"Trish Brown" wrote in message

Do you have any good ideas for protecting Blue Tongues? Our dog has found
out she can kill them and despite some pretty hairy bellowing at her,
continues to do it.

The only thing I have heard that worked was someone who flogged his dog
thoroughly with a dead Bluey. I was astounded when this person told me what
he had done as he is a mild mannered person who absolutley loves his dog,
but one day, the death toll of Bluey's fianlly just got to him and he freely
admits that he did his nut at the dog and just picked up the latest corpse
of a particularly big and fine Bluey and whaled into the dog. Apparently
the dog avoids Bluey's like the plague now and there have been no new
corpses over several years.

I thought, maybe some pipe of some
description... But how to keep it clear of soil and teach the blueys to
use it?

Aggie pipe held down with rocks/logs into which you roll snails.

FarmI wrote:
"0tterbot" wrote in message news:lJgpj.10637

"Trish Brown" wrote in message


i have been a negligent in my sewing activites lately :-( but i still love
spotlight!


I hate the one that you and I would have access to. There are only about 3
decent staff in the place who know anything about fabric

Yep, standard spotlight staff.

and I hate most of
the fabric they have because the quality is almost universally lousy.

SWMBO'd agrees.


I went in there to buy some japara that I'd seen a week before and of couse
they'd done a rearrangement and I had to go through 5 staff before i found
one who even knew what japara was.

Real japara?

"FarmI" ask@itshall be given wrote in message
...
"0tterbot" wrote in message news:lJgpj.10637
"Trish Brown" wrote in message

i have been a negligent in my sewing activites lately :-( but i still
love spotlight!

I hate the one that you and I would have access to. There are only about
3 decent staff in the place who know anything about fabric and I hate most
of the fabric they have because the quality is almost universally lousy.

it's entirely NOT the best one i've been to, that's for sure! however, if
_i_ know what i want, i can make it work. the staff are terrible!

I went in there to buy some japara that I'd seen a week before and of
couse they'd done a rearrangement and I had to go through 5 staff before i
found one who even knew what japara was.

(i don't know what japara is... ;-)


that is bad news (about the drainage). whenever i see those diagrams of
"how to make drainage trenches" in books, i feel very sad for anyone
reading them with a special interest. jackie french (rather typically!!!)
breezily writes that one can "plant them on mounds" if drainage is bad.

It works for Paul D. who has the mudbrick house and the trout ponds
outside his balcony as that is how he plants his trees.

undoubtedly, he had the foresight to create miniature tablelands, rather
than tiny silly mounds! :-)
kylie

"Trish Brown" wrote in message
...

I've seen fruit trees doing well with tractor-tyre collars. I've always
thought that would be a very easy way to raise a bed for a single tree,
but sadly I have no tractor tyres!

heh. i have some.

i also have a tree (not a fruit tree) that some ninny planted into a car
tyre. now the tyre won't come off & can't be cut either (steel belt).
sigh!!! the trunk is as big as the hole in the tyre. we are flummoxed!

I *so* love your idea with the willows and that was my first thought.
However, fancy putting willows cheek-by-jowl with town water and sewage!
Brrrrrrr!!! Doesn't bear thinking about! I figured casuarinas would be the
nearest native alternative and I do love them too.

hm, are willows a problem in that context though? i thought they only give
people the shits if they're near a watercourse & bits can break off & go
downstream & root everywhere.(?) having said that, i personally think feral
willow is 4 million times better than nude eroded banks anyway!

but of course, the "native alternative" is going to sit better with
everyone.


(he thinks lizards & snakes are the same thing, unfortunately). at the
end of the day, the few blue-tongues which are foolish enough to hang
around our yard have to protect themselves. my reasoning is that they
have a great deal of room away from the yard (47 hectares). clearly that
is where most of them live out long & alarm-free lives. i just go out &
try to rescue whatever it is that he's bailed up when he does his "snake
bark" (does not happen much any more). the blue-tongues just don't come
around so much any more. they seem to be fast learners ime, so perhaps
you could train them into pipes with fruit or meat - you just don't want
to be encouraging a difficult situation though where you're just luring
them to their deaths. ;-)

Yeah, I take your point. Our dog thinks exactly the same thing. We had a
Red Belly living under the house for nearly two years (didn't see a single
mouse in all that time), but sadly, the dog got him in the end. (Actually
she got him in the middle and for the life of me I can't see how she
didn't get bitten!)

most dogs get lucky a few times.

