Scrapheap Challenge

[Snadger]

It was a bright morning sohad a trip to the scrapheap. Decided it was time to try and get the forth and final heyhole bed into position ready for planting.
It was a bit of a challenge with RSJ's to shift, concrete lintels to shift,paving flags to shift and because I am running short of paving flags I needed to use an alternative for the paths?

Here's a piccie of what it was like before i started. This looks like a lot less work was required than actually was.



After a full days graft here is an after piccie.



Its not as neat as I would have liked, but at least it gives me the last defined growing area for my four year rotation. I will hopefully level up the path and get some more paving flags substituted once I procure them.

This third piccie is just to show where i am up to with the chicken run and coop. Lots of work to do here but unless my aching back eases a bit there won't be much done tomorrow.

[Snadger]

Although I still had aches and pains from yesterdays graft on the plot I still had to go to the Corn Market this morning and stock up on chook food for the Christmas period.Rather than take car along along the road to the plot (dodgy road) I wheelbarrowed 3 sacks of layers pellets and one sack of mixed corn to plot.
Decided that the wheelie bin I store my chook food in doesn't need to be indoors taking up room in the summerhouse so dragged it out and stuck it in chicken run. Filled it up then stuck a breeze block on top to kep lid down. Filled one bag into feeder for chooks.

The Ibruprofen and Paracetamol I'd taken earlier seemed to be doing the trick and took the edge off any pain so rather than flop down in front of the woodburner I decided to try and be productive.
Laid a few paving flags and put four hoops over the area where i want to plant out the spring cabbage and curly kale. Put a slaters latt over the top of all to hold them together then realised I'd left my posidrive screwdriver in my other coat!
Thought to myself 'What else can i do that aint too strenuous?" Decided to heap up the bushes and twigs i had lying around in the shallow depression i had dug out for the pond and set fire to them. Easier said than done. After lighting loads of clumps of newspaper I couldn't get fire to light. By that time painkillers had worn off so I made a sharp exit for home!

[Snadger]

Arrived at site for about 11.30am to meet a prospective plot holder at noon. Made a cuppa and lit a bonfire to burn off some of the mainly elder bushes that i had ciut away from fence earlier in the year. Plotholder arrived, seemed quite happy with the plot, paid the returnable main gate fee and I gave her a key, saying the plot is yours.

Back on my plot, having remebered to bring my screwdriver I screwed a support latt to the top of the four hoops I had set up over a winter brasica bed.
Trnsplanted 12 spring cabbages I had in modules along with 9 curley kale I had in pots. This filled up the bed nicely.
I then cut some blue debri netting off the roll I'd purchased and fastened it over the top of the hoops.

Below is piccie of coverd bed and piccie of plants within.





By returning to the fire (in the pond well) now and again and tending it, I managed to get all the small brashings burned!

As I left the plot the sun was setting through the skeleton of the trees surrounding the plot, so I couldn't resist trying another piccie. The sunset was a lot better than my photography could portray!

[veggiechicken]

Now why did I think that you'd make the netting frames of a shape that fitted into the keyholes and could be moved around the central keyhole?

[Snadger]

Now why did I think that you'd make the netting frames of a shape that fitted into the keyholes and could be moved around the central keyhole?

I will, but that will be for my spring/summer planted brassicas! The bed I've just covered will be for my winter brassicas and will alternate with its mirror image at the other side of the plot in which I will grow my Japanese onions!

Howay VC, try and keep up!

[Snadger]

Short duration visit to the plot today after battling the traffic and getting Crimbo prezzies for dogs, plus reams of wrapping paper for OH to use..

