My Patch

Lingerie - Keep out the Cold

Source: Green Fingers
Wednesday 25th March 2009, 1:18pm

More daylight, but still nippy...

Clocks go forward this weekend - an extra hour of daylight to get on with the patch.

Roll on Springtime

What a fabulous bout of sunshine we had earlier - I could practically hear the plants growing but blow me its gone chillu again and I'm having second thoughts about transplanting out a batch of lettuce - French Wonder isn't known for its hardness.

Global Warming? - Not in these parts

If the north wind keeps blowing I'll be looking for thermal protection and that means rumaging aroung the underwear drawer for some little used lingerie.

Allotment protection - lingerie to the rescue

Why spend money on expensice blanket fleece at the Garden Centre when you can do effective plant protection with an assortment of lingerie. A well placed pair of pants can adequately keep the chill from small shrubs and a row of wafty french knickers always catches the eye of passers by adding much needed colour at this time of year.

Lets face it many homes have a wealth of unused lingerie items - charity shops aren't interested so what better way to recycle them than to use them for protection?

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Choose Gifts to Show You Care - Halt Climate Change

Source: Green Fingers
Tuesday 20th January 2009, 5:24pm

Winter blues - take a moment to reflect on the planet and the dramatic effects of climate change.

Well another cold snap is upon us and bar the parsnips (well 'ard) and the leeks thes's nowt doing down the patch but watch the earthworms break trough the melted frost to snaffle a leaf or two.

Something that is noticeable is the reluctance of children to wear hats, scarves and gloves. One theory is that the effects of climate change combined with economic downturn has made the purchase of these items seem unecessary for the few occasional icey spells.

For the past year or so the muckers down the patch have welcomed the prospect of global warming - anticipating bumper crops, growing tomatos and aubergines without the need for a greenhouse and the twice daily attention needed to keep watered during the summer.

However a closer look at the effects of climate change reveals a bleak future.

Act Now and Slow Climate Change

In a single article Oxfam manage to highlight the key concrrns that are associated with climate change

Global Warming is introduced on this communty page that raises awareness of climate change and following the article.

Gifts to show you care

The indulgence of gifts for every occasion only adds to the problem - lets face it most gifts are unwanted so the resources, energy and emmissions that encourage climate change are simple a dreadful waste.

Green Valentine Gifts

Give a true gift from the heart:

• Fairtrade chocolate
• Ethical Lingerie
• Perfume not tested on animals
  

Send Local Flowers

The trend to order flowers from around the world has dramatically increased with online florists becoming more and more attractive to the lazy giver.

If you do want to give flowers choose those that are in season locally and haven't been grown in artificial climates an dflow half way arounf the world.

Better still - Grow your own and deliver personally

What better than to give flowers that you have cultivated yourself. You'll be amazed how a selection of easy to grow flowers along with carefully selected wild foliage can look when arranged properly and what a thrill to see the joy when you deliver them yourself.

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Winter Festival

Source: Green Fingers
Wednesday 26th November 2008, 4:13pm

Brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!

No matter how hard you try it is nigh on impossible to avoid the panic that Christmas brings.

Christmas Shopping Online is Easy

Whilst considering options for Christmas Gifts I came across this blog post from tech talk that had "something for everyone" in a post imaginatively titled Chistmas Gift Ideas

It lists obvious favourites including perfume and chocolates for the ladies and toys for kids but what caugth our eye was the suggestions for blokes. Not here the old stalwarts of socks and Brut gift sets but exciting suggestions such as iPods, laptops and nintendo wii games and recommending online shopping to grab bargains

Land Rover Experience Day Gifts

For the outdoor types the blog referes to trying your hand at off roading. various Land Rover Experience Centres let you loose in one of their vehicles and with an instructer you can test both car and your nerve on demanding terrains, rivers and steep slopes. When I was much much younger my friends and I would sometimes get a car hire for weekend trips to North Wales and blast around the disused quarries and slate mines. Looking back not only was this pastime unfair to the car rental people but inconsiderate to the environment.

So if your reading Mrs Fingers - a gift voucher for the Land Rover Experience would be good.

TOP TIP - if you visit a Land Rover dealer and come across as a warm prospect they'll probably give you a voucher as an incentive to hook you in.

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Autumn: Digging that Funky Music

Source: Green Fingers
Thursday 23rd October 2008, 11:44am

An iPod clipped to the Wellie - A Spade for an air guitar. LETS ROCK!!

My learned chums down the plot have been on and on that I should put the dismal performance and poor yeilds through the appalling summer behind me and look ahead to a new gardening year and a fertile patch.

Dig for Victory

The key to gardening success is preparation - and that means giving the soil a good working over in the autumn so once more I reach for the spade. It occured to me that the backbreaking chore could be made more bearable by listening to music while i work. What better track than the wonderful Blow Monkeys - Digging your scene?

Unfortunately my old Sony Walkman Cassette Player has given up after twenty years of service and it is high time I got hip to the beat and invested in a new portable music player - either a basic mp3 player or cheap iPod.

Mp3 Player or iPod?

No contest the iPod just blows away the competition and out of the various models of newgeneration models available the new nano ipod was by far the most suitable for my outdoor active needs. Designed with the fitness freak in mind the iPod nano has a built in clip and is teeny so you can just hook it onto your wellie top and get to enjoy up to 500 of your fave track.

Music Shortage

Much music I have but none of it is available to fit into an ipod as I have yet to find any way of transferring cassette recordings to become digital - how could I fill my full quota of 500 tracks to get best value from the new nano?

Just the Job: Sites for free music downloads

this blog post offers a great way to find free music mp3 downloads

and after a merry evening I had fab grooves galore so the weekend will see me sapde in hand - its a got to be a whole load more fun playing air guitar than prancing about indoors with Guitar Hero 3 in front of the tv.

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Well Blow Me

Source: Green Fingers
Tuesday 16th September 2008, 3:09pm

The leaves are falling - time for a big blow job

Autumn draws in and its that special time of year for 'special' folk to get out their silly garden toys and make a nuisance of themselves.

Beyond Compare. Price less neighbours

Across the way from My Patch are three houses whoseresidents seem to be holding a "I'm the most annoying fella of the row" competition.

Throughout the year a variety of garden power tools are used by the 'contestants' at inappropriate times - irritating strimmers where some simple weeding would suffice, hedge clippers to trimoff the last fortnights milimeter of growth and huge petrol lawn mowers for a handkerchief blob of lawn.

Now autumn draws nearer the competition hots up and out come the leaf blowers

Seasonal UK Jobs - Leaf Clearing

No ordinary type of Vacuum Cleaner these guys haul huge bagpipe like contraptions around making an incredible racket all in the pursuit of a leaf-free drive on which they will later waste lots of water washing their precious cars.

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