Snow

Looked out the window a short while ago and saw that it's snowing. Guess that makes it better that things haven't been sprouting yet. It shouldn't stick long once the sun comes up and the moisture should help. Least I don't have to water in the morning.

However, if not seeing some thing sprout in another week, will likely replant a few things.

Decided not to form the north garden this weekend. Do it next weekend. The plow attachment for the tiller went on sale for 50% off and I ordered one. Save my shoulders a bit of pain. 

Was looking back over some companion planting guides and seems I can reorganize a few things. Potatoes are the biggest issue at the moment and I'm not planting a lot of those. 

Think I've made a mistake in the past of planting too many high crops, maybe not enough low ones. Or at least haven't had much success with low ones. Going to work on that this year, maintain more low crops to help control soil temperature and moisture. 

Last year, my garden was a tragedy. Then again, so were most gardens and farms in this area. Hoping and trying for much better this year. I think tilling, sulfur, last year's wood chips and gypsum applications will help a lot. Combine with lower mounds and it will help maintain moisture better. Throw in the well pump soon. I'm going to let the compost sit for a while and cook. When the weather begins to heat up, then start adding that on top. Still in the process of learning in an environment which requires a steep curve. I'm sure I'm getting there but the next few weeks should tell quite a bit.

Mini greenhouses

May not help a lot of people to mention but I got a couple of mini greenhouses this past week for starting seeds and such. They were on clearance at Family Dollar. They carried them last year but apparently decided not to continue them this year, so marked them down to $9. I've seen the same things for $25 at home improvement stores. It's just a set of shelves with a clear plastic zipping cover. 

I would have built some of these if I had the time. Simple construction and would be inexpensive to make. Just too much else going on for that right now. 

Still, they will work rather well for starting warm weather seeds and such for later rotation. Can start the strawberries, tomatoes and melons in them now. The mini greenhouses are placed outside, next to the back wall of the house. That should pretty much eliminate the need for hardening off. Going to start filling them up this weekend. Then just rotate out as lettuce and spinach bolt.

Not seeing much activity in the garden as yet. I know, I'm so impatient. Only planted a week ago and weather is still cold at night. Just hoping to have some kind of cool weather crops before temps hit the 80's. Lettuce and spinach have a really narrow window to germinate here. Going to plant out the multi-colored carrots this weekend. 

Daughter and I will also form and plant the north garden this weekend. Corn, potatoes and some pumpkins, especially giants. If the pumpkins start growing, I'll have a greater chance at a real giant this year. Besides, the plants help the corn grow by acting as natural living mulch. Can plant green beans later, once the corn starts to grow. If corn doesn't grow well, I'll still have time to put up trellises. If pumpkins don't grow yet, I'll have time to replant, since normal pumpkin planting here is around June. 

Bigger pump

Finally got around to working on the well a few days ago. Added pipe which brought it to 50 ft depth. Still not deep enough. Plus, at this depth, my current pump is almost completely powerless. (For the size, I am impressed it pumps at all.) 

So, it's on to a larger, convertible pump. I ordered a Wayne CWS 100 convertible well pump. It's supposed to arrive on Monday. Least it came with free shipping from Amazon. This pump is 1 HP and can be used as shallow or deep well. For deep well, have to add a pipe jet. I'm going to give it a go without the pipe jet first, see how it does and order the pipe jet if I need it. At that depth, it's supposed to deliver somewhere around 500+ gals/hr. (Note that rating is with the jet installed.) 

The down side to all this is that this becomes much more expensive. Aside from the pump and pipe jet, I have to buy new piping of larger size. Going to have to build some kind of support structure for the pump. May go with wood but install a rubber vibration damper to reduce noise. That's okay, be a good place to mount the timer for it. 

For now, I'm driving up the water bill by having to run the sprinklers quite a bit. Happily, haven't been hit by the water police. Not the season for them yet. 

Some of the bulbs I planted in fall are already flowering and really pretty! Don't ask me to identify them, though. Other flowers are coming up but not supposed to bloom until later. 

Daughter is off school for spring break. Going to go pick her up from the ex's in a short while. Keeping her with me keeps her from having to spend so much time in daycare with children much younger. While she enjoys teaching them and is very protective of them, it's not much fun for her. Very limiting. 

