12 September 2009 HARD TIMES GIN There’s a damson tree at the top of Jubilee Steps which yields a fantastic crop every year. There was a time, back along when I was the Town Council groundsman, when the powers-that-be wanted it cut down. They were on an “open up the view” trip. Naturally I said [...]
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Posts Tagged ‘orchard park’
12 September 2009 DIRTY NAILS’ BLOG by Joe Hashman HARD TIMES GIN
Saturday, September 12th, 200910 August 2009 DIRTY NAILS’ BLOG by Joe Hashman CHANGE A-COMING
Monday, August 10th, 200910 August 2009 CHANGE A-COMING More change a-coming. Out the back of Orchard Park over pasture grassland swallows and house martins mix in tumbling flocks. I counted fourteen of the former perched on garden centre canopies at lunchtime. Then, walking to my van, saw dozens more practicing for the long flight home in a month [...]
Read More »15 July 2009 DIRTY NAILS’ BLOG by Joe Hashman MISTAKEN IDENTITY
Wednesday, July 15th, 200915 July 2009 MISTAKEN IDENTITY I sowed a line of so-called Yellow Cylindrical beetroot down the allotment on April 8th. 300 seeds came from Suttons and the packaging says ’New…unique long yellow beetroot.’ Well, forgive me but I beg to differ. They’ve thrived for sure. I’ve watered and thinned, hoed and harvested. We’ve enjoyed the [...]
Read More »11 July 2009 DIRTY NAILS’ BLOG by Joe Hashman SATURDAY GO SLOW, ONWARDS…
Saturday, July 11th, 20099 July 2009 DIRTY NAILS’ BLOG by Joe Hashman REALITY PAR
Thursday, July 9th, 20099 July 2009 REALITY PAR The thing about pests, diseases and disorders is that they are all great levellers. The King of Christendom could have blighted potatoes but the materially worst off of his subjects perfect spuds. Then who would be the poorer? And so it seems that crop failures keep us all on some [...]
Read More »26 June 2009: DIRTY NAILS’ BLOG by Joe Hashman KOHL RABI, SWEET PEAS
Friday, June 26th, 200926 June 2009 KOHL RABI Friday is harvest day at Orchard Park. There’s never a massive amount of produce because the demo areas are only small, but enough useful bits and bobs come through to make cropping them worthwhile. This week it was time to call it time to call time on Anita’s kohl rabi [...]
Read More »25 June 2009 DIRTY NAILS’ BLOG by Joe Hashman HORSEFLY, ON DIGGING POTATOES
Thursday, June 25th, 200925 June 2009 HORSEFLY If you’d seen me at Orchard Park this early afternoon you’d be forgiven for wondering why I was wearing shirt buttoned up and long sleeves rolled down. But there is method in my madness and today I was over-dressed to thwart horseflies. I’d seen one on a canister of water. It [...]
Read More »19 June 2009: DIRTY NAILS’ BLOG by Joe Hashman HOW TO UPSET YOUR WIFE Part 2
Friday, June 19th, 200919 June 2009 HOW TO UPSET YOUR WIFE Part 2 Mrs Nails has got the hump. The reason for this is I have taken the ten fine young potted specimens of Red Delicious Brussels sprouts (sown 2 April in trays, pricked out and potted on twice) down to Orchard Park and planted them in the [...]
Read More »18 June 2009: DIRTY NAILS’ BLOG by Joe Hashman THUNDERWORM, THINNING PLUMS
Thursday, June 18th, 200918 June 2009 THUNDERWORMS There used to be an advert on the telly for an anti-aging product where one grey hair was highlighted on a woman’s head. While the rest of her bonnet sat beautifully, the one offending strand stuck out, waved about, and generally behaved unusually. I saw something similar first thing this morning [...]
Read More »16 June 2009: DIRTY NAILS’ BLOG by Joe Hashman MOISTURE RETAINING GEL: MAGIC OR NOT?, THE INEVITABLE TRUTH
Tuesday, June 16th, 200916 June 2009 MOISTURE RETAINING GEL: MAGIC OR NOT? Down at Orchard Park, in the Gillingham clay, I didn’t manage to prepare any bare earth in time for getting runner beans in the ground. I wasn’t too concerned though. Lots of folk have no soil for growing so I thought this was a good chance [...]
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