The other battle is with the #)%*%^^&#^ veldt grass that's taken over
the place. It looks fabulous left to its own devices, but it's nearly
two foot tall now! The frogs and blueys are loving it, but it gives me a
pain in the face: when you mow, the cables just rise up like spikes and
refuse to be squashed!

Ah, the problems of the flustered gardener! :-D

it never ends!!
i'm a fan of letting things work for themselves though - fighting it
constantly is just never going to work. when you decide how to work with
what you have & what you want within those limitations, it will go really
well, i am sure. for e.g. i spent some time frustrated beyond belief with
all the rocks we have. then i decided the rocks are a resource, not a
"problem". the soil is still full of rocks, but it no longer bothers me.
:-)

otoh, it breaks my heart we can't have a peppercorn tree, because it gets
too cold here. i love peppercorn trees insanely. but there you have it!
kylie
Yes, I thought the same thing about the recalcitrant grass. I'm going to
try to reduce the lawn area by putting 'things' in at the edges and hoping
some casuarinas will deter it a bit as well. Beyond that, it can just
grow! ;-D

well, if it likes the bog,....!
kylie

"David Hare-Scott" wrote in message
...
One thing that helps is the main paddock is slightly sloping. When I do
plant
in raised beds I allow the rows to point slightly down slope, not on
contour,
this means that when the rain stops the bed drains between rows and the
rows
drain downslope. So far this has saved most things.

slopes help!

drainage not the problem it might have been here because nothing is flat! it
helps a lot.

It's raining again today. This summer we have had:

Nov 194
Dec 117
Jan 144
Feb 73

That's La Nina for you.

I just need a magic bullet for powdery mildew and sooty mould. And the
car
has algae. Really.

well, i can't comment on your car (do you need to borrow some sea
creatures?) but i finally got round to trying the milk solution for powdery
mildew on the curcurbits. omg, it seems to have worked!! (i can't believe it
could be that easy). however, it's not made a dent on the powdery peas
whatsoever. i'm just completely over bloody peas & all the bloody hassle &
then in the end you get hardly any pea for your trouble anyway. as a last
resort i am trying dwarf peas so at least there's no hassle with soemthing
for them to grow up.

sorry, i've interrupted myself with a rant about peas.

it's been raining like the bejesus here as well. it won't stop. we don't
need any more rain at our house. i'm frantic about the erosion i know is
going on about the place & i'm too scared to look.

i'm sure all of this is terribly ironic in some way i can't put my finger on
exactly. whereabouts are you? (although i think the entire eastern seaboard
is awash.)
kylie

0tterbot wrote:

snip

i also have a tree (not a fruit tree) that some ninny planted into a car
tyre. now the tyre won't come off & can't be cut either (steel belt).
sigh!!! the trunk is as big as the hole in the tyre. we are flummoxed!

Ergh!!! Hacksaw?

I *so* love your idea with the willows and that was my first thought.
However, fancy putting willows cheek-by-jowl with town water and sewage!
Brrrrrrr!!! Doesn't bear thinking about! I figured casuarinas would be the
nearest native alternative and I do love them too.

hm, are willows a problem in that context though? i thought they only give
people the shits if they're near a watercourse & bits can break off & go
downstream & root everywhere.(?) having said that, i personally think feral
willow is 4 million times better than nude eroded banks anyway!

but of course, the "native alternative" is going to sit better with
everyone.

As I understand it, willow roots will wrap round your pipes and squeeze
them. Or, they'll infiltrate them and clog them up. Dunno if that's an
old wives' tale, but the local people are very anti-willow! I know
you're not allowed to plant one in our council district.

