Sunday 29 May 2011

THE STINGING NETTLE

Nettle Soup is my favourite wild recipe. As the years have gone by, each year I find out more and more about this wild and very common plant and it has become a favourite for me.
Astrologically the stinging nettle plant is ruled by the planet Mars, which gives me a strong affinity as an Aries with Scorpio rising - both signs are ruled by Mars. Nettle is also a most useful herb for men as it consists of proteins, calcium, phosphorus, iron, magnesium, beta-carotene, along with vitamins A, C, D, and B complex. Nettle has a high amount of iodine which is central for thyroid gland efficiency as it regulates the body's "internal thermostat." Fortunately it also makes a tasty beer!
Botanically the plant is described thus: a perennial plant which grows upto 2 to 3 feet in height and erect in summer dying down to the ground in winter. It has a creeping and widely spreading root, which is yellow in colour with rhizomes and stolon. The leaves are borne opposite on the stem and they are about 3- 15 cm long. The leaves have a strongly serrated margin, a cordate base and an acuminate tip with a terminal leaf tooth longer than adjacent laterals. The leaves and stems are hairy with both stinging and non stinging hairs which turns to a needle when touched and injects a mixture of histamine and formic acid thus causing the irritation and because of this it derives the common name, as well as the colloquial names burn nettle, burn weed, burn hazel. They bear small greenish or brownish 4-merous flowers in dense axillary inflorescences.

http://www.nettlesoup.info/index.htm

Tuesday 24 May 2011

Gameseek

http://www.gameseek.co.uk/welcome.php

VIST HORSHAM

Horsham is a historic Market Town in West Sussex, England. This website, produced in association with many Horsham businesses and organisations, lists every Horsham town centre business and includes Horsham news, events, property, offers and tourist information.

http://www.visithorsham.co.uk/

Friday 20 May 2011

The "Secret" Law of Attraction explains the origin of your problems.

http://www.lawofattractionbook.com.au/index.php?pop=0

Beamish

http://www.beamish.org.uk/
Beamish is a world famous museum telling the story of the people of North East England during the Georgian, Victorian, and Edwardian ..

Wednesday 18 May 2011

POLICE INTERROGATION

This is a briefing on how to handle yourself while you are being interrogated by the police, what to watch out for and how not to incriminate yourself. Please read it carefully as your freedom, and that of others, may depend on what you say.

ALWAYS DO NO COMMENT OR SILENT INTERVIEWS WHILE IN POLICE CUSTODY

Confessions (statements) are made because they are an easy way out of a tense and uncomfortable situation. The police rely heavily on confessions as without them they would find it impossible to operate. However, they are trained in the art of extracting information from people and use a variety of techniques, not always obvious, to do this. It is up to you to keep your head and not give anything away. The best way to do this is by doing no comment or silent inteveriews. Time and time again it has proven to be the easiest and most successful way of not incrimianting yourself or others. In the animal rights movement it is expected that this is the course you will take.
Below are detailed some of the techniques they will use against you. By being aware of them, you will find it much easier to avoid falling for their tricks. Yes, it is a stressful situation, but numerous activists have got through it without any problems by following the simple guideline of not talking. Even though what you might have said does not lead to a conviction, it may give them vital leads for them to go on, whether for your own situation or others. You dont know the picture they are working from, so do not give them help in anyway to fill it out.
Always make sure you have a proper solicitor with you in an interview, who is going to back you up. Do not use the duty solicitor, and brief your solicitor beforehand that you intend to do a no comment interview. Ask them to make a statement to this effect at the beginning of the interview. If they advise otherwise, be insistant.

Remember, the police to do not want to help you ever! Everything they have to say to you is for one reason only: to secure a conviction.http://www.freebeagles.org/articles/interrog.html

Crystals

http://kamalkapoor.com/crystals/
The essence of body is energy. Crystals function as transformers and amplifiers of various energies into biological energies that rebalance and re-energize or biological system on the cellular level, as well as our emotional, mental and spiritual levels.

All of us have come a long way since the ancient times and have seen many changes in this world. In order to cope up with the changing circumstances, we have had to open our minds to new ideas. One new idea was the discovery of crystals and crystal tools. We can use them to tune ourselves to a higher level. In our section of crystals, we are going to offer you some exercises, techniques, and crystal tools that have helped many towards their growth. We are sharing these wonderful secrets with you for your exciting, wonderful and exciting journey into the future world.

