Making our Meadow Blog

And then there was one...

And then there was one... The Bee orchid and one of the pyramidal orchids went the way of the Green winged orchid and rotted off leaving just one pyramidal orchid...on the meadow at least, there is still the Dactylorhiza in a pot. I have put a cloche over this one in a belated attempt to protect it from the rain.

More orchid failure

Two more orchid casualties, one of the pyramidal orchids and the bee orchid from the meadow have both rotted off, leaving just one precarious pyramidal orchid and the dactylorhiza in the pot, and I'm not very confident about either of them surviving.

Spring

4 weeks ago we were still in the grip of the tabloid's new ice age. But even then the great tits were frenetically courting, showing spring was really just around the corner. Now buds are swelling, every bird I see seems to be singing and looking for nesting sites and you can almost feel several billion gallons of sap rising. (although technically they don't rise or fall they go to the centre of the tree and out, but that does not sound nearly as good!)

So I have started sowing peppers and tomatoes for the coming year and paid a visit to the allotment at last. It all looks rather daunting again, so much digging, and assembling and spreading and so on. Spring always makes me feel happy but also slightly nervous...

Orchid update

It's been so busy at work that I have only just had a chance to check on the orchids. The bee and pyramidal orchids in the meadow seem ok, but the green winged orchid I had in a pot looked sickly with yellowing leaves and one rotting off. I was poking it about while taking pictures to send to Laneside Orchids when the whole plant became detached! I dug it up and the tuber was completely rotten. I assume the harsh frost got to it in spite of being in the greenhouse. I'm now worrying about the dactylorhiza I also have in a pot. I have emailed them to ask what they recommend.

My other projects have been somewhat variable. I have managed to get the Meadowcam working again, although it is currently taking pictures of the front garden.

I have decided to donate the accumulated parts which were going to become Meadowcam 2 to a friend and abandon the project. I just don't have the time.

Meadowcam problem solved?

I connected the battery to the charger when I got home to keep it topped up connected it to the camera and tried to figure out what was going on with it. In the move I'd managed to lose the length of bamboo needed to keep the camera switched on. I made a new one and hey presto it worked again! But when I tried again later I couldn't repeat it. After leaving it running again with no joy today I took it apart and found the earth wire for the power cable from the circuit board to the camera was severed. I'm not sure when this happened, I suppose that it had loosened during the previous image downloads. I'll strip the wire and resolder it tonight. Hopefully that will fix it.

First hard frost

The first hard frost of the year brought home the challenges I will face on creating an outdoor aquaponics system. Keeping the fish warm enough is the first challenge. Ensuring the pump, pipes etc are not damaged by frost and ice formation may be another...

Fish, worms...bacteria?

I have spent the last couple of weeks researching the viability of aquaponics as a system for combining fish production and hydroponic vegetable production in the back garden. This may sound like it is a bit mad, but it is merely the most modern incarnation of an ancient lineage stretching back to ancient Chinese farming practices. The current form is about 30 years old and has a well established presence. It is particularly strong in Australia, and is not very well developed in the UK. I think this might reflect some differences in outlook and attitude between our countries, but as I have looked into it, the issue if climate may also be a factor. Simply put, it seems to me that fluctuations in temperature are a major issue so farming cold water fish under cover becomes a problem in summer and farming anything in a tank in winter may be a problem. I am still thinking of setting it up, just out of curiosity, but I am not too hopeful of the results. At the moment my initial dream of homegrown trout is looking very unlikely and my ideas of feeding scraps to carp is also looking less straight forward. Space is another issue - I only just have enough room for the IBC I have already got. I think my wife would balk at several of them.

As well as fish production the other reason for using aquaponics is to improve vegetable crops. In fact many people are really more interested in using the fish to provide nutrients. Everyone comes with their own set of objectives and goals and there is a spectrum if those seeking to improve their crops with little interest in fish, to those who simply view the crop as a biofilter for the fish, as well as others who are willing to look at many other combinations including rabbits and worms. The latter (vermiponics) seems the most promising route for me longer term at the moment so I will also look into developing this as a growing system.

While pondering these and other issues it occurred to me that there may be another way of looking at this, from the point of view of a vegetable gardener rather than fish keeper. We are using the fish as a source of nitrates for growing a crop. These are produced by nitrifying bacteria from nitrites, which are ultimately derived from ammonia in the fish waste. Are there other sources of ammonia which could be used? Using fish to create nitrates via bacteria from ocean derived fish feed pellets seems incorrect to me, but it seems that feeding them via other means is difficult and still under research. I looked into ways of creating ammonia in the backyard and came up with anaerobic digesters, which make it as a byproduct along side CO2 and methane. Obviously this is potentially both very exciting and dangerous. But feeding scraps of everything and anything into a digester, and producing methane to heat a greenhouse, plus a nutrient rich fertiliser to grow the crops and elevated CO2 levels to promote growth sounds like an amazing concept, although I could not find very much to back it up.

So now I have two, possibly three systems I know nothing about requiring investigation...

Orchid attempt number three

The orchids I bought from Laneside Orchids and planted in the meadow are flourishing. The Bee Orchid has grown and both the pyramidal orchids have sprouted. I have placed a wire cage over them to prevent them rotting from leaves etc. More images in http://meadowmaker.typepad.co.uk/photos/orchids/

Ladies and gentlemen: I present this years harvest of Assam bhut jolokia chillies of death, each one packed with over one million scoville units of fiery potency. I feel scared just looking at them...two plants created this excellent crop. Now I just decide what to do with them. Ultimate deterrent? Perhaps not with a two year old running around... Christmas surprises for unwary enemies? Maybe. Possibly criminal... Incredibly hot chilli oil? Worth a go but needs careful handling... I think I'll dry them and give them away as novelty gifts!

Aquaponics

So this blog is now a bit more complicated, I've just discovered the concept of aquaponics, combining hydroponically grown vegetables fed and watered with the waste water from a fish tank containing some sort of edible fish such as trout. I've ordered an IBC for £25. I've done too much research at work. And I've started to record the temperature inside and outside the greenhouse. But I have so much more to learn.