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I have a large thistle growing in front of my foxgloves, I was going to dig it out but the noticed the sparrows eating it, anyone know why they do this?

Perhaps they think it's a foxglove, or they're after aphids, or the seed. It;s nice to see our local councils leaving the roadside verges and vacant ground for the wildlife.Let your thistle live,Val, as a contribution.

Hi Val, how is life on the plotty. The Beebs servers seem to be down.

The House Sparrow will eat just about anythinganimal and vegetable. 838 different types of food have been found in their stomachs. (Thats science) they also seen

During the spring they seem to be specially attracted to yellow flowers for unknown reasons.

With todays storm thistle and sparrow will probably both be blown away

 8)Hi Wills, thought everyone had deserted me, Its definately the thistle leaves they're eating, not the foxglove, I'm going to leave it Ken, its their garden to, we went to Ashford the other day and the amount of different wild flowers along the verges was lovely to see, poppies etc. it took me back to the 50's..... Have you got this wild wind too Wills? My front garden is full of branches and leaves, its all swirling around out the back, as soon as we get a bit of rain the wind dries it up.Looks like it'll be a clean up day tomorrow.

Well we already had lots of rain wind and hail this morning.The garbage containers ar all on their backs at least the ones that were emptied today.

And over here about ten years ago they stopped spraying the green stuff on the sides of the roads. Now there are popies and blue and yellow flowers along the roads. Much nicer.

Sounds beautiful William! I wish they would let things be over here.

Might be a bit of a disappointment. Having not much nature and wild life in the first place we're easy to please

What do you mean not much in the way of wildlife and nature? There must be something? Birds - squirrels - bats? I've never been to Holland but I always imagine it to be a lush haven!  :)

Well Plocket, maybe I overestimate the amount of empty space and nature you've got on the British Isles. I've hiked the Scottish highlands in a group and solo, camping on my own in the Scottish mountains (Monadliath). That's what I call space, nature and wildlife. We've got lots of beautifull places and wildlife, but nothing to compare with that.

Ahh William! The Scottish Highlands are rather exceptional. Unfortunately though I don't live in a croft with no electricity and nature as neighbours. I live on the outskirts of town - although there are lovely canals, a river, and plenty of fields close by. But I guess it is what we get used to or take for granted. I used to live on the outskirts of London so nature means so much more to me now than pigeons and rats!!!

Hi Wills and Plocket, Scottish highlands are wild Wills, here down south we have a much more gentle nature, as you saw on Britain goes wild. Also towns and cities where I should imagin there's even less wild life, I think we have to love where we're at and try to improve what we've got, I'm sure your country is beautiful Wills, different maybe but lovely all the same.


How are you Plocket, did you get much of the storm yesterday? We've had a few things blown over and down, clearing up today, the winds have dropped.

Hey Val! Pretty windy here! Would have loved thunder and lightning!!! Euc blew down again so I have sawn it off at about 4 foot! It will sprout and keep going from there. I just got fed up with trying to keep it up. I guess I shouldn't live atop a hill!!!

Hi Val, you're right about trying to imrove what we've got.
I don't know if I've told you this before, but during the winter months I join a group of volunteers and every other saturday we go afield and coppice willows, ash and other coppiced trees. Just to do a little maintenance on our traditional countryside (polders, canals, windmills and coppiced trees). And its great for wildlife. Nestingspace for birds and bats, some specialized vegetation that grows in the "wig" of the coppiced tree. And the nice thing is that the volunteers get to do the nice bits, the trees in the countryside, not the ones next to the roads. And all the sawing is done by hand, (not with noisy and smelly chainsaws). So its a good workout, with nice people in beautifull winterlandscapes.

William you do work hard. And you said there wasn't much nature near you! Love bats by the way - have pipistrels near us and we watch them on nice evening. Cute!

 8)Wow Wills, you certainly do your bit for conservation, good on ya, Sounds really enjoyable too, Do you take your flasks of soup and tea? You've probably got more nature round you than most of us have.

Well the nice thing is that a lady takes care of the catering. (Coffee, soup, biscuits) And the activities are organized and sponsored by an organisation called the North-Holland Landscape. Our local group has its own workshed (more a house than a shed) and equipment at its disposal.

