Domestic – Page 6 – Deborah Makarios

September 4, 2021October 19, 2023

In Praise of Old Technology: The Gallus-Gallus

What, you may ask, is a Gallus-gallus? The domestic Gallus-gallus is an older garden technology, now having a well-earned return to popularity. It is absolutely the top of the line in horticultural multi-function, and quite possibly the most environmentally friendly investment you will ever make in your garden. Let’s look over some of the features.

When you see one operating, the features which come most clearly to the fore are the two cultivators. These are primarily used for weeding, but can also be deployed in the turning of compost. Though it is not solar-powered (more on this later) the cultivator function is operational throughout the daylight hours.

Flowing on from the cultivation function, the Gallus-gallus also provides a variety of pest removal services, including insect, slug, and snail disposal – and it’s entirely organic! No hazardous residues, no stand-down periods, just one dart and it’s gone. Select models also dispose of small rodents.

Continue & Comment

August 18, 2021August 18, 2021

A Bit of Fluff

As readers in New Zealand will have woken to Level 4 Lockdown this morning, and readers in other countries may be wishing they had, I feel that what we all need is a morsel of light-hearted cheer.

In that spirit, therefore, may I present two large fluffy chicken bums…

…aka Kryptops (L) and Troodon (R) hard at work in the garden. They work for chicken feed! Ah ha ha ha.

Continue & Comment

July 27, 2021July 27, 2021

Making Up Mustard

Those of you who, like me, prefer your savouries without sugar in them know how hard it can be to find a good sugarless mustard. One of the simplest solutions to this problem is to buy dry mustard and then make it up yourself.

Or so one might think. Simply adding water to create the desired consistency results in something that should probably be banned under the Geneva Convention, and using vinegar instead – which is said to ameliorate the sharpness – is little better.

Naturally, in this brave new internetty world, the next thing one does is look up recipes online. These are mostly promulgated by people who are really passionate about food, and it shows. For one thing, many of the recipes need cooking, as though a person wanting a tablespoonful of mustard on their hotdog is going to have the time and inclination to cook a cupful or two of the stuff – not to mention eating hotdogs often enough to get through it all before it goes off.

Continue & Comment