Monday 16 May 2011

Pale moon

http://www.palemoon.org/

This project started off as merely fiddling with the build process on Windows, seeing first off if I could manage to make my own Windows build of the Firefox browser and then seeing how my own builds compared to official ones. Finding the difference significant, the resulting browsers (simply "my own Firefox builds") were given to a number of friends to use, with very positive results.
This was back in the time when Firefox was still in its 1.5.x stage.

I have since built Firefox, Thunderbird and Seamonkey specifically for different systems, gaining experience, learning the quirks and following code development. Eventually, with Firefox 3.5.2, I settled on what I found was an optimal compromise between speed, features and useability of the browser. At that point in time, the Pale Moon project was given shape, releasing the highly optimized browser to the public from Oct 4th, 2009.

Since its release, it has become rather popular, with no less than 15,000 visits to the home page just in the first month of release. With many downloads from a wide range of locations, not all of them monitored or counted, it is anyone's guess how many people are actually using it, but it has surpassed anything that was initially expected.

Feedback has been positive, and as a result of several requests from people, a second build version was created of Pale Moon, to cater specifically to the capabilities of Athlon XP and Athlon MP processors, still extremely popular processors for currently used systems. Later on, a portable version was also created to allow people to take Pale Moon with them on USB stick, removable drives, or to simply have a self-contained environment for the browser.

As the source code developed, so did Pale Moon, and a few major changes have been made with the transition from 3.5 to 3.6 versions, and later on to separate Pale Moon installations from Firefox ones. Always attempting to strike a balance, some minor features were removed, and later added again; feedback from the users has always been taken into account, and the development of Pale Moon has therefore been given shape, in part, by its users.

When version 4.0 arrived of the Firefox code, after extensive betas, Pale Moon deviated further from its parent by also making changes to the standard UI (User Interface) layout. UI design choices made to "innovate" the user interface, removing quite essential user feedback and changing the layout of navigation controls were considered to be poor choices, and have been altered to provide a more familiar, and also more intuitive, interface to the browser.

Future directions

With Firefox 4 released, and more major versions planned by Mozilla, with little to no information on what exactly the changes will bring that are planned, Pale Moon will most likely continue to focus on the current browser versions. The outline seems to be to make Firefox more than a browser, and to spread thin across different disciplines to attempt to make a pseudo-web-OS out of it. These are just course plans at the moment, may look nice on paper, but would most likely see a vast amount of practical issues when trying to implement them -- on top of requiring users to change their way of working every three months with the current plans (Firefox 5, 6 and 7 are planned to be released in approx. 3 month intervals in 2011)
Pale Moon aims to remain what it is: a web browser.
Both the 3.x and 4.x branches will continue to be developed, updated and supported.

Sunday 15 May 2011

Allowing and the Law of Attraction

As we learn more about using the Law of Attraction consciously in our lives, we become masters at visualizing, affirming, and attracting what we desire. We learn how to infuse our desires with emotion and power, we learn how to raise our vibrations through joyful thoughts and align ourselves more fully with the circumstances we want to bring about.

However, most of us forget one crucial step in the process: allowing. Allowing is a multi-faceted phase in the creation process, and it can be confusing for those of us who haven't had much exposure to the concepts.

In generations past, hard work was a way of life. In some cases, it was the ONLY way of life. Like many of you, I come from a long line of hard workers: Maine lobstermen and fishermen, lighthouse keepers, factory workers, seamstresses, midwives, housekeepers, and public servants. My ancestors were proud of their ability to roll up their sleeves and put in a hard day's work to keep food on the table and clothing on their children's backs. Hard work was simply a fact of life, not something to be resented, just something that must be done, like breathing or sleeping when the sun went down.

Through the examples of my forebears, I was taught that nothing comes freely in life. If I want something, it's up to me to put my nose to the grindstone and work for it. This isn't a bad thing, and I don't want to diminish the accomplishments of those who paved the way for us.

However, the more deeply we delve into Law of Attraction principles, the more we realize that there is another way. Some would call it a better way, but let us see it simply as an alternate path to a similar destination. What is this alternate path? ALLOWING.

As we just covered, action is needed at the beginning stages of conscious creation. We know we need to visualize our desires, affirm our belief in a new reality, raise our vibrations (thoughts) and come into alignment with the end result so it can manifest in our lives. What most of us do then is take further action to encourage our new circumstances to form physically. We might work harder to make more money, or we might join a dating service to meet the partner of our dreams. There is nothing wrong with these actions, except the belief that we need to "do" anything to make our desires manifest.