Sounds very well organised, its good doing something with the community isn't it, makes you feel needed. We've lost that community spirit here, people are so suspicious of each other, its just little pockets of "clubs" that do anything together and if you're not a club type person its difficult.

Well it is nice. :D

People from all walks of life and ages take part in a very relaxed and sociable way and it is not a closed club but rather open. Some people partcipate the entire winter, others join the group on a few occasions. But no pressure at all. Not on the amount of 'muscle' people put into their "work" and no social pressure like: "we don't do these sort of things in our club "  >:(

Our local Wildlife Trust has "Tuesday Volunteers". I'm keen to get involved but can't with my commitments at the moment. When my daughter starts school I want to help. It sounds like what you are doing - but they don't have a caterer!!!

Trying to suss the gimmick!  ;)

Moving text didn't work - just in case you didn't notice! Let me try again.....

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Cool!!!

Hey Plocket and Wills what's all these moving objects floating about, good job I haven't a migraine, it takes a time for us oldies to adjust our eyes......How do you do it?

Right going to practise with all these buttons now.....

Quote

nope nothing happened there  :'(

 ??? :P :-\ try again

Hey Val! Type the text, then highlight it, then press the button you want!!!

Having a Hard time?

 8)

Er... Val lovie? You are doing it!!!  :D

Got to give it another go, its like a kid on a fairground this.

Here are some beautifull coppiced willows
(http://home.tiscali.nl/wdvadvies/Pics/Coppice_knotwilg.jpeg)

Oh Wills thats lovely, how did you do it? If that is your countryside its not unlike Kent. Was that some of the trees you copiced? Doesn't it look great.

Well I don't have a digital camera,this is a picture I found somwhere else on the web. But places like these can be found around here. In a 5-15 km radius from where we live.

Some more from around here. (I think you like these better than pictures of traffic jams and our national airport.)
(http://home.tiscali.nl/wdvadvies/Pics/Ronde%20Venen.jpeg)
(http://home.tiscali.nl/wdvadvies/Pics/Botshol.jpeg)

Hi Val,

Amazing, you are just up the road from me!  I live in Boughton and, whilst it's not too wild and woolly around here, agree that we have lovely, lush countryside in Kent with quite a variety of hills, flat marshland and seashores!  ;D

Oh Guys - please! I'm from Kent and sometimes I miss it so much - stony beaches on a windy day, the white cliffs, hops, oast houses. And easy access to Europe on the train.....

Hi everyone,  Well I'm blowed fancy you living in Boughton Muddy, Its a small world, well your village is lol.We may have even passed each other in Canterbury, probably in the garden centres.


Wills how dare you say your country hasn't got what we have, its so lovely, its my idyll to live near a river, lake or stream, I have to be content with the sea,lucky ol' you.

Pocket love, haven't you any relations still this way? I can remember living in London years ago for 10 years, I was so homesick for Kent, I used any excuse to come home for a break. Most of the hops have hopped it anyway, I think there might be one or two fields Muddy's way, mind you haven't seen them this year.

Hi Val!

No all my relos live this way now: sister in Cheshire, M&D in Shropshire (to be nearer me and sis!), me in Staffordshire, MIL in Liverpool - brother in Oz (which is no bloody good!!!). Best friend in London and visit occasionally but difficult with little one. Can just look at photos of the English vines, hops, beaches, cliffs and preserve my memories..... Going to France later in the year so will relish Dover (ha ha!!!)..... Ho hum...

Hi Val, well my little dreamhouse would be a small old farm on the edge of woodland and open coutryside along a small river or stream. I know where to find these but they are not for sale and way beyond budget.  :-\

But I'm not complaining. We're very happy in our home on our 300 sq metres.  :D

But it is nice to enjoy these natural niceties in our country. Lots of people just are incapable of noticing and enjoying these little gems.

Oops!  Better figure out how to post piccies on here then.  Hop field across the road will be ready for harvest in august!  Can't have plocket pining away for want of seeing it!  :D

I'm going to ask my boy to help with some pictures , don't be scared folks it won't be of me, we don't want the computers down, Yes go on Muddy lets see the hop fields, by crikey we had some lovely times out there, as a kid it was great you didn't have to work all the time.What is 300 sq, meters in proper measurements Wills? Sounds big, just asked  him indoors, I got the idea, roughly the same as ours but with the house on, whatever it is as long as you're happy thats what counts.



