Well, today was mildly productive and blessedly beautiful here in the mountains. The humidity finally broke and there was a lovely breeze, fluffy multi-hued clouds and mild sunshine....my favorite kind of day.
The walnut trees are really shedding. In this breeze they spiraled down to the ground in showers of gold...positively lovely to watch. Made me feel like I could see the Earth turning. Love it!
Got a late start but got the fencing taken down around the garden. That blasted, ineffectual fence that took so much fiddling and patching and didn't really keep chickens out. Surprisingly enough, it kept the livestock and dogs out very well...even when the electric was not on!
The boys shocked the corn, I harvested a few spindly ears and cut it off the cob to use in soups later. The corn fodder will be stored up in the hay for later this winter.
With the weeds mowed down I discovered quite a few green tomatoes! Unfortunately, with the fence down, so did the chickens and the livestock!
The maters have decided to set on fruit....a day late and a dollar short. I doubt if they will ripen before cold weather, but who knows? The pepper plants were pitiful, with some taller then my waist and others above my ankles and shriveled. Worst garden I've ever grown....a combination of getting it in late, cold and wet spring weather and neglect.
NEXT YEAR.....just you wait!
It felt good to get the yard and garden partially cleaned up and one project down the tubes.
Next Saturday we start on the horribly dirty and cluttered outbuilding and the cellar. YAY!
The boys think I'm slave driving them.....
...they worked a total of two hours today..... :/
The Bettys and Hitch have died and gone to heaven! They are eating everything they can reach, from big yellow squash to green tomatoes. They were even eating my pepper plants!
I didn't get nearly enough done today but I did get out in the sun and fresh air and I did get a little work out of my lazy-boys!
My mother and I decided to make the garden into a large squarish oval shape next year. This way we don't have to turn the tiller in a corner of the fence. We plan to till around the entire inside perimeter of the fence and plant our tomatoes along the fence and use it as a trellis. We are putting in a permanent fence this time....no darn electricity! T-post and woven wire, good and sturdy to last a long time.
Imagine a large oval standing on its end...as the garden runs long ways in my yard from top to bottom. We will plant tomatoes around the sides and the top and flowers across the bottom. Then we will have straight rows across the middle about 2.5 ft. wide, with 2.5 ft. wide permanent pathways.
The top row will be large sunflowers acting as a trellis for pole and bush beans. Mom tried this for the first time this year and was just tickled with the results! She says she will never put up bean trellis again.
Mom asked "What about the animals eating the leaves hanging outside the fence?" I said they are welcome to anything that grows on that side....it will only keep things neater if they trim it up!
I already have a gate put up on this side and will install another across the garden from it with a permanent pathway across the middle. The gates will have spring hinges or a spring of some kind to bring them shut behind us.
Doesn't that sound great? I will, of course, take pics when we get it built and laid out. We are selling her big ol' Troy-Bilt tiller and will buy a smaller, more manageable one that won't be so wide. We want more narrow rows this year....like 2 to 2 1/2 ft. wide.
It will be so great to have a partner in crime this year!
I bet we grow the best garden yet, between us both!
Welcome back!
