tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-45754841066101036102023-11-16T17:19:54.285+00:00My gardening and beekeeping ForumGardenerXhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16536936827475488503noreply@blogger.comBlogger115125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4575484106610103610.post-79181398879528155352017-03-31T09:32:00.000+01:002017-03-31T09:32:19.271+01:00Some plums are in nlossomA quick spot of weeding in the allotment yesterday. It was nice to see that some of the plum trees are in Bloom but the apples have not even opened their leaves yet.<br />
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<br />GardenerXhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16536936827475488503noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4575484106610103610.post-22372368245341288602017-01-13T12:44:00.000+00:002017-01-13T12:44:16.654+00:00Overwintering hives and nucsA mild winter so far. This week has seen the first snow flurries in Yorkshire and freezing temperatures. Checked the bees last Sunday and temperatures were 10 degrees celcius. Very warm indeed. Below is national hive over wintering on a double brood and a nuclei plus a wide shot of some of the hives<br />
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Double brood box - national hive</div>
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Paynes 6 frame poly nuc box</div>
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Wide shot of some of the hives in the apiary</div>
<br />GardenerXhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16536936827475488503noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4575484106610103610.post-83076231917478162482012-06-11T22:12:00.002+01:002012-06-11T22:13:43.809+01:0011 degrees C and flying beesIt might be cool but they are flying, 11 degrees C and 8pm. It has been cool all day at South Kirkby but this colony is very active. Shame it is the feisty colony as well.<br />
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all the other colonies were quiet at the front and nothing flying in<br />
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I popped over to my Leeds apiary, that is near to a small ditch. It is maybe 5ft-6ft below the apiary. Today due to the very heavy rain fall last night it was nearly level with the apiary floor. It wont I hope get any higher as firstly their is a pump house near by that should not let it and secondly if it reaches the same height as the apiary floor there are miles of fields around that it would also flood, so getting any higher would be quiet difficult if it did , the hives would be ok. <br />
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This is a shot from about 8 days ago. You can see the ditch at the back. This is the nearest colony. The ditch is a lot fuller now. I must try and get a shot of the ditch full up.<br />
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Wakefield, England, has been cool all day around 13/14 degrees maybe. no rain but generally dull. <br />
<br />GardenerXhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16536936827475488503noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4575484106610103610.post-36731820166363107872012-06-09T17:48:00.000+01:002012-06-09T17:58:41.169+01:00It makes you sweatIt didn't work out well to start with<br />
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About three weeks ago, I found one swarm cell in this colony, so I performed an artificial swarm. The problem was I could not find the queen, which isn't great It was on 4 boxes to start with.<br />
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So I took the swarm cell and some brood and stores and left it on the original site (which is where the floor is in the picture) in 1 box and the other 3 boxes I moved to the left of the original position and turned it round 180 degrees and was confident the queen was in these three boxes<br />
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On the original site I also added another brood box because I "assumed" lots and lots off flying bees would go back there. A week later I went back to check on my success story to find that in the box on the original site there was hardly any bees never mind 2 boxes worth and all the flying bees had found there way back to the original queen that I didnt find in the box I moved.<br />
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Out of annoyance all I could think to do was merge all the boxes back together to make this monster you see below. Doesn't it look so serene. It didn't stay that way.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">National Hive made up of 5 brood boxes</td></tr>
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Any how as I was going through I was very happy to see that there was an awful lot of bees in these 5 boxes. As you can see below. Note the flying bees in the background. There was lot of flying bees about<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Apis Millifera in a National Brood box</td></tr>
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This is a close up shot of one of the frames out of the box. I have a small metal grab that I can pinch them whilst in the box and lift them out. It is so so. I don't use it much but it is great for when I want to take pictures.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Single National hive frame and brood</td></tr>
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I shortened the stack of 5 to 4. The bottom box on the right had the least in with about 3 frames not being used at this end. The second and third boxes were full of bees and the top box once I merged it with the fifth box that I took away had quite a lot of honey in it but still had spare frames in. Over all, a very strong colony with lots of potential. Although I will say a bit feisty and they do tend to follow which is not a good trait in bees at all. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Open National hive - 5 boxes now down to 4</td></tr>
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In the end it worked out well. The queen cell I had seen 3 weeks earlier I now believe to be a supercedure cell. Temporarily splitting the colony did not appear to harm it in any way. There was no more supercedure queen cells or swarm cells on this inspection. However if they only had one supercedure cell as appeared before then in this box of bees that could prove extremely hard to spot. <br />
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By the way I have other strong colonies in the apiary. The shot below is one after an inspection as they have a tendancy to pour out of the hive<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Apis Millifera - The Western Honey Bee</td></tr>
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I will say it is all good fun.<br />
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Weather at South Kirkby today was cool at around 15 degrees Celsius. It rained in the morning on and off but in the afternoon during this inspection it was bright, clear and reasonably warm. It took a couple of hours to to do some quick and detailed inspections across 7 boxes of bees at various strengths.<br />
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Once I had finished, I took my veil off and it indeed does make you sweatGardenerXhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16536936827475488503noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4575484106610103610.post-73131954451953017582012-06-03T14:48:00.000+01:002012-06-03T14:48:48.124+01:00PeachyThis year is the second year my Red Haven peach tree has had peaches on it, It is around 4years old. however it appears to be the first year that they have stopped on the tree.<br />
