Prep Genrl Weekly prep thread - April 28 - May 4, 2024

[anna43]

Is Cary fighting the TroyBilt? When we had one the only fighting was turning at the end of the garden. Dh would get it started down the garden and then walk to the side holding only one handle. If he was tilling deeper, he would walk behind. Only issue was when it hit a big rock and would jump. It used to be that you could ship your TroyBilt back to the factory for a complete overhaul for a price. I think it was less than half the cost of a new tiller.

It is pouring rain again. Just started but supposed to continue all afternoon and into the evening. I have Bible study at 2:00 but am not going to go if it's still raining hard. I'm like a cat I hate getting wet -- when it is a cold wet like today. If I get chilled, there is a lot of pain involved and it takes forever to get warmed back up.

I'm having the last serving of split pea/potato soup that I made last week for lunch. The hot soup really hits the spot on a day like this.

 

[SouthernBreeze]

Is Cary fighting the TroyBilt? When we had one the only fighting was turning at the end of the garden. Dh would get it started down the garden and then walk to the side holding only one handle. If he was tilling deeper, he would walk behind. Only issue was when it hit a big rock and would jump. It used to be that you could ship your TroyBilt back to the factory for a complete overhaul for a price. I think it was less than half the cost of a new tiller.

It is pouring rain again. Just started but supposed to continue all afternoon and into the evening. I have Bible study at 2:00 but am not going to go if it's still raining hard. I'm like a cat I hate getting wet -- when it is a cold wet like today. If I get chilled, there is a lot of pain involved and it takes forever to get warmed back up.

I'm having the last serving of split pea/potato soup that I made last week for lunch. The hot soup really hits the spot on a day like this.

Yes, Cary has to fight with it at the end of each row in order to get it turned around. As long as he's going in a straight line, one hand is all he needs to guide it. Ours is the largest TroyBilt makes. It makes his hips sore and hurt for days after using it for any length of time. He would have no trouble with a smaller version.

 

[Meemur]

I think I would make some cuts in other places and get a smaller TroyBult, if the one he has can't be repaired. Both of you are older (as am I!) and finding affordable help or doing shovel work really isn't in the cards.

I also say that because we're headed into a period where I think there will be further food insecurity, and there is validity to planting more crops that can be stored over the winter (squash, potatoes, etc). I'm certainly planting more.

But I'm also using a small tiller and intensive gardening techniques, including lots of mulch to keep down the need to weed. Mulch is free for the hauling from our town recycling center.

Last thought: I'm not planting a larger garden to save money. In my case, there's not a lot of difference between growing my own and shopping loss leaders at the end of the season (plus I help clean up truck gardens for the last of the potatoes, etc).

HOWEVER, I believe that this year, there won't be as much coming to market, plus I want to keep an eye on how things are grown. I want to make sure no one is pooping on the plants or spraying obnoxious chemicals (and I do use certain chemicals when necessary, but I want to apply them so that I know what and how much was used.)

I don't think we've seen the last of biowarfare on our romaine lettuce and other crops.

And I might be wrong about this! But even if I am wrong, it's food that I eat, and eat it I shall, LOL.

 

[SouthernBreeze]

I think I would make some cuts in other places and get a smaller TroyBult, if the one he has can't be repaired. Both of you are older (as am I!) and finding affordable help or doing shovel work really isn't in the cards.

I also say that because we're headed into a period where I think there will be further food insecurity, and there is validity to planting more crops that can be stored over the winter (squash, potatoes, etc). I'm certainly planting more.

But I'm also using a small tiller and intensive gardening techniques, including lots of mulch to keep down the need to weed. Mulch is free for the hauling from our town recycling center.

Last thought: I'm not planting a larger garden to save money. In my case, there's not a lot of difference between growing my own and shopping loss leaders at the end of the season (plus I help clean up truck gardens for the last of the potatoes, etc).

HOWEVER, I believe that this year, there won't be as much coming to market, plus I want to keep an eye on how things are grown. I want to make sure no one is pooping on the plants or spraying obnoxious chemicals (and I do use certain chemicals when necessary, but I want to apply them so that I know what and how much was used.)

I don't think we've seen the last of biowarfare on our romaine lettuce and other crops.

And I might be wrong about this! But even if I am wrong, it's food that I eat, and eat it I shall, LOL.

Given the way things are going, I think it would be in our best interest to go with a smaller tiller, even if this little one can be fixed. The need to grow our own food warrants a means to do so. Cary can't do that with what we have now. We might not ever be able to grow all of our own food, but we can do something if we have the means to do it with.

