Just before Christmas I had to put the demi-johns of wine in the shed to be out of the way. I brought them back inside the other day. As they warmed up I was worried they might start fermenting again. I could not bottle the wine if it was not finished fermenting. After a couple of days in the kitchen the demi-johns were up to temperature. I judged that all but one wine had stopped.
I had been saving wine bottles over the Christmas period so had loads to sort through. I needed thirty bottles. I tried to find five matching bottles per demi-john. Having sorted through the pile and found pretty much what I needed. Then it was just a case of washing the bottles, syphoning off the demi-johns into the bottles, capping or corking the bottles, checking the specific gravity, writing labels. Then the small matter of washing out the demi-johns and cleaning up. And that was the bockelin done.
The demi-john that needed more time has been put in the corner of the dining room until it stops bubbling. This d-j is the wine made from my own grapes. The finished bottles were put away in the shed until the summer.
Wednesday, March 02, 2011
Quarter sawn
In the revamped dining room there is a ledge that needs a finishing touch. I was at Staunton Harold the other day with H and her sister and spotted a big plank of quarter sawn Oak for sale. I did not have the right car with us so I could not take away the eight foot by 18inch plank by 1inch. I went back the next day with the right car only to find a posh couple cooing over the plank. I went straight over to chap. He remembered me from the previous and was only too happy to have me press a bunch of fivers into his hand. The couple were a bit put out when the chap elbowed them out of the way and walked off with "their" plank and man-handled the plank into the car. The quarter sawing brings out the figuring.
I just have to run the plank down to size and fit it. Easier said than down. H wants a frame for a mirror from the planks as well.
It is really nice to think that we will have a bit of timber from the local forest.
I just have to run the plank down to size and fit it. Easier said than down. H wants a frame for a mirror from the planks as well.
It is really nice to think that we will have a bit of timber from the local forest.
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Soggy stems
This weekend was H's birthday. H sister and hubby were to come over for dinner much later in the day so I had most of the day more less to myself. Miss L was home too so H and Miss L went off to do girly things. I went to the lottie. I filled the feeders and had a look round. I started by weeding the Asparagus bed. It had patches of grass over about half of the bed. It did not take long to pick the little tussocks out. A light raking over and bed was spick and span. Then I started the little flower bed next door. I was nearly finished when H and Miss L turned up. I and Miss L each had a little brown bag with them. A present for me. A cheese and onion pastie and a egg custard from Greggs, bliss but I am easily pleased. Miss L was feeling the cold so they went off again and left me to my pastie. I got the deck chair out of the landy and put my feet up to eat my repast and watch the birds on the feeders.
Time was getting on. I got the barrow out and walked round the vines with the secateurs. A snip here a snip there. Ten minutes later a vines were trimmed. I looked over the cabbage patch. The long winter and all the snow has put paid to all but the Savoy cabbages. I went round pulling out the soggy stems of the dead plants. They went in the compost bin. The soil was a bit wet for digging but pulling out all the stem disturbed the soil and it looked in good condition.
I am having a think about moving the black compost bins but where are they to go?
Time was getting on. I got the barrow out and walked round the vines with the secateurs. A snip here a snip there. Ten minutes later a vines were trimmed. I looked over the cabbage patch. The long winter and all the snow has put paid to all but the Savoy cabbages. I went round pulling out the soggy stems of the dead plants. They went in the compost bin. The soil was a bit wet for digging but pulling out all the stem disturbed the soil and it looked in good condition.
I am having a think about moving the black compost bins but where are they to go?
Sunday, February 13, 2011
Fat Black Bees
I got a phone call at 11.30am on Saturday for the farmer I was supposed to meet at noon say that he had been up lambing so could we meet at 2pm. I had to say yes. That left me kicking stones for a few hours. I was supposed to be plastering the dining room but the re-schedule meeting put paid to that. The weather has been quite mild and today was sunny as well. The bees have been on my mind so I decided to make some candy to feed them with. Take one part water to four parts water and a half teaspoon of vinegar. Bring the mixture to the boil whilst stirring all the time. Then bring syrup to to 240 degrees. When it gets there take the pan off the heat. Whilst it cools sort out some containers. I use roasting tins, mainly because they are metal. I line them with greaseproof paper. When it cools to 200 degrees start to whisk the mixture. As the mixture cools the whisking adds air. Soon or later the mixture turns white. I find that when a crust starts forming it is about right. Then pour the mixture into the tins and set it outside to cool. When it is cold it turns pure white and has the texture of fondant icing.
