[rustyme]

had a few days of not getting much done on the plot.   It has been so wet, I could do hardly anything . Still , I got about 3'x5' done yesterday and about 6'x5' done today . So it is still getting done very slowly. I managed to pick a fair amount of stone out , but I am sure that someone is sowing STONE SEEDS  on the plot    There is a deffinite feel of season change here at the moment. It feels much nicer in general , the birds know it too , they are singing like mad now.  The land  is in a small valley, more or less surrounded by woodland on 3 sides and tall hedges and the bird song is almost deafening at times. All I need now to make life perfect, is for the grass to start growing, along with the veggies of course...

[Guy]

Well done Russ- at least it is something. Things have slowed up a bit here to , due to the weather , but as you say there is a definate change afoot - which is really helped by the clocks being altered - bliss!!!

[elizabethm]

Oh yes to the time change.  Got home today and it was still light - could inspect the greenhouse, the hens were still out, the hills were still light - fantastic.

[Rosemary]

It's been lovely here the last few days - hope it lasts 'cos I'm on holiday from tomorrow night for a fortnight and I have a long to do list.

[rustyme]

well then , where shall I start ? The thing is, although the weather has been lovely here for a few days now, I haven't been doing much on the plot because I had a funny turn as they say... I was doing my favourite job 'pickaxing ' when I had a horrible feeling in my left arm . Not a shooting pain , just a horrible feeling , along with shortness of breath and feeling very clammy . Hey ho I thought !!! here we go ...but it stayed at that and got no worse . Today I actually got to the docs. He checked my blood pressure and heart and said they were those of a 20 year old , mind you , he didn't say wether the 20 year old was alive or not ?  Anyway ...I have to go and have tests , all the usual ones , and we will see where we go from there. I can carry on doing all that I do as normal , just leave off the pickaxing , no worries on that score then . So I am feeling a bit better in my mind now, and can put my thoughts back towards the plot and sowing all the seeds etc. I can tell you for sure it scares the c**p out of you when something like that happens !!! Well it did me anyway.
       So all systems go again, all be it on a slightly , well a bit more than slightly !!, reduced level , till I have the tests and get the results. I don't want to tempt fate too much !! I can tell you one thing ... the thought of having a heart attack is enough to make you have one  !!!! Anyway ...still alive and kicking, albeit no picking !! hehehe    A heartfelt cheers to you all ...Russ

[pigsatlesrues]

Russ, lovey!  Take care and really look after yourself. We certainly couldn't have anything happening to you.  What we all do here on TAS without you?  Take it easy, less gardening and more posting! - let your fingers do the talking and the walking!

Kate   

[Guy]

Hi Russ - take care mate - keep to the drs orders until the all clear eh!! and no more watching the "Taffinator" if that is the effect it has on you
I too am on holidays from next week , and there are endless tasks to get on with. hopefully we will all survive the cold snap which is being promised!! out with all the fleece again i suppose!! good luck all!! Keep us posted as to how you get on Russ!![/img] 
a little piccy to cheer you up!!

[pigsatlesrues]

Impressive Guy!  They really look like a healthy plants!

My mum bought me two marrow plants a few years ago with all the instructions on what to do with them.  I did everything asked of me and the plants were georgeous! When she came to visit again I was keen to show her how well I had done.. Yes I had done well, but not with the plants she gave me - I had cultivated two dock leaves and killed off the marrows!

Kate

[rustyme]

hello Kate and Guy,
                thanks for the nice words....I will be taking things very easy till all tests are done and results are back . The doc did say I could do everything that I normally do except very heavy prolonged hard work !! PICKAXING !!!! well I only have about 10'x5' left undone so that can wait till I know whats what. Mind you the farmer that drops the haylage off, dropped one right in front of the entrance gate to the land , that meant that the day before yesterday I had to shift a very big heavy round bale at least 30' along the very muddy track...Sods law kicked in,  the one in the way , I had 2 delivered , was twice as heavy as the other one !!! Well , instead of putting my shoulder to the bale and just pushing , as I would normally do , I got out the chain and winch, hitched them up to the 4x4 and shifted it that way . I still can't drive past it , but I can at least walk in and out of the gate now.  So as they say, more than one way to skin a cat !!!
        Funny you should say about the taffinator Guy , I was in stitches at some of the clips while I was feeling a bit strange .... So limited myself to watching just a few at a time... The plants are looking good mate ..I love this time of year when it all starts to kick in again , a little blip on the way at the weekend snow on sunday so they say ? So watch out !!! Oh and enjoy your holiday mate !!!
      Kate ....why didn't you ask ? I have millions of docks you could have if you want them ?  I did something sort of similar when I was a kid. We had a lot of convolvulus in our garden and I thought the best way to get rid of it would be to chop up all the roots into tiny bits !!!!   Result, billions and billions of bindweed plants everywhere for about 3 years .... We live and learn 
   

