop and the possibility of adding more wrinkles if this sort of thing continues.

Meanwhile, we have had young goldfinches and wrens around the feeder and the blue tits are now feeding lots of caterpillars to their young in the nestbox. I’m not sure this is doing the butterfly garden a lot of good but nature is all about give and take.

I’ve seen two more Common Blues about, though the butterfly showing isn’t great at the moment. One of them was a female, which is always a bit difficult as female Common Blues are brown. Annoying though this may be, I have to admit it isn’t their fault because as they evolved nobody told them they were going to be called Common Blues. Compared to some species, they aren’t that common either.

Ah well!

Flowers are looking better, and I did mange to get some photos. It’s a shame the few pollinators I saw about were so quick I couldn’t get a shot.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Tomorrow it’s Sheffield, though we’re hoping to get into the Peak District on the way back. We may to Wigtwizzle. I’m not sure there’s much to see, but with a name like that (which I just discovered on the map) how can you resist?

On the way back we may even find time to visit one of my favourite bookshops.

Back to the grindstone

11 Replies

Today I have made notes of all the brilliant ideas we had in the car yesterday.

It’s not as long a list as it seemed yesterday, and not all the ideas look so good after a good night’s sleep, but it’s still quite a list, leading forward to events in September and November. I look forward to it with my customary cheerful optimism.

We are still waiting for the group that was supposed to come today, though at 15.53, after four calls to the leader and one to Head Office it is clear they aren’t going to show. Their minibus may have been abducted by aliens, it may even have been engulfed in flames in an awful accident: I won’t say too much until I know they are all safe.

What I will say is that we should start getting paid in advance.

Apart from that it’s been a fine day, and we had lunch under the awning that is still up from Open Farm Sunday.

We’ve had butterflies fluttering, finches flitting and baby blue tits cheeping. The chicks and keets have just been moved to the Men in Sheds barn because we can’t see their constant chirrups being conducive to yoga tomorrow. I’m not sure what the MiS will think on Friday when they arrive but as I’m planning to be in Sheffield I can’t say it’s a pressing concern.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Really, nothing much happened today. I’ve had my face stuck to a computer screen all day, despite saying I must get out more and after the group collected the eggs they mainly sat round feeling the heat.

Having been wintry last week, the sudden swerve to summer has caught us all out, though I’m told that the monsoon season starts on Friday. It will be good for the garden…

quercuscommunity

Life after the Care Farm

Monthly Archives: June 2016

On the second day

Free seed and nature watch

Keets and curly sandwiches…

Heavy rain and hedgehog rolls

Rainy Monday and a feeling of Doom

Entering the modern era

Wet, wet, wet

Bread, Birds and Butterflies

Back to the grindstone