Progress on New Bed

Today I was *finally* able to complete Phase 1 of the bed! *Happy Dance* This phase was about starting the walls (laying down 2 layers of block) and getting a "smothering" layer down. For this, I used "nasty" hay - hay that had been laying loosely on the floor of the hen house at the farm and has a lovely hint of diesel. Ha!

Phase 2 will be getting a load of what I call "crap dirt" to put down on top of the hay. "Crap dirt" to me is dirt that isn't good for growing anything cultivated....like red clay, too-sandy-dirt, etc. Basically, this is another layer of filler since strawberries don't have very deep roots. Now to figure out how much I'm going to need.....

First Zippered Project

I have been toting around a "black hole purse" for quite sometime that doesn't have any inside pockets. Therefore, any personal hygiene items are in plain sight. So, the other day I picked up some pretty green fabric and matching zipper/thread with the idea of making a zippered pouch. At first I wasn't going to do a liner but decided that the pouch would look better with a liner. Fortunately, I had some fun-patterned fabric leftover from another project, and it kindasorta compliments my outer fabric - at least it's green. :)

Kiwi is such a fun color, don't you think??

I used this tutorial to make the pouch. Her step-by-step instructions were very easy for me to follow. Also, she gives the option of adding a strap, which I decided against. I'm very pleased with the outcome! I plan to make another one in the near future, perhaps larger.

The outside

The inner lining.

Farm Garden Before (take 2)

I had posted pictures earlier this month of what I call the "Farm Garden" looks like now. That day I happened to be in a hurry and just threw them up there hastily. Now, I've gone through the pictures and have done some editing. Enjoy!

Honeysuckle and Privet Hedge are taking over the scuppernine vines

After trimming out a wild cherry tree

After trimming out a wild tree

Unruly vines

It's like my hair after riding with the windows down! :)

Can you see where I started?

Smile for the camera, Skeeter! (RIP)

Where's the peach tree??

Privet hedge and cinder blocks occupy much of this space

Peach tree #1 in backyard

Peach tree #2 in backyard - suffered some damage last year

Poor peach tree!

Peach tree #3 in backyard.

The lone almond tree.

Peach tree #1 (in foreground) next to scuppernine vi nes

Peach tree #2 next to scuppernine vines

Rainy Day

Today has done nothing but rain. Some rain came yesterday, but today has been all about it. Which is good b/c WT and I planted 4 tomato plants Friday. Instead of putting them in the ground, where the neighborhood dogs could dig them up, we put them into empty powdered vinegar buckets. (The powdered vinegar is what we put out on the chickens at the farm.) I purchased 3 - 1# bags of potting soil ($1 at WalMart) and used some dirt from a soil sample that I did for the bottoms at the farm. I hope they won't drown with all this water!!!

In other news, the work that I started at the farm house has kinda come to a stop. I've put the 2nd application of spray on the peach and almond trees. (Grandmom Sallie planted 1 almond tree in the front yard.) While I did that, I noticed that little baby peaches - as well as almonds - were forming! So excited!!! Work on the scuppernine vines are at a complete halt until this fall, when I can really get in there and trim/prune without any weeping action (thereby not inviting any harmful bacteria.)

My strawberry bed is at a current standstill......I'm waiting to use the truck (Ha!) so I can load up some hay to put down before finishing the wall and adding the rest of the stuff. At this rate, it may be fall before I get my strawberries planted!! Oh, well. Such is life with farm work!

Yard Work

Tuesday of this past week, I started cutting the grass at the farm house when the lawnmower (aka Scag) decided to quit cutting. So I called for some help and had to wait a little bit. While I waited, I was able to spray the peach/almond trees a second time. (The flower petals had fallen off.) As I went around the peach trees, I saw little baby peaches! I'm so very excited! I really do hope that I will be able to get a pretty decent harvest from them. Lord only knows how long it's been since they were cared for. Now, the scuppernine vines are a whole 'nother beast which will hafta wait until this fall to deal with. It is so overgrown with honeysuckle vines and privet hedge that it ain't funny. I did have one of the men to use the chain saw and cut down the biggest privet hedge so the vine could get some sunshine. There may be a fair harvest from them - like enough to snack on.

Now, as far as my little bit here at the house, it's slow-moving. I've gotten the black plastic and the first row of cinder blocks down for my raised strawberry bed. I'm trying to get use of the truck so I can bring in some pine straw/hay to put down before I build the next row of blocks. I believe it'll be easier to install the straw/hay that way instead of building the walls and then trying to add the straw/hay. My little tomato plants are waiting ever so patiently to be put into buckets. Maybe I'll get to that today after church.

I think we may have gotten our "blackberry winter" now. I've had to turn the heat back on! Plus there was a little bit of frost on my car yesterday morning. I don't really know b/c I've never experienced a "blackberry winter." If I have, I never knew what it was. The things I'm learning!! :)

New Bed

I got started on building my raised strawberry bed (4'x20'x2'), which I'm building with concrete blocks. I put down a layer of landscape fabric and one row of blocks. My next step is to get a load of pinestraw to put down on top of the fabric to help smother any little weed that may wanna creep up from the ground. Then a load of filler dirt, followed by a layer of sand, then topped off with good dirt. Once I set my plants, I'll get more pine straw and mulch around them. I'm gonna order the plants by the end of the week. I'll post pics once I'm through. :)

Finally!!

Today I was *finally* able to spray the peach trees on the farm. Now, I'm waiting for Ed to finish doing someone's yard so he can take me to Home Depot so I can get the supplies I need to start my strawberry bed.

On to other things

Well, I got started on cleaning up what I thought were grapevines - apparently they're scuppernog. As I was working my way down one row (there's like 1 1/2 rows), I studied just how much they had overgrown. So, I called a retired extension agent to get his advice. He said to cut out the "trees" (which are really privet hedge) and leave the vines alone until fall.

So, in the mean time, I'm *trying* to get a raised bed built for strawberries. And spray peach trees. But, dang it all, chickens and other farming just keep getting in the way. *sigh* I hope tomorrow I can get materials to start the bed....a whopping 4'x20'x2' for 16 plants.

I heard it thru the grapevine...

This year, I have the honor privilege chore of cleaning up the grapevines on the farm. And not just the grapevines....the peach trees, apple trees, and pear tree. They have been neglected for the past God-only-knows-how-long years. I have taken it upon myself to clean up around them - cut out the honeysuckle and small trees from the grapevines, spray the fruit trees, prune said trees, etc. So, tomorrow, the plan is - after chickens & cows - to spray the trees, make a Home Depot run for pruning tools, and start clearing out.

Another project that I have in the planning stages right now is a raised bed for strawberries. I'm looking to build a 16'x16'x2' bed with cinder blocks. As I was guesstimating the cost, I nearly had a coronary! I'm trying to look at it from this standpoint: it's an investment with delayed returns. (It'd be next year before I could harvest any strawberries. Then I'm planning to make jam and possibly sell it.) I looked at doing a smaller version of the bed for tomatoes but realized that, for the few plants I'd be putting out, it'd be more cost effective to plant them in (a) 5 gallon buckets (b) 2 square bales of wheat straw. The buckets I can get free, but the wheat straw provides instant mulch.

I hope to remember my camera tomorrow to get some "before" pictures of the fruit trees/vines. I'll try to take pictures during the whole process, including my raised beds, to document what works and what doesn't.