That's where allowing comes in. What if, after we've visualized, affirmed, and expressed our desires to the universe, we simply let go? What happens then? Most of us are under the impression that nothing would happen. Ah, but we can ALLOW the universe to manifest exactly what we desire. That's the beauty of the Law of Attraction. We don't HAVE to make things happen, we can simply allow the universe to deliver our desires fully formed and neatly wrapped in a beautiful package with a bow on top.

So how do we allow? There are three key parts to allowing:

1) Let go of the "how." This seems to contradict the creation process, because isn't the whole point to control the outcome? It may seem so at the beginning, but as most of us go along, we eventually realize that the more we try to control the outcome, the less circumstances seem to work in our favor. By consciously letting go of HOW the universe will manifest our wishes, we affirm that our desired outcome is already a done deal. There's no need to beg, manipulate, or control the situation because it already exists in perfect form. We simply need to let go and trust that the universe will deliver it to us in the most beautiful and beneficial way possible.

2) Let go of the "when." This is one of the most difficult things to do because we want what we want right NOW. We don't want to wait for divine timing or anything else. Unfortunately, our very impatience can delay the process. Why? Because by wanting it right now, we place emphasis on the "wanting." Remember, we create what we focus on the most! If we focus on wanting, we create more want. By affirming that our desires will manifest at exactly the right time, we automatically focus more on trust and faith. We believe that our deepest heart's desires are on their way to us, and guess what happens? They come more quickly.

3) Appreciate. It can be hard to appreciate what we have when we're not happy with our lives, but once again, it's all about what we focus on and what we attract. The more appreciative we can be about our existing circumstances, the more we will attract things to appreciate. If you have to, start with something small and obvious. Each morning when you awake, say something like, "I appreciate the opportunity to live another day. I appreciate the bed I slept in all night. I'm grateful that I can take a hot shower and put on clean clothes today." As you go about your day, take a moment to appreciate everything you can, no matter how small and insignificant it may seem. Over time, this puts you in a gratitude mindset and will begin to attract more and more things to appreciate - and more often than not, those things continue to get bigger and bigger the more you keep up with this practice.

So, does this mean that we never have to work hard again? We can just sit back and "allow" the universe to give us everything we want? Yes, and no. There is one more important point that ties in to the concept of allowing, and that is taking inspired action. Occasionally, after we have expressed our desires to the universe and we've begun "allowing" them into our lives, the universe will provide a way for US to bring about what we want, rather than simply plopping it into our laps fully formed.

In this case, we will usually feel a nudge in a certain direction. We might be inspired to start a business, buy a lottery ticket, attend a lecture, read a particular book, or any number of other actions. If we act immediately on these nudges, circumstances usually shift and opportunities appear. These opportunities usually create an opening that can help us to manifest our desires simply and easily, and often quickly.

However, remember that inspired action shouldn't be painful or difficult. It should feel wonderful and inspiring. You will feel excited about it, and eager to do it. That's how you can tell whether you are being inspired to take a particular action, rather than feeling like you "have to" do it in order to get what you want.

The Secret: Tarot & the New Thought Movement

http://marygreer.wordpress.com/2007/10/16/articles/

here it speaks about the tarot and the law of attraction

The Fool, The Sun and the Law of Attraction

Tarot History - Part 1

Wednesday 11 May 2011

NICORETTE® QuickMist mouthspray,

http://www.nicorette.co.uk/?gclid=CNrn2Zuj4KgCFQUKfAodCSrzsA

What is NICORETTE® QuickMist?

New NICORETTE® QuickMist spray is a unique form of Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT), an instant release mouth spray that gets to work on cravings in 60 seconds. The new mouth spray format is the first of its kind, and exclusive from NICORETTE®. It is easy to use, discreet and convenient -perfect for tackling those nasty nicotine cravings on the go.

Fast, effective craving relief

The fresh-tasting minty spray provides small doses of therapeutic nicotine to help manage the nicotine withdrawal cravings you get when quitting. In fact, using NICORETTE® QuickMist has been clinically proven to help double your chances of stopping smoking successfully compared to quitting with willpower alone. You can use NICORETTE® QuickMist whether you want to stop smoking completely, cut down the amount you smoke, or simply use as a safer alternative when you can’t or don’t want to smoke, for example in front of children, at work, or when travelling.

Discreet, convenient, flexible

NICORETTE® QuickMist is ideal for use on the go. The handy, discreet packaging fits easily into your handbag or pocket, so you can help to relieve your nicotine cravings wherever and whenever they strike.
The portable mouth spray fits conveniently into your life whether you’re at home, in the office, out with friends or just walking down the street.

