Back in the 2000s most of the interesting amateur plant breeding work was discussed on the Homegrown Goodness forum. That was the first time I heard about work […]
Berries / Birds
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Yew for redwing
I planted a yew (Taxus x meda “Hicksii”) next to the kitchen window mainly for the birds some 20 years ago and the berries regularly attract blackbirds, fieldfares, […]
Seed / Seed sowing / Snow
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The last seed?
A delayed Xmas this year, celebrating at the weekend when my daughter is here….spent the wait sowing seed and the 54th milk carton seed tray for 2019, perennials […]
Birds
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Whooper swan family
A family of whooper swans (sangsvane) flew over the house today! Post Views: 160
Birds
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Hoodie has a scratch!
Hooded crow (kråke) having a nice old scratch, peering down to the photographer! Post Views: 158
Birds
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Best to keep your distance
It’s best to keep your distance when there’s a red squirrel nearby. Given the chance, a squirrel will take birds. With bramblings (bjørkefink), tree and house sparrows (pilfink […]
Berries / Birds
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Waxwings: soon on the way south?
I also grow Viburnum opulus (krossved) near to the house. This is an uncommon wild species around here. The berries aren’t the first choice for waxwings (sidensvans), but […]
Birds
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Redwings: more common in winter!
Redwing (rødvingetrost) is a bird that seems to have become more common in winter here. I’ve recorded this species 4 of the last 10 winters here. I never […]
Birds
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Goldfinches and Burdock
I grow burdock (borre) in the garden both as a vegetable but also for the birds. Goldfinches / stillits (still relatively rare in my area) eat almost exclusively […]
Seed / Trees / weather
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Snow covered with storm blown debris and seed
After the storm some days ago now, it was interesting to see how evenly the seed from Norway maple / sycamore and birch (spiss- og platanlønn og bjørk) […]
Blanching / Cellar vegetables / Edible flowers / Food / Perennial vegetable shoots / Root crops / Salad
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The winter’s first salad shoot salad
The first winter shoots were harvested from the cellar today. It is almost totally dark in the cellar and currently about +6C. The blanched shoots in the picture […]
Birds
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Tawny owl in the botanical garden
I was walking through the garden yesterday towards the office at the Ringve in Trondheim and I heard a lot of noise coming from a group of conifers, […]
Talks
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Visit to Seed Savers Exchange and the Vesterheim
(For a Norwegian version of this article, see KVANNs Nyhetsbrev #12: https://kvann.no/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/KVANNs-Nyhetsbrev_12_fin.pdf) I toured eastern and mid-west USA for 3 weeks in September / October 2019, on the back […]
Seed
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Wild buckwheat sprouts
Winter sprouts on the window sill, this time shoots of homegrown wild buckwheat seeds (Fagopyrum tataricum) ready to eat (both raw and stir-fried)! Post Views: 210
Talks
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Return to Austria
I’m returning to Austria in January and giving two talks at two seminars at the 7th Langenlois Woody Plants Seminar on 21st January with focus on woody edibles […]
Birds / Seed
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Siskins dining on the roof
It was fun this morning watching a flock of up to 80 siskins (grønnsisik) with a few house sparrows (gråspurv) feeding on birch seed that had fallen on […]
Fjord views / Sun
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Dawn and dusk
At this time of year dawn and dusk coincides for several hours and there’s no sun-up and sun-down again until after11th January; this is the most beautiful time […]
Garden tour / Nut trees
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A weekend in paradise: arrival and the Celo Inn
In April 2018 both myself and Joe Hollis were invited as speakers at The Potential of Perennials for Food System Resilience Symposium in Stans, Switzerland. I also had […]
Edimentals / Interview / Podcast
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Podcast on Roots and All
My latest podcast on Roots and All, Hear it here: https://tinyurl.com/whydg34 Mandy Barber and Aaron Parker both get nods…sorry to those I forgot! Post Views: 171
Mammals
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Otter swim past
Sat at my desk this morning, I noticed some unusual ripples in the bay. My immediate thought was porpoises (nise) but they were in shallower water than I’ve […]
Berries / Birds
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Maximum waxwings
I never weary of watching waxwings (sidensvans). Here are 3 videos from snowy Monday this week when one of the biggest flocks this winter descended on the garden […]
Birds / clouds / Snow
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Heavy snow and mother of pearls
Woke up this morning to a beautiful sight of deep snow on the balcony and mother of pearl clouds (perlemorskyer) in the sky. Added to the garden full […]
Forest Gardening / Perennial vegetables
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Norwegian Seed Savers establish a guild for Perennial and Forest Gardening vegetables
KVANN (Norwegian Seed Savers) have established a guild for perennial vegetables and food forest vegetables (free for members of KVANN, go to kvann.no and click on “Bli med […]
Birds
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210 Waxwings
A big flock of 210 waxwings (sidensvans) in the garden resting at dusk in the garden! It’s been a very active day here… Post Views: 170