We mulch heavily with leaves in the fall in our raised beds and put down bags of new cow manure in the spring. That all gets tilled up, before planting. It's too much for Cary to do all of that with a shovel. With another tiller, we can do away with all the raised beds and have one big garden. I wish we had a small tractor with a plow and disc. That's what we used when our whole backyard was in a huge garden, but our neighbor is dead and gone.

 

[John Deere Girl]

Given the way things are going, I think it would be in our best interest to go with a smaller tiller, even if this little one can be fixed. The need to grow our own food warrants a means to do so. Cary can't do that with what we have now. We might not ever be able to grow all of our own food, but we can do something if we have the means to do it with.

We mulch heavily with leaves in the fall in our raised beds and put down bags of new cow manure in the spring. That all gets tilled up, before planting. It's too much for Cary to do all of that with a shovel. With another tiller, we can do away with all the raised beds and have one big garden. I wish we had a small tractor with a plow and disc. That's what we used when our whole backyard was in a huge garden, but our neighbor is dead and gone.

You could always dig a hole for your plant, put cardboard around the base, and layer straw on the cardboard. It will also help the plant stay hydrated in dry conditions.

 

[Meemur]

I've done that with potato plants. If I didn't have to worry about 60+ mph prairie winds, I'd set up a line of buckets with hoses, drip irrigation. Works fine when I only have about 20 or so hills of potatoes.

This year, I have a small water tank and a long hose with holes in it for one of the beds. I'll chain the tank to several cinderblocks at some point. That setup won't withstand 100 mph winds but will be fine at lower speeds.

 

[anna43]

My dh and I bought a midsized tiller about 12 years ago. He was only able to run it once, but I've been blessed to have someone till for me each year using my tiller. I did pay one year for someone to come in and till, but he used a lawn tractor with a tiller and the results were messy to say the least!

I think back to the way my parents and grandparents "tilled" their gardens -- with a spading fork. That's also the way dh and I did it for our first few years.

Just got a reverse 911 call that I'm under a tornado watch until 10 p.m. It covers a large portion of the state including Des Moines area. Guess I'll be moving my preps down to the safe area shortly. The calls gave percentage for occurrence of tornadoes, strong wind events, hail by various sizes etc. Percentages are too high for my liking!!!!!!!!!!! Time to keep my eyes open and be prepared to duck and cover.

 

[SouthernBreeze]

Cary and I have been talking about it all day off and on and reading what you all are saying. We've decided to go with buying a new smaller tiller and do away with the raised beds. Just have one large garden from now on. Getting the new tiller will have to wait a while, until our budget allows for it. Hopefully, by next spring. We'll just work with what we have this season. Now, if SHTF, we'll be first in line to cash in on that new tiller sooner rather than later. We will withdraw funds for it in that case.

Saw the first snake of the season, today. Frisco caught it. Cary made him drop it, and it ran off. The snake likes to hang out in Cary's work shop every year catching mice. It's a chicken snake, so no harm, no foul, as far as he goes. Not closer to the house, though. Cary has even named him, Roger. I guess that works whether male or female, LOL.

 

[hd5574]

DH turns our raised beds with a pitch fork ...much easier than a shovel...if it is a bed we've used the dirt is already rather loose..from top soil and compost.. improved each year..they get looser each year.. even more so if you mulch.

Most veggies don't have really deep roots.
We put leaves, grass clippings and kitchen waste in the one of the compost piles... they are in different stages of decomposition....if needed shovel it back into the beds when it composted into beautiful black compost ... don't buy manure....can always go to the woods bring some top soil back for beds.. we use fish fertilizer..
We don't really rotate things... once we figure out the best place for plants..
Sun exposure we just amend the soil as needed..

The same holes of improved soil along inside the garden fence get tomatoes.. each year only need to loosen and amend the soil in each hole..we grow the old fashioned heirlooms so we use the garden fence to support them... don't need to turn the whole run down the side of the fence..
Some of our raised beds have fence wire surrounding them...we use the wire to support.. squash or pepper plants as needed...we have round caged made of fence wire to go over plants as supports
If needed use coat hangers cut and bent to push into the ground to anchor the cages

 

[hd5574]

DH said the Troy built was bought out by MTD...parts are still available for most old.. even the old Kohler engines that have points and condenser..
We have three tillers...baby and a walk behind and a tractor tiller.
we have found... planting spaces with plants and cardboard beside to keep down the weeds make for easier gardening..less mud...less weeding..less water..plus cardboard the goes back to the soil..and new gets put down as needed..you can pin the cardboard with hanger pins..makes it easy to mulch your row

 

[WanderLore]

I love planting in tires. But you just can't grow a lot of food unless you have a bunch of them. No weeds. Soil stays moist. Soil warms early and holds heat.
We do have a large tractor tire I often plant taters in. I put chicken feed bags down then soil. By the next spring, that soil is just rich.