Two o'clock came round so Steve ad I went to see the farmer. An hour later we were done. The sun was dropping but the sky was still blue. I decided to go and see the bees. I put the fondant and my bee gear fettling in Degsy and trundled off to see the bees for the first time this year. Because of the crop rotation I have to go different way round to the apiary. The old route is under winter barley. The new route take me down the other side of the hedge line. The trouble is there is a second fence which means I have a bit of a walk over to the hives. I got the three trays of fondant out of Degsy and strolled over to the hives. There were no bees flying but it was quite cold so I was not expecting to see any flyers. I looked in the front of the hives but there were just piles of dead bees but that is normal at this time of year. I put my ear against the hives but I could not hear anything.
I took the roof off one hive I tried to pop of the feeder and spare super off the top of the hive. It was glued on, again no surprise. I rummaged in my bees gear box for the hive tool but could not find it. I used my pen knife to loosen the feeder but had to walk up to Degsy and back for it. I was smart enough to put the feeder on top of a crown board last year. That kept the bees and the heat in once the feeder was off. The bees started nosing round the edge of the hole in the crown board. So they are alive in that box. I turned out a block of fondant onto the crown board. I cracked it in two and put it over the hole being careful not to squash any bees. I cracked the fondant block so the hole in the crown board was not blocked. The bees looked fat and glossy so they have made it through the winter. I put the roof back on and moved onto the other hive.
The same process, roof off, remove the extra supers left on over the winter. As I moved round the hive I found my hive tool. I must have left it there in the autumn. It is good to know very few people go to the apiary and if any one does go there they keep their hands to themselves. As soon as the crown board was exposed the bees started investigating. These bees where a bit more active and again fat , black and glossy. I added the two thin fondant blocks to this hive making sure not to block the hole. The hole provides ventilation. Bees need fresh air circulating in the hive to keep it healthy.
The tricky bit is to keep them alive until the spring. The bees will have been huddled together all winter eating very little. As the weather warms up the bees tuck into their stores. The hard part is to judge is how much stores do they need to get them through to spring and the first flowers. The fondant is a way to ensure they have stores. I think my mistake in previous year has been to add syrup [one pound of sugar to one pints of water] rather than fondant. Syrup mimics the composition of nectar. A flow of nectar stimulates the queen to lay which has led to the brood chamber being congested. That in turn triggers swarming. I may not provide any syrup this year and see how the build up and swarming goes.
I carried the extra supers in the back of Degsy. I will have to do something about lugging hive parts back and forth. I took a few pictures of Degsy standing in the field. Peculiarly it felt good to have my hive tool back in my pocket. On the way back from the Bees I dropped in to see the horse folk. Now I have Degsy back I can start back on the poo run. After t'horses I dropped in on the lottie. I filled up the bird feeders. The netting has taken a beating so will need repairing. The snow has put paid to the Broccoli although Savoy cabbages have wintered well as have the sprouts. The over wintering onion and Garlic are still growing. The weed cover has held the soil together and despite the weather the soil looks in good condition. The path however are a different story. The grass in the path seem to had a life of their own regardless of the snow. I think I have a job on there.
Sunday dawned wet and windy and stayed that way for the the greater part of the day. I had a job to do in the dining room, plastering. I set up self up, mixing place, mortar board, water bucket, floats and brush. Having mixed a bucket of finish I plastered the back wall of the dining room in no time at all. I decided over a brew that I would tackle the ceiling. I sorted a staging to get me close enough to the ceiling. Two buckets of finish were enough for ceiling. I took it steady. I remembered my plasterer's friend wisdom, " don't hurry lad". I worked methodically across the ceiling and left it to dry. I got an 18inch finishing float based on something saw on the TV. It was just the job, it polished up the plaster a treat. I managed to do the back wall ceiling and corner. Then I just had to clean up, me and the room, have a brew and wait for it to dry.
Two o'clock came round so Steve ad I went to see the farmer. An hour later we were done. The sun was dropping but the sky was still blue. I decided to go and see the bees. I put the fondant and my bee gear fettling in Degsy and trundled off to see the bees for the first time this year. Because of the crop rotation I have to go different way round to the apiary. The old route is under winter barley. The new route take me down the other side of the hedge line. The trouble is there is a second fence which means I have a bit of a walk over to the hives. I got the three trays of fondant out of Degsy and strolled over to the hives. There were no bees flying but it was quite cold so I was not expecting to see any flyers. I looked in the front of the hives but there were just piles of dead bees but that is normal at this time of year. I put my ear against the hives but I could not hear anything.
