| How to Tie a Sheepshank Posted: The sheepshank is a useful knot for two purposes. It can be used to temporarily shorten a rope or it could be used to allow a rope with a damaged or frayed part to be still used (the damaged part would be in the center, where there is no tension). One of the properties of this knot is that it can get easily undone under tension, so to keep it in place, tension needs to be applied on both sides of the knot. Steps - Make an 'S' shape. Get the rope to form 2 bights, in the shape of an 'S'. The middle part will be the section with no tension. The curves are called bights.
- Form loops at the ends. .
- Insert the two bights into the two loops.
- Pull the free ends tight to secure the knot.
Video Tips - This knot is best used with a coarse rope, not a slippery synthetic rope. With the latter, it may fail even with tension.
- The sheepshank will become loose when not under strain. An additional hitch maybe added to prevent the sheep shank for becoming loose when not under strain.
- Another rope can be passed through the loops at each end of the finished knot, if desired.
- This knot is often used for securing loads to trucks or trailers, and in sailing applications.
Warnings - Do not use this knot for rope that will support life critical situations.
Things You'll Need Related wikiHows Sources and Citations - [1] - Original source, shared with permission
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| How to Grow an Herb Garden Indoors Year Round Posted: If you love fresh spaghetti sauce or pesto, then you've just got to have fresh basil and other herbs all year round! A nice window garden getting at least 4 or 5 hours of direct light from a sunny window will give you something to pinch here and there. Gardens with mint, rosemary, bay leaf, savory, oregano, chervil, and thyme are some of the easiest to grow this way. Steps - Provide adequate light. The goal is a vegetative light cycle (18 hours of light), with eight or more hours of direct sun or bright artificial light. If you need lots of a herb, you will need to take care of the herb's lighting needs. For example, basil and coriander (cilantro) need just a bit more light than other herbs, and really prefer 8 hours or more of direct light each day. In addition to this, if you want fresh pesto, just a pinch here and there is not going to cut it. Here's what you can do about it:
- Whenever the light levels are low, give them a boost. Two or three fluorescent lights above your plants will greatly increase growth and yield. You can grow enough basil for a few servings of pesto now and then and still have enough always at your fingertips.
- With a small metal halide light, you would have a larger area with better lighting. You could produce an abundance of any herbs you choose for your culinary and aromatic delights. Basil would take well to the bright conditions under a metal halide, as it is a Mediterranean, sun-loving herb.
- Select the proper soil. Some herbs grow better, or should be grown, in poor soil, as they can have a stronger flavour when grown in poor soil. The oils in herbs make them special. Very fast growing herbs often grow plain leaves and stems more quickly than they can produce tasty essential oils. Often you will hear, "Basil grows better in poor soil," or, "Your basil will taste better if you don't fertilize". What is really meant here is, "Don't grow your basil too fast." (Basil is an example to which this applies).
- Correctly set up your containers. When growing in a container it is a little different. The plant still needs some food to grow, and when that food runs out you will need to fertilize. However, as you will see next, this is all taken into consideration together with the growth habits of your herbs:
- To keep initial growth rates in control, use a soil mix with just enough nutrients. Mix 2 parts coir (coconut fibre) compost to 1 part perlite, and then add 20 percent worm castings. Test the pH of any mix, and if it is acidic, add one gram of hydrated lime for every litre of soil mix. Or, you can substitute with vermiculite, which does not need pH adjusting. Finally, add 1 tablespoon of kelp meal for each gallon of soil to add plant hormones and to give beneficial micro-organisms something to feed on. Use this mix whenever you transplant.
- Know when to water. If the surface of the soil feels dry, you need to water. Another way to tell is to pick up the container and check how heavy it is. Your herbs like their soil to drain fast. You need to have containers with holes in the bottoms, and you need to add a layer of broken roof tiles (slate is ideal) or other small flat stones, or a centimetre or so of perlite or gravel to the bottom of each container as you transplant. It is best to water thoroughly but less often. Water the container until some water comes out of the bottom, but don't over-water.
- Start feeding your plants after 10 or so days. When the herbs have been in any container for ten days or more, you need to begin feeding them. In a container, the roots are stuck in a small space and will quickly mine it free of any nutrients, especially if you have been going easy on the nutrients to begin with. Feed with half-strength nutrient such as Maxsea 16-16-16 every two weeks.
- Give an additional boost to your herbs. If you really want to keep your plants healthy, it is recommended to use 10 ml/gallon Thrive Alive B1 (B1 plant mix) and Maxicrop liquid seaweed in every drop of water you give to your plants. The B1 consists of vitamins and root hormones, and the seaweed is trace nutrients and plant growth hormones. This will help with essential oil production. Finally, water basil from around the base; it does not like water on its leaves.
- Use your herbs when they're ready. As soon as the herbs have grown enough leaves to be pinched without affecting their growth, you can begin using some of the herbs. This usually takes about 4 to 6 weeks, depending on the herbs. Herbs like basil are best when harvested before flowers open. You will get your highest essential oil levels when you harvest at the end of the dark period, assuming you do not leave the lights on 24 hours a day.
Video Warnings - Do not get fertilizer on the leaves; you will be eating them.
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| How to Soothe a Burnt Tongue Posted: Ouch! A burn on the tongue can be very painful. Here are some tips to ease the pain. This article assumes the burn is caused by high temperatures, not the "heat" created by capsaicin. For that, see How to Cool Burns from Chili Peppers Steps - Apply something cool immediately. Make sure that contact with the cool item is maintained for at least a full minute. This will help the heat dissipate more quickly so it doesn't do as much damage on your tongue cells. Here are some ideas: ice cubes or crushed ice, a popsicle, frozen fruit, ice cream.
- Numb the pain. A burnt tongue can be quite uncomfortable. If you have any anesthetic ointment, rub it on the surface of your tongue. Look for products containing benzocaine, which is a topical anesthetic, and are often sold to treat mouth ulcers: Anbesol, Kank+a, Orabase B, Orajel. Anesthetic mouthwash may help as well.
- Suck on cough drops. Look for cough drops that contain benzocaine and/or menthol. Menthol, like benzocaine, acts as a local anesthetic.
- Until healing occurs, stay away from acidic foods like tomatoes, citrus fruits and juices, items with vinegar, etc., as well as salty items like potato chips, since these items will irritate the area.
Tips - Don't numb your tongue right before eating, as that might lead to you accidentally biting it, which will irritate your burnt tongue even further.
- If you can't link the burning sensation to something you ate or drank, you might have something called burning mouth syndrome, which has a variety of causes.[1]
Warnings - Don't try to deal with any serious injury on your own. When in doubt, seek medical attention.
- Don't go overboard with the ointment. It can actually numb your throat enough that you can inhale regurgitated stomach contents or oral secretions.[2]
- A common home remedy is honey. However, never use honey for a burnt tongue of a child 12 months old or younger. Children of this age should never ingest honey because it can harbor toxic spores causing infant botulism, which can cause death.[3]
- Don't apply burn creams to oral burns. Most creams are meant for use on skin and not the mouth. It could make you sick.
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