Need to get the dishes done before I pick her up. Quite a stack. Haven't felt like doing them between 13 hour shifts. 

New approach

Daughter and I planted some things across the entire south garden today. Onions, 4-5 kinds of lettuce, spinach, various kinds of carrots, cucumbers, broccoli and dill. 

Used the new planter/furrower attachment for the tiller. It was a disappointment. Didn't form rows like I was expecting. More like single tiller blades instead of dual blades. Still had to use a shovel to form mounds. They will be good for cultivating between narrow rows but not so good for planting. I used them for half the south garden, then switched back to the duals for the other half. 

Along the way, decided to go with a different layout this year. Previously, I planted tall or trellised crops in groups. This year, I'm planting tall/trellised crops every other row and alternating with low crops in between. That reduces the need for wider trenches for access and allows me to fit more crops in the same space. If the taller crops grow fast enough, it should also provide some shade to the lower crops and may extend their season. As it is, I now have 21-22 mounds in the south garden, compared to 14-16 last year. 

I also made the mounds shorter in height. Taller mounds may be good for more damp environments but dry out too quickly here. Lower mounds will retain moisture at the roots zone better. Drainage isn't a problem here, when it so rarely rains. When it does rain, it can flood but ends quickly and absorbs in short order. 


Daughter also helped plant the one rose bush I got last week. It was forming leaves already. 


She also helped me run some branches through the wood chipper. Safe enough. With this chipper, you'd have to be quite determined to injure yourself to get past the guards on it. Still, I showed her how to use it safely and she has a strong sense of self-preservation. Plus I watched her closely for some time. 


Still didn't get to the pump today. Focused more on things my daughter and I could do together. Won't take long, so get back to it in the morning. If no success, hoping the used pump I saw on Amazon is still available.

Some done, some not

So, daughter and I have now planted grass and flower seed in the front and back yards. The flower beds should be quite expansive this year. Not to mention quite varied.

Haven't gotten the well going yet. Got past the obstruction to find the drilled well depth is a lot deeper than expected. Somewhere over 40 ft. Have to add another pipe and then see if this pump will handle it. If not, I'll have to order another pump for deep wells. Then go about figuring out how to set it up. At least it's not like 200 ft.

Daughter and I went swimming today, so never got around to planting vegetables or the rose bush. Get to that stuff in the morning. 

Haven't done th garden plan for the year yet. Not that my plans have worked a single time as yet. Gaining experience on that point, so shouldn't take long to do this time. Almost a bummer. Kind of enjoy the process. 

Too tired now. Get to it before planting.

Here we go!

Weather here is warming up slowly. Few light frosts still in the forecast but overall warm enough to start planting many things. Just hope for no repeat of a late hard freeze like last year.

Haven't gotten the well pump going yet. Turns out the well is clogged. I believe the water level rises and carries sediment into the pipes. Neighbor has had to clear his in the past. Tried for some time today to clear it but no luck. I'll try using some PVC hooked together to clear it, then just use that as an intake pipe. More permanent and no risk of hose collapsing from suction. If that doesn't work, I'll have to get a long 1/2" drain snake.


Well pump or no well pump, going to plant grass and maybe flowers in the front yard tomorrow. Use municipal water for now. In theory, I can hook up the well pump on a timer to the water hose and that would automate watering the lawn until grass seeds sprout. 


Started some strawberries inside tonight. Apparently, you can start them outdoors and small plants are tolerant to light frost. Going to get much of the main garden started next weekend. I buy the roots in a bag from WalMart. Only $3 for 10 roots as opposed to $1.50 or more for potted plants. Not certain of viability but many of the roots have green leaves on them, so I have high hopes. Got 40 so far and may get more later. (Can you tell I like strawberries?)


No blueberry plants out at WalMart yet. Hopefully soon. Lowe's has them but they cost more there. Found something out I did not know. Some blueberry bushes grow as much as 15' tall! That can change several considerations of where to plant them. Have to check the plants when buying them. Start in containers and prepare the soil for the chosen spot then. Add lots of gypsum, sulfur and Azalea food to the soil. They are very salt intolerant and require really acidic soil. In short, not made for this soil or environment at all. 