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Last year I had 3 small peaches appear but they fell off before they really started to grow.<br />
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These are three close ups of small peaches. It is raining an awful lot here today so they are dripping with water. A good thing as we have had some quite good weather this last few weeks and this rain will water everything <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdRsc-A0EpMJhXHqNQ6eliYqK73EclSps5hTO5bp0Azt0xoDh1YZ0NQ4G8Lp2ZJiCASFaHr9xmTKYIVb4hxvKd0rVzsEXNjKvKOLJ24IzIjmRMLHms34T4Sdi7WhPaodug00DU_mnTKcM/s1600/20120603+IMG_2304+peach.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdRsc-A0EpMJhXHqNQ6eliYqK73EclSps5hTO5bp0Azt0xoDh1YZ0NQ4G8Lp2ZJiCASFaHr9xmTKYIVb4hxvKd0rVzsEXNjKvKOLJ24IzIjmRMLHms34T4Sdi7WhPaodug00DU_mnTKcM/s320/20120603+IMG_2304+peach.jpg" title="Red Haven Peach" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">small Red Haven Peach</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLBoj4yi-rlVwQi_Idc4h13uQdbsbx2kt2UdChAxG8rt7N-R47aHdy2ojy8cQR13ab0WOGTykpGZSZI0FPnmnQ7GzZj4rywly-kpU6yCEgpT60D6hQepVov-2esyo-NEff6Y_YkY02HwA/s1600/20120603+IMG_2308+peach.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLBoj4yi-rlVwQi_Idc4h13uQdbsbx2kt2UdChAxG8rt7N-R47aHdy2ojy8cQR13ab0WOGTykpGZSZI0FPnmnQ7GzZj4rywly-kpU6yCEgpT60D6hQepVov-2esyo-NEff6Y_YkY02HwA/s320/20120603+IMG_2308+peach.jpg" title="Red Haven Peach" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">small Red Haven Peach with a droplet of water</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfGnabdeXP1w_nxxfC4jxzVJPcM5F8DR-poQBEAY6l0HEOGPQhFQywrMS-kld9XJeF3SKRA1SJcNPRJjQZ4_i_pYGgXtT78SJxs4KXgsY-JH0sbkrFmUY-hEaVeqW1yq0s45ZftJdOoRc/s1600/20120603+IMG_2312+peach.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfGnabdeXP1w_nxxfC4jxzVJPcM5F8DR-poQBEAY6l0HEOGPQhFQywrMS-kld9XJeF3SKRA1SJcNPRJjQZ4_i_pYGgXtT78SJxs4KXgsY-JH0sbkrFmUY-hEaVeqW1yq0s45ZftJdOoRc/s320/20120603+IMG_2312+peach.jpg" title="Red Haven Peach" width="320" /></a></div>
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I have noticed on the peach that the bark has great colour and texture<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7R13QoeRfMgL0qbwO2vY4opcxbxfZ67tPwe1vcb-sIVR5GhftkB2n_0gjdGnzY5fn0FYf0bIGb-l6DeR7O1HQcwUhyI7FPKNCN3H43n4gJcLGplRtHC6SqNREOjke39diT-TTPwwaQ30/s1600/20120603+IMG_2313+peach.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7R13QoeRfMgL0qbwO2vY4opcxbxfZ67tPwe1vcb-sIVR5GhftkB2n_0gjdGnzY5fn0FYf0bIGb-l6DeR7O1HQcwUhyI7FPKNCN3H43n4gJcLGplRtHC6SqNREOjke39diT-TTPwwaQ30/s320/20120603+IMG_2313+peach.jpg" title="Red Haven Peach" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Red Haven Peach tree bark</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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There are one or two old branches that have been cut back previous years that really could have done with cutting back even further. <br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCsnV-VeY2RBj4VJ_whcxgdnsju9shAxAda0dnzRSrffbTlmS1Rwf4hKRSxZ2kiBi02ntL9QxhY47FBSuNISYT3hHD6LlI2k9JPqGjgg37PMLWqZiA70w4mHOqG-q5yBGJWVuyExT8MWk/s1600/20120603+IMG_2314+peach.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCsnV-VeY2RBj4VJ_whcxgdnsju9shAxAda0dnzRSrffbTlmS1Rwf4hKRSxZ2kiBi02ntL9QxhY47FBSuNISYT3hHD6LlI2k9JPqGjgg37PMLWqZiA70w4mHOqG-q5yBGJWVuyExT8MWk/s320/20120603+IMG_2314+peach.jpg" title="Red Haven Peach" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Red Haven Peach tree stem</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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There are loads of small peaches on here. I will have to remove a considerable amount of them before they reach any size other wise non of them will get very big. If I pick 5 or 6 of the best ones, they will hopefully make a nice peach size, otherwise if I leave them all on, none will amount to anything at all<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-4Q6nDK6U4rqYLzOnbS6NtoyrIJqGOZPixvw73F2N61yl8_Hw7IJvtpsAij6kDw-EcPDUWApwM4zHWeCfznDoenZ2kqj87oMgz95sK1brAcM6dMABhVoDQpWnYqst7zajfV74RKb9piM/s1600/20120603+IMG_2315+peach.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-4Q6nDK6U4rqYLzOnbS6NtoyrIJqGOZPixvw73F2N61yl8_Hw7IJvtpsAij6kDw-EcPDUWApwM4zHWeCfznDoenZ2kqj87oMgz95sK1brAcM6dMABhVoDQpWnYqst7zajfV74RKb9piM/s320/20120603+IMG_2315+peach.jpg" title="Red Haven Peach" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Red Haven Peach tree</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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Weather today in Wakefield, England is cool and wet. It has been raining all dayGardenerXhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16536936827475488503noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4575484106610103610.post-39111735768967846912012-05-27T19:14:00.001+01:002012-06-03T14:49:17.192+01:00First post in twelve monthsFirst post in 12 months. How time flies.<br />
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This is the allotment as of yesterday<br />
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beetroot in the foreground going to seed, parsnip at the back, going to seed, an apple tree just to the left<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqnGBquAbzqhNj_AQgRH-lhhWXORu85K5PwO_PxdBWnvX5RGlAkor6CgEAqyGvs0jNnEL3bavc4YQEyFmHeMDudwNOLNQrYlcqRnw0eGoHcGt3x6Q3lq3lQVAFPsRkik-7JOt6rBh_DuU/s1600/20120526DSCF5932mini.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqnGBquAbzqhNj_AQgRH-lhhWXORu85K5PwO_PxdBWnvX5RGlAkor6CgEAqyGvs0jNnEL3bavc4YQEyFmHeMDudwNOLNQrYlcqRnw0eGoHcGt3x6Q3lq3lQVAFPsRkik-7JOt6rBh_DuU/s320/20120526DSCF5932mini.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">the allotment</td></tr>
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at the back of the parsnips are some golden gourmet shallots (down the left of the shot), garlic and some leeks left over from last winter. In the background is a gooseberry bush, well two actually.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFBfyYgV_O26LSKS9meiECPqffd4UJMarKvun2T0RfxBx53r936pal9LN7blduu4RQRAp3jZXbNuy1gl0uydJJ9EQBboUUP2QmT7gKVZOc5GZnCzLNjb1bZzvCKloyfYaIZq0bifosSMA/s1600/20120526DSCF5937mini.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFBfyYgV_O26LSKS9meiECPqffd4UJMarKvun2T0RfxBx53r936pal9LN7blduu4RQRAp3jZXbNuy1gl0uydJJ9EQBboUUP2QmT7gKVZOc5GZnCzLNjb1bZzvCKloyfYaIZq0bifosSMA/s320/20120526DSCF5937mini.jpg" width="240" /></a></div>
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This is bottom of the allotment (where the shot was taken of the flowering parsnips, two chairs weighted down and ground that needs clearing. At the back are hawthorn trees, I layered the ones directly behind the chairs in winter as that was just bare soil.<br />
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This is common mullen (I am told) Verbascum thapsus. It started growing and I thought it looked nice, so I left it. It apparently can make flower spits 6ft tall in its second year, bring it on.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTef7GwgJ3VGFpuHC1mkaPg6E5sjVmoNMIC3JiwyPN7Zf_y3PkqecdUZmgd18uUNeXIRioUU7gMuiyWs3FtMLp-Zm4SJE5N6i9KTbXRH6Woxv_PjUym3W21dAWwVd3XaVlhW3AjjdKWeg/s1600/20120526DSCF5956mini.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTef7GwgJ3VGFpuHC1mkaPg6E5sjVmoNMIC3JiwyPN7Zf_y3PkqecdUZmgd18uUNeXIRioUU7gMuiyWs3FtMLp-Zm4SJE5N6i9KTbXRH6Woxv_PjUym3W21dAWwVd3XaVlhW3AjjdKWeg/s320/20120526DSCF5956mini.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Verbascum Thapsis</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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After a very cold and wet April start of May, this was the grape vine in the greenhouse, wilting with the heat!!!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlqokiUn1lZMt6bQYNtSXLj-zfYfuKANTY5d72G2p5DfVqsoKhPQoz73DgYOFEfhVPLDwlzT8ISFHJ__fzgqeDt-WWMWgG4t0R0ncLH3Pp9QzaNOboGK28PEIB6lzqI_8aMUz7fKrsKho/s1600/20120526DSCF5925mini.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlqokiUn1lZMt6bQYNtSXLj-zfYfuKANTY5d72G2p5DfVqsoKhPQoz73DgYOFEfhVPLDwlzT8ISFHJ__fzgqeDt-WWMWgG4t0R0ncLH3Pp9QzaNOboGK28PEIB6lzqI_8aMUz7fKrsKho/s320/20120526DSCF5925mini.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">the vine</td></tr>
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This is the Victoria plum tree. Last year it was in a pot and produced about 20plus great tasting plums. This winter it went in the ground and I am hoping for lots more plums<br />
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At the base of the plum tree from left to right is strawberries (yellow flower in the middle if a poppy), poached eggs plants and then chives<br />
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This is a colony at the bottom of my garden. A rather strange tale in that I picked up the swarm a few weeks ago, I then thought they all died but later were resurrected and now a thriving small colony. I might post a full account later on.<br />
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This was yesterday morning, me and Duncan were moving some bees (well this is one of four colonies we moved)<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">the bees in a box</td></tr>
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Weather yesterday in Wakefield, England was very hot and sunny (20 degrees C plus)GardenerXhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16536936827475488503noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4575484106610103610.post-56083751248309157812011-05-02T22:03:00.002+01:002011-05-03T07:01:37.111+01:00The vine is showing some shootsThe grape vine that was in a bucket last year and gave me 3 (I think) bunches of grapes has been sunk in the ground at last. I dug it in during the Winter time whilst it was dormant and very cold. I also split it in two as there were two main stalks coming out of the bucket. Both plants are doing fine now and growing.<br />
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This is main vine, shaped in to a V shape so I can have a stem down either side of the greenhouse attached to a wire. During Winter before being split I removed 90% of last years growth back to the main stems.<br />
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When I planted it in the ground it got lots of bone, blood and fish meal thrown in and mixed up. The only down side to my greenhouse is that it is in to much shade. no choice about that sadly.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmGdQUTPkpiOgc3cNo9LsvBFbPgd58abvfbLWzLObbgFV4Ua5TDcGK5flXUlsOWteBKML9QzTbrlNi8Nkj_bf3_RsJ214EdHzlEm4FQsDQkOiKcfBmz70KSo_Ujf2HPswRzM5Dxz1DpYA/s1600/vine+in+gh.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmGdQUTPkpiOgc3cNo9LsvBFbPgd58abvfbLWzLObbgFV4Ua5TDcGK5flXUlsOWteBKML9QzTbrlNi8Nkj_bf3_RsJ214EdHzlEm4FQsDQkOiKcfBmz70KSo_Ujf2HPswRzM5Dxz1DpYA/s320/vine+in+gh.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
This is a shot of the second vine in a tub. I will find a home for this plant. The variety has no name as the original plant was grown from a seed by my Uncle Peter in the early 1970's. It does produce nice grapes though<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh01S28LvbP4hnBgth1JrxzAA-W6OU9QPhcVgJECRmJ-mSVeuHGa8lbHgtcJCpC9ATKodG_eZYdFLvp7CAb7tppUk39gTSJVqOceanRCO73ILkUOIzR1kyhj7p_t3UZ2R55DwgaV6L_XaM/s1600/vine+in+bucket.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="280" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh01S28LvbP4hnBgth1JrxzAA-W6OU9QPhcVgJECRmJ-mSVeuHGa8lbHgtcJCpC9ATKodG_eZYdFLvp7CAb7tppUk39gTSJVqOceanRCO73ILkUOIzR1kyhj7p_t3UZ2R55DwgaV6L_XaM/s320/vine+in+bucket.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
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<a href="http://plantsalive.webs.com/apps/wiki/grape-growing-in-a-greenhouse-unknown-variety-grown-from-seed">Check out my full endeavours with this vine on my wiki</a><br />
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This is my second vine. The variety is "Boskoop Glory" and was developed in the Dutch town of Boskoop in the early 1900's. This variety is black and recommended for growing outside in the UK. It stands at about may be 4ft tall at the moment as the other 4 ft got removed due to mould growing on it. Seems to have done the trick as it is showing strong shoots.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5wsMNovzoVNdxSiVNBF5-5YygerWUd5OOsRIl9L1VEkt1BrJkxzKAfUsnN4fkaZK-aLbQm3-NXpuHFqomDaZmMtdc5BZQanCJbYTp4DAm5xsGz7URqUanJVQdElujUmKbI0eZx9ckerY/s1600/boskoop+glory.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5wsMNovzoVNdxSiVNBF5-5YygerWUd5OOsRIl9L1VEkt1BrJkxzKAfUsnN4fkaZK-aLbQm3-NXpuHFqomDaZmMtdc5BZQanCJbYTp4DAm5xsGz7URqUanJVQdElujUmKbI0eZx9ckerY/s320/boskoop+glory.jpg" width="98" /></a></div><br />
<a href="http://plantsalive.webs.com/apps/wiki/growing-grapes-boskoop-glory">Check out my wiki entry here on my endeavours so far at growing Boskoop Glory</a><br />
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The long term plan is to grow it along a strong wire towards the house and have it growing along the front of the house on more support wires. Well that's the plan. <br />
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the weather is Wakefield today has been warm and sunny<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://plantsalive.webs.com/">Check out my website here with this blog on there, growing guides and a gardening forum</a></div>GardenerXhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16536936827475488503noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4575484106610103610.post-11136149097131777272011-05-01T08:21:00.001+01:002011-05-01T08:23:38.729+01:00Flowers in the gardenThe chives are always very reliable on producing flowers this time of year. I have 2 clumps at the moment, one in the garden in open soil and these in a pot. Flowers and edible. you cant beat it.<br />
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This is my blue berry bush and boy is it small sat in a 5inch red plastic pot but with this amount of flowers I might eventually get some blueberries. I have layered a stem in to another pot just to the left on the picture, I layered it back end of last year and intend to leave it this year in the hope it will root. This variety is called goldtraube and is self fertile. It is planted in <span id="cleanprint_content">ericaceous compost (acidic compost) which blueberries love. I have a second blueberry plant variety bluecrop which is also self fertile. Although they are both self fertile blueberries fruit better when 2 varieties are present.</span><br />
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The last flower today is a blue iris, well not quite in flower but nearly there. I have just potted this in to a larger planter and it is situated next to the half barrel pond. It looks natural in my opinion. <br />
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the weather is Wakefield today is warm and sunny<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://plantsalive.webs.com/">Check out my website here with this blog on there, growing guides and a gardening forum</a></div>GardenerXhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16536936827475488503noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4575484106610103610.post-79441161025930636152011-04-30T16:01:00.002+01:002011-04-30T16:09:20.219+01:00Red Haven Peach produces in third year!!!The title is a little bit over the top. I have two small peaches appearing so far. (I counted 5 flowers a month or so back). this is the first time any fruit has appeared on the tree since purchase (acquired from either aldi or lidl)<br />
