devon TWiG

I do not think the browning is caused by trimming too hard , but by trimming off the outer foliage you have exposed some foliage that was previously quite shaded to higher levels of sun than it has had to tolerate and has become scorched / desiccated ... being ginger it shows up strongly against the green but it should die off completely before long ...or you can gently knock or rake it out to lessen the look ....but it is not dying back and the green around should soon take over ....to turn this in to a positive suggest to the owner that you should trim it gently every year !!

Just watching it as well , Mick and just said exactly the same to my other half !!

I quite often pick up thatching supplies when doing some lorry driving work from several businesses in Winkleigh ( Devon ) and there are huge stacks of spars all imported from Poland , Latvia etc and i guess they are good and cheap as they sell masses of them !!! Have in the past known a stonewaller who did them between jobs and when weather is bad , but he gave up as working for nothing doing them ...

I also find the grinder flats the batteries fast ...for sanding ( depends on what you are doing exactly ) try a makita angle drill with a rubber back plate and 6" sanding discs ( velcro ) https://www.amazon.co.uk/Makita-DDA350Z-Li-ion-Batteries-Included/dp/B00KPPX19W/ref=asc_df_B00KPPX19W/?tag=googshopuk-21&linkCode=df0&hvadid=272040849262&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=12970980443865416081&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=1006953&hvtargid=pla-350196198663&psc=1

That works out at £460 per man day !!! very expensive .....the job will probably be done by someone who under prices it !!!

look at the price of Leylandii plants !! very costly compared to other conifers ....they are rot resistant though , but so are western red cedar , Monterey cypress is another great timber but can you imagine the response of devout ecomentalists if you planted a big wood of Leylandii !!!😃 Also any planting for timber is very long term , so few are willing to guess future markets so stick with tried and tested specimens ...Douglas fir , Sitka spruce etc etc .....

I have seen razors cooked whole in the shell and they do look a bit off putting ! but they are fished for a lot in Scotland ( spoots ) and as mentioned earlier they are really desired abroad , esp Italy and Spain but the Brits wont touch them !! I eat just the foot ( bit like the white bit of a scallop ) I do them in breadcrumbs and jokingly call them Clampii !!

I dive a lot locally ( Devon ) and catch and eat all sorts , but it is a lot of work preparing seafood ( I don't mind ) but most people just want a lump of prepared meat ...cod , salmon and tuna .......many think picking a crab is too much effort and when you look at the price of a crab and calculate what % of it is edible then it is bloody expensive !! My personal favourites are scallops and razor clams which are very rarely eaten or available locally , and most people think that seafood is michelin star stuff , fussy and complicated recipes . I believe we export about 75% of what we catch and import about 75% of what we eat !! mad !!

thanks for the industry insight , media only reports when bad things happen !! Good to hear the industry is up and running again .. however I have little doubt that less fish have been caught and landed in the past few months than normal . Where do you fish out of ?

local news reports are saying the exact opposite ....local landings are very small as no restaurant trade and exports to china have all but stopped , local fishmongers are shut as well ....

I am not far away and dive mainly around Torbaydos and S . Hams ....freediving and spearfishing ..esp scallops and razor clams , but unable to go at moment as have ear problems ☹️

Seagulls seem to be a bit bewildered ...no grockles to mug!!!

where do you dive ?

You have done very well for them not to split turning from green in this dry time of the year , especially Oak and Cherry , well done !!

it was a classic , funny thread a while back !!!!😁