15.05.2024 A fine crop of Japanese Knotweed?

 ~o~

  Wednesday 15th 57F/14C [7.15] Another warm, dry and sunny day. 

  2023 was the warmest in 2000 years according to the tree ring growth experts. Global sea temperature records have been broken every month for a year now.

 Up at 6.30. Woke at 5am but went back to sleep after a quiet night. My ribs are still hurting but my coughing has stopped completely.

 8.15 Time for a walk. I hope I'll be able to pick up my e-bike soon.

10.00 68F/20C. I eventually walked to the lanes after various delays. It was delightfully warm but with the cooling breeze keeping things comfortable. The different voices and songs of the warblers was entertaining. Some of them can sing extremely loudly! The traffic was unusually light. My neighbour has mown the grass banks to their new drive. And run over the highly invasive, Japanese Knotweed beside the road! I fear they will soon have thousands of square meters of Japanese Knotweed to cope with!

 The sun was very bright. Which exaggerated the light coloration of all the fresh spring leaves. Most of them will darken over the summer. 

 There are only a few lilacs in the hedgerows locally. Miles/km of continuous lilacs elsewhere. The usual colour is pale purple but variations exist from white to blue to dark purple. The vast areas of oil seed rape are just beginning to go over now. Changing from bright yellow flowers to light brown seeds over time. 
 
11.00 70F/21C.  I have been hedge trimming along the drive. Scrapman's hideously abandoned building site had hedges overflowing the drive. The view along the main road was also blocked. The official hedge slashing tractor hadn't touched it. Leaving ash, field maple, roses and lilacs projecting wildly out into the road. No longer!

 12.30 72F/22C. The garden is full of birds and birdsong. Lots of warblers. Campanulas are coming out in my wife's flower bed. The black elder and cotoneaster salicifolia are looking well now they are in leaf.

 13.45 72F/22C. Windy. The Yato 3T farm jack has arrived. I managed to break some old rope and some thin, old, ratchet strap band. While trying to lift the steel post from its concrete backfill in the ground. I had to excavate the rock hard, self stabilizing gravel around the pole first. I might try the chain on the hoist next. 

 I just realised that I need the timber bridge supports much further apart. The concrete surrounding the pole is much larger than the pole itself. Trying to lift with a short support bridge is just compressing the gravel over the concrete! Silly old wotsit!  

It is unpleasantly hot working outside in the sunshine. I had forgotten to open the greenhouse end doors. It was 105F/41C out there. Ideal for kiln drying the logs? Quickly dropped to the low 80sF once the doors were opened. 

 To my surprise I have discovered my sister owns a farm jack. She uses it to lift unwanted shrubs and tree stumps. She has recommended some YT videos. Which show lengths of timber used as tripod legs. I will make some legs to resist the jack's leaning tendencies. Some new chain and shackles will be on my shopping list too.

 Dinner was cheese on toast with halved cherry tomatoes. The image upload to Google doesn't work again! I am having to upload them singly and manually.

  ~o~