Saraburi121

Just wondering how folks in Bangkok are living?  My wife was just talking to her friend in Bangkok (married to an expat) and she has not left her apartment in a few months.  Her husband shops/works and her and the child stays home. We haven't been to Bangkok in over a year and dearly miss the trips.  We live in a small village which it is ok for people to visit the village from Bangkok but if you go to Bangkok for a visit you are under village scrutiny/quarentine upon return, still haven't figured that one out.  Miss eating in the different styles of restaurants in BKK which a lot are probably closed now.  We (Thai wife included) miss being able to escape the village.  Used to do a once a month trip to shop and eat to BKK. 

Do most folks go about life as normal?  Stay in the apartment and get delivered food and water?  Are you worried every time you go out?  What do your trust for transportation?  Grab, taxi, motorbike, walk?  

I ask this because we live in a very secluded place we grow our own vegetables and have water, pork, chicken delivered from as much as you can trust local sources.  Only 39 cases in the Amphoe since April.  No idea what my wifes friend is going through.  

I don't usually comment on driving in Thailand articles or posts and this is my first and probably last, usually you can cut and paste comments going years back and they still say pretty much the same thing.  My driving experience in Thailand is rural and mid sized cities in an automobile.  I drive in Bangkok when I have to, its a tough place if you don't know it. I think the majority of drivers here are ok but bad ones are deadly.  Rural driving you see all kinds of stuff, its almost like a video game driving some days but you only have one life.  Recent example putting things in my truck from the local store and a car backed out and ran over the end of my shoe missing my scrunched toes. Shut the door and a car zoomed into the spot vacated and just missed me.  Pulled out to go to the noodle shop for lunch about a 100 meters down the road in the middle of a small town, immediately turned on my signal to make a right turn and as I was turning a man in a truck tried to pass. Barely missed him as he blew through the red light and passed on a double line.  He pulled off and got angry but he backed off, me non confrontational. Wife said lets go home, too many stupid people out today.

Three E's and one I which in not all encompassing just IMO the major things that need to be done.  

ENGINEERING- cut out the U turns on major highways, make overpasses and modernize highways which is being done in a lot of areas I drive in. Make correct road markings for passing.  No slotted lines over hilltops(not that anyone would heed anyway). Warning signs when lanes merge. Correct road markings.  On Mittraphap Road three lanes suddenly merge into two at multiple points, with no warning.   Around BKK markings are pretty good IMO.  Engineering can take the death toll down but without the other E's doesn't make much difference.  Most folks who drive defensively can overcome most situations.  In rural areas slow down if you see tree branches in the road which means there is a problem ahead, better that than finding a broke down truck in the road.

EDUCATION-Teach kids in school about how to ride and maintain a motorcycle (some schools do)  Have a serious driving test for automobiles/motorcycles.  Teach kids early about driving and the hazards.  Have a drivers education certificate to get a license.  Establish a culture of defensive driving. Don't stop your truck in the middle of a curve to take a <deleted>. 

ENFORCEMENT-  A joke.  You can make all the laws you want but if there is no enforcement its moot. Just like your children if you have them you can make all the rules in the world but if there are no consequences it has no effect.  In 11 years the only enforcement I have seen in my area is roadblock checks in front of two local police outposts.  Other than that never seen police

Be safe all.

The best thing is have a good dog or three.  We live in the mountains of northern Saraburi on a farm.  Our dogs follow us everywhere on the farm and alert us to snakes and keep watch around the house.  Our dogs killed a huge king cobra which I would not want hanging out about the house and alert us to snakes everyday which we just let go away.  Having good dogs lets you tend to your farm or home and not worry so much depending on where you live.  I don't advocate killing snakes but don't like cobras taking up residence around the house.   Our dogs alerted us to a cobra on the patio which if we would have stepped outside the door it could have been ugly.  We captured the dogs cornering the small cobra on our cameras.  

On 6/19/2021 at 8:21 AM, oceanbreeze851 said:

Thank you to all that contributed. Yesterday I received the registered copy from Nakhon Ratchasima Immigration for my rental agreement. Then we went to KBank suggested by my wife's Aunt. My wife's Aunt's daughter knew someone at KBank. 40 minutes later, we had 2 accounts. 1 for my money for my extension of stay and the other in my wife's and my name as house account to work with for sales, payments and groceries, etc. Next step is to register our marriage.

Success! Good to hear a positive ending!  One less stressor, account established.

Dusted off the magic 8 ball and asked a yes or no question:  Re-opening Thailand by October realistic or not?

Answer: Don't count on it. 

The magic 8 ball is just as, if not more, reliable than press releases.

