Darren T, Gardener
@darrenturpin.bsky.social
Pro #Gardener @ NT Quarry Bank 12+yr #Allotment tenant #Orchard geek & fruit grower @orchardnotes.com / https://orchardnotes.com Also: Beer, Pubs, Music, Comedy, Gaming, History, Psychology, Art, Philosophy, Mental Health
This is pure extraction of wealth from one group of people to another We urgently need: Windfall tax on oil giants Windfall tax on banks Both are creaming money off us during a cost of living crisis Even Thatcher had the balls to tax the banks Will you @andyburnham?
I can’t believe we’re still having a debate about whether there’s a trade off between job creation and measures to green the economy. There isn’t. The evidence was clear years ago - a green economy creates far more jobs than the fossil fuel economy it replaces. Come on Labour, catch up …
Government contracts to require job creation instead of green targets under new rules
Louise Haigh says taxpayer money must benefit local communities amid backlash from environmental groups
theguardian.com
Here’s the latest stop motion animation from my Tiny Angry Witch team. (I’m the writer, I can’t take credit for the animating!) It’s one of our longest, and it nearly drove us all mad, but we’re really proud of getting it made! 1 x Tiny Angry Witch 1 x broom No AI
Britain’s two-party system has been weakening for decades. In the 1950s, the average share of the vote won by Labour and the Conservatives combined was 94%. By the 1970s, it had fallen to 80%. In 2024, at 57%, it reached its lowest level ever.
Why First Past the Post can’t cope with Britain’s multi-party politics
Britain’s two-party system didn’t just weaken this May. It broke. With it have gone the political conditions First Past the Post requires to work properly.
buff.ly
Thrilled to pieces to be shortlisted @wainwrightprize.bsky.social! My quirky fusion of a book & its delightful & opinionated ghosts (human, wild & otherwise) revisiting the points in recent wildlife & rural history where we could have taken different paths, why we didn’t, & what we do now!
Docks (1 of 2). They can be tricky to identify sometimes. The fruits can be a useful feature. Here are 3 common species showing the seed capsule and tubercles
Brilliant letter from Stuart Thompson to Jeremy Clarkson about his comments that benefit claimants should write weekly thank you letters to tax payers detailing how they spend their benefits each week.
Massachusetts farm installs 832 solar panels above berry fields, and the berries grown underneath turned out sweeter and juicier and could change the future of American farming - The Economic Times share.google/GDGqQBgisqhG...
Massachusetts farm installs 832 solar panels above berry fields, and the berries grown underneath turned out sweeter and juicier and could change the future of American farming
A Massachusetts farm is integrating solar panels above berry fields. This agrivoltaics project generates electricity while shading the crops. The elevated panels create a cooler microclimate, retain...
share.google
"Mediterranean plants can't survive winter wet" a lot of people have said this to me recently worried about drought tolerant plants in a warmer future. To give hope and reassurance, some plants can't survive winter wet without extra drainage, but absolutely loads can! More soon 💞
Swerve to the right! Swerve to the right! Gaah! 😖
Codling moth! And brown rot! I'm seeing an awful lot of it this year. I reckon my #allotment #apples might end up with damage rates of 80%-90% 😡 orchardnotes.com/2026/08/03/e... How about you? Are you seeing similar problems, or have your trees escaped the ravages of this particular p&d combo?
The greatest magic trick of them all is *lying*. The reason you can't figure out that coin vanish even after the conjurer performs it three times in a row is that they *didn't* do the same trick three times in a row! 1/
A few of our 'Bishop's Children' #Dahlias, down on the #allotment. My personal fave is the first one, I love the way it shades from bright red at the centre to yellow and orange at the tips. I'll be trying to save the tuber this year, definitely.
Painted Lady #butterfly on Verbena bonariensis. Saw a few of them down on the #allotment this afternoon. Lovely to have a few more than usual around this year.
The UN is closing out the week with some not a little terrifying forecasts about the coming El Nino and the crises it is likely to trigger. www.businessgreen.com/news/4533765...
'The dangers will become deadlier still': UN warns world faces intense El Niño
World Meteorological Organisation warns historically strong El Niño is building, leading to increased risk of drought, floods, and wildfire risks as rainfall patterns shift
businessgreen.com
If Google Lens isn't hallucinating, then I spotted an Eilema griseola, rather delightfully a.k.a. 'Dingy Footman', sheltering under an apple leaf the other day 🙂
Windfall season has well and truly started. The 'Irish Peach' apple tree at work had dropped a few dozen fruits whilst I was away last week. Mostly damaged / codling moth infested, alas, but a good few were worth washing and scoffing 😋
Had to deal with a broken branch or three at work yesterday. Caused by the weight of the apples on the limb, which sadly I didn't have the chance to thin out properly last month 😔
Have you got a surplus of bilberries (a.k.a. blaeberries, whinberries, Vaccinium myrtilus) and don't know what to do with them? Benjamin Maund's #C19th "bilberry wine" recipe to the rescue! orchardnotes.com/2026/07/31/b...
‘It’s too fast, too big’: speed of climate crisis is devastating crops, say farmers
‘It’s too fast, too big’: speed of climate crisis is devastating crops, say farmers
Drought and extreme heat are killing plants, driving up prices while also making some farms economically unviable
theguardian.com
Guy who went on holiday to Toontown and made it his whole personality:
