Garden Hiatus

The work on preparing the garden space has hit a snag. It is mostly due to weather conditions and not lack of interest. We have had a spell of rain and much cooler temperatures. It seems like every time I head out for the garden I am greeted with showers and/or a very chilly breeze. I comfort myself with the knowledge that there is still plenty of time to finish preparing the garden before it is time to plant.

I am very happy to have regular rain after last years drought. Even though there are things that I want to do outside, I just can’t get too upset when those plans are delayed by rain. The memory of those hot, humid and rainless months is still fresh in my mind. And not something that I want to see a repeat of any time soon.

I have been out looking for signs of life from some of the things I planted last spring. I have found a few. The lilac bushes that were planted outside the fence are budding out well. I think I have seen a couple of the honeysuckle beginning to come up. Those I gave up for dead last summer. So far I have seen three of the peony bushes sending up new growth.  I am happy that any of those things survived.

I know that days of warmth and sun will be upon us soon. I am anxious for the green to surround us once again. I am also looking forward to the return of the humming birds, that are so interesting to watch.  And to the days when the house can be open to the fresh air with delicious breezes blowing through the house. I guess that I am just more than ready for spring.

….and continues

We have been waging the Battle of the Weed Patch for a few days now. The progress is steady and we are winning. The pile of debris taken out of the garden space continues to grow as well. We are spreading it out and stomping it into submission. It really is starting to look better.

In the beginning the task almost looked impossible. The weeds were formidable, but we are determined. In my minds eye I can see it all done and the vegetables growing. I have found that keeping this mental image has really helped. Along with Mr. Bs help and encouragement. His favorite saying while working is “We’re taking the garden back.”

Yesterday was an unbelievably beautiful day. Lots of sunshine and breezes. This helped to move the progress along. There is rain and cooler temperatures in the forecast for tomorrow. We really want to finish clearing the garden space today. It will be so nice to have the mass of weeds gone and a much cleared area to look at. Then we will move on to the tilling and raking. I fear that this will also take a lot more time, but will be well worth it in the end.

With a lot of hard work and a little luck with the weather we should have the garden ready to begin planting ( at least the early veggies) by mid April. So for now the clearing continues along with nursing some sore muscles. What we will have at the end of this will be more than worth all of the effort that we have put into it.

It Begins….

Yesterday we bravely began what I like to call The Battle of the Weed Patch, formally known as the garden. During last years drought the only things that grew and survived were the weeds. Many, ok most, of them still standing taller than me. And they are well entrenched. Some of them have thorns from hell as witnessed by the cuts and scratches on our arms.

My partner in this Battle of the Weed Patch is a new resident at the gulch, Mr. B. We went out to assess just how bad the weeds were and decided that there was no time like the present to begin hacking and slashing them into submission. After and hour and a half we had chopped down a little over a quarter of the garden area. Plus a strip down the west side to free the fruit trees. They are now standing free of weeds and are able to get the full benefit of the sun.

We were going to continue hacking and slashing today, but there is a significant amount of rain working its way into the area. At this point I am not sure if it will be worth going out today. Even though I am nursing some sore muscles I was wanting to be able to clear some more of the space. That just might have to wait until later in the week.

After the weeds have been hacked into submission the garden area will be tilled. Plus we will probably have a significant amount of raking to do to clear more of the soil. In the end it will all be worth it for we will have reclaimed the garden. I am looking forward to planting time. I have already gotten all the seeds and am deciding just where to plant each row of vegetables.

It is going to take much diligence to keep the weeds down. However I figure that some time spent each day will keep the intruders at bay. The first year that I had the garden, I was amazed at just how quickly the weeds would spring up and get big. They choked out a few of the things I had planted. This year I am determined to win.

Spring?

The last two days have been beautiful here at the gulch. Highs in the upper 60s and yesterday the thermometer topped out at 70. The rhubarb is showing signs of life, peeking above the ground. The lilac bushes are sporting swelling buds and the daffodils are getting taller. One even has the first signs of a developing flower.

Hunter has really been enjoying the warmer weather. He has been spending most of the days playing outside. He has discovered that he is taller than last year and has been having lots of fun on his swing set. Along with playing in the mud/dirt and just generally running around the yard.

It has been so nice to open up and air out the house. It feels as if most of the winter staleness has gone, pushed out the windows by gentle warm breezes. There seems to be new life and light permeating throughout the house. Its’ presence is very welcomed.

I have spent a good portion of the last couple of days using the wringer washer on the back porch and hanging the laundry out on the clothesline. Yesterday I dove into washing the bedding and rugs. Last night I really enjoyed crawling into a freshly washed bed made with sheets that had hung out in the sun and wind. The aroma was fantastic and a  very pleasant way to drift off to sleep.

