The Minkey

Sparrowhawks also tend to leave a feathery mess after lunch.

I wouldn't be too bothered at a single sighting of a lone rat, if you keep seeing one or several, then you may need to act. I was away a couple of months back and my OH said he saw a rat under the birdfeeder so I kept a close eye out but have never seen one. Reckon it ended up on Mr Fox's plate. I know I have mice in the shed, but it's down the bottom of the garden and they seem to keep themselves to themselves so I operate a live and let live policy where they're concerned.

I trained as a jeweller/silversmith many moons ago and having set stones in both claw and cabuchon settings, I can't see how a well set stone would come loose easily.

I find it hard to believe a jeweller is claiming natural wear and tear for the loss of a stone on a wedding ring (which is surely designed to be worn on a semi-permanent basis over a lifetime) after only 4 years. If it were in a claw setting and the claws weren't wrapped tightly over the stone, it's possible for them to become prised up through snagging on clothes etc, and the stone to become loose that way - but you'd have thought your wife would have noticed if it was snagging on things. If it were a cabuchon type setting, it really shouldn't come loose if the setting were secure enough in the first place. The offer doesn't sound particularly generous, but I've never been in your position so can't really comment. What I would do if I were you, is take a trip down to Hatton Garden and source a replacement stone yourself, you can ask around for a price to reset the stone at the same time. That way you'll know whether you're original jeweller is offering you a reasonable deal for the cost of the work (regardless of discount).

Copper bands are supposed to be good - they give the snail/slug a small electric shock when they try to cross - but some sneaky molluscs are able to bridge themselves over the bands. Good for protecting container crops maybe, but as copper is an increasingly expensive commodity to try and construct a ring of copper around one's garden would be a tad impractical. An effective method of ensuring the demise of your local slugs and small snails are nematodes. Otherwise, as ClareC illustrates, they don't like travelling over rough, gritty surfaces which are likely to adhere to them. This Hosta page has some good ideas (Apparantly, ground horse chestnuts have been shown to work): http://www.hostaplants.co.uk/slugs_and_snails.htm

When I was little, I attempted to create a snail sanctuary, unfortunately they all slipped away overnight.

Peckhampam - there is a certain small black fly known to lurk in the area of Peckham Rye Park which is reputed to have a painful bite. Wonder if you may have fallen victim to one of those? PS - those few strawberry plants you gave me a couple of years ago are fruiting for the second time this year :-)

Even though I back onto the Aquarius and see plenty of fox action, I've found the local cats to be more of a problem sneaking in to spray inside the house, and copious shitting & spraying in the garden - such is the price of having a garden in an urban area, I guess. I still find cats and foxes easier to tolerate than certain people because, unlike the human animal, they can't appreciate how not to be an occasional nuisance.

If you're lucky enough for the olives to grow large enough to be worth the effort of pickling, they can be picked from Oct - Dec, apparantly. Exactly when depends on whether you want them green or black.

Avocado

Like you DJQ, I find people nuisance far more offensive. I sleep with earplugs every night due to noise coming through my party wall, so I don't really get disturbed by fox noise even with the windows open. I also find myself less vexed by a mound of fox poo on the lawn than the sweet wrappers, fag packets and drink bottles that end up in my garden having been tossed out of next door's bedroom window.

Love Shack - B52's

Someone I used to work with kept chickens, all rescue birds from battery farms. He said it didn't take long living in good conditions for them to get properly healthy (full set of feathers etc) and they were excellent layers.

As I wrote in the gardening thread, the good folk of Foxgrove organised a cull of their local foxes and once the foxes were gone found themselves to be inundated with rats. My backgarden backs onto the Aquarius, so I'm directly across from you, Evie. I only have to go to the back door and they scarper sharpish.

Hi Sue - you pick tomatoes as soon as they look good to eat. If you waited until they come easily off the stem, they may well be too soft. If you pick them a day or two early when they are still orange they soon ripen up anyway. What a shame your tomato variety isn't particularly tasty :-( I made that mistake one year, growing Alicante (I think), and although the tomatoes looked good, they tasted shop bought which totally defeated the purpose of having grown one's own.

My strawberries have just begun a second crop - flower and fruit coming along fine.

I don't know, Marlene. It may well be soluble and if not, you could probably apply it to the soil and it would leach in when the toms get watered. It's not something I've done myself. An interesting thing I read was that the soil may have enough calcium in it, but it may not be available due to under/over watering. I don't think Blood Fish and Bone would be your solution as it's a mixed fertiliser and you're looking to correct a potential calcium deficiency.

Blossom End Rot can be the result of by erratic watering, over or under. A deficiency of calcium wouldn't help. Sorry to hear yours are affected. Are you sure Tomorite is a good source of calcium? As for eggshells, I stick them out into my garden hoping they will help improve the soil over time but I suspect they need to break down very finely before they can be taken up by the plants. My dad's toms have also been affected, he's looking for a calcium supplement he's heard it can help correct BER problems even if used retrospectively. I mixed a load of blood, fish and bone into the compost when planting the tom plants out into their buckets I feared I had right royally f***ed up as the plants grew so vigorously I thought it would have been at the expense of flower and fruit production, but it would seem not. They have sent out some very generous trusses which have started ripening in earnest the past week or so. No sign of BER as yet but I am keeping my eye out for it.

Slumbering cats in inelegant positions warm the cockles of my heart.

" Most white collar crime involves an abuse of trust, so you will find these people will never be allowed into such a position ever again." Unless you're Andy Coulson, of course.

Where is the entrance to the carpark?

Thanks for the update :-)

Lol

Lol - no, I just don't go out anymore so have to rely on memories.

I spent an evening with Jenny Eclair many years ago at the Mambo Inn, Loughborough Jct. - friend of friends - fond memory, she was great company.