Mackay's Back To The Land Project- The Fruits of Our Labor

[Mackay]

cl, I planted those hybrids exactly because they grow fast. Moving on in years you know...can't wait for ever...they will border the entrance to the property. We are not really thinking wind break at this point..I am thinking of planting a wood lot of ponderosa pine which do grow in Idaho, just not right where we are. This wood lot is for future generations of course. Not too may trees native to this part of the state. Cottonwoods mostly and some tree that kinda looks like an aspen but isn't. We have a couple that are dying. Will put in some aspens before long.. Moscow is a pretty long drive for us, not too likely we will get over there for trees. All in all I don't plan but to plant about 20 more trees. This neck of the woods just doesn't have many unless you get into the mountains...but the wood lot is a must and I will put them on the corner of the property by the bend in the road where the view is not so good in that direction. May scatter a few clusters of aspen here and there and I am thinking of a couple of large maples, mostly for their compost potential on leaves...but I will have to hunt around for just the right kind.

The building wrap did start to blow off after a bad storm about a month ago. Our neighbor went over and stapled it up for us.... imagine that! Real, alive, awake, concerned, generous neighbors....but then again, we always give them beer when they come by

I'm thinking that upstairs in a small house will be pretty warm since heat rises and we may put floor vents in to allow for even more of that. I once lived in a 3 story house with poor insulation on the Long Island Sound. 17 below in the winter. Wind chill like crazy. The heating bill was enormous, as the house was. The further upstairs you went the warmer it got. The roommate on the third floor had to keep his window open. And then another time I lived in an apartment in an old farm house near Kansas City. My heating bill was essentially paid by the renters in the bottom floor! And then I remember my grandmother who lived in the apartment upstairs from us (in a house that is now 125 years old) when I was a kid in upstate New York..she would come down stairs all the time and complain about how hot we kept the house, but we were cold downstairs in the middle of winter unless we kept it turned up!

The house plans are slowing down again. dh has been spending time thinking of irrigation, and purchasing a culvert and a head gate for the irrigation ditch. We gotta get that stuff in before the water gets turned on in May or it will have to wait till next year and we do want to get a road built. The culvert will be to make a bridge on the part of the road that crosses the ditch, as he says the bridge I put in just won't support a fire truck. Oh Well. The plan is to have two entrances to the property, and the one that goes over the ditch will be the front door so to speak. The road will come in over the ditch, through sage brush, past the garden, to midway down the side of the pasture where it will circle up a bit to the garage then take off around the rest of the pasture to come out on the corner of the property at the fence line with our closest neighbor. dh says all good ranches have a drive through if they can...what do I know? He's the one raised in ranch country. This second entrance that we currently use will be shared with and serve another house if we ever have to sell a part...and I'm prayin that never happens...but we are prepping for it. Electric is pulled up to access that potential site already... it was more cost effective to do it now than later.

 

[clstratton]

You know Aspen can get a fungal disease of some sort (leaf blight maybe?) that makes their leaves bad for compost? I really like Acer grandidentatum, I think common name is Big-leaf maple, or maybe canyon maple. They are native to Idaho and have gorgeous fall color. As for the UI seed nursery, you can have the seedlings shipped to you. That's what I did. I think shipping is around $10. But then again, if you are going for bigger trees sooner rather than later...

I just realized I probably come across as an insufferable know-it-all. Oh well. I have just come to know that nurseries, no matter how good and reputable they are, tend to hold back the negative information about plants, and only share the really good parts. So yeah, I just try to share what I have learned.

 

[Mackay]

I will keep that in mind and not compost aspen. But if the leaves LOOK healthy is it OK? Actually aspen leaves are hard to gather.. We have aspens here in the city and they just seem to blow away....the leaves that is. I got my trees staked down good!

Thanks for the tip on the maples...I don't think I will plant them till after the house is built...Best just to say out of the builders way and I will have to consider the views they might block if wrongly placed.

Didn't understand that they would ship trees... will look into it when the time comes. I would have to be up there full time to keep such little ones alive...but I'm in no hurry for the ponderosa pine...and not at all. You are not insufferable. One reason I am here on this forum is to learn from folks who have experience that I don't have.

Here it is! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acer_grandidentatum
They say another name is sugar maple...so will I be able to tap these trees? WooHoo!

 

[Mackay]

OK time for an update. I've spent most of my summer in the city dealing with holding down the city fort and back pain from a fall. Due to therapy I've not gone to our land much at all as I felt If I'm going to move way out there I better get this back issue on the mend.

Now the end of summer and I am doing much better. DH has spent a fair amount of time up there busy just tearing everything up.

We had such a hard time trying to sell the BMW, my husbands corporate look vehicle that is now no longer necessary. No body would even come and look at it never mind buy it.... all due to the recession I guess.

Well turns out it came in handy as a bargaining chip for a John Deer Tractor. We paid with the car and some cash. Came with a tiller and a post hole digger. The tractor is sitting along the edge of what we hope to be green pasture next summer. Never in my life did I think we would be proud owners of a tractor!

Now heres a photo of part of the irrigation system DH worked on all summer. He put in a headgate on the ditch and a spill basin there then water is piped to the first pond called the 'settling pond' from there a little creek goes to the large pond that the irrigation pump will set in. This large pond has next to a spill over pond, not too sure about that one and its purpose. He spent the last two days plowing over the land for our first pasture which we will plant in the spring.

Oh, I almost forgot! the best part is that we sold our house and will be heading up there October 23. Green Acres here we come!

A lot of work got done on the garage/studio apartment also but not quite enough to move into . We're up to the sheet rock, internal plumbing, flooring. Maybe come Christmas. Meanwhile its the camper for us for those cold blustery days and nights.

 

[Mackay]

Oh, and here's about how we are looking right now.

 

[punkin]

What beatiful scenery you have.

I hope your back continues to heal. Even with the injury, looks like you have gotten alot done.

And, congrats on the move.

 

[Lady Henevere]

Wow, it's all so beautiful! Congrats on the move.

 

[FarmerDenise]

Sounds like things are well on their way. It looks beautifull. Hope your back is better.

 

[keljonma]

Good use for a bmw, Mackay! And Congratulations on the house sale! I am sure you will be busy getting everything to the new homestead.

Take care and don't reinjure your back. Thanks for sharing the updated pictures! It looks like your new place will be beautiful!

 

[TanksHill]

Beautiful pictures and thanks for the update. I think that most of us in this crowd think you made a great trade. I would much prefer a John Deer over a BMW.