I love willow too, but I think it deters other native flora and
absolutely takes over riverbanks to the extent that nothing else will
grow there. If willow out-competes your normal flora, then it's stuffing
up an awful lot of habitat for fauna as well.

I've been told the reason for a lot of the parrots we're seeing in towns
lately is the lack of native tucker (including casuarinas) to eat
farther inland. While it's awful in terms of The Drought, I can't say I
mind having the parrots to gawp at! In my childhood, you threw a party
if you saw a galah on its own. Now, we have flocks of galahs and SC
cockies and corellas, oh and even lorikeets of several varieties. AND,
I, myself, personally have seen a flock of Yellow-tailed Black cockies
flying over my very house!!! Never in a million years would I have
thought I'd see that!

--
Trish {|:-} Newcastle, NSW, Australia

"0tterbot" wrote in message
...

It's raining again today. This summer we have had:

Nov 194
Dec 117
Jan 144
Feb 73

That's La Nina for you.

I just need a magic bullet for powdery mildew and sooty mould. And the
car
has algae. Really.

well, i can't comment on your car (do you need to borrow some sea
creatures?) but i finally got round to trying the milk solution for powdery
mildew on the curcurbits. omg, it seems to have worked!! (i can't believe it
could be that easy). however, it's not made a dent on the powdery peas
whatsoever. i'm just completely over bloody peas & all the bloody hassle &
then in the end you get hardly any pea for your trouble anyway. as a last
resort i am trying dwarf peas so at least there's no hassle with soemthing
for them to grow up.

sorry, i've interrupted myself with a rant about peas.

Peas are a hassle for what you get. Great big bushes and when you pick and
shell them two cups of peas. At least the bushes make good compost be
lugumes. I don't grow them in summer, I will plant mine in a week or two.


it's been raining like the bejesus here as well. it won't stop. we don't
need any more rain at our house. i'm frantic about the erosion i know is
going on about the place & i'm too scared to look.


The only erosion problem I have is the banks of one of the little creeks, I
cannot get anything to grow there to stablise it. I need some earthwork done
to flatten down high banks so stuff will grow all over not just on top. Too
wet for earthworks now.


i'm sure all of this is terribly ironic in some way i can't put my finger on
exactly. whereabouts are you? (although i think the entire eastern seaboard
is awash.)

Wards River.

David

"Terryc" wrote in message
FarmI wrote:
"0tterbot" wrote in message news:lJgpj.10637
"Trish Brown" wrote in message


i have been a negligent in my sewing activites lately :-( but i still
love spotlight!


I hate the one that you and I would have access to. There are only about
3 decent staff in the place who know anything about fabric

Yep, standard spotlight staff.

and I hate most of the fabric they have because the quality is almost
universally lousy.

SWMBO'd agrees.


I went in there to buy some japara that I'd seen a week before and of
couse they'd done a rearrangement and I had to go through 5 staff before
i found one who even knew what japara was.

Real japara?

Yes, but the unoiled one whihc one uses for feather pillows/doonas etc. I
was gobbsmacked that they actually had something I really wanted. I went
home and measured up and then went back. I should have just bought the
whole roll when I saw it and been done with it as I could have used it to
remake doonas etc till I drop off the twig.

"0tterbot" wrote in message
"FarmI" ask@itshall be given wrote in message
"0tterbot" wrote in message news:lJgpj.10637
"Trish Brown" wrote in message

i have been a negligent in my sewing activites lately :-( but i still
love spotlight!

I hate the one that you and I would have access to. There are only about
3 decent staff in the place who know anything about fabric and I hate
most of the fabric they have because the quality is almost universally
lousy.

it's entirely NOT the best one i've been to, that's for sure! however, if
_i_ know what i want, i can make it work. the staff are terrible!

Yup. I sent He who Thinks He Should be Obeyed in to buy me some cord and
plastic rings for a Roman blind I'm making. You should have seen the shit
they sent him home with and it won't be of any se at all

I went in there to buy some japara that I'd seen a week before and of
couse they'd done a rearrangement and I had to go through 5 staff before
i found one who even knew what japara was.

