The kitchen beckons

I have been busy in the kitchen in the last 2 weeks this weekend I had the steam juicer going and made 4.5pints of Apple juice I bottled 4pints and put the .5 in the fridge for breakfast.
It keeps well if you leave the bottles on the side and put in the fridge when you open.

The steam juicer I have was made in Sweden and i use it to make juice it is easy to keep in bottles and saves room in the freezer.
apples, blackberries, any fruit that is spare you can always add apple and blackberry and sugar to make a jelly, Blackberry will make a nice syrup if sugar is added.

The basket will hold 11pounds of fruit just wash and chop apples leave the cores and pips and all you are left with is a cooked pulp.

I found my first field mushrooms of the year this weekend and tonight I found a lot more it may be a good year this year.

I had a day Bottling wine 18 bottles of Dandelion flower and 11 bottles of Parsnip of course I tried the half bottles just to see if they would pass the test and they did.

The parsnip is on the left and the dandelion is on the right.

These are dandelion I made 3 gallon this year and i must say its very good. these six bottles are the first to be bottled.

For a simple life I find it hard to find the time at the moment with making things in the kitchen and wine and things but it will get better when I start to fill the freezer.

on the way out of work tonight Kaz gave me what i thought was 1 marrow but it turned out to be 3 so Barbara will have to see it her dog walking friends will take 1 each.

Combines are working overtime to bring in the harvest

The walks have seemed to have run into each other just lately the last 2 weekends and a few nights the combines have been working long hours where ever you look the fields are alive with the farmers hard at work they have been working day and nights with the lights flashing away on the combines.

I went down to the wind turbines last Saturday for a change the sunshine reflected on the turbines.

This is what it looks like standing under the blades of the turbines above your head massive lumps of blades coming round and they don't look very high above the ground when you stand still.

The combines are no sooner out of the field and the balers are baling up the straw ready for the crew yards for winter bedding for the cows.

The fields will soon be ploughed ready for the next crop.

The river board have been out with the weed cutters these 2 were moored near the new concrete steps that were built in the spring.

Mind the teeth toffee as they will cut dogs as well as reeds and weeds.

One is a cutter the other has a scoop for clearing the weeds each one is man by one person.

The dust rises as the combines work away to bring in the harvest.

The other Saturday as I walked the dogs 2 men in a boat passed I never got the name but it looked so relaxing and later when we came home the 2 gents were just coming back from lunch at the pub.

They looked happy and relaxed what a life away from the rat race it will be better when this credit crunch ends. Ha ha

Tonight when we went down the drain bank the hares were running along the track they must have come out of the fields because of the work going on with combines and balers I counted 6 on the track .

On the way back a muntjac deer came out of the long grass and wandered across the track and into the woodland and near the farm yard small rabbits as well as hares were running all over the place.

woodland ways weekend 23rd july2010

I have struggled with time since I came back off holiday and last week end I went on a woodland ways week end It was like a survival course.

We had to be at the White Swan at Walton on Trent to meet the Instructor at 7.00pm he then took us to a wood just out side the village. to meet up with the other instructors.

We met up with Martyn who was just the sort of guy you would expect to be an instructor Full of energy and rearing to go.

the other instructors were Kevin and Ruth.

Look out Ray Mears here we come .

After a talk about Knifes and saws and toilet facilities and where the spade would be left.

We were given a fly sheet or tarp and 4 bungee straps to put up our shelters as below.

After Putting up our shelter we all went and dressed a wood pigeon and cooked sweet and sour pigeon with rice for tea.

The kettle was on the fire most of the time so we could brew tea and coffee any time of the day.

On the Saturday we were shown how to build a shelter and set to work building our own the one above was my shelter as you can see it just looks like a heap of branches.

at lunch time we were shown how to bone a trout with your hands and leave no bones in it and cook it on the fire with new potatoes in butter done in the dutch oven.

The front of my shelter after completion we spent the night in our shelters it was well insulated and in the night I was sweating and when i took my arms out of the sleeping bag the mossies bite me.

Anne and Rob made a different shelter it looked very good more room than the one I built but they said there shelter was hot as well.

As you can see it was a tight fit.

Saturday night we had Rabbit Stew and we had to skin our own rabbits I have done that before so I watched Emma and Ben Skin a rabbit and cut it up for tea we had a bag of flour and seasoning put the rabbit in and shake about so as to cover the rabbit meat.

I then cooked it in a small drop of oil in a hot dutch oven until brown then added water and veg carrots Parsnips, potatoes to make the stew.

We had a foraging afternoon and we found some cherries and Ruth the instructor made cherry crumble which was Delicious.on Saturday we did a sit and watch in the woods and learned how to Light Fires with fire strikers and rubbing sticks and all sorts of ways to light fires.

We had to put the site back to how we found it on the Sunday before we left.

Sunday morning we had a talk on water By Kevin and how to find it and look after it Filter water for drinking.

After which Martyn gave us instruction on setting Traps for fish, Crayfish, and rabbits and squirrel.

At about 12.00 we left for home tired and feeling like a bath so when I got home the first thing was a bath and 4hours sleep in a soft bed.

Thanks to Kevin, Martyn and Ruth for a great week end and to all the others on the course.