On 1/17/2021 at 7:56 PM, Monkeypants said:

This is ours, not a good pic, but gives you an idea 

Used this pic for an idea for our outdoor kitchen which I was initially against due to dirt.  Made it easy to clean with stainless counter top and porcelain  deck tile.  Much appreciated for the idea this picture spawned. Not quite as big and put in solar lights with no outlets outside. Had a team from Pak Chong do the stainless steel countertop and bought a grill from a gentlemen who makes some fantastic products in Udon Thani.   Wood table was from a local OTOP for 7K.  Even made a spot for the thai style grill that gets used a lot and you don't have to squat now.  Put a gas stovetop under stainless cover.  Bought a water filter from Lazada to keep some of the limestone out, seems to make a difference in the water straight from the well.  Just use to wash hands and dishes.  Put some Beger A104 shellac over the tile on the cabinet walls water just rolls off of it.  Reapplied A104 on our stone walls as well, nasty stuff scorpions come out dazed and bugs just fall out dead.  Used a good quality respirator to apply. It started raining when we were cleaning up when I took one of the pictures so it looks wet which is just from cleaning.  The guy that did the floor tile did a great job on slopes to get maximum drainage, it almost self cleans when it rains.  Just mop up in under the roofed part. 

Still working on plans with a company from Korat on the indoor kitchen, COVID put a halt for a while on that project.  The outdoor kitchen was done by myself and a real stand up professional who works local...hard to find and he is booked months in advance. 

Just want to say thanks for all the input it really helped shape our ideas!

18 minutes ago, Bredbury Blue said:

Bridle snake. Interesting. Lived here nearly 2 decades and neither the wife or I have seen one before.

It's a nocturnal snake which could be the reason why you have never seen one before. 

Looks like a bridle snake.

https://www.en.siam-info.de/venomous_animals/snakes/dryocalamus.html

Man I hope this does not turn into one of those mounds I saw visiting Darwin NT Australia a few years ago.  Great visit by the way. 

The company I found is called Rentokil.  No price list though.  They have branches all over Thailand and the website looked professional. 

7 minutes ago, tonray said:

We pay 4K for annual contract. Quarterly visits, inspection plus chemical treatment. If only we could get rid of the snails...millions if them, destroy most garden efforts.

Had the problem in our garden when we lived in Hawaii with snails.  Put out pellets to no avail.  Some of the snails carried Rat Lungworm disease so wash veggies thoroughly.  Read some snails in Thailand carry the same disease.  Fortunately we don't have very many here.  

Found a place in Korat that has good reviews on google, live in very northern Saraburi so not far away.  Termites are crazy here.  When it rains we watch the bats eat them as they come out of the ground.  Be nice if they could get rid of the scorpions too, find a couple a week in the house.  

Any recommendation on a pest control company that serves Saraburi?

In the last three months a few hundred light poles have been placed in our rural area along the main road (no cool designs though).  I would understand putting up lights by the road that go through villages but a good many of them are just on straight stretches of road through cassava and cow fields?  Seems like a waste of money, that is why you have headlights for night.   Wife and I joke the cows need to see at night to poop or someone in power has a light post factory.  Just think of the electricity they burn.

Found this in the bathroom coming through the grout, not sure what it is or how to get rid of it.  Some sort of insect nest?  Hired someone who did a terrible job on the grout. Bathroom is two years old. Going to redo it myself. We live in a rural area but no one can tell me what it is.

Prasat Hin Phanom Rung, Buriram

Local Muay Thai fighter

Resort in Pai

Pre Covid Patong Beach, Phuket

Took a sleep study several years ago and was diagnosed with severe sleep apnea.  Not fat as some people like to blame, but woke up tired for years and just attributed it to getting older.  Prescribed a APAP and started waking up refreshed and ready for the day.  After a year on the APAP started feeling the same old symptoms of waking up tired in the morning.  Talked to the doctor and the techs tested my APAP and it was defective. New APAP and waking up refreshed again.  My experience the APAP does work and my wife doesn't worry about me not breathing while I am sleeping.  My wife is the one who for years said she worried about me stopping breathing in my sleep and I finally had it checked out.  It will change you life unless you are just fat and wake up tired because you drink too much, eat too much and no exercise and snore because of booze.  I occasionally hit the beer too hard and feel tired and lethargic the next morning.  There are different types of sleep apnea which surgery may correct some. Go see a reputable doctor who will recommend a sleep test if needed, not all of them are crooks.  If you buy a CPAP/APAP without a specialist adjusting the setting to your conditions, which may change over time, you are not doing yourself justice.  

1.  Restaurant cooks who still keep putting out good food despite the COVID 

2.  Kerry delivery folks, they keep on trucking...

3.  SOI 6 Pattaya ladies. 

I have an AirSense 10 and get mask, tube and tub replacements from PK Healthcare  https://www.pkhealthcare.co.th

The website is in Thai but I used google translate to see if they had what I needed.  Called the number and spoke to an English speaking representative and ordered via line.  Money was transferred via bank transfer.  Been doing this for two year now.  Expensive though. Quick delivery and documentation. 

To those who think sleep apnea is caused by being fat I laugh.  