I took the roof off one hive I tried to pop of the feeder and spare super off the top of the hive. It was glued on, again no surprise. I rummaged in my bees gear box for the hive tool but could not find it. I used my pen knife to loosen the feeder but had to walk up to Degsy and back for it. I was smart enough to put the feeder on top of a crown board last year. That kept the bees and the heat in once the feeder was off. The bees started nosing round the edge of the hole in the crown board. So they are alive in that box. I turned out a block of fondant onto the crown board. I cracked it in two and put it over the hole being careful not to squash any bees. I cracked the fondant block so the hole in the crown board was not blocked. The bees looked fat and glossy so they have made it through the winter. I put the roof back on and moved onto the other hive.
The same process, roof off, remove the extra supers left on over the winter. As I moved round the hive I found my hive tool. I must have left it there in the autumn. It is good to know very few people go to the apiary and if any one does go there they keep their hands to themselves. As soon as the crown board was exposed the bees started investigating. These bees where a bit more active and again fat , black and glossy. I added the two thin fondant blocks to this hive making sure not to block the hole. The hole provides ventilation. Bees need fresh air circulating in the hive to keep it healthy.
The tricky bit is to keep them alive until the spring. The bees will have been huddled together all winter eating very little. As the weather warms up the bees tuck into their stores. The hard part is to judge is how much stores do they need to get them through to spring and the first flowers. The fondant is a way to ensure they have stores. I think my mistake in previous year has been to add syrup [one pound of sugar to one pints of water] rather than fondant. Syrup mimics the composition of nectar. A flow of nectar stimulates the queen to lay which has led to the brood chamber being congested. That in turn triggers swarming. I may not provide any syrup this year and see how the build up and swarming goes.
I carried the extra supers in the back of Degsy. I will have to do something about lugging hive parts back and forth. I took a few pictures of Degsy standing in the field. Peculiarly it felt good to have my hive tool back in my pocket. On the way back from the Bees I dropped in to see the horse folk. Now I have Degsy back I can start back on the poo run. After t'horses I dropped in on the lottie. I filled up the bird feeders. The netting has taken a beating so will need repairing. The snow has put paid to the Broccoli although Savoy cabbages have wintered well as have the sprouts. The over wintering onion and Garlic are still growing. The weed cover has held the soil together and despite the weather the soil looks in good condition. The path however are a different story. The grass in the path seem to had a life of their own regardless of the snow. I think I have a job on there.
Sunday dawned wet and windy and stayed that way for the the greater part of the day. I had a job to do in the dining room, plastering. I set up self up, mixing place, mortar board, water bucket, floats and brush. Having mixed a bucket of finish I plastered the back wall of the dining room in no time at all. I decided over a brew that I would tackle the ceiling. I sorted a staging to get me close enough to the ceiling. Two buckets of finish were enough for ceiling. I took it steady. I remembered my plasterer's friend wisdom, " don't hurry lad". I worked methodically across the ceiling and left it to dry. I got an 18inch finishing float based on something saw on the TV. It was just the job, it polished up the plaster a treat. I managed to do the back wall ceiling and corner. Then I just had to clean up, me and the room, have a brew and wait for it to dry.
Monday, January 31, 2011
Lighter evenings
On Friday evening a couple of us met at the Railway Inn for a few beers. We talked about all sorts of topics; fishing, beer, Land rovers, cars in general, allotmenting, allotment business, manure, greenhouses and had a chat to Barney the farmer. The weather continues cold although Sunday afternoon was sunny for a while. The consensus seems to be that digging the ground in the frost is a bad idea. That makes me feel a little better about the lottie. Most folks seem to think, like me, that sowing seeds indoors starting mid February is the right time. Six weeks from mid February is the end of March. By then spring should be well under way. That gives me a month to get the paths done.
I am supposed to be getting my Land Rover back soon so that means I should be able to truck the gravel for the paths about to my hearts content. Getting Land Rover backs means I can empty some of the stuff out of the garage and back into the Landy where it belongs. The evenings are getting brighter. It is not dark until 5pm. I can start to do outdoor stuff in the evening soon.
I am supposed to be getting my Land Rover back soon so that means I should be able to truck the gravel for the paths about to my hearts content. Getting Land Rover backs means I can empty some of the stuff out of the garage and back into the Landy where it belongs. The evenings are getting brighter. It is not dark until 5pm. I can start to do outdoor stuff in the evening soon.
Thursday, January 20, 2011
Idleness
The weather remains too cold to dig. I have been down to the lottie to check it is still there and to feed the birds. Mr Google say I should prune my grape vines during the dormant period in the winter so that is a quick job I can tackle.
