The pesky woodpecker is certainly pesky. It tried to make another hole in the staghorn fern! Grr. Hubby sprayed organic vinegar to protect his prized staghorn, and it seemed to work, but only for a day; there are no more damages to the fern.
The next day, hubby awoke to the evil screech of the woodpecker. He jumped out of bed and went out to check on his staghorn. Two staghorn ferns are now damaged! Damn, this woodpecker is persistent. A new hole in the first staghorn, making it three holes now. And two holes in the other staghorn. Ooh, hubby is very upset.
The damages on two staghorn ferns
He stuffed the latest hole of the first staghorn with garden refuse again. The holes on the second fern were not too deep, so he left it as is. What must it take to protect the staghorn ferns? Hubby must not sit on his laurels and will have to reinforce the protection. The pesky woodpecker must be discouraged at all cost!
On a brighter note on bird tales, the rescued baby bird is doing fine. We were updated on its well-being over the weekend by the attendant who adopted the little bird. It is eating well and growing stronger every day. That is good news indeed, especially after our other horrid bird encounter.
Just when we thought we were going to savor Spongebob’s pineapple because it was riped already, someone else beat us to it! Darn.
Caught in the act!
It was just a day before that I took a picture of the pineapple with the fake pineapple. The next day, it was gone, right down to the core. The garden squirrel had helped itself to the fruit! Hubby was surprised when he looked out the kitchen window and found the pineapple missing.
The scene unfolding before our eyes!
The culprit was still busy devouring the sweet fruit when I came downstairs, in time to snap a few pictures of the scene. The squirrel must be hungry, or the pineapple must be very tempting. There was nothing left, mostly the skin only. And after the first squirrel left, a second squirrel came around to enjoy what leftovers there were still.
The second culprit eating what’s left
Hubby was not too upset because he said during Chinese New Year, these creatures needed to eat. And we must be kind towards them during this time. Don’t shoo them away. But once Chinese New Year is over, he will do whatever is necessary to protect the remaining two pineapples that we still have.
He then recalled the last time we managed to harvest and eat one pineapple because he took measures to protect the fruit. He placed a wire mesh around the fruit. So we must remember this, or we’ll be asking again, where’s the pineapple?!
Hubby’s attempt at planting pineapples is starting to bear fruit, pun intended. The last time I compared the young pineapple to Spongebob’s pineapple home, both were about the same size.
Now, the real pineapple has grown and outsizing the fake one. Pretty soon, we have to take ownership of it and deny Spongebob a new home! Hahaha.
Three homegrown pineapples!
Not only do we have this pineapple, but there are two more pineapples that hubby has nurtured. Green fingers indeed! I look forward to the day we can enjoy the fruits of his labor.
The will to relandscape the garden continued despite the weather changing from cool to hot and humid. It was not pleasant, but we had to finish what we started. Hubby order two flower racks to rearrange the mess at the kitchen window site. And it is looking so much better now.
The mess (above) before and after the transformation (below)
The plus side of this – I get to see all the different bromeliads, at almost eye-level, every morning when I stand over the kitchen sink. Nice! If I don’t go out to the garden, the garden comes inside to me. Maybe it’s high time I learn to appreciate plants and all those bromeliads outside.
The root blobs of the two remaining red palms remain untouched. Somehow the momentum to unearth them has stalled. Instead, we channeled our energy into painting the whole stretch of the back garden wall. A spanking brand new white wall now is such a sight to enjoy.
The back wall
I even took the liberty to create a little space for some of his potted collection. Previously this spot was occupied by the habanero plant, and it grew too monstrous and messy. So hubby got rid of it. I removed all the Creeping Charlie weeds, leveled the designated spot with sand, and added stones to separate the area. I should pat myself on the shoulder, for it looks neat and very organized now.
The little sand spot. Yes, there’s a stack of stones for a Zen look. Heheh.
The front lawn also had further changes. After trimming the hedges, we decided to remove them totally and replace them with something more colorful. All in all, the outdoor activity has been good. Some sun is better than no sun, with both of us developing a good tan with healthy doses of Vitamin D, albeit an uneven one, from this bout of gardening.
Top: hedges before the chop, Middle: unearthed the overwhelmed garden light, Bottom: new plants to replace the old hedges
I did not know what to expect from DIY project number 11 as it was different from all the others that I have completed. The set was smaller, and the materials different. Although I had a good momentum working on it in the early stages, it got stalled because I veered off to do gardening.
Eventually, I completed the set in under two weeks, an achievement of sorts given the circumstances. Towards the end, I customized a lot of things, deviating from what the box showed.
The thing that I am most proud of is the little BBQ grill pit. I gave it a more sturdy set of legs, a handle to hang the tongs, and a side tray. To add more realism, I added two fat chorizos and a baked potato on the grill! It was fun working on this piece.
Other items that had makeovers were the chair, table, and kettle. The chair was accidental because I cut the wrong wires to make the legs. As I did not want to waste the material, I improvised the chair. So it ended up looking like this instead.