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The peach is a red haven and is still in a 15litre ex paint bucket. It is kept very well watered and this is a picture of a baby red haven peach<br />
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</div>This next shot is of the family frog. Last year we had two in the half barrel pond in the back garden, so far this year we only have one (and no frog spawn seen earlier in the year either) but there is always next year. <br />
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The strawberry plants are all in flower. In the rear garden I have some June bearers and a perpetual (or ever bearer) called Albion. This is a shot of Albion. In the front garden there is also the June bearers growing, the ones at the front only get sun till 11am in the morning but these are also in flower and produce nice strawberries. <a href="http://plantsalive.webs.com/apps/wiki/strawberries-growing-new-plants">My short guide here on staking strawberry runners</a><br />
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the weather in Wakefield in the words of Bernard Matthews... "beautiful" or is it "booooootyful"<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"> <a href="http://plantsalive.webs.com/apps/forums/" style="background-color: transparent; color: #88bb22; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none;">Click here to view my gardening forum</a></div>GardenerXhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16536936827475488503noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4575484106610103610.post-33968979739796265712011-04-26T19:52:00.000+01:002011-04-26T19:52:53.873+01:00My Kiwi is blooming, blooming marvelousWell I have waited 3 years from buying my kiwi plant "actinidia arguta issai" from Aldi I think and I think it is starting to bloom. it is still in an old Morrisons type flower bucket and I still dont know where I am going to put it this year but I must find some where.<br />
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I dont know how many buds there are but I reckon may be 40 plus and the plant is about 8ft tall and growing rapidly.<br />
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I have started to feed the plant with a hydroponics solution feed that I had left over from about 3years ago. At the time I tried growing tomatoes in a hydroponics set up with plant feed from the hydroponicum (<a href="http://www.thehydroponicum.com/">this is there website</a>) I had mixed results, generally positive but at the time I thought I could have been better. I was inspired at the time because I had been there and it was great fun.<br />
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My next plant in flower is the wisteria "prolific" again it is still in a very small plant pot (may be a 2litre pot), Again this need finding a permenent home but I think it has started flowering. Awesome. I love wisteria flowers so they will be good to see. <br />
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Both plants are about 3years old, I cannot remember exactly and both are looking healthy. I need to find them a permanent home the trouble is though that down the side of my garage I currently have a rose, another kiwi, a passion flower, a grape vine and 2 clematis, non very big but all taking up room.<br />
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This is the rose. I have been trying to kill it off for the last 4 years with no success. I think it is a wild rose. As I seem to be a total failure on the rose murder front I accepted defeat and put a trellis up, the bird feeder has always been there and I will say the birds seem to appreciate the rose being there for extra cover.<br />
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Wakefield today has been cool compared with the last couple of weeks, a short rain shower tonight dampened the ground and over all very pleasant<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"> <a href="http://plantsalive.webs.com/apps/forums/" style="background-color: transparent; color: #88bb22; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none;">Click here to view my gardening forum</a></div>GardenerXhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16536936827475488503noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4575484106610103610.post-67321869726577593812011-04-23T15:09:00.000+01:002012-06-03T21:38:44.101+01:00My first Swarm of the season... Awesome doesn't even come close!!!Got a call yesterday afternoon (22nd April 2011) from Duncan at my association asking me to pick up a swarm near where I live, I was advised it was in a tree but the house occupier had a ladder. So having prepared the car and required kit a few days previously off I went.<br />
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This is what I found. It looks high up, because it was. Well 20ft maybe 25ft.<br />
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The plan was to put the ladder to the left of the swarm, climb up and lop the branch the were on and holding the branch with swarm attached bring those girls down to earth. That was the plan. </div>
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Due to excitement, I did not take many pictures. but below is a close up</div>
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Well what actually happened was this.... the ladder went up. so far so good. I went up with branch loppers. this plan is coming together. I cleared the branches that were in the way to make room for me and lopped the branch off the bees were on. this is the point where the plan failed and if I might say so, with style and finesse. That branch with those bees on is how can I put this, bloody heavy. I stayed on the ladders, that's good. the branch when I could not hold it due to the weight, hit the floor. Bees how ever have wings and flew. They were every where. They did look great but that was not the plan.<br />
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I came down and watched with the house holder who commented they looked like that when the flew in before. Did they now.<br />
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Now is the part for patience. I waited may be half an house and they settled on an old picket fence underneath the tree. Some good luck. At this point I brushed them in to a national brood box and strapped it up. The opening was left open and I came away (leaving the box) <br />
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I went back at dusk that evening knowing that all stray bees would have gone in the box with the queen, I stuffed the hole with some sponge and took the bees to my apiary, once the hive was sited, the sponge was removed and I now need to go and check on them.<br />
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With this swarm, the cut out and the two colonies from over Winter I am now at 4 colonies and it is only 24th April (mindst you one colony has a failing/failed queen so really I have 3 healthy colonies I hope)GardenerXhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16536936827475488503noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4575484106610103610.post-70645757926362178072011-04-23T14:50:00.000+01:002012-06-03T21:38:15.400+01:00bees on the hive entrance 22nd April 2011A shot of Apis Melifera "Yorkshire" IE Mongrel going in to my hive at my apiary. This is the strongest of the two that went in to Winter. the other one I believe the queen has failed due to a distinct lack of brood. A shame but that is the natural circle of life and what I am now left with is survivors or the best of the rest.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOxk7CpNJX7iulbShOmFCH_RGDDuvCrjiXlY2j1H-92fmI7rI9YKn9p_Nxh4EsDtsR_EVE7qeWxFoypItjVIZ-JmS-0yHjNY4EC7PRp06XOMN4uy4xTBZoaZvYGCUyboBbAufFOEyJPBo/s1600/bees+on+hive.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="241" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOxk7CpNJX7iulbShOmFCH_RGDDuvCrjiXlY2j1H-92fmI7rI9YKn9p_Nxh4EsDtsR_EVE7qeWxFoypItjVIZ-JmS-0yHjNY4EC7PRp06XOMN4uy4xTBZoaZvYGCUyboBbAufFOEyJPBo/s400/bees+on+hive.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>GardenerXhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16536936827475488503noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4575484106610103610.post-18532853105495708282011-04-23T14:38:00.000+01:002011-04-23T14:38:06.616+01:00Colony Cut out - 30th April 2011A late post just to document a cut out I did in South Leeds on the the 30th April 2011. My bee keeping association took a call from a roofer stating work had stopped due to a bee colony in a roof. All the roof slates had been removed and the new sheeting had been installed apart from this one corner where the slates had come off but the felting was still in place. I think it had took them a couple of days to ring us and the colony was very docile, may be from the very cold nights (they were still hitting freezing). This is the space that was left once all the comb was removed. It was a good sized colony.<br />