(i don't know what japara is... ;-)

It comes in a number of weights and can be oiled or not. It's a closely
woven fabric and you would know oiled Japara as Driz-a-bone. the one I saw
was unoiled though and it is used for doona covers and feather cushion
covers.


that is bad news (about the drainage). whenever i see those diagrams of
"how to make drainage trenches" in books, i feel very sad for anyone
reading them with a special interest. jackie french (rather
typically!!!) breezily writes that one can "plant them on mounds" if
drainage is bad.

It works for Paul D. who has the mudbrick house and the trout ponds
outside his balcony as that is how he plants his trees.

undoubtedly, he had the foresight to create miniature tablelands, rather
than tiny silly mounds! :-)

No -many silly little mounds but they are allowing him to grow his trees OK.

"0tterbot" wrote in message
"Trish Brown" wrote in message

I've seen fruit trees doing well with tractor-tyre collars. I've always
thought that would be a very easy way to raise a bed for a single tree,
but sadly I have no tractor tyres!

heh. i have some.

i also have a tree (not a fruit tree) that some ninny planted into a car
tyre. now the tyre won't come off & can't be cut either (steel belt).
sigh!!! the trunk is as big as the hole in the tyre. we are flummoxed!

Angle grinder and long extension cord or a generator?

FarmI wrote:


Yes, but the unoiled one whihc one uses for feather pillows/doonas etc. I
was gobbsmacked that they actually had something I really wanted. I went
home and measured up and then went back. I should have just bought the
whole roll when I saw it and been done with it as I could have used it to
remake doonas etc till I drop off the twig.



'Remake doonas'? Did I hear you say 'remake doonas'?

This is something I desperately need to do. The stitching of the
channels in nearly all my doonas has deteriorated and the feathers want
redistributing evenly. Since I don't really need to do a tar-baby
impression a this stage of my life (dignified, thank you), I'm a bit
chary of emptying out the feathers when I remake. Fear, I have!

Got any hints for me? ;-D

--
Trish {|:-} Newcastle, NSW, Australia

FarmI wrote:

_i_ know what i want, i can make it work. the staff are terrible!

I think that's part of the job description at spotlight stores. I get
far more help from other women standing in line than I do from the
staff. And 'friendly'? Hah! More like 'fiendly'! Have you ever been to a
Home Yardage store? They're quite excellent, IMHO.

Yup. I sent He who Thinks He Should be Obeyed in to buy me some cord and
plastic rings for a Roman blind I'm making. You should have seen the shit
they sent him home with and it won't be of any use at all

Is that the pre-made Roman blind tape? I've used that and it actually
does what it's supposed to! Much easier than making the assembly from
scratch (I've done both). Or, just use the pre-made tape across the top
and use your rings down the length of the blind?

It comes in a number of weights and can be oiled or not. It's a closely
woven fabric and you would know oiled Japara as Driz-a-bone. the one I saw
was unoiled though and it is used for doona covers and feather cushion
covers.

Oo! Have you ever seen the oiled stuff for sale? My
extra-large-giant-economy-size husband needs a raincoat...

--
Trish {|:-} Newcastle, NSW, Australia

"David Hare-Scott" wrote in message
...


big snip

And the car has algae. Really.


I have moss growing on my (old: 1985-model) car. On the window rubbers.
Any suggestions for removing it that won't take the duco off?

Harold


David

"Harold" Harold.and.a.bit.more@clotmail wrote in message
...

"David Hare-Scott" wrote in message
...


big snip

And the car has algae. Really.


I have moss growing on my (old: 1985-model) car. On the window rubbers.
Any suggestions for removing it that won't take the duco off?

Harold


David


eucalyptus oil

"Harold" Harold.and.a.bit.more@clotmail wrote in message
...

"David Hare-Scott" wrote in message
...


big snip

And the car has algae. Really.


I have moss growing on my (old: 1985-model) car. On the window rubbers.
Any suggestions for removing it that won't take the duco off?

Harold

Bleach, detergent and hot water, and a bristle brush, hose clean.

David