What they should be and what they ended up being
I changed the table shape and material from the original, and this worked out well. I even changed the items on it, replacing the lantern with a tall glass of lemonade. The kettle had a minor change in the materials used.
In the end, I simplified the roof rack and put all the bags on there, and I chose not to install the lights in the camper van because I did not think it was necessary. So far, all the other completed DIY sets sitting in the Ikea display cabinet have yet to see any lighting action.
Sewing the curtain ends and making crease lines with an etching roller
I also did not install the plastic pieces on all the window panes and added hinges on the door. Having learned from my first DIY project number one, the bungalow, I decided to leave the plastic out. I had all the itty-bitties done up so painstakingly, only to have transparent plastic block a clear view of them when I tried to photograph the insides of the bungalow. So this time, the camper van interior is photographed better.
Details of the camper The hinges are silver stickers
I felt putting hinges on the door was a good idea to open and close the door instead of having the door stuck in one position. It’s fun to play with this!
Overall, I am happy with the outcome of DIY project number 11. And with its completion, project number 12 is next to work on!
Last weekend I was very tired mentally. I didn’t have the energy to do anything. In fact, I didn’t want to do anything. Is cabin fever getting to me?
This round of lockdown is getting to me despite coming to an end by Thursday. But will the MCO be lifted come 4 February? We will find out soon.
The garden is almost complete with the landscaping effort, and project number eleven is at the tail-end. I needed a distraction to snap out of this negative mindset. So I created a distraction for myself by stacking stones collected from the garden.
The stones were left aside at the moment because of our efforts to redo the garden. And I was honestly having fun with them.
The first balancing act that started it all
It was a good distraction as I discovered the act of stacking stones is similar to life. You have to find the right balance for things to work. It was an enlightening moment.
I guess my balance was off, hence, the unhealthy predicament. I am much better now, thank goodness.
I have been busy during this second MCO phase. I have been gardening! Unbelievable. For someone who does not even venture out into the garden, this is an improvement.
Seriously, the weather the last few days have been beautiful. Cloudy without a hint of sun, it is the perfect weather for golf. But alas, with the MCO in place, golf is a no-no. So hubby and I kept busy diversifying our daily activities. Instead of sitting at my little work station working on my DIY sets or him in the kitchen, baking, both of us have been outdoors.
First, we washed the moldy wall in the back garden. Then we relandscaped the front lawn, planting new grass and getting rid of old plants. Then came the big task – excavating the leftover roots of the red palm tree.
Several weeks ago, hubby asked the gardener to remove the old red palms. But he did not do a good job. After chopping down the tree, he left the buried roots still buried. And then, MCO hit and hired hands are not allowed to come into our guarded community.
As we have been working on our garden, hubby wanted to plant something in that particular spot. But with the roots still in there, this is not possible. So we found ourselves doing the excavating task. I felt as though I was either digging for gold or excavating a fossil.
The blob from the excavation site, a foot and a half deep.
For several days, we took turns hacking at the blob. The rotation was in between the landscaping and wall washing chores. Eventually, the massive root blob was reduced to a manageable size and removed. Now, this is just one of three! There are two more blobs to remove. And with the MCO until 4 February, I am sure we can get the job done.
At the end of the task, both of us will have a super strong hacking swing and skills!
Hubby, the green fingers, has done it again! This time, it is a pineapple, a cute one that can rival SpongeBob’s pineapple house. As I do have SpongeBob’s pineapple house bought from Hong Kong a few years ago during one of my travels, I could not resist comparing both.
Which pineapple, SpongeBob?
And dang, the real one does rival the fake one. SpongeBob can almost come live in our pineapple! Hahahaha.
The giant staghorn fern at the front garden is back to its beautiful glory. This second fern is the one that the pesky woodpecker made a hole when it tried to make a second home. The fronds have grown well, and I managed to take a picture of the semi-covered damage before it was closed out.
Unfortunately, the first staghorn, a more precious species, could not be revived. Even after removing it from the tree to a better environment for intensive care, the fern did not make it. The hole made by the woodpecker was too deep, and the overall structure of the staghorn damaged beyond rescue.
We have not seen or heard the woodpecker for months now. I hope it stays away so that our revived staghorn can continue to thrive.
It is often said whatever that has been planted and cared for without using pesticides will be evident in the harvest; there will be worms enjoying the fruits of the labor.
This round, mostly green ones
Our scotch bonnet pepper plants have been very healthy and we have had non-stop supplies. And sometimes worms included. On and off, I’d find tiny worms in the container holding the basket of peppers. And I’d just wash the icky worms down the sink.
Bumper supply of worms too! Five altogether
One morning, I saw a worm on the kitchen counter top instead! Eeek… it had somehow escaped from the container. Before I could do anything, the ants got to it first! They were quickly maneuvering the worm to their nest for the rest of the colony as food. I didn’t have the heart to thwart them. It would be too vicious.
One, two, three… heave! One, two, three… go!
So I simply took a picture of the action but missed the rest of their journey to their lair when I turned away. Dang! They sure are fast but they sure are happy ants with the unexpected bounty.
Angieneering 
Remarks