I have been making a mental inventory of all the yard clean up that needs to be done. I am looking forward to getting the yard back into shape. Just cleaning up the debris that seems to accumulate over the colder months will go a long way. I have many holes to fill, remnants left behind by the Pyrs.

We will be spending the next fews days confined to the house, once again, due to the all the rain in the forecast. But the rain is a welcome thing. It will help wash away the remnants of all of the dust blown around during last years drought and help the newly growing plants. The added benefit of topping off the cistern after all the washing and cleaning I have been doing is a good thing as well.

A Snowy Day at the Gulch

Our share of the latest winter storm began last night in the form of a downpour of freezing rain. At one point it was falling so hard that the noise almost drowned out the TV. After the first batch of freezing rain the wind came up and howled like a lonesome wolf through the trees. Then another heavy shower of freezing rain moved through.

At some point during the night the rain turned into snow. We awoke to a white world. It is now almost noon and the snow continues to fall. All of the familiar landmarks that I use when I walk through the pasture are obscured by a blanket of white. We still have some wind that is blowing the snow around in dizzying swirls.

Hunter had a good time out tramping through the snow and trying to make snowballs. The snow was almost up to his knees in parts of the pasture and he found that walking through it took a lot more effort than normal. However he had a good time out enjoying the snow.

More Gray Drearies

I think that all the gray dreary days are getting to me. I am longing for the warm sunny days of spring. We have one day of mostly sunshine and then the clouds return for days on end.

I was wondering just why this was the case, so I decided to ask God. I didn’t get any clear answers. If you are interested in how God answered this question, you can ask for yourself. Here is the address.  

I think I need to get out more……………..

And now for something outta left field

Wise Words from George Carlin, Shit is a powerful word.
Just think of all the concepts and ideas you can communicate with it. Shit may just be the most powerful word in the English language.
CONSIDER THIS:
You can be shit faced, be shit out of luck, or have shit for brains.
With a little effort you can get your shit together, find a place for your shit or decide to shit or get off the pot.
You can smoke shit, buy shit, sell shit, lose shit, find shit, forget shit, and tell others to eat shit and die.
You can shit or go blind, have a shit fit or just shit your life away.
People can be shit headed, shit brained, shit blinded, and shit over.
Some people know their shit while others can’t tell the difference between shit and shineola.
There are lucky shits, dumb shits, crazy shits, and sweet shits.
There is bull shit, and horse shit and chicken shit.
You can throw shit, sling shit, catch shit, or duck when the shit hits the fan.
You can take a shit, give a shit, or serve shit on a shingle.
You can find yourself in deep shit, or be happier than a pig in shit.
Some days are colder than shit, some days are hotter than shit, and some days are just plain shitty.
Some music sounds like shit, things can look like shit, and there are times when you feel like shit.
You can have too much shit, not enough shit, the right shit, the wrong shit or a lot of weird shit.
You can carry shit, have a mountain of shit, or find yourself up shit creek without a paddle.
Sometimes you really need this shit and sometimes you don’t want any shit at all.
Sometimes everything you touch turns to shit and other times you swim in a lake of shit and come out smelling like a rose.
Shit! When you stop to consider all the facts, it’s the basic building block of creation.
And remember….once you know your shit, you don’t need to know anything else.

Signs of Life

I went out for a walk around the property and was excited to see definite signs of life. The daffodils that are by the front gate have shot up 3 to 4 inches. The rhubarb out by the back fence is starting to put out some new leaves. The lilac bush in the front yard has the swelling of new buds forming.

It is so nice to see the beginnings of  life showing themselves. However, I also saw just how much work needs to be done on the yard itself. Besides the normal spring clean up, there are many holes that need to be filled in, reminders of the pyranese that inhabited the yard last year. There are also holes dug under the fence in various places that need to be repaired.

The saddest thing of all was the spot that held our first garden here. The area is completely choked by very large weeds. They were the only things that survived last years heat and drought. Most of the weeds are over my head. I would love to just set fire to the whole area to help get rid of the weed stalks and subsequent seeds. However, that area also is where the fruit trees were planted. Plus I am rather concerned that the surrounding dry grass in the pasture just might go up as well. Somehow I am going to have to get the weeds mowed down and the ground turned for this years garden.

I went out yesterday and picked up the seeds for the garden. I was amazed at the number of people there grabbing as many packets of seed as their hands could hold. It was as if this was the only place and the only day that seeds could be found. It really made picking out which seeds I wanted a challenge. But I finally got everything I was looking for. I am glad that I didn’t wait any longer to go and get them.