Product Range

There are 2 pack sizes available:
Single £17.99
Double £28.99
Each pack contains at least 150 sprays.
Available from pharmacies and grocery stores nationwide

Need more advice?

For further help and advice related to giving up smoking, please consult your local GP, pharmacist or smoking cessation clinic.
NICORETTE® QuickMist is a stop smoking aid that contains nicotine. Requires willpower. Always read the label.

BullGuard Internet Security

Complete protection for you and your computer with BullGuard. We specialise in technically excellent, easy to use security products designed exclusively for home and small business users.http://www.bullguard.com/landing-pages/generic_buyandtry_generic.aspx?gclid=CJafv9qs36gCFQEY4QodNRdz_A

Key features

Our flagship product is a complete internet security solution - including virus
scan - which provides comprehensive protection for you and your computer
from all online threats like viruses, spyware, identify theft, credit card fraud,
hackers and spam. Plus backup for your precious files, photos & music.

Antivirus

Give computer viruses like Trojans and worms no chance

Antispyware

Protect yourself from identity theft and online fraud.

Firewall

Protect your PC from unwanted intruders like hackers.

Spamfilter

Keep your inbox clean from junk mail and phishing
attempts.

Backup

Easily secure your important files from computer crashes,
damage and theft.

Game Mode

Fast but safe game fun with minimal resource consumption.

Support

Free 24/7 sup

Tuesday 10 May 2011

Running Training Plan

http://www.runningtrainingplan.com/trainingplandownloads.php

Monday 9 May 2011

FREE STUFF

http://www.freestuff.me/
Free Stuff, Freebies & Free Samples in the UK - Updated Daily! We have free samples, discount codes, competitions, vouchers, coupons & plenty more!

Fish Pie

http://www.jamieoliver.com/recipes/fish-recipes/fish-pie

The Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn

http://www.hogd.co.uk/

"This Order's mentor and guiding light was the late Dr. Israel Regardie. The modern-day Order does not claim institutional lineage to the original H.O.G.D. but it does claim initiatory lineage to the original Order through Israel Regardie." - Ciceros

This is the first time the British arm of The Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn® (H.O.G.D.) has presented itself in web site form. With the internet now playing such a major role in connecting those of like mind together we felt it time to shine the light a little further to those seeking guidance on the path and primarily living in Britain/Europe.

Whether you consider yourself a novice, an aspiring student or an adept in your own specialist field we hope you find something within our pages that aids your progressive journey toward the light. We aim to build this site into a treasure house of knowledge disseminated by those adepts and students alike who are keen to share their knowledge and insight with a wider community. Here you will find a treasure of previously unpublished manuscripts, papers and articles plus published material by noted and well respected authors in the field of magic. Some of the material on this site shall also be available in German and Italian through our brotherhood located in these countries.

The recommended links and recommended reading material sections only represent a small selection of the available wealth to be found but they are constantly being added to. If you feel able to contribute we welcome new submissions that are in-keeping with the Hermetic Tradition.

After reading about the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn® in Britain and perhaps some of the related papers you find your heart and mind in accord with our Order we would like to hear from you .

We thank you for finding us and wish you well on your journey.

H.O.G.D. Britain, Winter Solstice 2007

FREE READINGS

Welcome to Facade, the first and most popular web site devoted to Tarot, Runes, I Ching, Biorhythms, Numerology, and other forms of spiritual introspection.
We have provided FREE readings and information to the Internet community since 1993, before even Netscape existed.
Whether you're new to mystical pursuits or an experienced practicioner, we hope you'll find our unbiased approach to divination refreshing and entertaining! http://www.facade.com/

The Monkey-puzzle Tree

Araucaria araucana (popularly called The Monkey-puzzle Tree) is an evergreen tree growing to 40 metres (130 ft) tall with a 2 metres (7 ft) trunk diameter. The tree is native to central and southern Chile and western Argentina. Araucaria araucana is the hardiest species in the conifer genus Araucaria. Because of the species's great age it is sometimes described as a living fossil.
Araucaria araucana is the national tree of Chile.