It you want to try the woodland weekend have a look on the web site below.

www.woodland-ways.co.uk

It is an experience you may learn something to help you in the future but if not you meet some nice people.

I went down the drain bank tonight and got wet through it rained hard so the dogs and I were wet in minutes.

I will get round to telling you about my holiday when time permits.

Young Barn owls In July

I took the dogs down the drain bank late tonight after it had been raining and on the way back at the pumping station the baby barn owls were out.
The adult Bird was flying about and came back with a vole.
The young birds never bothered about the dogs or myself they just sat and looked across at us.

The nights are pulling in its about 9.30pm and the sun is setting.

If you Click on the photos the owls are on the owl box and the sign post below it.

Owl returning home to the box

The owl sitting on the sign is one of this years babies.

Friday so I had the day off went into Boston Shopping with Barbara and we had Lunch it makes a change for us to eat meals together.

Bought some camping equipment for next week end I am going on a wild camping weekend.

I will tell you about it later I have still got to do my blog about my holiday yet.

Hope to go down the ponds tomorrow with the dogs to cut the grass walk ways.

Catching upafter the holidays

Sunday night I had a walk down the drain bank with the dogs late on as you can see by the photo it was late a pair of swans with 2 signets were near the car park.

sorry I have not told you about the holidays as I have been trying to catch up with every thing you have 2 weeks away and the garden looks like a jungle.
work is not going down very well I have just about got back into things as I had someone looking after my jobs I do seem to be back on track.

I have just been on a course for 2 days with an over night stay in a hotel so not a lot done this week on site today meetings tomorrow and Fridays I don't work . well only on the ponds and garden.

This is the cabin or shed down the ponds the wasps have been eating the paint and wood off and making nests with so it looks really tatty but it needs a coat of paint over it and it will be okay.

The dogs love it down there I aim to stay down one week end to see what wild life is there.

Toffee just chills out when he is there he looks hard done by.

This year the weed seems to be taking over i will have to drag some out before the winter.

This is what I call the old pond it was the first one to be dug so I have been told by the guy who owned it before me.

A side view of the old pond with bird feeder (empty this time of year)..

Blue is still swimming he does all day he sleeps well at night.

Below is the new pond with the island new (last one dug).

The other night I took the dogs down the drain and forgot the camera as the cows were half way down the bank we started to come back when the other side of the drain 2 foxes came out of the long grass I watched them for about 5minutes and then 1 nipped back in the long grass the other one sat and looked across at the dogs running about straight apposite me and me with no camera.

There has been some Polish lads Fishing down in one place for 3 nights with the kids.

It seems to keep them happy I don't know if they do any good most time they say only small ones.

The owl has some young as most times when we go down he has been hunting and is on his way home with a vole or small bird.

I will call it a day now maybe I will catch up with the holidays Friday.

Wednesday 30th June Wood turners

The fenland wood turners meeting on the 30th June had Chris and Rita Norton from Norfolk.
Chris Turned wooden fruit and Rita Painted some of the items.
The painted Apples are some of the best I have seen it was a very enjoyable Evening there was 48 people turned up and some were on holiday.
I forgot my camera so pictures of the finished fruit for you to look at Sorry.
Chris and Rita are a good double act and work well together.
She is always putting him right a bit like the female voice on a sat nav.


Friday 2nd July 2010
I took the dogs done the bank tonight, the fishermen were out in force tonight.
I took my camera tonight and caught this sunset back at the car just shows how flat it is around here.



I also noticed these little frogs were moving about in the long grass they were about 15mm in size or half inch to us older people you can see by the blades of grass.

This one was just looking up at me the dogs never noticed any of them.

I also see the Barn owl flying while I was having a word with the fishermen.

The owl had a vole or mouse in its talons when it come back along the drain he must have some young at the pumping station down the bank there are some owl boxes attached to the side of the pump house.

I will have to tell you about the holiday later as I want to jump in the shower as I have been on the garden all day.

Friday11th June 2010 woodworking show

I am sorry for not being on here lately as we have been on Holiday in Suffolk for 2 weeks and I have not been online till tonight.

Any way on with the blog I will tell you more about the holiday on Thursday night.
The wood working show was a good show and I helped out with the stand Thursday and Friday.
here are a few more items that came in on Friday 11th June 2010



This bandstand Clock is the biggest I have seen and was made by Ron Pannell from the Fenland wood turners Club. Which meet on the last Wednesday of the month which is tomorrow night at the Spalding common Community Center at 7.00pm

This is an inside out fruit stand but I have no idea who made it but it was well done.

Ron's clock stands 2 feet high and stands out on the stand above all the other Items.

The segmented work was done by Stan Knowles he must have some patients more than me I know.


A gentleman came on the stand on the Friday and said he wanted to have a word I thought I recognised him but was not to sure.

He was my cousin I had not seen for years it was great catching up he left his number so I will have to ring him and catch up some more a small world I must say.

Work was hard yesterday catching up after 2 weeks but the lad I left in charge did a good job but he said he was pleased I was back he now knows that I do a lot more than riding about in the car.

His words were I have aged in 2 weeks and you have a sun tan you got the best deal.

(but he learnt a lot).

I have to go as I have bits to do for tomorrow night at the club as i have left i till the last minute as I always do.