cheers

Russ

[Fluffywelshsheep]

hiya all glad to see that every one is up an about on their plot (sorry to hear about pain in your arm rusty, how it works out allright), am back in the land of the living again.
Well I have had a week and a 1/2 of contracted work I was based in inverkeithen and i saw my frist bee lol of the season, I have some picture of the lovely scenray on my camera phone

Then a nipped off to Ayr (craig tara caravan park) for a wee four day holiday, and also have some lovely photoes which i'll add to my flickrs page soon, once i have gotten on top of the post etc at home.

I have gotten little plants on the window sill (i set up two heated based with capillary matting under them) while i was away and I have come home to find little seedling enjoying the sun from the window the next thing is i just need to weather to warm up and no frost or snow to come down (can someone tell nature that it is April up here please...................) Again i post some pictures of them once I have gotten myself organised.

[rustyme]

slight change in the weather...lol ... well they did say it was on the way !! Today is very cold and windy , and about every hour or so we are getting small snow showers. Nothing sticking so far . I did some work on the plot though, by the time this cold snap goes it should be ready to start everything off slowly .
         Glad to hear everything is ok Linz...hope you had a nice few days hols too...I am fine at the moment thanks ..... taking things easy for a while , all the really heavy work is done now anyway. Just easy stuff from here on in . Keep warm in the cold spell . 

[Guy]

thanks kate - yes i am very impressed with them , i think it is fantastic you tried to cultivate docks - a most undervalued and misunderstood plant!!!!! we are now using our first lettuce of the year from the polytunnel which are tasty and crisp (maybe they are just frozen!!! lol  )  and the radish are starting to grow nicely as well -disaster though , the propane bottle ran out which runs the p-tunnel heater AND i forgot to fleece the newspuds coming through , so all the plants have now flopped over  ( b*gger)- we are administering first aid with fleece and warmth etc.so we will see - linz , perhaps you could knit them all scarves!!!!
hope you are better Russ and still not overdoing things?

[Fluffywelshsheep]

lol mabe be i could come up with a pattern that used doc leaves lol
Am currently paintting/staining myself mainly but surposed to be the wall and wooden bits in the house lol(Oh well only taken 2 years to decorate the house).
Just finished stainning the front window frame and have the windows wide open  because of the smell of gloss (from skirting boards ) and the varnish.
Also lots of shouting with my disable son as he normally find the wet bit and leans in it lol

I Just need to move my Junk important vauable items around the computer area so this need to be painted which i think will be done at a later date lol.

[rustyme]

Hello Guy ,
          yep still alive , so far !!! shame about the spuds getting caught a bit by frost . If the foliage has gone black cut it off before it rots down to the seed spud. New shoots should then sprout again ok . Otherwise fingers crossed  they pick up again .  
           On the plot I have just been taking things steady . Picking stones and a little bit of  weeding and removing grass etc. ,and a little bit of gentle raking . So nothing too energetic. Hopefully ? this coming week will see everything starting to get sown . I should have got some stuff done already but circumstances dictated something different over the last week or so...lol
 (off topic stuff)         I have got some cotton seeds to sow now , that will be to have a go at making my own cotton material/thread etc. , and on the way are some mulberry seeds . They will eventually be the food for some silkworms I will be rearing. The first lot of which I will be feeding bought in dried mulberry leaf. If all goes well I will be able to supply just about all my own needs in cotton , silk , linen(linseed), and hemp.  So I will have to get the spinning wheel completed and a loom made , got a really good set of plans for a loom now too.  
      Linz ,well done on the decorating !!! to get rid of the smell of paint try placing an onion cut in half in the room near the painted parts.  The onion seems to soak up the smell !!! Don't use the onion after though as it soaks up all the dodgy chemicals that make the smell , just chuck it afterwards. 

[Guy]

a quick update on the raised beds