PEAR TREE LOG

pear tree log: I started this blog to keep my younger son, Jonny, in touch with life in Lincolnshire, while he spent a year working in China. That year turned into five! Now he is home and training to become a physics teacher. This is simply a patchwork quilt of some of the things I enjoy - life in rural Lincolnshire, our animals, friends, architecture, books, the gardens, and things of passing interest.



Saturday 21 July 2012

Moving Day!

Yesterday dawned dry, unusual for this summer.  We decided to tackle a job which has been on the 'To Do' list for a long time and move a shed, which was left by the previous owners, to a better location.  The gazebo was put up, shed emptied and dismantled.  I left all of that to George and Jonny.
I just continued with my weeding, hoeing and forking, trying to make up for the weeks of neglect due to the rainy weather.  I had my trusty assistants - Little Red Hen and Toby, the cats came and went, easily bored.




LRH stayed very close, observing every forkful of soil, checking every weed I pulled.  She constantly burbled and chatted and was great company.

Toby was not impressed, he was bored - and showed it.  I had to laugh because when the cats got too close LRH would suddenly charge at them and the cats ran away, scared.  She even had a go at Toby, once, when he ventured too close.




As I continued to pull weeds and tidy the vegetable beds and pathways George and Jonny dismantled the shed and took up the old base.  They made some interesting discoveries.  There were three fat toads and one nest.  It looked like a mouse nest, but turned out to be something much more interesting.

No mice ran from it, but we could hear a buzzing sound - it was a tiny 'beehive' built inside an old mouse nest which had been under the floor of the shed.

We asked John the beekeeper about it and he very kindly came along and checked it out for us.  He found it fascinating - something new to him.  Definitely a beehive, we saw the enormous queen and the tiny collection of cells within the nest.

He recommended that we cover it over, with easy access for the bees and then move it very slowly over a period of time to a new, safer site.  It has to be done slowly or else the worker bees won't be able to find their way home.

This is the new view from the Owl Wood gate, no ugly shed!  It is so much easier on the eye, and the silver birch tree looks much prettier now that it is no longer butting up to a tool shed.  The garden is a real mish-mash of levels, slopes, retaining walls, no doubt they all helped to exacerbate the recent drainage problems.

The sun is shining brightly and I am heading out to do some more work in the vegetable garden - no rain is forecast today.

It should be a bright, bright, sunshiney day!

I won't hold my breath, though, this is England.  Have a lovely weekend.

22 comments:

  1. Just wondering how a shed is moved? Your garden looks so neat and tidy and productive too. Have a great day.

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    1. Hi Linda, This shed was just a base, four walls and the roof, so they simply took the sections apart and then re-attached them. I think they were relieved when it went back together so easily. ;)

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  2. Outstanding! I just love to re-work what others have left behind. The view is much better and the shed will love it's new home base. Keep us posted about the moving of the bee hive! Very interesting set-up on the first photo.....

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    1. Hello Meggie, It is amazing, I keep thinking that they have given the old shed a coat of stain, it looks really smart in the new location..it just looked worn and tired before. I guess that means it is in the right place now.

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  3. I could have popped over with my pickaxe!
    Jane x

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    1. Hello Jane, I'll bear that in mind for next time, there's always something going on in this place.

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  4. What a charming place you live in. It looks so inviting. Have a great day. Hugs, Deb

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    1. Hello Deb, It is a comfortable place; the cats are both from the rescue centre and they love being here - barley fields for hunting in and trees for climbing. They are great little hunters!

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  5. How interesting about the bees, always good to see something new :) Your garden is lovely, sort of place to wander around and keep seeing new things. x

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    1. Hello Cheryl, It was fascinating to see the bees - mind you, I wouldn't want to get on the wrong side of the Queen bee, she is huge!

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  6. Just discovered your blog for the first time, your garden is beautiful. How exciting to find the beehive. I hope it's move goes well. Thrilled to be follower number 90! Love Katie xx

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    1. Hello Katie, Welcome! Thank you, the garden has brief moments of looking good - we all need some sunshine and warmth though. The last couple of days have been dry, which is something to celebrate!

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  7. And a bright, bright sunshiny day to us all. Our first decent weather of the month today; we're taking advantage. I agree with LRH; the garden is delicious.

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    1. Hello Joanne, It is amazing what good company one old hen can be. She just wants to stay close and softly murmurs all the time. I think she sees me as being another hen, a helpful one who finds tasty morsels and bugs for her.

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    1. Hello John, I think you are being far too modest, I'll bet your bosoms are productive and perky.

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  9. Aren't things great when the sun shines. Your deep beds look very impressive.

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    1. Hello Molly, When the sun finally began to shine I found my energy levels had risen and all those jobs which had been stacking up and weighing me down suddenly became easily tackled. The plants all look much happier after having a couple of good days of warmth and sunshine too.

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  10. Will you be making honey? Gosh your veg' patch looks good!

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  11. Hello Cro, Thanks - the poor old vegetables really need more sunshine, the last few days of decent weather have helped though. Alas, I checked on the mini bee hive yesterday and I think they may have gone - it looked very quiet. Such a shame, I was willing them to survive.

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  12. How exciting about the little beehive! I hope you are able to successfully move the hive over time. I can't tell you how much I enjoy your wonderful blog! There are always amazing and new things for me to enjoy...and your presentation is always so wonderful!

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    1. Hello Marie, Alas, we were very careful and followed instructions, but the workers and the queen disappeared, they must have found somewhere else which they felt was more suited to them. It is a shame, but I guess that a box just couldn't make them feel as safe and protected as the shed must have done.

      Thank you for your very kind comments, they mean a lot to mean.

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