Plocket don't think you'd like Dover much now, full of asylum seekers, they can be very intimidating,  but the cliffs are still there and the you'll pass  the countryside on your way down. Have a good time, is it for a day trip or a stay?

Hi Val, 300 sq metres equals roughly 360 sq yards or 3200 sq feet (foot?)

Thanks Wills , I haven't caught up with modern weights and measures, I'd still be imperial if I could. Good old £.s.d. doesn't sound the same now, give us a couple of bob, has a ring to it, 20p is boring.

Hi Val! No I'm not that keen on Dover!!! Luckily we will just be passing through. A day trip from Staffordshire!!!! Laughed my socks off!!! We've got two weeks in France in a Gite, near Le Touquet. Can't wait. First foreign holiday for 2 1/2 years!!! First holiday that little one will fully appreciate hopefully!

Would love to see any piccies! Am so impressed with this facility on A4A!

Take care, Px

Val / Plocket some more pictures from where I live.

The lake
(http://home.tiscali.nl/wdvadvies/Pics/Westeinder.jpeg)

Close to where we live
(http://home.tiscali.nl/wdvadvies/Pics/De%20Hoef.jpeg)

(http://home.tiscali.nl/wdvadvies/Pics/Botshol_Luchtfoto.jpeg)

Sorry Plocket wasn't thinking, so used to folk nipping over, You'll have a great time bring us back a stick of rock.


Wills piccies are lovely, you've got a lot of open space around you, are the fields grassland or farmed? or is it to wet? I bet you have a lot of wildlife that likes the wetlands, is it fresh water?........I can see you waving in your garden,  just had a thought is the black areas roads? if not where are all your roads gone?

Hello Val,
The grassland is farmed exept for the last picture which is a small nature reserve. The black area is not a road but a meandering river. If you take a close look you can see some narrow roads on both side of the river. The other black areas in the centre picture is water between the more or less the rectangular grassland. So it is very wet and there live a lot of birds in these fresh water wetlands.

Our house is located in the village on the top righthand side of the lake in the topmost picture. But our national airport is also some 10 km further to the right. Luckily our house is not in a direct line of flight but we can see and hear the airplanes oin the distance. So it's not all nature over here, but still very nice.

Hi Wills, I see the roads, I thought it was a footpath, Airports are something we all have to live with unfortunately. We used to have an RAF. base a few miles away but they do commercial flights there now and we have quite a few overhead. Handy if you want to nip on a plane but not so if you have them flying over.I expect we get some of your wetland birds flying over this way, just a short hop over the sea for them.    Do you get a lot of mists with all that water around? I bet its kinda eerie in the early morning , beautiful but eerie just the same.

Hi William and Val!

William - where you live looks gorgeous! So verdent! Is the nature reserve the one where you do the volunteer work? And do you have to worry about flooding in your village?

Val - Rock from France? No chance - wine, cheese - something like that. About five years ago we drove to Alsace in a Ford Ka, and managed to get 75 bottles of wine into the boot! I'm good at packing!!! Didn't have little daughter then so didn't have to relegate her to the roof!!!

Px

The nature reserve is one of the places where we do our volunteer work. (Ain't it awfull). And we don't worry about flooding, but if the d**e (funny this word designating a structure that keeps us from drowning is modded)  ;D around the lake would give way the our fontdoor and backgarden would probably be flooded with 3-4 metres of water.   :-\

Hi William

Re potential flooding - eeeeeek! Glad I live on high ground. Have you got special defences? Appart from plugging small holes in the d**e with your fingers that is.

You are a lucky man to have such a lovely reserve near you. The wildlife trust near me is much smaller but really pretty. Must work out how to download pictures and put them on this site. Any advice welcomed!!!

I'll give some advice on posting pictures tomorrow. And to prevent them form drowning children take

at quite an early age  ;) , and with my size 13 clogs we will stay afloat without any trouble at all....   :D

Hi plocket,
for posting pictures you can get some info onder the A4A help button.

The basics are a bit similar to the moving text you've already mastered only this time you use the button with the framed picture in it. You end up with code like this (NB the outer brackets should be square [ ] but then this line wouldn't show up in this posting.

