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Wednesday 27 January 2016

Who lives in a house like this? and Mandy has a new toy.....

Buggy things first as there are not too many of them at this time of year. My OH brought this in for me to have a look at. He found it on an old plastic chopping board which was out in the barn around his work bench. I don't know who might have made it, but I'm guessing a solitary wasp? Any ideas? It's about 2cm wide, and I was very pleased that my new toy made a good show of photographing it.....



Yup I've joined the 21st century and changed my ancient but very cute clamshell mobile phone, which was from before the days of even cameras on phones, for a smartphone! Talk about shock to the system. Now I don't use mobiles much at all, and my real reason for wanting one was so that I could take snaps of things whilst out and about (not that I go out and about very much) and upload instantly to social media. Or take photos of the cats looking cute and share on facebook without having to get up off the sofa. And I was feeling really left out that I could not join Instagram just because I didn't have a smartphone. I still don't think that's fair, even though it seems like all the world and his dog have smartphones already, so there's nobody else but me feeling left out.

What was great about the deal I got was that it only cost me about €17 because we had so many supermarket fidelity points saved, that cashed in came to €150! So I don't feel guilty now for spending on something which isn't totally necessary.

I hadn't been in the mood for taking photos lately but I had to try this phone camera out, didn't I? It's so hard to use though - it has a fair few semi manual settings which can be used (it stays on f2.2) but it's hard to do all that with your finger when you are not used to it. And to tap on the screen to take the photo whilst trying to hold it steady, and point at the thing you want to shoot, and keep it in focus - my god, how do you guys do it? The image stabilisation must be great in this camera as it did a good job I reckon, as I was waving it about all over the place! I have edited some of these photos a little bit but mostly crops, contrast etc. It's not bad for an 8MP camera.  Oh and I discovered quite by accident that it even has a zoom. Good grief, modern technology is amazing!

Here you can see where I've been attacking the ivy at the base of the trees, and a black cat wanting to be in the picture.   


I was really surprised to see the Mirabelle plums already blooming a couple of weeks ago!! They are normally in blossom mid to late February.



I'm still in hack, slash and burn mode in the garden. I'm not out of the woods yet (hoho) and I don't have much desire to do many of the garden jobs that need doing, but I am happily going out in the afternoons, in most weather, to attack brambles and ivy. I'm sure a therapist would have a field day with that, but it all needs doing anyway and it's better than staying indoors doing nothing. I tried taking a photo of them both, plus whippy saplings, but they don't show up much. This is just the other side of the 'beach' area of the pond but you can't see it from here, because of the undergrowth.


I am enjoying liberating tree bark, however if it is not covered in ivy it is covered in lichen! :-)


Guess what's finally finished flowering? Yup those nasturtiums are going into the compost bins now - yet the calendula and borage are still alive, albeit the frost killed off their flowers. The plant that surprised me though is feverfew, as it doesn't seem to have been phased by the frosts at all and the flowers don't look any different.


Also wanting to flower in the jungle is a self seeded PSB! That'll be eaten soon.


I had to show you Keith's carrots. Because he is a bit heavy handed when sowing seeds (well he has big hands) and they didn't get thinned much, they have come out all sizes as they were growing so close together. It makes it more fun when digging them up though. There is a bit of root fly damage now but not too much.


Up against the house wall here is the new heuchera bed which was all I had the energy to deal with in the autumn. It's the bit with all the snowdrops in it. We pruned back the huge old yucca and I dug out tons of weeds and replanted loads of snowdrops and some early narcissus bulbs in betweeen the new heucheras. Two of the heucheras have even sent up flower stems which is just more of the odd weather craziness! Piles of snow dumped on parts of the USA whilst Rennes airport recorded almost 17C/62.6F the other day. Mad. But I'll take this over the snow.  

The other bed is a work in progress as it had been taken over by creeping things, both weeds and 'real' plants. I have a couple of new purple heucheras to go in there along with other things which will be replanted.



The hedge guy has been and I wonder if he noticed my asparagus bed..... luckily there are none shooting yet, because it certainly needs some tlc.


Harry wanted to help...


Just a pic to show how the ivy has spread even up the house end of the garden.


Oh and Bertie wanted to have his pic taken (he didn't really, he was busy grooming himself, but I got lucky and snapped at just the right moment when he looked up as I called him).


There is no hope for me now! :-)


If any of you are on Instagram you can find me there, follow me and I'll follow you back, although I've only posted two photos so far, so my home page or whatever you call it doesn't look very interesting. Yet.....

https://www.instagram.com/chateaumoorhen/

22 comments:

  1. Perfect pictures, phone cameras are amazing and for online images they are more than enough. People are shooting full movies on phones these days and with practice the effects and editing features are incredible. I hardly use my DSLR these days, mainly for the convenience of having the phone with me.

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    1. Thanks Ian. I agree that phone pics are fine for fb and instagram etc, but I can see the difference between my 8MP and some of my other cameras on a big monitor! However it's going to be handy, that's for sure. I liked your colourful mix of photos on Instagram. :-)

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  2. Good luck with your phone, I admit that phones and tablets and I do not have an affinity! I need keys. Lovely to see such lushness while we have a couple of feet of snow. (Actually. less now) My brassicas are still under the polytunnel-turned-cloche. I need to go shopping, which hurts!

