A Gardening Man's musings on life, gardening, music and incidental things

Horticultural Termination

Thu, 17 May 2012 17:10:27 GMT

Horticultural termination - by a man called Arnold!

Lawn Mower Explodes!

Tue, 10 Apr 2012 18:55:34 GMT

The exploding lawn mower article is now on the web.

Exploding lawn mowers and cleaning CD's

Fri, 06 Apr 2012 19:33:45 GMT

Extract from Column: "......putting your entire music collection (CD's) into the washing machine is probably not a good idea..." On the web next week, in the Ross-shire Journal today. Also the tale of an exploding lawn mower!

New Rural Rambling Article

Wed, 21 Mar 2012 19:48:46 GMT

Latest Rural Rambling Article now on line: War Horse, The Iron Lady and Kevin Bacon

Now is the time that decides the future

Sun, 18 Mar 2012 00:44:35 GMT

"Now is the time that decides the future". Opening line of latest Rural Rambling. On web next week.

On a different note, wrote a piece for the Journal a few years ago about the hospital experience for elderly patients in need of care. It appears that little has changed in this respect throughout the UK unless you happen to be in Intensive Care (where the care is exceptional). As always it is not easy to complain when you are sick, disabled or dead. Shocking state of affairs ignored by politicians.
The solution: raise the voting age at the next general election to those of 70 years and over. Anyone below that age ineligible. That should sort it out.
Article is here: http://www.ruralgateway.org.uk/en/node/1814

Is the Education Minister an "Ass"?

Sun, 19 Feb 2012 21:42:47 GMT

I read that Michael Gove, Education Secretary, has decided that all holidays taken during term time by school pupils should be banned. Permission for such 'jaunts' is to be removed from the remit of Headteachers. For some reason the phrase "silly ass" comes to mind! I suggest he reads this: http://www.ruralgateway.org.uk/en/node/3075

Gardening for Free - and even for profit

Sun, 12 Feb 2012 11:40:24 GMT

New Rural Rambling Article

The weather has a spring feel to it today - in the north of Scotland anyway.
I am seeing all sorts of gardening hints and tips for growing plants at minimum cost on websites at the moment, so it''s a good time to plug the book. Still in print, published about ten years ago, not too popular with the garden centres as it questions their validity (but not their cafes). Essentially a 'grow your own' plants and 'sell them' sort of tome. It is on Amazon but quicker to buy direct from the publisher - and an interesting publishing house it is too if you get the chance to browse their website. The book: In Pursuit Of Perennial Profit - The Pot Of Gold At The Bottom Of The Garden. That's it, my yearly plug.

Latest Rural Rambling

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 23:53:10 GMT

Latest Rural Rambling - in the newspaper today (Ross-shire Journal) and online from Canada
Not too sure about that bit "...stockbrokers at the bar and spaniels under the table..". In the current political climate should it be the other way round?

Seaweed, Stockbrokers, Bee Gees and Masterchef.

Sat, 04 Feb 2012 17:10:18 GMT

Just back from collecting seaweed to spread on the raised beds. Needs chopping finely with the petrol hedge cutter. I look forward to that tomorrow!
Newspaper Rural Rambling Column in the Journal next week tells of of Stockbrokers, Hogs, Spaniels and Olives.
Best Radio Program of the week: still the Tom Morton Show on BBC Scotland .It's all about the music. An hour and a half isn't long enough.
Current CD in the car: The best of the Bee Gees.
Most pretentious TV program of the week: The Review Show.
Best program on TV last week: Masterchef (nothing to do with the cooking, it's the commentary that does it for me)
The possibly impossible, but possibly possible comeback of the decade - the Liberal Democrat Party if they manage to raise the tax threshold to £10,000 by Easter - and they don't put their foot in it and do something daft like endorse tax avoidance schemes for the impossibly wealthy. Or did they possibly just do that?
The most credible politician of the week: can't think of anyone, probably the hordes of MP's that say nothing when they really they should be saying something.
Most interesting Garden Website of the week: Beechgrove Garden . Possibly. They do a good TV program as well - nothing too pretentious. In fact BBC Alba do a good TV program in gaelic about gardening as well. Worth watching (seriously) even if you can't understand a word of it.

War Horses and Donkeys

Wed, 01 Feb 2012 00:05:41 GMT

Temperature below freezing over-night so no need to start work until at least ten in the morning as everything will be too frozen. One of the perks of the job in winter - that's the optimistic way to view things. I shall have a lie in. Excellent.
Just returned from seeing the film "Warhorse". Quite a good film - very horsey. I don't think I have ever written about horses (and there are plenty of them around here) but I did do a piece on donkeys and information technology a couple of years back.

Mr and Mrs Basserole

Mon, 30 Jan 2012 20:31:26 GMT

Mr and Mrs Basserole remembered - from 2008!
I'm sure they are still at it today.

On "Weeding The Web" website

Sat, 28 Jan 2012 00:48:15 GMT

On "Weeding The Web" - thanks to Helen Gazeley.

