If you know of a way to help save our planet, even just a small part of it put it here. Also if you want to ask how to help, or even if you want to promote your environmental organisation. All goes here.
That's one of the disadvantages of town living, Flo.
It looks like we will have to self isolate as well, only for me it would be pretty much "business as usual" as I can self isolate on my own land, so garden, greenhouses and polytunnels (and radio shack) are all within my boundary.
I am also lucky that we have a reasonable sized larder and 2 freezers, and soon start keeping laying hens again.
Replying to an earlier post about dried beans, I have quite a quantity and last week actually had a totally vegetarian meal with experimental bean burgers, and beetroot greens. All I can say is, they were edible but needs more work.
Tony
Disclaimer: I almost certainly haven't a clue what I'm talking about.
Oh Flo, it's unbelievable. They obviously have no clue, and are making up policies which can only affect those more likely to be already disadvantaged.
If you've managed to do anything in the allotment, I'd suggest you plant a load of anything you can neglect for several weeks, while you can still go there, so at least you'll not have to start from scratch mid-summer.
At home, anything you can grow in pots. Short growing things are probably best. Sprouted seeds in jars are very quick to grow - just don't use garden seeds - they may have been treated with nasties you wouldn't want to eat direct.
Keep safe everyone.
Maggie
Never doubt that you can change history. You already have. Marge Piercy
Life shrinks or expands in proportion to one's courage. Anais Nin
I want to know how the self isolation will be enforced. I don't want to laugh but it's the daughter who has been told to self isolate and work from home (long story about sitting next to a suspected case who is not sick enough to be tested despite being an A&E nurse last week). At least she can be tracked from her work record. Not sure about son who is a paramedic out in Switzerland - must use WhatsApp to ask. I may be able to get to the plots and back for short periods whilst keeping out of the way of people. Trouble is that a lot of the plot holders are of a similar age. We have a problem there says a member of the committee with a view of many untended plots.
Fine, I am now organised enough to be able to be self sufficient for 12 weeks after a couple of days running around. I'm fit enough so far as I know, no underlying health issues. So - I'll sort of continue with the growing as the plots are big enough for us to be able to keep our distance and avoid unnecessary use of public transport and see what transpires.
In the end I managed 14 weeks of just going to the allotments most days and staying home the rest. I had one breakout to go to the local collection point for Amazon when I wanted a snood to act as a face cover for travelling on the buses to the allotments and back. Had I been a bit more organised I could have had the same delivered from elsewhere via Royal Mail to the door. When shops started to reopen I went for a bus ride to the local town and then the Metro Centre just to break out. Total waste of journeys in both cases. Eventually managed to get a hair cut on the second day that hair dressers were open - usually it's a walk in but they were doing appointments so as not to have a queue.
Anyways - the lesson of lock down is that shopping can be done online, we need a lot less than we think we do so the high street is an over rated destination and allotments do wonders for filling in time.
Watching other people in the line of bungalows and on other forums, what they seem to have missed most is going somewhere to meet other people. The gathering in the pub, the coffee shop or cafe/restaurant seems to be a major social activity but with the restrictions supposedly still in place with regards to who you can meet, where and how many of who in England (mostly being pushed to the limits it seems) I don't think that a social life is getting any way back to what we used to think of as normal. The local agricultural shows which are a major form of social life in rural Northumberland are a wipe out this year, as are the village flower/vegetable/craft shows. The town up road has cancelled the Christmas Treat (a three day event providing sit down meal, entertainment and full on "fun" for about 900 in total) has gone, the local event for skateboarders has gone, the village hall rota of clubs and events is shut till further notice, the county leek shows (big events with good prize money) have gone for the year, the local clubs which run darts teams, outings to the horse racing and other such events are still shut.
It makes you wonder how really self sufficient we are as a lot of people who practise self sufficient ways are still social animals.
I don't see self-sufficiency as being a solitary pursuit. My dearest hope for communities is that they could pull together and share their experiences, skills and work/growing etc. (But then I'm an old Lefty!). Anything that brings communities together can't be a bad thing though (Covid 19 restrictions notwithstanding!).
My fear is that this whole thing will have the opposite effect - kill some of these events and they just won't come back.
I'm not a great one for participating in any of the events you've mentioned, mainly because they have a competitive bent and I'm more of a collaborative person. But I do like having lunch and a natter with my friends every now and then though and I have missed that this last few months.
My daughter is starting her nurse training in September, in Inverness. Because of this great unknown, Covid, they've decided to run the first semester's education online instead of in class so she'll be staying at home until after Christmas. Eminently sensible, of course, but that's the time you meet your group and make your friends. These new intakes may never make that bond - I still maintain friendship with some of my fellow student nurses from 40+ years ago. I doubt she'll get that opportunity.
Maggie
Never doubt that you can change history. You already have. Marge Piercy
Life shrinks or expands in proportion to one's courage. Anais Nin
Mrs. Viper (she would hate it if she knew I called her that, not least because we aren't married) works for a University admissions office. Almost all universities are adopting the online/hybrid approach, but they're acutely aware of the social effect of that first term lost, and they're all very keen to make sure they still get that, albeit maybe after Christmas. It's a much higher concern than you'd probably realise for them!
AKA Simon.
Trying to get to grips with a Staffordshire allotment (UK)
Not a sign of the community groups getting back together around here. It's one cancellation after another of local events. The town's Old Folks Treat which provides a Christmas meal and entertainment over 3 days for the older folks in town up hill is the latest cancellation. That's usually quite a celebration. No chance of the chat club re-convening in the village or the cinema in the village hall.
I've had to ask the daughter to put some of the frozen veg from the allotment in her freezer so that I have room in mine for stuff. Have made soups with the excess courgettes which are now frozen in my chest freezer. Also invested in a spiralizer to widen the variety of things I can do with veg. Daughter has been making jam and chutney this year like a good one.
I'm also going to have to see if anyone has any really large plastic plant pots going free for next season. Facebook here I come. Usually only the small stuff available and I'm fairly well stocked with those. But it's worth asking. With coming down to one allotment only I shall be growing spuds in containers and other such stuff on the concrete hard standing. And possibly bringing fruit bushes over as well. Time to investigate.
My daughter is trying to work out how she'll manage on her bursary, come January, so has been practicing making more stuff from scratch. Yesterday she made and bottled six jars of baked beans.
So proud!
Maggie
Never doubt that you can change history. You already have. Marge Piercy
Life shrinks or expands in proportion to one's courage. Anais Nin
Green Aura wrote: ↑Mon Aug 17, 2020 10:24 am
Yesterday she made and bottled six jars of baked beans.
I do hope you have a proper canner.
I made a batch of baked beans some years ago and bottled and water bathed them. A couple of weeks later they had all started working and probably full of botulism, I had to throw them all away.
That's what spurred us to import our canner.
Tony
Disclaimer: I almost certainly haven't a clue what I'm talking about.
Always good to make things from scratch, but I fear that especially for baked beans it's cheaper buying them... Unless you insist on organic, then making your own might just be an advantage. It takes so much energy to boil the stuff. Jam is cheaper buying, too, unless you have a surplus of fruit, and all the jars, and don't use pectin (which I do). I make some jam mostly for friends who like those particular types. I can't really eat it myself, anyway.
Ina
I'm a size 10, really; I wear a 20 for comfort. (Gina Yashere)