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    1. Hi D Woman - it took me absolutely ages to get used to my Kindle Fire and using it for the internet, but now it's indispensable! I use a stylus for tapping on the screen as it's less set up for fat fingers than a phone is. I'll be checking out your snowbound posts soon - nothing worse than having to buy veg when yours is out there but inaccessible!!

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  3. Nice photos taken with that new phone Mandy.
    Now you will be able to experience the joys of 'Predictive' text when texting or emailing someone.{:))

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    1. Thanks Roy. I'm used to the horrors of predictive text thanks to my Kindle Fire. What fun that is. :-)

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  4. Trying PSB for first time...growing really well inside right now. Looking forward to your photos on Instagram! I don't even own a cellphone, but do use iPad for Instagram (just started).

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    1. Good luck with the PSB, Juliet. I see from your blogger profile that you deleted your blog.... I'd looked before but there was no way to comment! Instagram and fb etc are a great way to share pics anyway if you are not in the mood to write. I like to keep my blog going as it's a garden diary of sorts, amongst other things. :-)

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  5. Looks like a mud nest made by a Potter Wasp Mandy? Nice pics, phones are okay for grab shots...

    https://vanessafrance.wordpress.com/2013/09/13/answer-to-last-weeks-conundrum-potter-wasps/

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    1. Hi JJ and thanks. Any camera is better than having no camera with you!

      I'd hoped you would come through with the answer to the bug question! Potter wasps sound fascinating and thanks for the link. :-)

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  6. Very interesting critter house!!! Please let us know if you figure out what it is. Love all your photos especially the ones of the cats :-)

    Enjoy your phone. I love mine even more now than when I first got it :-)

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    1. Marianne - it's a Potter Wasp nest. They are solitary wasps even though they are part of the family which contain social wasps. They sound fascinating.

      I'm sure I'll love my phone better in time when I have really got to grips with it, and figured out the way it will be most useful to me. Thanks!

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  7. Love the little potter wasp nest Mandy - the workmanship is just amazing - what a find :)

    Very envious of your smart phone!! :) I just have an ancient pay as you go which I just keep for emergencies in case the car conks out somewhere when I am on my own. Would so love to update it but difficult really to justify expense to OH! I didn't realise you had to have one to be on instagram! May think of a way of justifying a purchase that way! The photos you've taken are great - my daughter takes some good ones with her i-phone (or is it a smart phone?) really don't know the difference although her's is an Apple one. The one thing that really does appeal is all those apps you can get especially the natural history ones!

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    1. I know, RR, it's one of the cutest things I've ever seen made by an insect. Apparently they have little lids too!

      I've still got my pay as you go account as I only had a phone for emergencies too, but I can play with this one! K bought the same phone a few weeks ago (he does use his so has X amount of free calls and texts with his contract so pointless me paying extra). I know little about the things other than iPhones are smartphones which are mega expensive!

      Thanks for the reminder, I shall have to go in search of some apps like that. And I will get to your blog - I had started to read one of your posts several times but never got to finishing due to one thing or another. xx

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  8. I was going straight for potter wasp nest, but I'm a bit late to that party! Everything else looks great. Cats love to help don't they, i.e. by standing in the most awkward place possible while you work. It would be ok if you coul;d get them to carry off little sacks of earth, or vegetables, in panniers.

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    1. Hi Simon, never mind, but the more buggy people at the party, the better! My cats tend to be better at helping indoors, especially helping me get down the stairs by walking in front of me and stopping every couple of steps. And crab walking me across the living room floor. :-)

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  9. Loving your latest pictures Mandy!
    I inherited Alan's cast off smart phone a few months ago and I haven't even worked out how to take photos! Sending photos from it is going to be another learning curve after that!

    Philippa xx

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    1. Thanks Philippa - I enjoyed being out in the sunshine taking them. Ask Alan to show you how it works. Thankfully K has the same phone - that's why I had phone envy! There's probably more to the phone than I have discovered but I hate reading manuals and prefer just playing around with cameras until I have figured out the basics at least! xx

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  10. The plum blossom is beautiful! And the PSB, Oh! Stunning!
    It is easier with a smartphone isn't it? I do find though, my phone only takes good pictures when outside. Indoors thy're awful, even after playing with the different settings!

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    1. Thanks Sara - it's so nice to see flowers in the depths of winter. I'm glad I spread out my snowdrops for that reason. Going to pick that PSB today I've three plants sprouting already but they are an early variety called Rudolph. The others won't be ready for a while yet!

      This phone camera has a flash which amazed me!! :-)

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  11. Lovely photos of your garden and kitties Mandy. I'm still clinging on to my old faithfull Nokia, it's been dropped on the floor so many times, I'm surprised it's still going. I've thought about instagram, but I don't have a smartphone, though I do have a phone/tablet thingy so maybe I could use that.
    P.s nice to hear you're out pottering in the garden again.xx

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    1. Thanks Deb! I've kind of skipped a generation of phones, the more modern non smart phones and mine still had green text on a tiny screen. :-) I'm still not posting photos every day like many do on places like that cos I just can't be bothered... haha!

      I've turned to weeding the last two afternoons and am attacking a bed in the front of my garden which didn't get touched last year, is full of weeds and even has the dreaded ivy sending 4 foot long runners all through it. Shows how you really need to keep on top of things. Cheers my dear. xx

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