Spring on it's way

Fri, 27 Jan 2012 22:00:16 GMT

February next week - moving in the right direction. Spring won't be far off. There are bulbs emerging very early this year. Let's hope the predicted cold weather won't kill them off.

El Clasico in the little Town of Bethlehem

Sat, 21 Jan 2012 17:01:57 GMT

What's a little rain and wind - even a shortage of scotch pies and bovril - at a football game in the UK compared to this, eh?
http://dissidentvoice.org/2012/01/conflict-and-el-clasico-in-the-little-town-of-bethlehem/

The Rural Rambling Articles Archived

Fri, 20 Jan 2012 09:52:10 GMT

The archive of Rural Rambling Articles can be found here:
https://www.ruralgateway.org.uk/en/node/641

And a few 'thank you's' to folk who have mentioned/published the Rural Ramblings recently:
Helen Gazeley, Thomas Ogren, Donna Dawson, Hector MacKenzie (Editor Ross-shire Journal), Bob McGinness , Norette Fern (Editor - National Rural Network Scotland) and Matthew Appleby
Thanks folks!

A potted review of 2011

Tue, 10 Jan 2012 15:25:47 GMT

Latest Rambling article on line - 2011 revisited:
Wayne Rooney, Nick Clegg, St Paul's Cathedral and pickles
https://www.ruralgateway.org.uk/en/node/4211

Random Acts of Smiling

Tue, 13 Dec 2011 20:32:13 GMT

Latest Rural Rambling on the web just now - random acts of smiling, molecule 2412 (!), Kirstie Allsop and 'randoming'

New Rural Rambling on the web

Fri, 09 Dec 2011 22:38:54 GMT

Latest Rural Rambling - the dog catches fire, wrinkles have a lot to commend them, Kirstie Allsop and the Bramley Women's Institute...and more!
It's in the Ross-shire Journal today, and also on Donna Dawson's ICanGarden Website from Canada. ICanGarden has been featuring them for many years now (thank you to Donna and Tom who now live in Panama) so good to have it on the web with them first for a change.

Garden Media Guild Awards and some other categories thrown in for good measure. And why not?

Fri, 02 Dec 2011 18:55:51 GMT

The Garden Media Guild Awards for 2011 took place on Wednesday in London. I wasn't there, I was up a ladder pruning a Leylandii Hedge at the time.Always interesting to see who the winners and runners up are. Some were familiar names, some were not, but all no doubt well-deserved.
Here are my unlikely award categories and winners for anyone remotely interested: Most Read Garden Blog: Matthew Appleby (undoubtedly the pick of the crop - and more importantly, a man with humour). Most Blatent Advertising in a television program: Alan Titchmarsh for Love Your Garden (product placement gone bonkers). Most Interesting Radio Gardener: has to be Terry Walton, Radio 2, Jeremy Vine Show, Friday. And finally, Most' Looks Like a Gardener to me' are Jack and Victor from the TV program Still Game - a couple of Glaswegian pensioners who look like they must have an allottment somewhere, surely?

Last grass cut of the year (!) is scheduled for tomorrow.

Next Rural Rambling in next week's Ross-shire Journal - tales of Kirstie Alsop, woodburning stoves and something rather untoward that happened to the dog. And my gardening boots feature as well - mustn't forget the gardening bit.

The biggest herb...............

Mon, 14 Nov 2011 20:03:40 GMT

Big herbs, dead horses and the occasional silly ass thrown in for good measure. On the web now: http://www.ruralgateway.org.uk/en/node/4072

Latest Rambling Article - I think food is mentioned somewhere

Mon, 17 Oct 2011 18:23:55 GMT

Top Chef, Top Rugby Man and 'Finding Albert'.
Latest rambling article is HERE

Strange and unusual happenings of a gardening kind

Thu, 22 Sep 2011 18:13:15 GMT

Strange and unusual happenings of a gardening kind: http://www.ruralgateway.org.uk/en/node/3951

Winter of Discontent

Tue, 30 Aug 2011 18:11:49 GMT

The latest Rural Rambling can be found at the link below: A shakespeare sort of link:

"Now is the winter of our discontent" .

Tue, 30 Aug 2011 18:09:45 GMT

"Now is the winter of our discontent" The very latest Rural Rambling can be found here.

London/wedding/congestion charge!

Sun, 28 Aug 2011 22:16:34 GMT

Just returned from London - a family wedding - excellent location, speeches and food. A great event.

As we drove into the capital spotted some signs proclaiming "Congestion Charge Area" - don't know what that is all about but suspect we may find out in the near future via the postman. Could explain why the centre of London seemed less congested with traffic than I recall from many years ago.

September is nearly upon us and it's starting to feel a bit 'parky' in the evenings. Wood burning stove has been in regular use for the past week.

Had an email from Bob in New York. Well, not actually in New York but near enough anyway, It's been blowing a gale out there today!

Latest Rural rambling should be up on the web by the end of the week.