Keep dogs out of your potted plants

My four-legged friends have been driving me up the wall - ripping every single plant that ever dared survive from my garden and placing it nicely in the doorway for me to see when I return from work.

I decided to invest in some pots, as the furries wouldn't possibly destroy potted plants. How very wrong I was... They seemed to take this on with a "challenge accepted" attitude.

One day I lost my cool and burst into angry tears. My boyfriend came up with an amazing plan to save the plants' (and the dogs') lives.

He bought 3 wired hanging baskets from the nursery, similar to the one in this image. We removed the insides and the chains, tipped the baskets upside down and placed them over each pot. He measured the pots before heading to the nursery to know which sized baskets would work best. (I suppose you could make your own frames if you are the handy DIY type.)

Voila! It works like a bomb.  Give it a try before you reach the point of explosion.

I finally have some colour in my garden! Couldn't be happier :)

______________________________ Afrikaans ______________________________

Hou honde uit jou potplante

My vier-been vriende was besig om my teen die mure te dryf - elke plantjie wat gedink het hy staan 'n kans om te groei was dadelik uitgeruk en mooi voor die voordeur neergelê vir my om te sien wanneer ek by die huis kom.

Ek het besluit om 'n paar potte te koop, hulle sal sekerlik nie potplante ook uitgrawe nie. Ek was baie verkeerd... Hulle het dit met 'n "challenge accepted" houding aanvaar.

Een dag het ek dit verloor en in "angry tears" uitgebars. Dit was toé dat my kerel met 'n briljante plan vorendag gekom het om die lewens van die plante (sowel as die honde) te red.

Hy het 3 draad mandjies by die kwekery gekoop, soortgelyk aan hierdie foto. Ons het die binnekant en kettings verwyder, die mandjies onderste-bo gedraai en oor elke pot geplaas. Hy het die potte gemeet voordat hy die mandjies by die kwekery gekoop het. (Ek is seker jy sal self hierdie mandjies kan maak as jy die handige DIY-tipe is.)

Voila! Dit werk soos 'n bom. Probeer dit voordat jy die punt van ontplof bereik.

Wonderful Winter 2014

I love me some winter!

All the autumn leaves have fallen to the ground, leaving the trees bare for all of us to see their beautiful silhouettes. Weekends are spent indoors catching up on series and movies with hot chocolate in the biggest mug in the house. PJ's and slippers, blankets and cuddles...

Cheers to all of that ♥

Maybe this winter is exactly wat I need...

The Red Panda

Today I heard something that I never knew before. The Mozilla Firefox logo isn't a fox at all, it's a Red Panda. "Firefox" is just another name for the red panda. I always thought it was just a regular old fox wrapped around a ball (the earth I'm presuming). The firefox isn't even related to the fox.

So I looked up the red panda, and it's the cutest little thing. Here's what I could find out about them:

The red panda (Ailurus fulgens, lit. "shining cat") ("Rooi Panda" in Afrikaans)

Fast Facts
from - http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/red-panda/
Type: Mammal
Diet: Herbivore
Average life span in the wild: 8 years
Size: Head and body, 20 to 26 in (50 to 65 cm); Tail, 12 to 20 in (30 to 50 cm)
Weight: 12 to 20 lbs (5.4 to 9 kg)
Protection status:Endangered

Is it a panda or a fox? Neither.

They are endangered animals. Mainly because they are victims of deforestation. Their natural space is shrinking as more and more forests are destroyed by logging and the spread of agriculture. They are hunted because of their fox like tail which in China is considered as a good luck charm for newlywed couples.

The red panda is protected in all range countries, and hunting is illegal.

They can be found in Asia, China and the Himalayas.

"They are slightly larger than a domestic cat, have reddish-brown fur, a long, shaggy tail, and a waddling gait due to its shorter front legs. It feeds mainly on bamboo, but is omnivorous and may also eat eggs, birds, insects, and small mammals. It is a solitary animal, mainly active from dusk to dawn, and is largely sedentary during the day." - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_panda

The pandas use their ringed tails as wraparound blankets in the chilly mountain heights.

