ArneNews
Older stuff
4 February-1 April 2004
Welcome
to our new website: www.larsen-twins.dk
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2004
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email:
ar.larsen@get2net.dk
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Dear friends
The 'News' page became so bulky that I had to park some of the older stuff
on this extra page.
1 April
The first 3 days this week have been so nice spring days - sunny and mild.
Yesterday I even saw overwintering butterflies enjoying the mild days.
This morning also looks fine but is is suddenly very cold due to the strong
eastern wind.
It is the season for spring bulbs - the early species are already flowering
and slower species will follow this month. They brighten up our gardens
until all trees suddenly get leaves during the first week of May. |
Spring bulbs - I think this one is called 'Tete a Tete' It is a kind
of mini-daffodil
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It has been a slack time mail-wise
maybe because I was so busy that I didn't email much. But yesterday was
suddenly full of emails from good friends all over the world. Mainly good
news so it was highly appreciated.
26 March
The weather has improved considerably
and garden work is again an option. I also have a number of 'new' orchid
flowers in bud and they may appear any minute now. So all cameras are
loaded - traditional camera as well as digital. We have waited for some
years now to see these particular flowers in full bloom so it is exciting
what they will look like.
It is still winter or very early
spring so I am still busy with web-pages in the evenings or when
it is too cold to be outdoors. I am in big trouble with space on my old
site. 20 Mbytes is nothing for people with an attitude, hi. Sometimes the
upload goes into endless circles and won't upload until I have cleared
some old files. Today I cleared old relics from the site, there was a lot
of unnecessary files I had forgotten up in cyberspace.
I was checking up on orchid names
on the Internet and really tested the Search Engines to their full extent.
I was surprised to see how good the Google is now. It has always
been very fast, but it also finds as much as you ever need. Even if you
compare with searches by the combined search engines, Google is enough
for our needs. In old days I used Infoseek and Altavista, but I have
let them now, they are slower and I don't find files I couldn't get as
well with Google. My browser is therefore set to open on Google.
16 March
| The weather has become much milder
and we had a few hours of gardening yesterday. We fled indoors when the
sun disappeared.
This is the season for plants with
bulbs,
it is still far too early for all other plants. The early bulbs are already
in full bloom (see erantis and vintergæk
below). Soon we will also see Hyacints, daffodils, tulips and all other
strange types of bulby plants.
It is big business to produce bulbs
in pots which people place indoors for early flowering. When the flowering
is over, these plants can be planted out in the garden and will flower
again every spring. |
Assorted bulbs in our windowsill
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| In a suburb like ours gardening is a big thing. We are a bit earlier
than our neighbours this year but had also neglected our garden for years!
So there is a lot to do while I am loafing around anyway. Traditionally,
most Danes start gardening around Easter where it hopefully is warm enough
to give the gardens a thorough check up.
The spring signs are already in the shops. Many shops now advertise
garden plants, fertilisers and tools. Anything goes! They have to get rid
of the serious stuff in early spring when Danes long so much for the summer.
In a few months time they will change advertising to everything that can
be used for barbeques! There is a time for everything, isn't it? |
Bulbs ready for transplanting into the garden,
they will be planted out when they drop the flowers.
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12 March
It has been a hectic week re-potting
orchids, counting them and writing a brand new series of illustrated labels.
We have worked for years on the idea of having a colour label in each orchids
pot, showing a photo of the correct specimen. The first labels (years ago)
couldn't stand the humidity and the colours soon washed down the label
and vanished.
Now we try with plastic lamination.
The first labels were not sealed so after a few days the soil extracts
seeped in between the layers and discoloured the label. The latest labels
now use a completely sealed lamination and there is no paper at the bottom.
We will keep you posted later if
this method really works. It means, no fading or splitting of the label. |
New type of
plastic-laminated labels
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3 March
Bent has got a few working days off
and uses the extra time to re-pot the orchids as required. It is
sunny weather but very cold outdoors while the greenhouse reached tropical
temperatures (33 C today!)
The orchids are showing signs of
new growth with the increasing light and temperatures so it is time to
re-pot them. Most are taken out of the pots, the roots are inspected and
then the orchid is placed in new bark or compost. Damaged tissue is removed.
This is also the time to divide large specimens and make some duplicates. |
Bent re-potting orchids
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1 March
| I will continue the cutting of trees
and bushes for a week or so until all the old neglects have been cleared.
I want to get rid of that task while it is still too early and cold for
anything else.
The next hurdle is clearing the lawn
for years of moss which always sneaks in when grass is starving in an acidic,
sandy soil without fertilizers.
The lazy twins kept back on fertilizers
so the lawn did not need cutting so often! But with a new huge motorised
lawnmover this excuse is no longer valid. |
Gardening in cold weather -
use strong gloves, sweat and elbow grease!
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| This is all good for the physical
exercise and the mental stimulation I get a few hours every day in front
of the computer.
