Daffadowndillys

Recycling Challenge No. 3

We've been determined to rescue as many re-usable bits of wood and fixtures and fittings as possible during the demolition phase of our renovations - I hate throwing things away and didn't want our building work to be wasteful.

So the builders have hoarded hooks and handles and all sorts of bits and pieces in the shed. Most of it has an obvious re-use but other things are more challenging - like the hot water cylinder. I'm going to use the header tank from the loft for making more weed tea but what about the metal tank?



Sadly the internet has few ideas for re-using hot water tanks so what do you think, reader?

Recycling Challenge No. 2

One part of our plan to rationalise the house was to straighten up the bottom part of the staircase and the adjacent wall. The house is very rectangular and so the wide angle of the staircase and the zigzag in the hallway wall just didn't make sense to us. We'd hoped that the builder could re-use the existing staircase to create a new straight set but unfortunately not.



So now we have a fairly solid, five-step, timber staircase languishing in the barn. Any ideas?

Recycling Challenge No. 1

We've taken the plunge and decided to replace all our windows with double glazing - it'll be much warmer in winter and cooler in summer. And safer too, particularly as we have big picture windows in quite a few rooms.

But we're left with the question of what to do with the old windows. I intend to select a few to use for constructing a cold frame - ideally there are some frames which will fit over our raised bed. But what about the rest? We could sell them off cheap to a salvage yard or to some lucky TradeMe bidder but is there something more interesting that we could do with them?

Check back soon for more recycling challenges...

Signs of Spring: Daisy

According to this raw-foodist, daisies are edible - a good source of calcium and great for the liver.



I haven't found much corroborating evidence online though and it strikes me that it would be a lot of hard work to gather enough daisies to satisfy a healthy appetite. But the flower could be a lovely garnish given that they're not obviously toxic.

Signs of Spring: Buttercup

I know for certain that this meadow flower isn't edible, despite it's tempting name. Apparently they can be useful in a poultice though.

Signs of Spring: Dandelion

I'm fairly certain that this is a dandelion rather than a catsear or false dandelion. I'll have to examine it carefully before making a salad though because it's questionable whether catsear is edible. The rabbits never seem to mind either way though and usually get first pick.