God I love growing our own

[JamezF]

Yes, but they seem to be the green way of going!

I just wanted to be tipped into one of the compost bins

James

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

I just wanted to be tipped into one of the compost bins

James

It's the latest thing apparently, not sure whether anyone is doing it here yet, but I have seen an ad online where they put you in some kind of composting chamber covered in something which looks like soil/compost. A few months later you are reduced to bones and, well, compost. The family then have the option of having the 'compost' returned for them to use!!

 

[JamezF]

It's the latest thing apparently, not sure whether anyone is doing it here yet, but I have seen an ad online where they put you in some kind of composting chamber covered in something which looks like soil/compost. A few months later you are reduced to bones and, well, compost. The family then have the option of having the 'compost' returned for them to use!!

Yeah, I saw that a while back. It was insanely expensive as far as I recall. I've told my daughter just to tip me into one of mine and say nothing

James

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

when we were on our honeymoon my grandfather (eighty three at the time) had a stroke - he was out in the garden thinning out the beetroot plants! as he was too impatient to wait a few days for us to return home. When we went to see him, he was sat up in bed, already self administering physiotherapy to get use back in his arm whilst being lectured by my mother about gardening on his own at his age and that he could have died out there. His reply....
"well if, next time, you find me dead out there, just scrape some soil away, roll me into the hole and cover me up - that piece of the garden needs some extra fertilizing anyway"

 

[Erichalfbee]

You can be buried at home without a coffin as long as you’re wrapped. I might start saving all those cardboard boxes that come from Thorne and Maisemore.

 

[pargyle]

You can be buried at home without a coffin as long as you’re wrapped. I might start saving all those cardboard boxes that come from Thorne and Maisemore.

Knocks about 10k off thw value of the property when you come to sell it and removal and reinternment can cost up to£15k ...safer to get cremated by one of the 'burn no fuss' outfits and have your ashes scattered where the dogs are buried.

 

[Midget Gem]

Give your body to medical science. They'll cremate anything they don't use and return your ashes to your family if they would want that. They can still hold a memorial service if they want to. That's what I fancy but I've made it clear that if those left behind want something different, they can do whatever makes them happy - I'll be dead so won't know anyway!

 

[Garry R]

Dad's ashes were scattered in Lough Mask - one of his favourite fishing venues about 15 years ago. Since then the fishing in that lough has been dreadful although at 32square miles in area I don't think that a small box of ashes would be the cause!!!

 

[Moobee]

In the UK ? We don't really get enough days of sunshine - even down here in the south of the country ...

Pop it in the solar wax extractor? Or make a giant compost solar steriliser?

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

That's what I fancy but I've made it clear that if those left behind want something different, they can do whatever makes them happy - I'll be dead so won't know anyway!

If you're dead you can't sign the consent forms so the decision has to be made before you cross the bar. I know someone who saw it as a way of saving the cost of a funeral/cremation as none of his family (including his wife) had any intention of wasting their money on him. Unfortunately the daft bugger forgot to sign the forms so he lay in a fridge for months while they all squabbled

 

[pargyle]

Pop it in the solar wax extractor? Or make a giant compost solar steriliser?

There are some proper red neck solutions on you tube with revolving drums set up over modified propane gas barbecues ....if I was looking at industrial quantities it would be feasible but the quantity I need for seed propagation I think the chafing pan on a two burner stove will do the job. My wax melter is in use at present rendering down wax - it's on its last legs and needs rebuilding so I may well make it big enough to take the chafing pan when I get round to it ... lot cheaper than electic on the dozen or so days we get for what pretends to be summer these days !

 

[Moobee]

Had to split a split this afternoon. This was a nuc I checked earlier in the week which was full to bursting point and had charged swarm cells so wanted to sort them today (5 days later) in case they decided to swarm. Full of uncapped queen cells so made up a 2 x 3 frame nuc with the best looking QC in each and left the original nuc to build up again. Gave each a small amount of syrup to help the girls build comb as only had foundation.

 

[enrico]

Oops.

 

[enrico]

It's time for pea and bean picking. Love it.

 

[JamezF]

Was just thinking about picking some mangetout this afternoon

I've also been lifting garlic today, which seems quite early, but it's in the polytunnel and it has been a very sunny four weeks so I think it's quite advanced. Doing so also meant that I freed up space to plant out my Hungarian Blacks, which might sound like some sort of psychoactive plant, but are actually just black jalapeno-style chiles. I also found room for normal jalapenos and some sweet peppers.

Over the weekend I got all of my climbing beans planted out which leaves me enough space for some maincrop carrots and then the plot is absolutely full. It shouldn't be long before I start lifting first early potatoes though, freeing up space for winter brassicas and squashes that have yet to go into the ground. Unfortunately progress with Frankenstein's Greenhouse and a squash-growing/chicken winter housing polytunnel has been somewhat delayed by all the swarms I've been dealing with. I'm slightly hoping that we're over the worst of that now.

James

 

[enrico]

We lifted our first early crop of garlic today but the rust had got so bad (rhapsody). Good sized bulbs but we didn't want the rust to spoil them. The others aren't as bad.

 

[pargyle]

I made another frame to support the butternut squash that I'm growing vertically and planted out another 6 plants. First picking of broad beans are about ready ... I like them before they get too big and tough. The runners and french beans are well rooted now and putting on about 3" a day climbing up the frame. The Sagitta potatoes now have chest high foliage and are just starting to break into flower - the Charlottes have caught up a lot but not as high as the Sagitta. Cultivated blackberries are now well in flower and covered in bumble bees - never seen so many and so many varieties. The Loganberries are all well set so they must have got pollinated at just the right time. Summer fruiting raspberries are about a week off flowering ...

I have a robin who has taken up as the resident territory manager in my allotment area - fiesty little beggar, quite happy to see the blackbirds and pigeons off if they dare to invade. It's totally unfazed by me - indeed, I think it waits for me to start weeding or watering and is immediately down next to me. In fact, this morning, I was filling plant pots with compost in my wheelbarrow and the cheeky little beggar was in the barrow after a worm whilst I was filling a pot 3" away ....incredibly unconcerned - not tame - just confident I think.

My next project is making some A frame shelving to get my strawberry pots up off the ground ... I have the timber scavenged just need a few spare hours to put it all together.

 

[JamezF]

We lifted our first early crop of garlic today but the rust had got so bad (rhapsody). Good sized bulbs but we didn't want the rust to spoil them. The others aren't as bad.

Rust is why mine is all in the polytunnel this year. The plants I had outside last year were completely hammered by it. Despite (or perhaps because of) cutting off the affected leaves the bulbs were smaller than a table tennis ball.

James

 

[JamezF]

I did indeed pick the mangetout in the end. Not a huge amount, but enough to go in the stir fry for tomorrow's dinner for the three of us. Some big pods too -- apparently a feature of this particular variety.

James

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

I tend to wait until the peas inside have fattened up nicely