8 hours ago, drtreelove said:

I will try to help, although you have not given much information. 

 

Tree health, pests, diseases and disorders are never just about one factor alone, but always involve not only the causal organism if any, but the conditions that have allowed it to be there in the first place, usually soil fertility, plant nutrition and water management.  

 

It's always best to show a photo of the entire tree and the site, and to describe the growing conditions, soil improvements, fertilization and watering. 

 

Gummosis can be related to any irritation, pest, pathogen or wounding.  

 

From the photo, the gumming appears to be assosciated with a wound or pruning cut or small breakage at the site where a fungal pathogen may have entered. Or did you identify a beetle borer larva, or holes and galleries formed from a borer?  Use something to scrape off the gummy exudation, and then a sharp knife to slice off a thin layer of bark to expose the underlying tissue and any discoloration, holes or galleries.

 

The first line of defence is always good water managment.  Water deficit/drought stress creates conditions that certain pests can see and are attracted to.  Over watering can be deadly, Citrus are highly susceptible to Phytophthora crown rot.  Citrus trees do best with infrequent deep watering, once a week then allowed to dry out some before watering again. Use a soil moisture meter to take the guess work out of when to water.  These are especially useful for container grown trees.  

All About "Watering Deeply" and Why and How to Do It (thespruce.com)

 

Along with good water managment, optimum plant nutrition works to build resistance to pests and diseases, as well as quality of the fruit.  The right kind of soil building and complete organic fertilizer is the way to go.  Cease using high NPK chemical ferrtilizers, which are a pest and disease magnet.

 

Bio-pesticides are organic program compatible and can be an important non-toxic preventive management tool. Botanicals and oils are part of that.  But "occasionally" won't do it.  Botanicals like neem seed oil extracts have short term effectiveness and need to be repeated every two weeks during the growing season or a known pest-pressure period, for an effective preventive program.  Botanicals are not usually effective for an advanced pest infestation, just as biological fungicides are highly effective if used properly for prevention, but will not cure an advanced infection. Be careful with horticultural oils, mixing rates and timing and atmospheric temperature, as some products and concentrations will burn foliage and flowers, especially with temps over 30 C. (which is most days in Saraburi, right?)

 

Without a positive identification, cover all the bases: 

Do the best you can with your soil and water management program.  

Walk your garden/orchard every day, or at least every week.  Prune out the affected branch tips as soon as you notice them, six inches or so below the infection site, dispose of the pruned material off-site.  

As long as you are noticing new damage, Spray the foliage every week, upper and lower leaf surfaces, as well as the woody stems and branches with azadirachtin concentrate neem product according to the label rate.  If new damage ceases, then go to every two weeks.  This is also preventive for citrus leaf miner, scale insects and Asian citrus psyllid that vectors HLB bacteria (citrus greening disease).   Don

 

 

 

Much appreciated taking the time to give a detailed response for a post which I did not give enough information. 

Never had a soil test done which we need to. Have a Ph meter and the soil is 6.9 consistently.   Soil here is worn out I think from years of growing cassava and corn.  Just past my second year living here and persuaded the wife to plant a cover crop to rotate through the land we plant corn/cassava in.  Used the available soil fro the land along with some dried cow poop and left it set for a few months before planting the lime trees in concrete rings as a test bed.  High west exposure to sun, minimal east.  Its a tough place here weather wise,  lot of the rains miss and long dry spells. Temps in April near 40 and many days over 32.  Fertilize is pelletized chicken poop about every 6 months worked into the soil.  Deep water every week if needed. Tree health is ok right now and one tree has a lot of small limes.  Try to keep ground coconut husks on top of the soil but the damn chickens love scratching it off.   Do walk the land every morning.  Seems like the only thing that thrives here is Noi Na (custard apple) and cassava.   Noi Na love it here. We live in the mountains northwest of Pak Chong with well a red semi clay soil that drains well and leaves your feet stained red. 

Examined the branches and no boring holes nor has it been pruned since the dry season except for cutting off the dying limbs recently.  Even put alcohol on the snippers and let dry before going to the next tree.  Now same problem is affecting the kaffir limes and a flowering bush that I don't know the name of.  

I have not treated the lime trees with neem oil for a few weeks until the problem, had a few rains and should have. 

Its a rough environment here with the hot, rains then lack of rains.  Had no success growing chili peppers here as they get brown spots just before ripening.  Tried everything with chili peppers. My jalapeño, habanero and tomatoes get the same internal brown spots just before ripening.  Have beautiful healthy chili pepper plants but never get the ripened fruit.   

Not a professional farmer but love to grow things and trying to figure out why they don't.  Will not use pesticides which I am starting to think maybe you have to on some things where I live. 

Need some help figuring out what is causing my lime trees branches to start dying and what to treat the trees with.  It looks like some kind of boring beetle as you can see sap oozing out.  I use neem oil or white oil to spray occasionally which keeps a lot of pests away.  Attached are some pictures.