[hide]

[edit] Description

The leaves are thick, tough and scale-like, triangular, 3–4 cm long, 1–3 cm broad at the base, and with sharp edges and tip. They persist for 10–15 years or more, so cover most of the tree except for the older branches.
It is usually dioecious, with the male and female cones on separate trees, though occasional individuals bear cones of both sexes. The male (pollen) cones are oblong and cucumber-shaped, 4 cm long at first, expanding to 8–12 cm long by 5–6 cm broad at pollen release. The tree is wind pollinated. The female (seed) cones, which mature in autumn about 18 months after pollination, are globose, large, 12–20 cm diameter, and hold about 200 seeds. The cones disintegrate at maturity to release the 3–4 cm long nut-like seeds, which are then dispersed by jays and squirrels.

[edit] Habitat

Its native habitat is the lower slopes of the Chilean and Argentinian south-central Andes, typically above 1,000 metres (3,300 ft), in regions with heavy snowfall in winter. Juvenile trees exhibit a broadly pyramidal or conical habit which naturally develops into the distinctive umbrella form of mature specimens as the tree ages.^[1] It prefers well drained, slightly acidic, volcanic soil but will tolerate almost any soil type provided it drains well.

[edit] Cultivation and uses

Distribution map of Araucaria araucana in central Chile

Araucaria araucana is a popular garden tree, planted for its unusual effect of the thick, 'reptilian' branches with a very symmetrical appearance. It prefers temperate climates with abundant rainfall, tolerating temperatures down to about −20 °C (−4 °F). It is far and away the hardiest member of its genus, and can grow well in western Europe (north to the Faroe Islands and Smøla^[2] in western Norway), the west coast of North America (north to the Queen Charlotte Islands in Canada) and locally on the east coast as well, and in New Zealand and southeastern Australia. It is tolerant of coastal salt spray, but does not like exposure to pollution.
Its seeds are edible, similar to large pine nuts, and are extensively harvested in Chile. The tree has some potential to be a food crop in other areas in the future, thriving in climates with cool oceanic summers (e.g. western Scotland) where other nut crops do not grow well. A group of six female trees with one male for pollination could yield several thousand seeds per year. Since the cones drop, harvesting is easy. The tree however does not yield seeds until it is around 30–40 years old, which discourages investment in planting orchards (although yields at maturity can be immense); once established, it can live possibly as long as 1,000 years (Gymnosperm Database). Once valued because of its long, straight trunk, its current rarity and vulnerable status mean its wood is now rarely used; it is also sacred to some members of the Mapuche Native American tribe.^[3] Before the tree became protected by law in 1971, there were lumber-mills in Araucanía Region which specialized in Araucarias.^{[citation needed]} This species is listed in the CITES Appendix I as an endangered species.^[4]

[edit] Discovery and naming

First found in Chile in the 1780s, it was named Pinus araucana by Molina in 1782. In 1789, de Jussieu had erected a new genus called Araucaria based on the species, and in 1797 Pavón published a new description of the species which he called Araucaria imbricata (an invalid name, as it did not use Molina's older species epithet). Finally in 1873, after several further redescriptions, Koch published the combination Araucaria araucana, validating Molina's name in the genus. The name araucana is derived from the native Araucanians who used the nuts (seeds) of the tree in Chile. A group of Araucanians living in the Andes, the Pehuenches, owe their name to their diet based on harvesting of the Araucaria seeds. Pehuen means Araucaria and che people in Mapudungun.
In Britain before 1850, it had been known as "Joseph Bank's Pine" or "Chile Pine", though it is not a true pine.
The origin of the popular English name Monkey-puzzle derives from its early cultivation in Britain in about 1850, when the species was still very rare in gardens and not widely known. The proud owner of a young specimen at Pencarrow garden near Bodmin in Cornwall was showing it to a group of friends, and one made the remark "It would puzzle a monkey to climb that"; as the species had no existing popular name, first 'monkey-puzzler', then 'monkey-puzzle' stuck.^[5]
In France it is known as désespoir des singes or 'monkeys' despair'. The species Mapuche name Pehuén is now becoming more widely used as an alternative common name in English.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Relatives

The recently found 'Wollemi Pine', Wollemia, though discovered in south-east Australia, is possibly its nearest relative or possibly the Norfolk Island Pine. There common ancestry dates to a time when Australia, the Antarctica and South America where linked by land.

[edit] Media

Araucaria araucana in the Argentinian Andes
Bark of a tree in Conguillío National Park, Chile
Female cones
Male cones
Juvenile Foliage closeup
Araucaria araucana branch
Monkey puzzle trees are popularly grown as ornamental trees
Juvenile tree in winter
Mixed forest of Araucaria and other conifers near Conguillío National Park, Chile

[edit] References

^ "Araucaria Araucana by Michael A. Arnold".
^ " Araucaria araucana in Ålesund, Norway". Scanpalm. Retrieved 2009-06-27.
^ Anna Lewington & Edward Parker (1999). Ancient Trees. Collins & Brown. ISBN 1-8558597-4-2.
^ "Appendices I, II and III". CITES. UNEP. Retrieved 8 March 2010.
^ Alan Mitchell (1996). Alan Mitchell's Trees of Britain. Collins. ISBN 0-0021997-2-6.