I ordered an attachment for the tiller to make things a bit easier. It's a planter/furrower attachment. Forms mounds for planting. With all the other things I have going on, it will save a lot of time and effort. Wouldn't have gotten it this year but it was on sale for half price at a really good time for me. If it works as fast as the tiller does, I can form the entire garden in a couple of hours. 


House wiring is progressing. Not nearly as fast as I would like. Got bummed for a while because I had thought I would be done with this weeks ago. However, I installed the new ceiling fan/light in the living room tonight. Have multiple circuits in place for fixtures to be hooked up. Cables run to daughter's room and the office. So, not exactly sitting still, just not all that much truly visible at the moment. That will change quickly. Patching some walls will go quickly, while others will still require lots more cutting to even holes up before patching. 


Story of my life. Have to take on a lot at once, so it lokks like I'm standing still for a while. Then, suddenly, it's all done at once.

Pump and chipper

Got the pump a few days ago. Not a formal well pump but a utility pump. Supposed to pump as much and as high as the well pumps I saw at Harbor Freight but doesn't have a tank. Came with a plastic cone screen which fit the backcheck valve I had, so just had to get an adapter to connect to the hose. Get it set up to run tomorrow.

The wood chipper I ordered came today. Haven't tried it out yet but but got it put together. It appears sturdy and well made. Give it a try tomorrow or Fri.

That seems to complete the power tools I need for the yard and garden. Now have a tiller, well pump and wood chipper. Already had a lawn mower, chain saw and weed eater. Most anything else can be done manually. 

Still going to get some more gypsum and sulfur to get the soil ready for spring. Picked up a couple bags of standard fertilizer formulated for southwestern soil, so it contains iron, zinc and more sulfur. Fact is, I'm not sure how much sulfur I would have to add before it would be too much. I do know it's a lot more than I'm adding. 

Didn't get much sleep today and nothing done. Get to bed and get things done tomorrow but wiring does take precedence still. Hopefully not for much longer.

Sprouting!

Seeds that daughter and I started last weekend are sprouting already! Yay! Thousands of tiny flower plants coming up! We had used plastic shoe boxes and I covered those with loose plastic wrap to retain moisture. Once they gain in size a bit, I'll remove the plastic wrap.

I finally ordered a wood chipper. Should be delivered next week. Just a small one. I don't need a huge one. It will help with breaking down the 8 trees sitting on the ground. Pile up the wood chips, spice them with ammonia and let them compost. 

I was also thinking it may help a lot with breaking down the gypsum board. Soak the gypsum down and let it soften, then run the pieces through the chipper. Then cultivate the pieces in. Though I may still buy more bags of gypsum to add to the soil. 

Really expanding the amount of flowers this year. Planting flowering trees and ground blooms everywhere. Daughter is really happy about that! My hope is to one day put the local Botanical Garden to shame! (Not my motivator but something that would be cool.)

We found a place near the house which has thousands of cocoons hanging from the trees. More than I've ever seen in one place! Going to go back soon and collect a bunch of them. Make another fake tree to hang them on. Or two.

Cold snap is still with us. Supposed to get down to low 20's again this coming week. Days are still as warm as 60, though. Still, an early spring is forecast. After 2/20/12, I have another week off. During that time, planning on forming up the garden for the spring. Start getting some cool weather crops in the ground. Mostly potatoes, onions, broccoli and spinach. Not planting peas this year. Too much work for too little return. 

I can finally get a decent well pump this year. Going to buy that this coming week. I think that, along with the other steps to correct the soil, will make a huge difference this year. Will this be the year that my yard and garden turns around and becomes what I've been hoping for? Have to keep working on it, wait and see.

Cold snap

Of course, shortly after writing about the unseasonably warm weather, a cold front blows in. That's not unexpected here. Got too anxious last year and paid the price. However, it is still much warmer overall than the past three winters, at least. 

Very funny thing. Neighbors saw me cutting trees the other day. Today, they were out with their chain saws. Neighbor to the south was cutting limbs from trees on my property which overhang their yard, mostly near power lines. (Not that close, though.) Told them I was going to ask permission to enter their yard to cut those trees and that I was going to take them down entirely. They offered to do it for me! Nice! Need to make them some cookies or something! So, they cut at least the parts which were causing me the biggest problems for now. I can take the rest down later. 

