Scarecrow Construction!

Kevin wanted to make a scarecrow last year to keep the birds from our fruit. We did not get around to it but this year we are organising a family day to do it.My son in law Rob is in charge of planning,the kids are in charge of getting the stuffing and 'bits' together. We still were not sure of how to actually put one together so Kevin's Mom, Aisling volunteered to go online and 'Google' scarecrow! I might add Aisling is 8 months pregnant so this her contribution. Lo and behold she found Scarecrow instructions on a New Zealand website! http://www.bestgardening.com/
I have been on the site and even though it is mainly for the climate in New Zealand there is a wealth of general information which can be used by any gardener ie;


A Caffeine Fix for Slugs and Snails In one of the best pieces of gardening news in recent years scientists have discovered that slugs and snails detest caffeine. Pouring the dregs of your morning coffee on the ground will drive them away. Even better, add coffee grounds to your mulch or potting mix. Ask your local coffee shop if you can recycle their leftovers and mulch your hostas, lettuce seedlings and more. That morning cuppa will never be the same again!

Aphids can be eliminated with Rhubarb spray. Boil 5 rhubarb leaves in a large pot of water for approximately 10 mins. When cooled add a squirt of dishwashing detergent to fix the spray to the leaves. Set to and spray. Note that rhubarb leaves contain oxalic acid and should not be eaten.

Just 2 relevant pieces of information which can be applied anywhere. They have the most comprehensive advice on Asparagus I have seen yet! I will be adding this site to my favourites and visiting on a regulare basis.

Comments

Anonymous said…
Well it looks like my self-imposed, pregnancy induced house imprisonment has done some good! Didnt realise there was so much involved in scarecrow making though....maybe we should just get the kids to stay on the allotment in a tent to shoo away any hungry birds instead!
Aisling xxx
June 9, 2008 at 11:01 PM
Callum's Blog said…
Hi Mam,
Another way of getting rid of Aphids is to introduce Ladybirds onto your site. Ladybirds seek out and consume vast amounts of Aphids. When you think that 10 Aphids can produce close on 1 million in a year it could be worth it.
This was on Springwatch the other night.
Talk soon
Billy
June 18, 2008 at 5:19 PM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Faux Stone Trough

Image
The word faux is a really nice word,somehow it does not seem to mean false, just a kind of copy! I had read about making these stone looking troughs or flower pots and again it was on my list of things to try.With my supply of donated flower pots I decided this was as good a time as any.The first pic is of the completed trough or tub filled with compost waiting on plants. I began with a plain white plastic tub, it does not have to be white it can be any colour.Glue ,I used PVA which was painted on thickly and left to get tacky and either sand or I used a mix of small stones and sand, sold in the builders suppliers as 'filling'. It is not a quick job to do as each side is pasted, shake on the sand thickly and press down to dry, I also did the opposite inside edge. I left it overnight each time but if it was sunny and warm it would probably dry faster.The first side drying, when it is dry shake off the excess leaving a thin covering. The final application and it is completed onl
Read more

Instacrafting/ crafters and DIY

Image
I set up an Instagram account a few  years ago and promptly forgot about it until some months ago and began browsing and got hooked enough to start posting, mainly about gardening.  I noticed some DIY crafting posts and began following them as I had always knit/sewed/made and done etc as many of my generation did because we had to , to look after a family and make ends meet. It was immediately very clear this new generation of crafters enjoyed the creativity and colour in each DIY project they did My monks bench was vintage white with a pale grey stencil, after looking at the colour and style of Joanne Mooney whose blog and instagram  account A PROUD HOME has won followers and awards I stepped outside my comfort zone and went for Petrol in Colortrend paint and some mad colours in cushions  of the plain greys I had originally intended!                                           Another award winning Blogger is Catherine Colton better known as Dainty Dress Diaries, Catherine had m
Read more

Runner bean soup and Dog Blog

Image
Our runner beans are coming to the end and as there are 16 bags of frozen runner beans in the freezer the ones I picked yesterday were turned into soup.I found this site on my site surfing everything-runnerbean with all sorts of interesting recipes for the runner bean.I used the ingredients stated and also added potatoes and some leek, all from the plot.I made a big pot of it last night and reheated it today just adding some milk and freshly cut parsley. Runner Bean Soup 500grms runner beans 1 large onion 1 large carrot 700mls vegetable stock 2tbsp Butter salt & pepper to taste. Top & tail the runner beans,removing stringy sides Chop into slices with the onion and carrot Heat butter in pan and add vegetables.Cook until soft and the carrot is translucent not browned Add stock,cover and simmer for about 30 minutes I used a hand blender to puree but left it quite chunky with bits of veg. Matron over on down at the allotment blog has posted her Dog Blog featuring some of our four
Read more