[edit] External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Araucaria araucana

Wikispecies has information related to: Araucaria araucana

Conifer Specialist Group (2000). Araucaria araucana. 2006. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. www.iucnredlist.org. Retrieved on 11 May 2006. Listed as Vulnerable (VU B1+2c v2.3)
Gymnosperm Database: Araucaria araucana
Encyclopedia of the Chilean Flora: Araucaria araucana
Chilebosque: Araucaria araucana
Global trees campaign: Monkey puzzle

How To Grow And Care For An Apple Tree

Growing and caring for apple trees.

Growing an apple tree is not only a delicious choice for your garden but pleasing to the eye and fairly easy to maintain as well. Before purchasing an apple tree it is important to take into consideration the size of your yard and the pollination requirements of the tree. Also be sure to choose varieties that you will enjoy the taste of.

Although all apple trees are self-incompatible (not able to pollinate itself or another tree of the same variety) there are some on the market that have several different types of apples grafted onto one rootstock. Unless you purchase one of these, you will need to plant at least two different types of apple trees that are of compatible varieties to insure the cross-pollination occurs. Without the cross-pollination there will be no fruit. Your local gardening center can help you make the best choices for your particular area,

The size of the tree is determined by its rootstock. Apple trees vary in size from approximately twelve to twenty feet in height. There are many dwarf or size-controlled varieties available. If planting more than one tree, be sure to provide for ample spacing between them.

Apple trees should be planted in late fall or early spring. Choose a sunny location for your tree. Although apple trees can survive in most types of soil, you must be sure that your tree will be allowed good drainage and avoid planting it in a low spot. If the tree's roots sit in water, the tree will die. If you are planting your tree in an existing lawn, it is recommended that you remove the grass in a four-foot diameter prior to planting.

To plant an apple tree, dig a hole that is two feet deep and twice the diameter of the tree's root system. Replace half the soil that you removed. Place the roots into the hole being careful they don't become twisted amongst each other. Return the rest of the soil to the hole slowly and firm it down over the roosts. Don't allow any air pockets to be created. When you have finished, water thoroughly. Cover the area surrounding the tree with a thick carpet of mulch to help keep the roots moist and suppress weeds. Water the tree regularly, especially in times of drought. Apply a good, balanced fertilizer in early spring.

Apple trees need careful and regular pruning to keep them healthily growing at their best. This should be done once a year. Depending on the type of tree you have chosen it might best be done in the winter or summer. Pruning a young apple tree is done to help it to maintain its proper shape. The main things to look for while pruning a mature tree is to remove weak, unproductive or dead wood, diseased wood, overcrowded branches and any branches that are crossing one another and touching.

It can take up to three years for apple trees to set fruit. When your tree does, it is important to thin the fruit when it is still small. Apple trees tend to produce too much fruit for its limbs to be able to hold. Thinning the fruit helps to keep the weight down and also will provide you with bigger, better quality fruit. Apples grow in clusters on the tree. To thin the apples you will need to cut the central apple out of the cluster using a pruning tool. Also remove any small, badly formed or damaged fruit from the cluster.

If you notice a severe insect or disease problem with your apple tree, it may be necessary to spray the tree with a fungicide and/or insecticide. Speak with a representative at your local gardening center to determine the best solution to use.

The apples on your tree will not all ripen at exactly the same time. They will ripen one by one over the course of several weeks. You will know that your apple tree is ready to harvest when the fruit comes away from the tree easily in your hands. To harvest the apples properly simply take an apple firmly in your hand and twist. If the apple does not come away easily, leave it there for a while longer.