I have not been idle. I have doing some house fettling at home. I took the crow bar to the dining room last weekend. It did not take long to fill a cubic meter skip with plasterboard and other assorted rubbish. I kept back all the timber. When I finish the house jobs I shall de-nail it. I am sure I can find I job for it. The rag bone came round on Sunday. They were happy to take away the galvanised ducting and few bits of copper pipe. There is not enough to make it worth my while taking it to the scrap merchants but for them the little bits add up to a pay day. H was not happy that she did not get a gold fish. When we were little the rag bone man with his horse and cart would patrol his round. He would have a little present for the kids that brought him stuff. A gold fish in a bag, probably got from same place the fair people get theirs and it last just as long, a donkey stone or a windmill or a balloon or a lollipop. We were easily pleased back then.
Sunday I tidied up the wiring and fitted a new light pendant. I put the ceiling back up and plasterbroad the new walls. Each evening this week I have done a little job. Monday repaired the holes in the floor, Tuesday Fencing [cannot miss that], Wednesday patched the damaged plaster, Thursday levelled the floor. So I should be in good order for the weekend for more ceilings and laying the floor.
I have also seen the farmer who is going help us with the new allotment plots and held down a full time job. I am thinking about what to get started. I know some lottie buddies will have lots of stuff started. I lack a heated greenhouse or a huge sunny window sill so setting seeds is still a few weeks off yet for me. I dare not look in the greenhouse to see if the plants I over wintered have survived. Fingers crossed. I though I might repair and clean my hive frames but the wax is as brittle as a wafer. So having wasted a couple of wax foundation sheets I gave that job up.
H is perusing the catalogues and paint swatches for the dining room decor. I hope she like Magnolia.
I have not been idle. I have doing some house fettling at home. I took the crow bar to the dining room last weekend. It did not take long to fill a cubic meter skip with plasterboard and other assorted rubbish. I kept back all the timber. When I finish the house jobs I shall de-nail it. I am sure I can find I job for it. The rag bone came round on Sunday. They were happy to take away the galvanised ducting and few bits of copper pipe. There is not enough to make it worth my while taking it to the scrap merchants but for them the little bits add up to a pay day. H was not happy that she did not get a gold fish. When we were little the rag bone man with his horse and cart would patrol his round. He would have a little present for the kids that brought him stuff. A gold fish in a bag, probably got from same place the fair people get theirs and it last just as long, a donkey stone or a windmill or a balloon or a lollipop. We were easily pleased back then.
Sunday I tidied up the wiring and fitted a new light pendant. I put the ceiling back up and plasterbroad the new walls. Each evening this week I have done a little job. Monday repaired the holes in the floor, Tuesday Fencing [cannot miss that], Wednesday patched the damaged plaster, Thursday levelled the floor. So I should be in good order for the weekend for more ceilings and laying the floor.
I have also seen the farmer who is going help us with the new allotment plots and held down a full time job. I am thinking about what to get started. I know some lottie buddies will have lots of stuff started. I lack a heated greenhouse or a huge sunny window sill so setting seeds is still a few weeks off yet for me. I dare not look in the greenhouse to see if the plants I over wintered have survived. Fingers crossed. I though I might repair and clean my hive frames but the wax is as brittle as a wafer. So having wasted a couple of wax foundation sheets I gave that job up.
H is perusing the catalogues and paint swatches for the dining room decor. I hope she like Magnolia.
Tuesday, January 04, 2011
Happy New Year
There has not been any allotmenting leading up to and over the Christmas period. Mainly because the earth has been buried in snow. I have been down to the lottie at least once a week to fill up the bird feeders. The hedges of the lottie is full of birds. As soon as I walked away from the feeders the birds were on the nuts and seeds. The soil is still very wet from the thaw.
Even though the deep snow has disappeared it is still cold with regular frosts. Despite the cold everything is not dead. Things are growing. The Willow at the end of the plot is starting to shed the shells to reveal the catkins. The Hazels are showing their tassles...oo missus. Now the snow has rolled back the over wintering plants can be seen to be thriving and of the last autumn plants have been killed off.
On one of the visits I had a sit on the snow covered bench and had a drink of the Sloe Gin from my hip flask and took in the scene. Cold, quiet and alone.
Even though the deep snow has disappeared it is still cold with regular frosts. Despite the cold everything is not dead. Things are growing. The Willow at the end of the plot is starting to shed the shells to reveal the catkins. The Hazels are showing their tassles...oo missus. Now the snow has rolled back the over wintering plants can be seen to be thriving and of the last autumn plants have been killed off.
On one of the visits I had a sit on the snow covered bench and had a drink of the Sloe Gin from my hip flask and took in the scene. Cold, quiet and alone.
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