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This is the box the colony went in. I had national frames with rubber bands round them and slotted the comb in. This is the box trussed up ready to be lowered down the scaffold I was working from. I only just managed to get the comb in.<br />
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Just in case you dont know what scaffold is. This is where the bees were taken from. I was working in the top left hand corner of the house. The cut out took around 90 minutes and then I went back later on giving any flying bees time to go in to the box.<br />
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and the bees are now doing fine. I did not know if I had killed the queen or even got her, but the colony went to my apiary and left to get on with living in piece and quiet<br />
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Weather on the 30th April 2011 was wet and damp and freezing during the night time. Today on the 23rd April 2011...heat wave (twenties) with short rain showers<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"> <a href="http://plantsalive.webs.com/apps/forums/" style="background-color: transparent; color: #88bb22; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none;">Click here to view my gardening forum</a></div>GardenerXhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16536936827475488503noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4575484106610103610.post-91939324806999681392011-03-26T18:42:00.000+00:002011-03-26T18:42:03.789+00:00Fruit trees are sprouting new leavesA couple of shots below. One for the "Victoria" plum tree I have in a tub and the second for the "Jonagold" apple tree that is in an old paint pot.<br />
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This is the "Victoria" plum tree (hose pipe and car cleaning brush in the background) <br />
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This is the "jonagold" apple tree, This is being trained as an espalier and is still in a 15litre ex paint bucket. I think this year I will upgrade to a larger bucket of some design<br />
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Both showing signs of plenty of growth. I have added some bone and blood meal tonight to feed them<br />
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The weather in Wakefield today has been pleasant but a little cool<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://plantsalive.webs.com/apps/forums/" style="background-color: transparent; color: #88bb22; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none;">Click here to view my gardening forum</a></div>GardenerXhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16536936827475488503noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4575484106610103610.post-5646311209680638312011-03-23T15:30:00.000+00:002011-03-23T15:30:14.429+00:00Kiwis are sproutingBoth the kiwis are sprouting new leaves which is great to see. This is the actinidia arguta I think the variety is issai. It is still in a pot but looking well<br />
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This is the actinidia deliciosa which was grown from a seed, this part of the plant is in shade but there are leaves breaking out much better further up on the garage roof<br />
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Wakefield today is warm and sunny and gorgeous. <br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://plantsalive.webs.com/apps/forums/" style="background-color: transparent; color: #88bb22; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none;">Click here to view my gardening forum</a> </div>GardenerXhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16536936827475488503noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4575484106610103610.post-87561534266566562382011-03-05T23:06:00.000+00:002011-03-05T23:06:49.185+00:00Bait hiveI have made a bait hive up using the information on McCartney Taylor's website <a href="http://learningbeekeeping.com/beekeeping-articles/swarms-free-bees/">here</a><br />
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Whats a bait hive? basically a box that you put some where out of the way in the hope of catching a swarm of bees in Spring and Summer or Autumn.<br />
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This bait hive box will hold 6 national frames ... just<br />
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The bait hive, note the hanger on the back with a whole in it to hang on a nail in a tree if required.<br />
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This is one end of the box with an entrance whole drilled in approx 28mm wide<br />
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inside shot of the box showing the inside hole. In hindsight I should have made the box deeper and had the entrance hole beneath the frame bottoms, in hindsight I have read in a couple of places bees prefer this. <br />
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Inside shot again. The length is just slightly longer than a national frame, then I nailed 2 pieces of wood on the inside for the frames to hang on. If a swarm does colonise this box with the frames inside then the will put brace comb between the frames and underneath the wood that the frames hang on but there is worse things in life. this box was made up on the cheap with salvaged wood.<br />
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Box with 6 national frames inside, note the end one. it doesnt fit correctly. Bad measurements?. I am annoyed as I measured 6 frames and then added the depth of the side wood on and cut, I think where I went wrong was that the frames I have added inside are not the same one's I measured for and frames from different suppliers/manufacturers can be slightly wider/narrower. <br />
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1 frame removed to show old comb that I am using as a lure. <br />
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the entrance whole is the right size for birds to get in so I have pinned some wire horizontal and vertically to deter them <br />
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The design for this bait box was inspired by Taylor McCartneys website, Cheers Taylor.<br />
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Wakefield today is damp and cold. <br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://plantsalive.webs.com/apps/forums/" style="background-color: transparent; color: #88bb22; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none;">Click here to view my gardening forum</a> </div>GardenerXhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16536936827475488503noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4575484106610103610.post-41824908006634985202011-02-27T16:57:00.001+00:002011-02-27T16:58:02.816+00:00Gooseberries cuttings are starting to grow and so is everything elseI took some gooseberry "red desert" cuttings last year, and the little darlings are starting to grow again.<br />
