Tuesday, September 1, 2009

Spoon Carvings Part One & Willow Fences

I recently returned from a bushcraft weekend with Bison Bushcraft.
In short, I had a great time with Roger & co and took away a great deal of useful knowledge and skills, from just a 2 day course.

One skill or craft that I really enjoyed, was the spoon carving.

This ancient art, has not only given us the earliest of cutlery since time immemorial, but is also a therapeutic act of making something from half a log of wood!

Once we had been given a thorough demonstration by J.P, we were let loose to try make our own.

Rob had cut down a 3-4 year old Silver Birch (Betula Pendula) which diameter was roughly 8 or so inches and logs were cut into 7-8 inch lengths.
we then split the logs with our trusty knives and a wooden mallet (or maul) into halves. We then crudely drew on the shape of our spoon with a pencil and with a folding saw, cut incisions into the halved log, just before it meets the line of where the handle has been drawn, this make it easier to carve the handle of the spoon.

(More to come)

Upon returning from my weekend away bushcrafting, I immediately ventured to the garden to water the veg patch.
Whilst watering, it occurred to me, as I hadn't gone to the effort of creating a raised bed, that the plot could do with a little fence to break it off from the lawn.

So the next day I ventured to my local woods in search of some Willow in order to make a small Willow fence.
On my walks in the woods I regularly pass a small section of Willow that has been coppiced to create immense amounts of new shoots. These plants have not been coppiced for a number of years and I took the opportunity to help myself to the plentiful supply.

Once home I striped the Willow wands of their leaves and newest growth and cut them to length. I placed sturdy Birch pegs in the ground at regular intervals and proceeded, with the help of my brother Dan, to weave the Willow between these pegs.

Pictures below















Saturday, August 22, 2009

Banana Cake

Hi all,

Had some fun baking banana cake this week. It's a great way to use up any old bananas that have seen better days and you may feel inclined to throw away.

This cake (sometimes referred to as bread!?) is so easy to make and so satisfying to eat. It should be enjoyed by everyone!

Recipe at the end of this post.

But first...

Pictures!

We didn't have a bread tin on our first attempt (but have now since bought one), so we used a cake tin!






















Arty farty shot No.1

















Arty Farty shot No.2

















Recipe:

Group 1 ingredients:
2 tablespoons melted butter
1 tablespoon milk
2 over-ripe bananas, mashed
1 egg
Handful of cropped walnuts (optional)

Group 2 ingredients
1½ cup plain flour
½ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
¼ teaspoon baking powder
½ cup sugar
¼ teaspoon salt

- Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/gas mark 6 and grease a medium sized bread tin.
- Mix group 1 ingredients together in a bowl
- Add group 2 ingredients to group 1 and mix well
- Pour the mixture into the bread tin – I told you it was easy!
- Cook for 25-30 minutes
- Remove the banana bread from the oven and put on a wire rack to cool
- Cut into slices and enjoy!!

You can also put the mixture into small individual cake cases and cook them for about 10-12 minutes – perfect for lunch boxes!

Happy baking!

Paul

Monday, August 10, 2009

The First Post



This is the first post on the first blog I have ever created, so please bear with me!

I have started this blog / journal, primarily to help me with my current and future studies in the the world of natural sciences, woodland management and conservation techniques.