 

[hd5574]

Another thing we do is grow...some things in pots...carrots...can control the soil...radishes...
Scallions...some lettuce... you can move to cooler areas as the summer heats up.. doesn't bolt as quickly..
They want to put vaccine in lettuce now..

 

[SouthernBreeze]

If the mini tiller can't be fixed, I'll just dig holes with the shovel, work the soil a bit, and plant squash seeds in the spots. I'm determined to have plenty of squash this year. Tomatoes and bell peppers are looking good. Walking onions have gone to seed and spreading. Garlic and chives are doing great, too.

Mom does her tomato and pepper plants this way every year. She just digs holes in her flower gardens and sets them out with all her flowers.

 

[kyrsyan]

I stopped using tillers a while back, quite a while. I just built the soil in the raised beds. I would top with newspaper or cardboard every year until last year, and then make holes to plant. Over the winter, I would cover the beds completely in cardboard and mulch to mix that in come spring (still do this).

The new raised beds are twice the height. The base will have water catchment with lots of tree branch and trunk debris as support and to break down. The top half will have existing soil with more peat and vermiculite added. I honestly haven't tilled the raised beds since I set them up. The twice yearly cleanup generally handles anything they need past what the worms do.

Now I use old trampoline mats as ground cloth on the garden beds. It works wonderfully. Kept the weeds to an absolute minimum, didn't overheat the plants, kept the soil below moist, and let water through easily. I pull them in the winter and do the cardboard & wood chip mulch. Then in spring, mix in the debris from the winter cover, put the mat back on, and plant again.

 

[Meemur]

Great idea! I will watch for trampoline mats.

 

[kyrsyan]

Great idea! I will watch for trampoline mats.

Harbor Freight sells a heat knife that makes cutting them a breeze. It seals the edges as it melts it to cut it.

 

[night driver]

A teaser.
These folks are AWESOME and likely have more different items than HGR industrial Surplus, though HGR specializes in BIG Machines.

Cute AirBnB project; Boy Scout teaching tool; Univ of MD inquiry​

April 30th, 2024 | Please feel free to forward to a colleague. SUBSCRIBE​

AFTER: "We drove 5 hours to check out your South Carolina location and weren't disappointed. We bought a vintage heavy-duty Steel Dough Bin and turned it into a planter for our AirBnB (and some other items we couldn't resist). Great service from the staff, too!!" Dean in Georgia Dean, thanks for the making the drive! Glad we made it worth it!! BEFORE: These heavy-duty Steel Dough Bins were previously used in a bakery dough production facility.​

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Steel Dough Bins. Dimensions: 6’-9’ x 40” x 35” L: South Carolina​

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AFTER: “We’re going to use these sections of Rope for knot tying classes in our Boy Scout troop.” – Brian in Pennsylvania BEFORE: “We’re looking for some recycling options for some excess rope we have from our Yeti cooler handles. This is nylon rope made by Rocky Mountain Cord. We have 8,000 pcs of this Rope. No defects, just all cut to a precise, short size. Let us know if you're interested!” - Jacob Q: Like Jacob, do you have surplus inventory of short or remnant pieces that could be "repurposed"??​

​

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Rope Pieces. Dimensions: 31-1/2” x 3/8” 50 Pieces Per Box Order Minimum of 2 FREE SHIPPING!​

​

Over Engineered: "Up here in the Dakotas, we use old Guardrail for corral fencing. If that Guardrail can stand up to 70 mph car crashes, it could certainly stand up to a raging 2,000LB bull. It is way over engineered for fencing, but that makes it a tremendous value for us ranchers." - John in South Dakota NOTE: With "repurposing", like John correctly observes, you often get used materials that are way over engineered for their 2nd life. But, this over engineering comes so cheap because the material is used.​

​

Steel Guardrails. Dimensions: 26’ x 12” L: Colorado​

​

repurposed INBOX: "I'm an architecture student at the University of Maryland. I enjoy reading the newsletters and would like to better understand the materials being 'repurposed'. I'm writing to ask if you have any tips on relevant educational resources. Are there certain trade publications that you recommend? How does one even begin to gain this type of expertise?" - Yuki RE: "Yuki, Thanks for writing. Honestly, there really isn't a centralized source for education on ‘repurposing’. While it is very agriculture-related, Farm Show Magazine is one of my favorites. Hope that helps a little bit!" - Damon​

 

[ReneeT]

I love my Troy Bilt Horse tiller, but I do have to admit that it can 'waller' -as it's called hereabouts - (wallow) me around a bit - mostly due to the fact that our soil has quite a bit of clay in it. I'm trying to stay patient with gardening but looking at the weather forecast, it's likely going to be a few weeks later than usual. I guess that'll give me time to get my new garden hat broke in and to learn how to best use my new weed popper - the raspberries tend to fight back a bit :LOL:. (Note to self - buy more bandaids!) The raspberries do end up replantable with the weed popper, but this time they won't be replanted where the wild bird's flight pattern takes them over the clothesline.

I'd forgotten a bowl of persimmons on the small side table beside my rocking chair last fall and the bandits (raccoons) got all comfy in my porch rocker and ended up eating all the fruit, but were kind enough to leave behind the polished seeds. The seeds will be getting put in to the little seed pods (as soon as I find them ) and left to raise on the porch until they are big enough to be planted.

I did get the hummingbird feeders filled, and the covers on them - I haven't actually seen any more since the early two, but I hear them zipping around. I guess I'm just not fast enough to see them, but there will soon be more for me to watch.

I had to purchase a new compost pot as my white enamel with red trim pot had a teeny little hole start in it. In one of the local thrift stores, I found a larger white enamel with black trim, handles, and carrying handle. I can't decided whether to epoxy the tiny hole in the old pot, then put a liner in it to plop a geranium in, or.....

Well, I've waited most of the day and the laundry hasn't bothered itself to jump in the washer yet, so I guess I'd better give up and do it myself.

Take care all; stay safe out there!

 

[anna43]

If you are waiting until next year to buy a tiller, take the opportunity to borrow or rent different tillers to see which you like best.

The TroyBilt we had needed a gasket replaced and dh ordered a gasket, but quickly determined that the whole motor had to be deconstructed to get to the gasket which was beyond him. He ended up practically giving away the tiller to someone who could fix it. We purchased it new in 1972 and it was good until around 12 years ago, so we got our money's worth. Works out to costing around $8.33 per year! Dh let many different people borrow it over the years and those borrowers beat it up pretty bad, but it still worked okay until the gasket went out.

 

[Peachy]

@SouthernBreeze you may want to try planting your squash in straw bales. This will be my first year experiment planting zucchini, squash and cucumbers in them.

Gardening Made Easy With Straw Bales!

Turn an inexpensive bale of straw into a fruitful planter. This thrifty, fun, and easy way to garden means no weeding. No kidding!

www.farmersalmanac.com

I also highly recommend no-till gardening. Some people might think it's just lazy, but I have really healthy soil from all of the layers of organic debris. I put down weed guard over all the layers each Spring, plant, and then remove it after harvest.

 

[feralferret]

While I was out of commission with my leg and foot issues, my yard got out of control. My son took care of thr front yasrd last week, but didn't know what he was doing with the riding mower for the back yard and couldn't get it started. It has a couple of real finicky safety interlock switches that have to be just perfect or it won't crank. After a doctor appointment today, I fired up the riding mower and cut the back yard. It was literally knee high and thick. When the thunderstorms got close enough that I cold see the lightning, I called it good and went to put it away. As I was doing so, it threw the mower deck belt. Glad that didn't happen any sooner. I have a new Kevlar belt on hand and will put that on rather than just put the old stretched belt back in place.

At least the rain was minimal (0.06") so water didn't gush into the basement this time. The severe weather went just south of us, thankfully.

We had planned to have a garden at our daughter's house this year but that didn't happen with all of the delays in getting totally moved. I will get the garden area fenced off after we complete the move, so the daughter's dog can't get into it. I have some black plastic sheeting to put over the grass to kill it out once I get it fenced off.

 

[school marm]

DD3's wedding and receptions are over, the latest book is finally published and available on Amazon, the surprise (from DD1) trip to South Korea completed, and now just have to get DH's cataract surgery checked by the surgeon, and then have dinner with DS1 and DDIL tonight. Then I can head home tomorrow and begin working in my garden. Y'all have been making me crazy with all this garden talk!

