how is your fruit coming along?

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how is your fruit coming along?
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Graham Hyde

Joined: 03 Apr 2011
Posts: 365

Posted: Fri Aug 22, 14 7:13 pm Post subject:

Hi Tahir. I wanted to retire before I was to old to enjoy life. Grew up in the dark and grey wet Manchester of the fifties and sixties dreaming of south sea islands.
The Philippines was cheap enough for me to retire at 56. One hectacre plot right on the beach in a large bay (20 x 5 miles) facing the Pacific, cost six thousand pounds. 25 miles from nearest large town, one supermarket, 10 hour drive from Manila. Quite isolated. Originally a coconut plantation now mixed with bananas, papaya, lime, pineapple, mango and usual veg. I keep a couple of pigs, 20 geese, 10 ducks and about 12 hens.
Built a house, concrete, three storey, three bedroom, all round terraces on each floor, pvc window frames etc for about 15 thousand pounds, dug a well and also piped in water from a spring three kilometres away, bought a rice paddy and now work harder than I ever have. I seldom leave the plot there is so much to do.
Advantage of Philippines, low cost (my electric bill is less than 5 pounds per month), English speaking, no planning regs, beautiful scenery, hot but on shore cooling breezes.
Disadvantages, long way from family, lack of English food (I am somewhat like Ben Gun and dream of cheese.) No rennit, no bread or plain flour, only all purpose. I bake bread every other day, because no bread available plus I like to.
Next project a cob oven, no refractory bricks or cement here so going the clay oven route.
I could not have afforded to do this in France or Spain at the time.
It works for me but not everyone's cup of tea. No TV, no pubs and only recently internet via the mobile phone set up. Slow speeds, usually 10 kbps during the day faster at night, 75 kbps which is why I'm typing this at 3 in the morning.
It seems every day there is a new experience for a UK city boy from catching and eating wild pig to making coconut oil.
Let me know how to upload photos and I will post.
Regards, Graham

Graham Hyde

Joined: 03 Apr 2011
Posts: 365

Posted: Fri Aug 22, 14 7:18 pm Post subject:
Hi Tahir. Forgot about the lychees question. I grow the local rambuttam (not spelt right) on a dwarf stock for bushes about 15 feet tall. Unfortunately the typhoon in early august stripped the bushes of leaves and fruit. Regards, Graham

Pilsbury

Joined: 13 Dec 2004
Posts: 5645
Location: East london/Essex

Posted: Fri Aug 22, 14 7:24 pm Post subject:
Blimey graham, if you ever need a helpx just post on here lol. Plenty of people would love to help im sure.

Graham Hyde

Joined: 03 Apr 2011
Posts: 365

Posted: Fri Aug 22, 14 7:37 pm Post subject:

Hi Pilsbury,
Thanks for the solar drier link, spot on.
It will be ideal for the bananas, toms etc.
Fish here is very cheap. Most days no one walks past on the beach. Occasionally fishermen visit from the local village. On stays on the beach holding one end of a rope whilst the dug out canoe lays a bight of rope and net out and back to the beach a hundred yards away.
Both ends are then hauled by the men, women and children.
I buy from these at 20 pence per kilo.
Because of this and the pork a smokehouse is on the agenda but it may be next summer before I have time.
Regards, Graham

tahir

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 45669
Location: Essex

Posted: Sat Aug 23, 14 6:33 am Post subject:
Sounds great if you don't mind the isolation and the odd hurricane, brave move

Nick

Joined: 02 Nov 2004
Posts: 34535
Location: Hereford

Posted: Sat Aug 23, 14 9:16 am Post subject:
Indeed. Amazing. Are you alone, or have family there?

Treacodactyl
Downsizer Moderator

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 25795
Location: Jumping on the bandwagon of opportunism

Posted: Sat Aug 23, 14 9:28 am Post subject:

Graham Hyde wrote:

Let me know how to upload photos and I will post.

At the bottom left hand side of the reply box there's an "Attach File" link. Click it and follow the instructions, note keep them under 2mb, ideally a bit smaller than that, and bobs your uncle.

Nick

Joined: 02 Nov 2004
Posts: 34535
Location: Hereford

Posted: Sat Aug 23, 14 9:30 am Post subject:

Treacodactyl wrote:

Graham Hyde wrote:

Let me know how to upload photos and I will post.

At the bottom left hand side of the reply box there's an "Attach File" link. Click it and follow the instructions, note keep them under 2mb, ideally a bit smaller than that, and bobs your uncle.

Or, given you might be on a phone with a limited connection, you can email them to someone and they can post for you.

Treacodactyl
Downsizer Moderator

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 25795
Location: Jumping on the bandwagon of opportunism

Posted: Sat Aug 23, 14 9:36 am Post subject:

Nick wrote:

Treacodactyl wrote:

Graham Hyde wrote:

Let me know how to upload photos and I will post.

At the bottom left hand side of the reply box there's an "Attach File" link. Click it and follow the instructions, note keep them under 2mb, ideally a bit smaller than that, and bobs your uncle.

Or, given you might be on a phone with a limited connection, you can email them to someone and they can post for you.

That would take the same bandwidth unless they're already uploaded.

If they're already uploaded them just post a link using the image tags.

Nick

Joined: 02 Nov 2004
Posts: 34535
Location: Hereford

Posted: Sat Aug 23, 14 9:38 am Post subject:
Sure, I'm just offering suggestions for what might be a croaky connection.

Graham Hyde

Joined: 03 Apr 2011
Posts: 365

Posted: Sat Aug 23, 14 12:00 pm Post subject:

Hi Nick.
Thanks for the interest and the way how to post photos. Yes, a long suffering wife and young son. We spent 8 years in the Middle East (Kuwait, Qatar, Abu Dhabi and Dubai) before coming here. Son not been to the UK, ever. We are planning to visit this autumn, my first time back for twelve years. Large shopping list for return includes rennit, wine yeast, etc.
Photos even when shrunk to smallest taking too long at this time. Will try later.
Regards, Graham

Nicky cigreen

Joined: 25 Jun 2007
Posts: 9881
Location: Devon, uk

Posted: Sat Aug 23, 14 2:32 pm Post subject:
quite an adventure Graham

dpack

Joined: 02 Jul 2005
Posts: 46211
Location: yes

Posted: Sat Aug 23, 14 4:05 pm Post subject:

it does seem a steep learning curve but sounds very nice

if you are drying fish in a warm humid climate you will need plenty of salt(and possibly to soak them in fresh water before use) but as you are on the coast that should be fairly easy to arrange.

with oily fish the old cornish method of salting them in tubs with a drainage hole and pressing them with a lever press to help the liquor out might work.im not sure if non oily fish will wind dry but a solar dryer might do the job.

i spose fishing is impossible in hurricane season

dpack

Joined: 02 Jul 2005
Posts: 46211
Location: yes

Posted: Sat Aug 23, 14 4:11 pm Post subject:
anyway back to fruit ,another 2 kg of goldilock's berries and 3kg of ones for the bears(bruin) from about a cubic meter of soil in a raised bed against a north facing wall and the brambles trained out 3m and then along the top of the yard wall i think it is working quite well our yard has sunny patches but they are all at least 1.5 m up

tahir

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 45669
Location: Essex

Posted: Tue Aug 26, 14 8:55 am Post subject:
Finally a plum that dries well; Jefferson. Last edited by tahir on Tue Aug 26, 14 10:13 am; edited 1 time in total

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