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The "Victoria" plum tree is also starting to break bud<br />
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Of note my Denistons Superb plum tree has not started to grow yet and I think it <b>might</b> have died. I will post more later in the season<br />
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I planted some Goji Berry seeds back end of last year and they got to about 2inch high. These seedlings are also showing spruts (at one point they were bare stalks)<br />
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Weather in Wakefield today is wet and cool<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://plantsalive.webs.com/apps/forums/" style="background-color: transparent; color: #88bb22; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none;">Click here to view my gardening forum</a></div>GardenerXhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16536936827475488503noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4575484106610103610.post-76816284202900582022011-02-13T16:27:00.001+00:002011-02-13T16:28:59.955+00:00Onions sets are a go!!!!A quick pop in to the greenhouse this afternoon to pot on some onion sets.<br />
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Start them off in pots and give them a heads start<br />
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I think I have put approximately 180 small onions in several seed trays. I cannot remember the onion variety but it is some where written down. I have also put some shallots in to pots, these were golden gourmet variety<br />
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Whilst there I took a peak at my garlic and that is growing well indeed. I am very happy with it. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhlPGL9Z6sp2r9xC8GxNtU4XLheK-__cSmNuhnMTnIrTd1mtteic_gFHf5PKYeOCiHhKU0I4v0vQx1ufcp0-J_hbyot1RlV-gPG6SwS197I9zUJrPSDNzAVA1QH3PcJ6i_fL8K10_4hc0/s1600/garlic.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhlPGL9Z6sp2r9xC8GxNtU4XLheK-__cSmNuhnMTnIrTd1mtteic_gFHf5PKYeOCiHhKU0I4v0vQx1ufcp0-J_hbyot1RlV-gPG6SwS197I9zUJrPSDNzAVA1QH3PcJ6i_fL8K10_4hc0/s320/garlic.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
A few weeks ago I put some Limnanthes Douglassii seeds (poached egg plants) in to a seed tray, They have started to sprout. Quite amazing for an unheated greenhouse in February. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMuPyewh-TN_GFkLZEpiKZnGZlhjBiBp8mYnN3SbTiLRsBlh6jI3gsmNnNQ-UNXk2jtdQmqa-nDYAs014QKFMRO7x90yEswt71bUzzYjtjkHxqrAgqI2sMxvUoXoKOish4hrupn374P9Y/s1600/limnanthes.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMuPyewh-TN_GFkLZEpiKZnGZlhjBiBp8mYnN3SbTiLRsBlh6jI3gsmNnNQ-UNXk2jtdQmqa-nDYAs014QKFMRO7x90yEswt71bUzzYjtjkHxqrAgqI2sMxvUoXoKOish4hrupn374P9Y/s320/limnanthes.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
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The weather in Wakefield today is cold and wet<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://plantsalive.webs.com/apps/forums/" style="background-color: transparent; color: #88bb22; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none;">Click here to view my gardening forum</a></div>GardenerXhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16536936827475488503noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4575484106610103610.post-32897903424019790872011-02-04T18:55:00.001+00:002011-02-04T18:56:49.493+00:00Flowers in the Kitchen, up close and personalOur lass has just got her self some macro extensions for her camera. She said I could have a play so here are some close up shots of flowers on our window sill.<br />
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Keeping with the season, a bunch of tulips and daffodils bring lots of cheer to our kitchen <br />
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This is the tulip I wanted to zoom in on<br />
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This is a close up shot of the "anther" , I am very impressed with the detail<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT2KUNkdMG18qYdeh8PjE3ehdydgsZe4q-A5KGnAvkelx9OUATXWTS2NgwwwO8p8w4iXbB6QRiXeAfnSSkBpgZgQSkpz-Ln8phNfIPX8jgAje1ktr2Q-voZkfYJk7CeQrvERQNZqaKY6E/s1600/stamen.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="221" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT2KUNkdMG18qYdeh8PjE3ehdydgsZe4q-A5KGnAvkelx9OUATXWTS2NgwwwO8p8w4iXbB6QRiXeAfnSSkBpgZgQSkpz-Ln8phNfIPX8jgAje1ktr2Q-voZkfYJk7CeQrvERQNZqaKY6E/s320/stamen.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
Next I got a little closer to a daffodil<br />
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Not such a good shot but not bad, the stigma<br />
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This shot is the petal<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmfgW2NQ54nVjHRpH1jzNrEZisSr0r5uh3-Lu5mm6ae_BtkcSi3rq1SdfTaFk_Fm3JmGmJo5A3CnHS0tRNRsC_jK2mkzdTozifwXwQS2rSw07Y17OZOo-haRBzlB1YUlm2y_dnn7D2Ic8/s1600/petal.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="289" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmfgW2NQ54nVjHRpH1jzNrEZisSr0r5uh3-Lu5mm6ae_BtkcSi3rq1SdfTaFk_Fm3JmGmJo5A3CnHS0tRNRsC_jK2mkzdTozifwXwQS2rSw07Y17OZOo-haRBzlB1YUlm2y_dnn7D2Ic8/s320/petal.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
This last shot is the bottom of an apple. In the for is parts of the calyx and stamen and in the background is the skin of the apple.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkiYYx1uTr0vbrm0XH7ojjg9e5BJo343UHSTZxsOwwHGgqHJ_B7T8gmdgLSXLWRWTEVl0GlNwRFgx0qVUqusU3MvLtvqpPDm3QfzZTdxbn96nI7VogDzpAmPdowbOL-TTvrpruFUgw9co/s1600/apple.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="202" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkiYYx1uTr0vbrm0XH7ojjg9e5BJo343UHSTZxsOwwHGgqHJ_B7T8gmdgLSXLWRWTEVl0GlNwRFgx0qVUqusU3MvLtvqpPDm3QfzZTdxbn96nI7VogDzpAmPdowbOL-TTvrpruFUgw9co/s320/apple.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
In the Summer I want to take a few close up shots of a bee or two<br />
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The weather in Wakefield today is very very windy<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://plantsalive.webs.com/apps/forums/" style="background-color: transparent; color: #88bb22; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none;">Click here to view my gardening forum</a></div>GardenerXhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16536936827475488503noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4575484106610103610.post-19472442260493756642011-01-31T21:11:00.000+00:002011-01-31T21:11:15.379+00:00An allotmentShort and sweet post. I have been told I have an allotment today, well a 3rd of an allotment. Wippee.GardenerXhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16536936827475488503noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4575484106610103610.post-8354638924450230862011-01-30T17:52:00.001+00:002011-01-30T18:01:16.397+00:00Peach Pruning and Autumn Cherry chip bud grafts<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDGyWwDuSk5iwTxsm5UgHxvk-FuDsAe7eWR3C126OgScjZQZNn1CCeGkQCrLib4zsoNDJYAqXO1V39Jv-NKcq0XT6yBt0orCMmofdVVShJHt0icndIaG2Dw73DVUFzVXCkp3hi1v6_NEc/s1600/cherry+graft1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div>The peach tree "Red Haven" has been stood outside in its 15 litre ex paint tub all Winter, it grew an awful lot in Summer after having only 1 flower on in Spring. It is the time of year for a prune, so it got the snip this afternoon. cutting away a lot of last years growth. I have also moved the tree in to the greenhouse because peaches flower early and late frost can damage the flowers. I am hoping it will have more than 1 flower on this year and they will set and become fruit<br />