 

[nomifyle]

All the talk about gardening is nice, but does not tempt me at all. DH is a master gardener and is willing but struggles with our very sandy soil, so its pretty much tomato plants and he has some fruit trees He made raised beds several years ago by cutting ICB totes in half and building a cage for them from wood. It worked well for awhile but he has other things to do, he loves to build things. In years past he would till the big garden a turn a day so as not to beat himself up At least now his tillers are not sitting out in the garden, he has put them under cover. Now the big garden gets a lot of grass, but he ties one of our good goats up out there in several places and she keeps it mowed down.

 

[SouthernBreeze]

Cary knows what kind of tiller and the size he wants. We're saving money, now, starting today, to buy in the fall when all the garden and lawn equipment goes on sale. This season, we'll use what we have and make do, until then. I can still dig holes in the raised beds for plants and mulch around them good. Hopefully, the repair guy will call in the next few days letting us know that the mini tiller is fixed. If so, then we can go back to doing what we've always done.

Another beautiful sunny day, today. 89 degrees. I plan to do some work in my flowers and shrubs, plus hanging laundry on the line. I have to be careful about how much sun I get, so I work in the front yard in the mornings and the back yard in the afternoon. I stick to the shaded areas. Cary will be back at cutting up more firewood.

I've got my shopping list ready to go, tomorrow. Long list, but it's for the whole month, plus I'm still adding to the pantry not just replacing. A few cleaning supplies will be added to storage, too. A trip to the meat market for the month, and a stop in at the Wine Shop. Cary covers our Sam's orders, and I have a couple of orders to send in. Cary will cover those, too.

My Medicare kicks in, today. I guess that officially makes me an old woman. I turn 65 next week. My mind tells me I'm 20 yrs. old, but my body begs to differ.

I'm roasting a smoked, boneless, half ham tonight, homemade mac&cheese, and stir fry veggies with Kaiser rolls.

 

[Digger]

Yesterday was a busy day here. I finally got the fruit trees sprayed again. It has been either too windy or raining. I started after supper and I was dusk by the time I was finished. I put out 8 gallons of spray; 2 gallons at a time. None of the plums have fruit. I only have a couple of young peaches that need thinning. There are only a few pears. The apples are loaded. I will have to thin the one that had I will pick. The other big tree thins itself pretty good or the critters do it. I am not sure. But the apples are very small and tart. It might be a crab apple of some type. The apples are gold ball or a little bigger size and very tart.

I fertilized all the gardens. Things are doing well. I have several baby mullein plants to move. I will check with DD and DDIL to see if they need one. I still have garden work to do and a little to plant, but it keeps raining. It's thundering now.

Sunday is decoration in Wildwoods community where my parents are buried. We plan to go. There is a family dinner at the fire station afterwards. My cousins are in their 80s. I don't know if the younger generation will continue it. My kids rarely go. My son did when he lived there. My daughter has only gone a couple of times since she married. Decoration was a big thing when I was a kid. Family came home from out of state to go and we had a huge dinner at Grandmas. Pot luck was so good. People parked at the church just up the road and walked to Grandmas. Now most of those people are gone and the kids are scattered to the wind. I miss those old days.

I put the turkeys in the dog pen yesterday. It's not ready for them full time yet, but they seemed to enjoy a larger area. One of them is a gobbler. He did a few seconds of a courting dance toward another bird in the big pen. They are sweet birds. I was able to just walk in the pen and pick them up when it was time to put them up for the night.

I told DH that I was thinking about trying Guineas for pest control again. I figured he would tell me a hard no. But he said to find some and we would try it. Last time we had them, he worked nights some and they were much too noisy. I messaged a friend and she has eggs in the incubator. In a little over 2 weeks they should hatch if they are going to. None of the farm stores had any, only chicks.

Our well bucket from Lehman's came yesterday. I am glad to have that on hand.

I ordered 2 new thermostats wafers from McMurray for my old incubator. I am going to try to get it running again. It is an old Sears one from 30 years ago. But I got better hatches out of it than these new ones.

Hubby finished repairing the trailer that we haul stuff in. It's a horse trailer that we bought used 10 or so years ago. He is thinking about trading it in on a new box trailer. The trailer store has one that we like. I wouldn't be surprised if a trip to the trailer store is in today's plan.