It was quite bright and the sun shining on the summerhouse made it quite pleasant inside. Lit the woodburner anyway as I had a large root I am slowly managing to get burned.
Because my back was still feeling a bit sore I only did a small ammount of path laying. Moved a couple of heavy RSJ's out of the way but when I came upon a burried one decided to leave it where it was..................to fight another day so to speak.
Resorted to shifting large pots off patio area with a sack barrow to make a bit of room for my table and umbrella! Pruned the Buddleia before shifting it. Dalek at bottom of plot is now full so I think I'll just start spreading organic waste matter, leaves etc straight on the beds.
My plan is to clear the path on the left of the plot to save me having to slalom across the central keyhole beds to get to bottom of plot. Shifted the opening window I scrounged off Jay-el (which i don't think i will use now). I haven't got the heart to give him it back as he was so excited to get rid of it!

[Snadger]

I needed to get to the back of my summerhouse on the outside of my plot to finish nailing/screwing it together and also to be able creosote it. I also wanted the metal panels at the back of the summerhouse (which serve no purpose) to use as a framework for my chook pen.
There were two things in my way, some rather viscious blackberry bushes (nigh on trees!) and a scrap pile.
First couple of piccies are before I attacked it:-





Next piccie is after I had attacked the brambles and managed to dislodge and cart away the two panels I was after. I can now finish nailing and creosote the back of the summerhouse.



The last piccie is of the two panels I rescued. I have them set up roughly where they will go. Once fixed in position they will be clad in the smaller mesh panel, plus others i have to keep the fox out!

[Cadalot]

He will just go up the ladder

[Snadger]

He will just go up the ladder

I don't mind that as the top of the run will be covered in mesh as well!There will also be chicken mesh below ground at 90 degrees all around the perimeter.

I have a similar setup at where my chooks are stationed now which has worked for the last 5 years and only had the fox in once...........when I stupidly left the gate open by mistake!

[veggiechicken]

Is that scrapheap on the plot next door to yours Snadge?
Does every plot have a scrap heap?

[Snadger]

Is that scrapheap on the plot next door to yours Snadge?
Does every plot have a scrap heap?

No that scrapheap is outside of my plot on the end of the access track. It is the remains of the scrapheap that was INSIDE of my plot and is being added to all the time, as i've just found some more scrap inside my plot.
And yes, most plots on the site have there own scrap heap but most throw soil over it and turn it into a feature!

With Council cutback its like trying to get blood from a stone asking them for skips. At the next AGM I'm going to see if we can finance skips from funds.

40 skips at £150 per skip should just about do it as we need a skip per plot...........and two for mine!

[veggiechicken]

Can you sell the scrap metal?

[Snadger]

Can you sell the scrap metal?

If you look at some of the earlier posts you will see that the 'heavy' stuff was removed by a scrap man.(probably for nowt?) I don't think this comapratively 'light' stuff is worth his while. It looks like aluminium but is actually galvanised steel, which aint worth there bother.

[Snadger]

Attacked the last metal fencing panel that was stopping me getting to the rear of the summerhouse. Managed to get it out but when I severed the last screw the panel fell over taking the rest of the woodenfence with it! Extricated it from fence and with the aid of a 2" X 2" spacer attached it in its new position to the end of the summerhouse once I spirit levelled it.

Decided i wasn't going to perservere continueing the fence today but the plan was to creosote the back of the summerhouse now I could get to it.
Donned the Compo lookalike wellies and battered boilersuit, buttoned right up to the neck.
The creosote I used was proppa creosote I've had for about 20 years. It can give severe burns, in fact it had rotted throught the top of the plastic container!.............hence the overalls and wellies.
Finished painting it (the plywood seemed to soak it up like a sponge, which I haven't seen with water based product) and have enough left in the bucket to do the inside of the chicken coop. It doen't arf clear your sinuses and red mite hate this stuff so once its been aired for a month or so will be just the job.

The sun was shining on the chicken coop so decided to carry on with the cladding of it with vertical timbers I'd scrounged from a redundant fence!

After that I moved the polytunnel frame to the other side of the plot so that I could scrape and sweep the boundary path. Didn't get it all done, but tomorrows another day.

And just in case VC reads this, I didn't light the woodburner, have a sit down, or make a brew all day!

[veggiechicken]

Have you run out of firewood, Snadge? Have to stay busy to keep warm