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In the Autumn, I did some chip bud grafting. This shot is the root stock with a bud grafted on. The graft variety was Stella, The root stock was home grown from a seed, thanks to the local supermarket. <a href="http://plantsalive.webs.com/apps/forums/topics/show/2599247-t-budding-and-chip-bud-grafting-techniques">click here for some links on how to chip bid</a>, This is today before taking off the tape. I know it has united because the bud is starting to break<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr9p4CBFUV_oLg48Yj-q_PcUXtmZHalBknvh8nj7VGHMo_o4IDDbpeZZlm2pZ0VFpH3lRCdfnskoscVOQtMlb_hSuqWo4VODg-lRWjndPsf-VSpyj-5m71RSVet-HZxbdYHDd23Q9rKJw/s1600/cherry+graft.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr9p4CBFUV_oLg48Yj-q_PcUXtmZHalBknvh8nj7VGHMo_o4IDDbpeZZlm2pZ0VFpH3lRCdfnskoscVOQtMlb_hSuqWo4VODg-lRWjndPsf-VSpyj-5m71RSVet-HZxbdYHDd23Q9rKJw/s320/cherry+graft.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
Once the tape was removed, this is the greeting I got, a lovely looking union between host and graft.<br />
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A side shot. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1c2De1H3DbhTLOxevUAJD-6s-KdqwKlc3CySWae3mS1Q2_sbTK2-GCLk2jHUH-cv_s4W5s41CqJjswwF1MTmiHTzEqO1zuV1Sf0l_p42mbJs9vadCMcU3Jxb5hFJUJ1GNzfre6pbJt3Y/s1600/cherry+graft2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="311" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1c2De1H3DbhTLOxevUAJD-6s-KdqwKlc3CySWae3mS1Q2_sbTK2-GCLk2jHUH-cv_s4W5s41CqJjswwF1MTmiHTzEqO1zuV1Sf0l_p42mbJs9vadCMcU3Jxb5hFJUJ1GNzfre6pbJt3Y/s320/cherry+graft2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
When I graft I clean the bark area with alcohol rub and the tape I use is florists tape. Both available from Ebay.<br />
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The weather in Wakefield today is cold and dry.<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://plantsalive.webs.com/apps/forums/" style="background-color: transparent; color: #88bb22; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none;">Click here to view my gardening forum</a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>GardenerXhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16536936827475488503noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4575484106610103610.post-43568492910510471052011-01-22T23:28:00.002+00:002011-01-22T23:33:25.699+00:00Queen Banking and making the cagesI have been reading a forum and it referred to some instructions on building a queen bank for a bee hive. So I thought I would have a go. Sadly there are only pictures so a lot of guess work was involved in regards to measurements. A queen bank by the way, is a concept of keeping queens but with out the need for a colony for each queen.<br />
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<a href="http://www.beesource.com/resources/elements-of-beekeeping/raising-queen-cells-without-grafting-cut-cell-method/">The description is here </a><br />
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I started by making the frame where the queen banking cages would sit.<br />
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This is the complete unit sat next to a national frame. It has three shelves and there is a little trim on each shelf to stop the queen banking cages (these are hives runners), on the images in the above link I think there is a little wooden lip nailed on instead but it is not clear to me.<br />
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This next shot shows the ends. I had to add a little piece of wood to attach the runners as in hind site I had not made the three shelves wide enough. Otherwise two cages would not fit in back to back <br />
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</div>These are the first cages I made with 1inch x 1 1/2 inches pieces of 8mm ply, They look great but I am not sure if they are large enough for the queen, as in the link it is references that the cages need to be large/deep enough to stop worker bees poking through and pulling the queens apart. It is also relevant to mention that I made the little lids out of ply on these cages and that was very awkward for attaching two nails in to form hinges as thy ply kept splitting... most annoying which on mark II, I used really wood for the hinged lids.<br />
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These are mark II, they do not look much different but the dimensions are 1inch by 2inch with a wooden lid hinged, slightly taller<br />
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This is a close up of the lid. when closed it is flat with the top. These cages were constructed using an air nailer but when attaching the lids, I drilled the holes on either side and nailed in two frame nails which made good hinges, When attaching the mesh I used a stapler but did not staple it to the lid other wise movement was restricted. this is my assumption here as any way I could not see how it would work.<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">You see here the 4 example queen cages I made up. Two 1 1/2 inch high cages and two 2 inch high cages. What I have so far took about 2-3hours to knock together, I am not sure how many cages it will hold but I feel a lot wouldn't be far off. Making more cages is very easy. The mesh I used is very fine and I acquired it from a local farmer / garden supply shop at about £3 per square meter </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcGgAc_dO77U3GqaxUTWLsEO1mGNeVziSn9PbYAZoIYhZFQGuGaQDOQc5uOn0CpxSBpiUTmZuXCZdQSjWC3_GBIvcjiyObC6CD7Sg87mE1aKpQFWShW3Tf8JSlppTq3UehOm3S_3_7gJ0/s1600/endon.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcGgAc_dO77U3GqaxUTWLsEO1mGNeVziSn9PbYAZoIYhZFQGuGaQDOQc5uOn0CpxSBpiUTmZuXCZdQSjWC3_GBIvcjiyObC6CD7Sg87mE1aKpQFWShW3Tf8JSlppTq3UehOm3S_3_7gJ0/s1600/endon.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br />
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It is also worth mentioning that I think the frames in the link are Langstroth and I use National sizes. National brood frames are 14inches x 8 1/2 inches and Langstroth brood frames are 17 5/8 inches x 9 1/2 inches (per below). So my cages might still not be large enough at 2 inch high. I don't know. <br />
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The weather in Wakefield today is cold and dry.<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://plantsalive.webs.com/apps/forums/" style="background-color: transparent; color: #88bb22; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none;">Click here to view my gardening forum</a></div>GardenerXhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16536936827475488503noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4575484106610103610.post-20254245909287403352011-01-21T18:27:00.003+00:002011-01-21T19:14:33.932+00:00Grape in the groundLast weekend I finally planted my grape plant that had been in the greenhouse. It had been in a pot all Summer but it had been a lot of hard work watering it.<br />