Hairy Bikers' steak and ale pie

Average rating:

(154 ratings)

A really easy-to-follow recipe for a delicious and rich steak and ale pie from The Hairy Bikers

Makes: 1
Prep time: 20 mins
Cooking time: 1 hr 20 mins
Total time: 1 hr 40 mins
Skill level:
Costs:

The Hairy Bikers' steak and ale pie, England, World Cup recipe

Make in advance

Ingredients

If you've got time to make your own puff pastry, here's the recipe you'll need for flaky puffy pastry

Send us your tips>

900g stewing steak, diced
25g flour, plus extra for dusting
100g butter
2 onions roughly chopped
2 cloves of garlic, roughly chopped
2 medium carrots, roughly chopped
150g button mushrooms
2 sprigs fresh thyme
400ml good-quality ale
500ml beef stock
Salt and pepper
1 egg, beaten for glazing
300g ready-made rolled puff pastry

Method

Preheat the oven to 220°C/428°F/gas mark 7.
Pour flour into a bowl and season well.
Coat the meat with the seasoned flour.
Heat half the butter in a heated pan and add the meat. Sear all over until golden brown.
Add the vegetables, herbs, ale and stock. Bring to a simmer, then cover with a lid and gently simmer for 1 hr.
When cooked, season, add the remaining butter and pour into an ovenproof serving dish.
Brush the edge of the dish with the beaten egg.
Roll out the pastry using as little flour as possible and place over the dish.
Pinch the edges of the dish so that the pastry will stick to it and trim off any remaining pieces of pastry from around the edge.
Brush the pastry top thoroughly with the remaining beaten egg and place on a baking tray.
Bake in the oven for 20-30 mins until the pastry is golden brown on top.

The Hairy Bikers have created 32 World Cup recipes for npower.com/backthebid

A modern bargain: Pig's Trotters

modern bargain: Pig's Trotters

By Ashley Heath
BBC Wiltshire

Cheap and cheerful: trotters comeback

Cheaper cuts of meat are making a comeback at Wiltshire's meal times.

Pig's cheeks, chitterlings and oxtail are being looked on as a bargain worth buying by cooks working to a budget.
Once seen as 'not good enough', these cheap cuts are seeing increasing demand at the county's butchers.
I looked more closely at the phenomenon and challenged a Salisbury bistro to come up with a recipe that even the most nervous home cook might attempt in their own kitchen.
Pritchett Butchers are in Fish Row in Salisbury. The window is full of the usual fare you might expect, as well as some you might not.
100 a week
Mark Aldridge is the owner. "When we put pigs trotters in the window, tourists sometimes stop and take photographs. They think it's really novel!"

Mark Aldridge: "Tourists love to see trotters in our window."

What's also novel is how the humble pigs trotter, and other cheaper cuts of meat, are making a comeback.
Mark said "They're getting more and more popular, increasing every day. We're selling 50 to 100 trotters a week now, on average, 25p each, so they're not expensive to buy.
"And you get a lovely flavour out of 'em."
That may be so but riding high in my mind was the question of how you can be sure that the pigs foot, in contact with all that comes with a farm yard, is actually clean enough to buy once it's in the butchers shop.
"They're clean", said Mark. "When they're at the abattoir, the trotters go into a hot tank, and beaters to remove the hairs and then they get washed again, so they come up really clean."
Bistro Challenge
Buying trotters isn't a problem then but what can you do with them? To help us answer that question, BBC Wiltshire enlisted the help of the LXIX Bistro in Salisbury's Castle Street.

Andy Griggs and Josh Colman of LXIX Bistro

LXIX: Andy Griggs and Josh Colman

Andy Griggs is the owner, and Josh Colman is his head chef. Together, they came up with a recipe that we can all try, to see if we like pigs trotters.
Andy thinks that this rediscovery of pigs trotters is purely generational. "The modern generation, only familiar with supermarket cuts, aren't being exposed to more traditional cuts, which very often go to waste", said Andy.
Josh is the head chef and believes that pigs trotters are an essential part of cooking.
"If I didn't have pigs trotters, I couldn't make the stocks that I do," said Josh. "I always have to have them; that's what I mainly use trotters for. They're just brilliant, they give a jellified thickness to your gravy."

First time Trotter: Josh tries his own recipe

"But have you tried trotters as a dish yet?" I asked. "No" was Josh's answer, which made the tastiness of his own recipe all the more interesting!
Once he'd eaten his own recipe, Josh seemed impressed. "Very nice, very tender", he said.
As for the future of pig's trotters, it seems their popularity is assured. It's now a case of whether that will drive up prices. Andy thinks it will.
"We tend to see a hike in price, as we did in the last recession with pig's cheeks for example, especially when celebrity chefs get hold of something," he said.
So, not so much a case of 'get them while they're hot, but cheap!"

