Happily Ever After
Life in The Rural Retreat with a beautiful wife, three cats, garden wildlife, a camera, a computer – and increasing amounts about running
Earlier posts can be found on Adventures of a Lone Bass Player, where this blog began life. Recent entries can be found here.
The Spy in the Garden
by admin - 22:14 on 19 August 2011
At last I've been able to collect my birthday gift from Matchgirl – a Bushnell Trophy Cam. What a toy.
Switch it on, strap it to a tree and the built-in motion sensor will take colour snaps by day and infra red monochrome ones at night – the perfect gadget for someone who wants to find out who's prowling around the garden in the small hours.
It even comes with a free, bear-proof armoured case. Just what I need in the Black Isle wilderness
There'll be a bit of trial and error until I get the hang of its depth of field (between three and fourteen metres) and work out how not to take snaps of every shaky leaf. It's currently pointed at The Nutella Tree, which should be occupied at some point tonight, so moving foliage is an important matter.
When I know what I'm doing with it I'll explore the less frequented parts of the garden to see what we have.
The opportunity for wilderness snappery will last longer than I expected, for Mr Gardener visited today to assess the impact of his weedkiller. He was disappointed. The knotweed is ailing but the ground elder is much more perky than it should be after two toxic sprays.
A third will be applied. If the elder still refuses to die (much like our blooming willow logs) he reckons the only course of action is to dig it up by hand, sow grass and leave the ground for a year. So our cottage garden, the pond and Matchgirl's shed might have to wait a while.
Book Update: Summer tourism clearly means big business for The Bumper Book of Black Isle Snappery. The Emporium in Cromarty was restocked this morning, then Crofters Bistro in Rosemarkie and Red Kite Cafe in Munlochy phoned within minutes of each other to tell me they were sold out. Mr Ford and I sprang into action.
Our stock is dwindling fast. I estimate that we could be on the phone to Tigger sometime in October to order the Christmas print run. After all, the book is the perfect festive gift.
Add your comment
© Russell Turner 2008-2024