These animals spend most of their lives in trees and even sleep aloft. When foraging, they are most active at night as well as in the gloaming hours of dusk and dawn.

They are shy and solitary except when mating. Females give birth in the spring and summer, typically to one to four young. Young red pandas remain in their nests for about 90 days, during which time their mother cares for them. (Males take little or no interest in their offspring.) - 

The red panda has a naturally low birth rate (usually single or twin births per year), and a high death rate in the wild.

And if you want to know how to pick up a baby red panda in 5 easy steps, click here. (Warning - cute overload!)

Since I will not be walking into any red panda's around here in South Africa, I won't be able to take any snaps of these little guys (unless I find myself in the Himalayas before posting this). So I have stolen some photos that I liked from the web:

Mossel Bay Seagulls

Long time no blogging. Still have nothing to say, just wanted to share this photo of some seagulls at the Mossel Bay harbour. I think it turned out pretty nice :)

Seagulls at the Mossel Bay harbour

Goue Wawielwebspinnekop

The Goue Wawielwebspinnekop is known in English as the South African banded-legged golden orb-web spider.

"Its size and formidable looks make this one of the most recognisable and easy to identify spider species. Although it is frightening to look at, this spider is non-aggressive and relatively harmless. It can deliver a painful bite if severely provoked, but the venom is not lethal, generally only causing redness and blistering."
- http://www.sabisabi.com/wildfacts/golden-orb-web-spider 

"The spider species Nephila senegalensis is commonly known as the banded-legged golden orb-web spider. The name comes from the fact that the joints of the spider are typically coloured a golden yellow. It is common in the savannas of South Africa. Males are much smaller than females. These spiders are diurnal and weave impressive webs."
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nephila_senegalensis

The table below comes from this PDF document - http://www.spiderclub.co.za/Docs/SCSA_Nephilidae_SA.pdf

ATTRIBUTES	Nephila senegalensis annulata. Banded legged Nephila
Known distribution in South Africa.	Throughout all provinces.
Colour of silk, shape and placement of web, retreat and garbage line.	Strong yellow silk. Very large orb web in open or amongst trees, etc. with protective trip lines and a garbage line. No retreat.
Average body length of adult female.	25 - 30 mm.
Legs. Colour and presence or absence of brushes.	Banded yellow and dark brown. Brushes of hair on legs 1, 2 & 4.
Carapace.	Brown or silvery.
Sternum	Yellow
Abdomen	Cylindrical. Variable but usually with a distinct yellow and black pattern dorsally and yellow with black patterns ventrally. Colours and patterns of subadults and juveniles different.
Palps	Yellow

"Typically of Nephila, the legs have a brush on the tibia of the first, second and fourth pairs of legs. The blackish legs are banded with yellow. The Banded-legged Nephila has a body length of 25-30mm. The abdomen is black with yellow bands or spots while ventrally it has a yellow sternum."
- http://www.biodiversityexplorer.org/arachnids/spiders/nephilidae/nephila_senegalensis.htm


See also:

 

Botter Spinnekop / Argiope Australis

Wouldn't you like this in your backyard?

One of the things I really dislike about living in the city is that I have no view of anything worth looking at beyond my litle garden. I can see my neighbours' houses and a shopping centre or two, streets and cars, an oversized church and a little patch of land that hasn't been turned into profit making machine.

So I look at this photo and I wonder, who wouldn't like to see this at the end of every day when the sun sets?

South Africa... You are truly beautiful! Even if we can't always see your beauty in the city.

I wish everyone had their own personal sunset :)

Elephants & Cattle

Everyday I see so many beautiful photos of perfectly bred animals throughout South Africa. And although I don't know much about the actual breeding that goes on to get these animals where they are, I know an interesting picture when I see one.

Who would have known that there are people out there using elephants to herd cattle? I didn't! And I don't know the reason behind this either, they can't be easier to handle than horses... I'll see if I can find out what's going on here. Tried to find out, no reply... Bummer!

Small things that make me happy :-)

Source: www.zz2livestock.co.za