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It had 2 stems growing out of the pot so I removed the pot and put the spade down the middle to split the plant in half. The smallest section went back in to the pot, visible in the bottom right hand corner of the picture with some more compost/soil mix. The larger plant went in to the ground. I had already dug a whole and broke it up at the bottom, I added a hand full of bone,blood and fish meal. It went in with no problem and then I filled in the spaces down the side with soil. The plants was already being trained down wires on either side. Fingers crossed for more grapes this year. this variety is unknown and was grown from seed by my uncle in the 70ies. I have a Boskoop Glory planted outside<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisTdh8Am-ERAX1xunIn1UPSToXchgLfZhyphenhyphenBgEJtlsxjC0cbs5Yh5GRfTIKY7RZfCAqEp5uZj6tFRTX_vWpMdct4x-hCX9fwNskzxQBmKLoA7iIC_kk7SuFrQBDtDblPKUOnxFgDUIN8AQ/s1600/GRAPE.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisTdh8Am-ERAX1xunIn1UPSToXchgLfZhyphenhyphenBgEJtlsxjC0cbs5Yh5GRfTIKY7RZfCAqEp5uZj6tFRTX_vWpMdct4x-hCX9fwNskzxQBmKLoA7iIC_kk7SuFrQBDtDblPKUOnxFgDUIN8AQ/s320/GRAPE.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<a href="http://plantsalive.webs.com/apps/wiki/grape-growing-in-a-greenhouse-unknown-variety-grown-from-seed">My wiki on growing this grape during the Summer of 2010</a><br />
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This is a quick shot of a dead Achocha "Fat Baby" plant killed by frost. It produced well but did not grow as well as other years. I need to remove the plant to the compost heap<br />
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<a href="http://plantsalive.webs.com/apps/wiki/growing-achocha-fat-baby">My wiki on growing Achocha Fat baby from seed</a><br />
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This a "Helens Welsh Siberian Bunching Onion". I grew it last year and it is like a spring onion and you pull it when ready but unlike spring onions as long as you leave one in the ground it will bunch up and grow more at the side of the original plant. Useful. I grew it in pots last year and it grew well but I never got round to trying it. It is already starting to grow again so hopefully some early salad. I will planting some in the ground though this year and I hope it will spread<br />
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This is the strawberry patch at around 5pm this evening, still frost on the ground. A very cold day.<br />
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The weather in Wakefield today is cold and dry.<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://plantsalive.webs.com/apps/forums/" style="background-color: transparent; color: #88bb22; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none;">Click here to view my gardening forum</a></div>GardenerXhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16536936827475488503noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4575484106610103610.post-17807415323878804672011-01-16T11:23:00.001+00:002011-01-21T18:37:13.490+00:00Winter dutiesHappy New Year folks, first blog entry of 2011. Possibly one of few or many... time will tell.<br />
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Last few days I have tied up and pruned my apple tree "jonagold". It is still in the 15 litre ex paint bucket and doing well, I have put a new small piece of wood at the top and at the bottom and then tied in the branches, I also trimmed them back.<br />
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"Jonagold" is known for being a vigorous tree so it will need more trimming back during the year but hopefully the bucket size should constrain it to a large degree.<br />
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The mistake I made last year was leaving to many apples on that all eatable size but not as large as the apples could have been, so this year the apples were will be thinned out with more passion. I left around 20 on last year, this year there will be less left on<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Last weekend I also planted up my garlic builds. I had them in the greenhouse and they were all starting to show green growth. These are the best of the ones I had grown myself last year. </div><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">This is a close up, its a beauty in my opinion. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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The weather in Wakefield today is cold 5to10 degrees I estimate but fine.<br />
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<a href="http://plantsalive.webs.com/apps/forums/" style="background-color: transparent; color: #88bb22; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none;">Click here to view my gardening forum</a>GardenerXhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16536936827475488503noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4575484106610103610.post-21631256632785434592010-12-17T14:04:00.002+00:002010-12-17T14:05:42.745+00:00The garden is being raided !!!! even in Winter...It is always nice to have visitors in the garden and that includes the squirrels that have recently been paying my bird feeders far to much attention. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjksRJ85d9UVAJCchuAqo4EvDhqGC6nKNzGmnAjLhO4QxFHiHA596hkiPxndlVjVXoxPOp6HvWE0VJ-6DBafSeu3WNOTv7nHWbFDOfXyUNJJxPCKgaCjTprh8EEjqiV8kX9zEiwpSeoYFk/s1600/squirrel+roof.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjksRJ85d9UVAJCchuAqo4EvDhqGC6nKNzGmnAjLhO4QxFHiHA596hkiPxndlVjVXoxPOp6HvWE0VJ-6DBafSeu3WNOTv7nHWbFDOfXyUNJJxPCKgaCjTprh8EEjqiV8kX9zEiwpSeoYFk/s320/squirrel+roof.JPG" width="320" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">I have tried to make it more difficult for the little beggars to get the bird feed but this one is sharper than the average bird feeder provider (me that is)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHYrcgIeGIIv7s7iUhDLdMOkfnlVbvWSNZQVcdD-sylHpxXOic5-JAIyHl2E0mnNbXm3_xcTQ-et82Gu0QqdhiBddlFXNtwNdkk6UEnY3GR350FKmYWcmfdvJ3RoBrelkfrsunUnvGaY0/s1600/squirrel+swinging.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHYrcgIeGIIv7s7iUhDLdMOkfnlVbvWSNZQVcdD-sylHpxXOic5-JAIyHl2E0mnNbXm3_xcTQ-et82Gu0QqdhiBddlFXNtwNdkk6UEnY3GR350FKmYWcmfdvJ3RoBrelkfrsunUnvGaY0/s320/squirrel+swinging.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
Success. What can I say. You can just see at the top of this shot that there is wire wrapped around the feeder and the hook, that's because these squirrels can unhook bird feeders so they smash on the ground!!! this feeder is a new one <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPG_WtCfFCTmDgNUBEaaFDOy1aEbWMaTUmJoqI8sxrRE1PMlLC5m2gDwNn7oyQUOYZq1xKXd6LVpnS3ubpmTWEOZZpyzXoz_q0OU3RchaNge8JYyr8SYPOin0MU7Usg-gVawt6Pd9XHT0/s1600/squirrel+stretch.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPG_WtCfFCTmDgNUBEaaFDOy1aEbWMaTUmJoqI8sxrRE1PMlLC5m2gDwNn7oyQUOYZq1xKXd6LVpnS3ubpmTWEOZZpyzXoz_q0OU3RchaNge8JYyr8SYPOin0MU7Usg-gVawt6Pd9XHT0/s320/squirrel+stretch.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
I also left some apples on the tree to. only 5. They have got frozen.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhr7MXDTb58f1NrRXA2iFvw3hTpo-evcELw9givZc0Jz5aXj0Qn-jX5DXszxBvBJACugegADYNsHLMZ2JiBYfcFYROJsE_jLgkJ_uC94oAs9LYydoEWXtj_c7PhXEXQ1vV4FFeueP55SZE/s1600/appletree.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhr7MXDTb58f1NrRXA2iFvw3hTpo-evcELw9givZc0Jz5aXj0Qn-jX5DXszxBvBJACugegADYNsHLMZ2JiBYfcFYROJsE_jLgkJ_uC94oAs9LYydoEWXtj_c7PhXEXQ1vV4FFeueP55SZE/s320/appletree.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
but some thing is eating them and I dont think it is the squirrels either<br />
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Thanks to Michelle my girl for the shots on EOS 450D (I think)<br />
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Weather in Wakefield today, very cold, frost on ground this morning (inside of car windscreen frozen) and fairly bright<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://plantsalive.webs.com/apps/forums/" style="background-color: transparent; color: #88bb22; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none;">Click here to view my gardening forum</a></div>GardenerXhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16536936827475488503noreply@blogger.com2