I check up on the stock exchange
every day and buy or sell stock when it is relevant. All data are updated
constantly on the internet. Taking home the gain when applicable and grumbling
when I get stuck with some dropping shares. My weekly stock newsletter
delivered by email has already given me good advice several times so I
stick to them as much as possible.
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The stock market - one fine day
from nine to five
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28 February
It was a sunny day but rather cold.
Bent and I spent most of the day cutting down bushes and trees and then
packing them for transport to the recycling station, 800 m away.
We managed 4 loads before we gave up for today. One day I must take photos
of a Danish recycling station for this page, you won't believe your own
eyes! Every kind of junk and garbage is neatly piled in its own container
or enclosure. What a job of sorting the stuff correctly - luckily Bent
knows the ins and outs of garbage recycling.
Luckily Bent has sometimes half a
day off because they have a slack season at work just now. Then he can
help with the heavy gardening. Later in the season he will be diverted
to maintaining the orchids with water. Watering orchids takes many hours
per week during summertime.
Of long-term tasks I have finished
my contribution to the Agricultural Resources CD and sent the data to my
colleagues. I am tempted to start the next task, which is to sort out the
entire website and all photos of pests. That will require about three months.
22 February - 'Fastelavn'
| Cold and overcast with a few bouts
of snow or rain. The outdoors gardening plan was quickly changed to doing
small chores in the warmer green house.
It is 'fastelavn' (Carnival Sunday)
today but we haven't seen any kids roaming the streets yet. We have coins
ready if they pass by but it may be too cold for them.
Guess it will be a quiet home TV
day in such weather. There is a handball game in the afternoon and the
famous TV series 'Kroeniken' tonite. A record 2.6 million Danes watch it
every Sunday evening. It is okay, but I still think it wouldn't stand a
chance during summer time with better weather.
Yesterday I passed my birth place,
Sandholt Castle, and used the chance to take photos of the castle in sunlight. |
Sandholt Castle -
I was born a few hundred metres from here
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18 February
These days I am bit battered from excessive
gardening. So early in the year I can only cut down old bushes and prune
trees that have threatened to take over the garden. They have been neglected
for years so it is hard work (for an soft intellectual). Mainly with secateurs
and a saw. Producing a multitude of blisters and scratches. But it sure
feels good to be out in the sunny and cold weather.
Today Bent had half the day off so
when the new laminator arrived we spent some time testing the process of
making colour labels for the orchids. We tried to print colour labels for
orchids years ago but gave up because the colours dissolved with watering
- they simply weren't water proof. So now we try again but with laminating
the 10 labels per A4 page and then cutting them out. I tried that technique
in Namibia, and I think it will work out. The problem is to have an illustrated
label in every orchid flower pot so we can see which colour it is even
when it is not flowering - which is actually most of the year.
We survived Valentine's day well.
Actually it wasn't that big day in Denmark. A survey just before the day
showed that only 15 % of the Danes planned to give their spouse a flower
or a gift. We expect more action on Sunday and Monday when it is Carnival
time. It is mainly arranged for small kids, and getting a bit oldfashioned
but I'd better have some coins and doughnuts ready if the neighbours kids
should come around.
9 February
Sunday morning was sunny so we took
off for a browsing and shopping trip to flower shops. Half an hour later
it started raining and snowing heavily! Anyway the trip was interesting.
Here Bent admires the wide variety
of flowering spring bulbs at display in Haarby flower shop. We managed
to get a few beautiful orchids but stayed clear of the bulbs. Gardeners
prepare the different bulbs during winter time so they are ready for sale
in the very early spring. |
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Haarby Inn
The old Haarby town consists mainly of one long winding main street,
crowded with shops and supermarkets.
There are only few buildings or sites worth seeing in the immediate
surroundings so tourists mainly use Haarby for good shopping or for passing
by to the nearby tourist destinations. Especially the coast line and summer
cottages a few km west of Haarby attract the tourists.
This is the old Haarby inn which once was a quite famous dining place
and held many good family parties such as wedding anniversaries, etc. |
Haarby Inn - February 2004
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4 February - first spring signs
We have a very nice break in between the frost and snow. Temperatures have
been mild this week with lots of rain. Two of the common spring flowers
have appeared: Vintergæk and erantis. Both are so tough
that they often flower while the snow is still around.
The frozen rainwater in the storagetanks has melted again, so we use
the chance to pump in new water into the greenhouse. |
4 February -Vintergæk
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| OK - February is still the coldest month in Denmark so we know it is
just a nice break. But heating of the houses cost on average the Danes
10,000 kroner a year (1,500 US$) so Danes love to see some mild periods
during winter to reduce the cost of heating.
In this house we have community heating with a huge central heating
unit about a km away in Haarby town centre. Other suburbs in Haarby have
gas heating from the huge natural gas fields in the North Sea. |
4 February - Erantis
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