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I was out doing a basket course yesterday. We were set up in the shade of a big tree next to a river (uplands of Wales). The place I live now, apparently the people who lived here 50 years ago would keep their milk crate in the stream to keep it cool, constant flow of water and shade of plants...

I have a tube/bottle of a gel which is made from witch hazel and aloe vera: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B08T9ZMDHC?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_fed_asin_title I really like it, very good for soothing the itch from bug bites. It is a new product which I tried it as I use the other cream from the...

I agree, the more sophisticated filter systems can remove bacteria and many chemical (organic and/or inorganic depending on filtration media) contaminants, but none of them will remove viruses. To remove viruses, you must either boil, treat with disinfectant or use a particular wavelength of UV...

Looks pretty good. Peas like cool, tomatoes prefer hot and dry, so peas will be producing before toms. Everything is a month late in west/north UK this year. So probably about where they should be, and hopefully we get a dry warm September to ripen things properly. I grow tomatoes, cucumbers...

Been doing my first main mow of the year. My big Honda strimmer was overheating...... so was I mind you. And the bugs that were late in getting going are in catch up mode..... GC

My peas and pattypan squash are doing really well in the polytunnel with the net front door closed and the rear net door closed plus the main cover on nearly all the qay up. Says everything, at this time of year both doors should be rolled open to stop thi gs getting too hot! It's been a cold...

The stuff in the tunnels is doing well, tomatoes, pattypan squash, peppers, mange-tout peas, cucumbers. Even one of 3 varieties of melons i am tryimg are growing ok. That said........ I only planted under cover thus year because the spring had been so cold and wet, just as well as its...

Yeah we lit the wood burner in the lounge for a couple of hours yesterday evening, to take the chill off. Wouldn't think it was June, wet, windy and max 13 C all day. Glad all my tomatoes are in polytunnels. GC

Spot on. This whole "net zero" thing is a con as it ignores the wider issue i.e. that it's the global pollution load, and so it offshores emissions and is set up so the elite can continue to consume and pollute whilst others pay the price whether through loss of jobs in UK or pollution in...

I recently bought a British Berkey gravity filter for the house. They give very clear instructions about avoiding cross contamination of the clean water vessel, and that disinfection is also needed (if using it to clean e.g. stream water). But there is a thing these days that folks rely on...

.... and it was on the disc that the AI video said to apply it...... GC

@Woody girl has a good point about power and water use. Once AI is "necessary for defence" then the next obvious step is to switch off domestic users to keep power on for AI if there's energy shortages. That said..... ... history also teaches us that (a) if a hungry mob has nothing left to...

Ceramic purification filters don't remove viruses. In fact, that's how they used to work out a cultured liquid was a virus not a bacteria causing infection- the viruses passed the ceramic filter. Proper purification ceramic plus activated carbon will remove most bacteria and chemical/heavy...

A British Berkey 8.5 L gravity water filter for the kitchen, and a 1 L version for travelling (hotel water always feels a bit suspect). A new old truck- I traded my 4-door pickup in for a 2-door one which is 4 years older, due to change in tax rules for commercial vehicles. It's nice to have a...

I mow the patch of mossy clovery grassy stuff at the front, that way I encourage white clover, buttercups and the moss rather than the coarse wet grass taking over. Other areas have a path mown and most other areas I leave, tho the large patch of docks needs knocking down with the Big Strimmer...

That's why I have Starlink plus an Ecoflow system.... add a VoIP phone and it's back to the level of reliability of the old analogue exchange..... ......I am not convinced that's progress, and it's not cheap either (although neither were phone lines back in the day- but there were many more...

Having managed to get the polytunnel covers on during that brief warm spell in March, I have at last got the tunnels organised and a reasonable amount of planting in them. The spring being so late didn't help- everything is 3-4 weeks late around here. I have quite a bit planted in the tunnels...

Yeah, bamboo does get a bad press because most of those who plant it don't knwo how to manage it. It is controlled by pruning the roots not the tops...... GC

Not that unusual unfortunately. In 2008, I spent a year commuting by 737 between Glasgow and Cardiff. Thankfully, the expected job transfer did happen and I was able to move back home. I spent a big chunk of 2020-21 on sites living out of my Big Van over in the East Midlands. Most major...

Indeed. There's quite a bit of housing which could be brought into use- and probably much more quickly than new build- if the incentives were there. Empty houses: these articles are interesting...