LXIX Bistro's Plat Del Trotteur

Josh Colman's recipe for pig's trotters

Ingredients
2 pig's trotters
4 large potatoes (Maris Piper preferably)
1 large cooking apple
1 head of broccoli
1 pint of cider
1 pint of red wine
1 pint of beef stock
1 teaspoon of Dijon mustard
1 dessertspoon of Demerara sugar
100g butter
50ml of double cream
Sage leaves
Method
Brown off the pig's trotters in a pan.
Add the cider, wine, beef stock and sage leaves.
Bring to the boil and simmer for two and a half to three hours. Remove the pig's trotters and reserve the stock.
Peel the potatoes and chop into half inch cubes. Place in water.
Peel and chop the apple. Cook in a pan with a little water.
Rub the Dijon mustard and sugar into the pig's trotters.
Boil the potatoes for 20 minutes.
Having preheated the oven at 180c / Gas Mark 4, oven roast the pig's trotters for 15 - 20 minutes.
Put the stock back on to boil and reduce to a nice grave consistency.
Heat the broccoli in water for three to four minutes.
Mash the potatoes, using the butter, cream and apple.
Serve.

What's The Secret of The Secret?

Have you been wondering about what 'The Secret' is, and why it took the country by storm? You're not alone. The book, which discusses the Law of Attraction and how to use it in your life, rose to the top of many bestseller lists and inspired offshoots like The Secret Gratitude Book, The Secret Day-To-Day Calendar, and its own official website. The book introduced many people to the concept that their thoughts may influence not only their actions, but the experiences that they bring into their lives as well.

Tips from The Secret

The Secret puts forward several ideas that are surprising, exciting, and perhaps controversial, such as:

If you focus your attention on achieving a goal and believe not only that you can do it, but that you already have done it, you can achieve virtually any goal you set your mind to.
If you focus on what you don't want, you are inadvertently drawing that into your life. For example, if you constantly ruminate on what is stressing you, you'll actually draw more of those situations (and accompanying stressed feelings) into your life. Instead, the trick is to focus on what you do want in your life, and you'll get more of that.
The Law of Attraction, the principle that you attract whatever you focus your energy on (good or bad), works with relationships, possessions, goals, and anything else you are able to focus on -- even your own health.

The book shares other insights and specific strategies to use, gives a history of the use of the Law of Attraction, and provides examples on how it's worked in the lives of various people, making it an interesting and informative read.

The Cons and Contrversies of The Secret

The book has caused some controversy. For example, some people believe that it conflicts with the religious values of Christianity and other major religions, while others see it as a complementary approach. The book does spend considerable time on how to use the Law of Attraction to gain an expensive car of other material possessions, and without direct action; many people have asserted that having such a focus on external things and material wealth goes against the spiritual wisdom of the Law of Attraction, reducing it to a parlor trick of sorts. And there's also been criticism of the idea that we create our own difficult circumstances in life; the obvious examples of children born into abuse or millions of people born into extreme poverty doesn't seem to fit well with that explanation of reality. The Law of Attraction itself can be controversial, as it's not a scientifically proven 'law', but more of an anecdotally observed phenomenon.

Main Caveat With The Law of Attraction

My main concern with the Law of Attraction, especially as presented in 'The Secret', is that some people may take the 'you create your own reality' message as proof that they are to blame for challenging circumstances which are beyond their control. Accidents, serious illnesses, and other major life circumstances can be easier to weather with a feeling of personal control and a proactive attitude like that espoused in the secret; these same challenges can be all the more crushing when people blame themselves for their existence. The Law of Attraction, in my opinion, can explain a lot and can be used for its positive benefits, but does not account for all negative events we encounter. Challenges are a part of life, and facing them makes us stronger; blaming ourselves and beating ourselves up over the challenges we face is absolutely not helpful.

Bottom Line on The Secret

Countless thousands of people have found the principles espoused in The Secret to be life-changing. Many people have found it to provide significant relief from stress in that it can provide the reader with more of an internal locus of control, positive attitude, and clarification of goals. Though there are some hiccups to it, I would say that this book can provide some excellent opportunities for stress relief, and a rough roadmap to a better life.

User Reviews

Write a review

Be the first to write a review

Related Guide Picks

Morgan-Greer Tarot

Dedicated to the diversity and beauty of Tarot What's New

Morgan-Greer Tarot

The Morgan-Greer Tarot is an excellent deck for Tarot beginners, this deck is of the Rider-Waite tradition, with far better artwork. The cards are borderless, for something different, and the characters are shown fairly close-up.

Read a review of the Morgan-Greer Tarot

By Bill Greer & Lloyd Morgan
Tarot Deck - 78 Cards
Published by US Games 1979