Nancy Reading

This all makes a lot of sense to me. It's not completely applicable to my situation, as I run a tiny grocery store and use this to a certain extent as my overflow larder! I try and have a couple of cans of what we use most to make an easy dinner, otherwise what we eat is mostly what is running out of date in the shop.
What they call 'par' I'm used to calling (from my days in automotive manufacturing) kanban - a visual system of knowing that you need more of something.

Apparently the latest thing to get kids interested in growing is to grow a mandrakegelwurzel. She grows veg has a purple mangelwurzel seed that grows into something that looks just like the 'mandrake' babies out of Harry Potter! The colour ought to give more micronutrients too.


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I think it is a long season plant though, so maybe not suitable as the only thing to grow.

I know you do grafting trees r ransom - do you use grafting tape? I think if you wrapped that round tightly it would stay waterproof enough for a few weeks use - enough to get through the lambing at least!

Ac Baker wrote:It looks like they're doing some rather interesting experiments e.g. in how to insulate Nissan huts, at Cultybraggan: https://www.ads.org.uk/case-study/cultybraggan-camp-hut-one

Thank you for that link Ac, I hadn't come across it. I was thinking of wool insulation (just because it is a waste product round here) But I also like the sound of that wood cellulose batting that can be rendered on top of: more details on the cultybraggan refurb here Luckily the building I'm looking at isn't listed - it's just a farm building, not part of a WW2 historic site. You can still build a new one too - they make the Nissen style kits in Wales: https://www.nissensheds.co.uk/nissen-sheds/

Looking at your floor plan, I do see one major Quonset/Nissen geometry trap you'll want to avoid: Headroom in the walking paths. In your drawing, the hallway and walking spaces are positioned along the outer curved walls. In a 24-foot wide Nissen hut, the ceiling drops drastically on the sides. If you keep the hallway there, your guests will be walking hunched over!

The intention would be to have a dormer roof entrance on the side. I've come across several UK based Nissen huts with side windows and doorways, so this does appear to be a standard practice on occasion. Unlike Quonsets, the Nissen huts have a modular steel frame which gives much of the strength, so as long as the doorway or window fit between there should be no problem there. See the attached examples.
I did do a rough section through showing a 6ft person and most of the area appears quite fine for them. The block on the right is a 3ft kitchen surface and the block on the left the bed. I'm not happy with the angle of a potential porch roof though - there is no room for any insulation (I've made the walls 2ft thick in my sketch which is probably a bit excessive...) and that shallow an angle invites water ingress.

Ac Baker wrote:We're using potatoes to prepare a good section of the plot for autumn down veg.

That looks like a good start to the gardening year for the new plot. Sheet mulch and potatoes should really get the soil in good heart for next year, well done!

I'm not familiar with your climate zone, but think the winding path and trees will make a lovely area. It makes sense to have biomass accumulators as well as edible plants.
I just have a couple of thoughts:
I note you have espalier pears planned - these will need training and pruning and will be much more expensive; although will make an attractive feature. I see they are opposite grapevines, so I assume you have an arbour or other structure planned to make a feature walkway at the entrance to the workshop.
The only other point I would wonder about is the Apios. These are climbers - what will they climb? and I believe they prefer damp soil (even swampy?) I have grown them in my polytunnel and am yet to find them really thriving here - well out of their native range.
Wishing you well!

James Ó Gréacháin wrote:the season has already kicked off, which is surprising as the weather has been very damp and rainy this spring.

Yes here too, but Easter is early this year. That is normally the start of the season for us. It'll get quieter for a bit in a week or so, then kick off at Whitsun.

There are three chimneys in the house and two have been sealed up over the years. I’d like to rework one of those into the plan, if possible.

That sounds sensible, I'm thinking the same here, tending towards a j tube for simplicity (and because we like playing). I'll probably build something outsidish first as a trial.

Nicole Alderman wrote:The walking onions I shared with my mom are doing way better at her house than mine, so she actually dug up a bunch of them (along with garlic and grape hyacinths) for me to give to my students.

I didn't know grape hyacinth were edible - there's my new thing for the day! They have a tendency to be invasive in the UK, so there is the opportunity to turn a problem into a solution there.

Someone came in the Post Office this morning to post a parcel to her sister - Snowdrops. This is the best time of year to transplant them, whilst they are growing. Apparently her sister gave her the snowdrops years ago, but has now moved to somewhere where she doesn't have them, so she is now getting her own snowdrops back again!

My first effort at a potential layout.

This is for short stays, not to live in at this stage. The entrance is one one curved side (assuming suitable corrugated flashing can be obtained). The hallway is probably going to have a standard height ceiling, but the other rooms vaulted to follow the curve of the outer roof. The bathroom opens off the hallway on one side and it goes through to the main room. I put a 'breakfast bar' type table next to the kitchen area, since there didn't seem to be enough surfaces to me. I wanted the sitting area to be in front of the big window at the end for the view, so the dining area ends up to the rear.
If we do put a fire in (for back up and because people like to play with fire) I thought a tiny batch box on the dividing wall might work.
The bedroom looks the opposite way with a large/tall window for views again.

I need to do some cross scetions to scale yet, to check for headroom at the sides. It might be possible to lift the whole structure up by a foot or so to give more height, but I want to avoid this if possible.

Any thoughts on practicality at this stage?