{img]http://site.com/image.gif[/img}

But more important is the question "where to put the picture you want to link to?" You can't add or copu a picture into the text. It has to be available somwhere  on the web in order to be linked to. Linking to pictures on your PC won't work.

You could link to existing pictures on other sites like the tourist office or dedicated gardening sites for plants and flowers. But that's not a nice thing to do. Firstly because of possible copyright violations and secondly because you generate virtual traffic to that other site and nick some of their bandwidth.

(http://www.allotments4all.co.uk/yabbse/YaBBImages/a4alogo.gif)

So the best thing to do is to upload the picture to some place on the web that is yours. I ve got my own homepage and I uplink my photos to that place. Its a couple of MB for which I pay my provider.

(http://home.tiscali.nl/wdvadvies/Pics/Doe%20opnieuw%202%20jaar%20niets.jpg)

So there are three steps you need to master:

• making or getting digital photo's (your own or from elsewhere)
• Uploading them to your own webspace
• Linking the picture in your posting

Good luck ??? ??? :-\ :-\ :) :) :D :D

Hi William - is that a picture of you after coppicing?

Thanks for the info. Don't have a webpage and don't intend to for the near future. I will just have to admire your pictures!!!

I'm rooting for Holland tomorrow - OH supporting Portugal because "they make better wine" - most unusual excuse I have ever heard, especially since they beat us! We have a small bet on! Any dutch (polite) cheers you can teach me?

Hi plocket there are some specialized sites that allow you to post pictures on the web, but I don't know much about that, maybe some others on A4A know more about that (you could try the pictures section) As for some polite cheers, toasting with portugese wine 'vino verde' would be "proost" (pronounced proast) and to cheer on the Dutch team an appropriate cheer would be "AANVALLEN" (attack) sounds a bit like AAH'N'FALL'AN best tried after a couple of strong beers or (half) a bottle of Portugese wine.
8)

Cheers William! I'm not going to drink the Portugese wine on Wednesday - I'm firmly behind the Dutch! I will try to remember "Aanvallen" and will shout with all my might when necessary - I don't really follow the football but when I have been told which goal my team are aiming at I can generally get the hang of it! Only joking - I'm married to a keen Liverpool supporter so have picked up the odd thing or two about footie - but not the offside rule!!!

Hope you have a good day! Px

A good place to store your photos prior to xfering them here is Photobucket.com this is the one most members use.It's free and you just copy and paste the BOTTOM line in between the[img]......[img]  which appear when you click on the little picture image William mentioned.If you are having difficulties dont be afraid to ask.You will always find someone to help on A4a.

Hi Budgiebreeder - thanks for that. Just to clarify - I can scan in a picture then sort it through Photobucket.com (which I haven't yet looked at but will) and then can put it in here? Sounds easy - even to an non-techie like me!!!

Hi! Let me see if this works.....

(http://img78.photobucket.com/albums/v286/plocket/LucyEuc.jpg)

Fingers crossed.....

OH WOW!!! Thanks you guys!!!

My little one and grandpa's new Eucalyptus which we planted for him.

Plocket x

Well done i forgot to say that the photos really ought to be 300'ish pixels then they dont take too much space or downloading.Thats about the size of yours.Also if you want a free Photomanager go to Hpphoto.com there is a free one on there that is quite good.You can re-size etc.Oh and it is best to Do preview first then post.

Hi Budgiebreeder

As you can see, I have taken your comments on board! Am delighted that I can now use this facility. Will have to play a bit more and find a suitable photo for my identity picture.

Thanks for all your help, and hope to talk to you soon.

Plocket x

Plocket she's a real little cutie, is she like her mum? I'm going to have a go but don't hang around, it could be some time!!

Thank you Val! She is gorgeous. Initially she looks like my husband with the fair hair but she has my eyes, curls and feet!!! She will change so much over the next few years though it will be interesting to see how she turns out!!!

Great picture of Plocket, Plocket. Happy little girl I guess!

Thank you William - she's the original Plocket - I've just borrowed it for the boards etc. Very happy, good natured child - we are very lucky! Picture taken to see which grows faster - daughter or Dad's Euc - HA HA HA!!! Both about the same age I think, but Euc potbound for a year or so prior to planting.