Selfsufficientish.com

Flo wrote: ↑Mon Jul 12, 2021 7:52 am

Weedo wrote: ↑Wed Jul 07, 2021 9:56 pm Another Covid spinoff - Apparently the huge demand for caravans, campers and boats is taking up all the materials

I wonder what will become of all these caravans, campers and boats in two or three years time? Will there be a glut of these on the market when self sufficient travel goes out the window?

They will go back to where they were prior to lockdown; rotting in front gardens up and down the country. Having done a couple of Cornwall runs over the last 6 months to see assorted parents (Mrs. Viper's family is best described as "a bit Jeremy Kyle") there's so many campervans tramping around the South West too, and lining the sides of the M5 where they have broken down. A lot of stuff has ben dragged out of storage and put back in to service. The 40-year-old MOT exemption rule hasn't helped a massive amount either for the real old dogs.

Just realised we're talking about new campervans etc. Who on earth can afford them? :O

Viper254 wrote: ↑Mon Jul 12, 2021 11:59 am
Just realised we're talking about new campervans etc. Who on earth can afford them? :O

People with no sense, less money and a large credit card bill/loan?

Even the hire charges are more than B+B rates up here.

My neighbours have a very old campervan and used it every year for their holidays... This year, they can't afford the charges; they've gone up threefold.

That's sad, people being priced out

Potentially it will also lead to people camping wild. I think that's a serious problem in some parts of the country already...North Coast 500, for example?

Hah and the bane of Northumberland which is a large and wild in places county. The National Park regularly gets a snit on over it.

Camping wild - if anybody can tell that anybody has done it, they're doing it wrong :|

Hah but I didn't get caught.

how can they afford it? Simple, they are no longer spending on dining out, international travel and entertainment. Not only are the boats and campers in vogue but house renovations have gone ballistic here - hundreds of thousands of dollars per reno around where I live - at least eight major renos in my block alone at the moment- house prices are through the roof and most don't even get advertised before they are sold.

I await with bated breath the inevitable 2 -3 % rise in interest rates on all these loans

Back in January, I was talking about walking the dog for exercise. Well, she died - old age. Now I just have to walk for exercise. I'd love to lose this "muffin top".

Strawberries were decent this year. Not a bumper crop, but respectable.

The black currants were a bust. We got about two cups of them, enough for only a couple of small jars of jam. The bushes are getting crowded and shaded by the encroaching woods. So I am going to take cuttings and replant in the fall in a new area that is sheltered and gets lots of sun. It will be a couple of years before the transplants produce, but I am hopeful.

The peaches are doing spectacularly well this year. They aren't ready yet, but will be in a couple of weeks. I sprayed dormant oil and sulphur in the spring to combat leaf curl, and they responded well. Even after thinning, the trees are loaded. I have some major pruning to do before next year. Some of the longer branches are down on the ground with the weight of fruit. I have them propped up with patio chairs and bits of fencing.

We have a single apple tree, with four (count 'em!) almost-ripe apples on it. We planted two saplings a couple of years ago, but one of them didn't survive. We are going to get another one to replace it. The variety is called Gravenstein, a local favourite. It is the best-tasting apple for pies and for eating fresh.

We are still being cautious about covid. We have one social group that we go to every week, but that is all. Both of us have had our two shots (Pfizer). Even double-vaxxed, you can still get the virus and transmit it; you just won't end up in the ICU. So we are being careful. Social restrictions were eased up considerably after our third wave, but the numbers suggest that a fourth wave is starting up here, fueled by the delta variant. We wear masks indoors everywhere we go (most people do), and we avoid crowded places. Everyone expects new restrictions to be imposed soon to control the fourth wave.

I'm sorry to hear you lost your dog. But we can't do anything about old age...

I envy you your peach tree! But if you are trying to lose your "muffin top", be aware that fruit has a lot of sugar... When I worked in strawberry and cherry picking (a long time ago), my boss said he always put on a lot of weight during harvest. He couldn't stop himself eating fruit. And that although he was working at least 16 hours per day...

I'm sure a watched tree never bears fruit - like the watched pot that never boils.

Freezer is full at the moment though that does include a variety of pasta type meals made up with oddments of vegetables that didn't deserve the full blanching and freezing treatment. Should be able to eat once a day with only defrosting and reheating in the microwave.

Yep it's been an odd year over here for predicting what will grow but stuff seems to have done so. It's going to be a busy winter working on the allotment soil - two winters off with knee operations and you can see that things need doing.

I am wondering why I don't seem to have any runner beans this year. They are flowering quite nicely, but no beans. Did I plant them too late? The weather has been fine, mostly...

Well Ina my first thought was the first in this list but take your pick:
Lack of moisture at the roots. ... Lack of pollinating insects, perhaps because of cold, wet or windy weather. Very hot weather, especially at night, which inhibits the germination of pollen grains, interrupting the pollination and fruit-set process.