Got some seeds started last night with daughter's help. Mostly flowers but I did start some tomato seeds. Looks like the plants from last year aren't going to revive, even the indoor ones. That leaves no hope for the ones outdoors. Bummer. But with tilling, soil repair and finally being able to afford a well pump this year, I have much greater hopes of an earlier crop this year, even from seed. 

Bulbs have started growing! Couldn't believe when I was working in the yard, looked over and saw green sprouts coming up in the area where I planted the bulbs, in a definite pattern! Not all of them yet but lots. Promised daughter we will plant lots of flowers this year. We have about a million sunflower and marigold seeds. 

I don't have the time to build any part of the solarium. Too involved with more immediate practical needs, like rewiring the house. With the things I've found, it's a miracle this house hasn't burned to the ground at some point in the past. So, guess what I need to do is construct a seed starting rack to place in the office, by the window. Table there won't hold too much because of surface area. Though if I can find a cheap plastic shelving unit, may forego the work and just use that. 

As far as the wiring goes, I'll be installing outdoor outlets. One of those will mostly be for the well pump but should come in handy for Christmas lights in the winter. 

Toying with ideas. It seems unlikely that I will be able to afford to build a double glazed solarium very soon. So, I was thinking of a greenhouse inside a greenhouse design for winter and early spring. The larger greenhouse would control some temperature and wind. A much smaller, inner greenhouse would offer a place to start seeds early or keep some plants going all year. In summer, it would be easier to keep the same space cooler. If attached to the house, it would help control the house environment even more. If I decide to do away with it later in favor of double glazing, the materials may come in handy for that double glazing of the larger structure. 

Just some thoughts to explore further later.

Getting ready for spring!

Started getting ready for spring this week! 

Weather has been unseasonably warm. So I got 200 lbs of sulfur. In various parts of the yard, I scattered sulfur, gypsum (broken and/or dissolved sheetrock) and dead leaves. Cultivated all that in. Cultivated all the front yard and nearly all the back yard. Total nearly 6000 sq ft cultivated in two days. 

Going to replace all or nearly all the trees on the property. So, started cutting down the existing trees. These trees are all cypress or Chinese elm trees and collectively drop a million seed pods everywhere, so badly they can smother other plants. Even if not, I wind up pulling seedlings every year. I would much prefer having flowering, fruit and nut trees and bushes. Haven't finished yet but cut down 4 trees and most of several others. For the rest, it will take going onto other properties to cut some limbs and bringing the truck into the back yard to attach tension lines for others while cutting. 

Several of the trees I took down had to fall in a limited area to avoid damage to fences or buildings. The first few, I dropped within 2 feet of where I wanted. That was yesterday. Today, something went wrong with my spatial reasoning. Several trunks nearly fell the wrong way. For one, the cut was right but the wind almost pushed it right toward the neighbor's house! Had to attach a ratcheting tension line. No time to get the truck! That stabilized it. Then I had to tie a rope to a low branch, wrap it around my waist and pull. That brought it down in the right direction. Whew! Couple of others wobbled the wrong way but only required a solid push to fall the way I needed. 

So, a lot of the back yard is covered with felled trees. Going to take a lot of work to cut those to pieces. Need to buy a wood chipper with the tax refund when it comes in. That should fill up the compost bin and more! 

Tilling and cultivating have done wonders for weed control. Barely a single weed in the yard. Ones which are still there are in places I can't currently get the tiller into. 

Finally found a local source for agricultural gypsum. Same place I get the sulfur from, Helena Chemical. I had called them a few months ago and asked about it but they said they didn't have it. Thing is, I asked about Calcium Sulfate. Apparently, whomever I talked to didn't know that gypsum is Calcium Sulfate. And they don't sell by the truckload, only by the bag. I'll get a few bags before planting season because the sheetrock is taking so long to break down. Got a fair amount spread but not nearly enough. Also need to get at least one more bag of sulfur because I want to grow blueberries in a limited area. 

Okay, I need some sleep. More wiring tomorrow.