Mail is getting lost. I had a insurance statement in my informed delivery, but it never arrived. I also mailed a check to pay a bill, and it was never delivered and it has not shown up on my bank statement. We always take our mail to the post office to mail instead of putting it in our mailbox at the highway.

DH has lost over 20 pounds. His sugar is dropping and his back is feeling a little better. He carries all his weight in his belly. I just hope he can keep it off when he stops the shots. I have lost 3 pounds. It's a struggle and thyroid issues don't make it easier. I know some is water weight because I can see sock lines even in the morning.

Time to get busy. Have a blessed day everyone.

 

[SouthernBreeze]

All the talk about gardening is nice, but does not tempt me at all.

That's Cary. The only reason he does what he does in the garden is to please me. If left up to him, there would be no gardening done at all. He like flowers and taking care of the lawn, especially roses. His parents never had a garden, so he grew up not knowing anything about gardening. They were city folks, until they retired. They never wanted a garden after that, either. He didn't even know what a working farm was, until he met me. I've got some of the "city" out of him over the years, but gardening just isn't one of his interests.

 

[Meemur]

Congrats, SB! Age is just a number. I felt like I had reached an important milestone when mine started in February.

OK. I've got to get serious here. I'm looking at vacation soon. HA! I've got a home project task list as long as my arm. I just don't get paid for completing most of it. I guess I should think of it as saving myself money and improving my quality of life, instead of unpaid work. I'm going to try that.

Today is endless meetings. I need to go to several. Others I'll skip, once I think of a decent excuse. Today's workers tend to call meetings instead of actually doing real work.

 

[kyrsyan]

Congrats, SB! Age is just a number. I felt like I had reached an important milestone when mine started in February.

OK. I've got to get serious here. I'm looking at vacation soon. HA! I've got a home project task list as long as my arm. I just don't get paid for completing most of it. I guess I should think of it as saving myself money and improving my quality of life, instead of unpaid work. I'm going to try that.

Today is endless meetings. I need to go to several. Others I'll skip, once I think of a decent excuse. Today's workers tend to call meetings instead of actually doing real work.

Dad used to say that meetings were a waste of time for most things because the answers could be gotten with a simple email or phone call. But some meetings just had to happen.

 

[Meemur]

Dad used to say that meetings were a waste of time for most things because the answers could be gotten with a simple email or phone call. But some meetings just had to happen.

Without going into too much detail, DEI struck, and two of the upper-level managers have zero clue how to manage their time or how to make effective long-term decisions. When they aren't sure what to do, they call a meeting. Those are the gatherings I do my best to avoid: they waste time and raise my blood pressure.

On the other hand, their time is limited. Cut-backs are coming, which should increase my workload, but given that a lot of these folks don't do any real work, I expect that it will remain unchanged, LOL.

Yes, "retirement" is looking better and better. I can't afford to retire, but I'm going to get a different job before long.

 

[SouthernBreeze]

Laundry is all hung to dry, and my work in the front yard is now done. Our front yard is very shady in the mornings. I've got ornamental ivy that was creeping into my azaleas, so that had to be trimmed back. It was a big job. I should have done it sooner, before it almost got away from me. I did some weeding in everything else, plus cutting the old iris stalks. They are all finished. I have wood violets coming up in places I don't want them, so those had to be dug out and thrown away. They multiply and spread like crazy. Now, I'm tired. Taking a break for lunch, then I'll hit the back yard. I have shrubs that need to be cut back really bad around the deck. They're getting too bushy. I like to keep them neatly trimmed lower to the ground. All of our roses are in full bloom. Smells good outside, too.

Cary has been chugging away on the wood pile.

 

[Wildwood]

Yesterday was a busy day here. I finally got the fruit trees sprayed again. It has been either too windy or raining. I started after supper and I was dusk by the time I was finished. I put out 8 gallons of spray; 2 gallons at a time. None of the plums have fruit. I only have a couple of young peaches that need thinning. There are only a few pears. The apples are loaded. I will have to thin the one that had I will pick. The other big tree thins itself pretty good or the critters do it. I am not sure. But the apples are very small and tart. It might be a crab apple of some type. The apples are gold ball or a little bigger size and very tart.

I fertilized all the gardens. Things are doing well. I have several baby mullein plants to move. I will check with DD and DDIL to see if they need one. I still have garden work to do and a little to plant, but it keeps raining. It's thundering now.

Sunday is decoration in Wildwoods community where my parents are buried. We plan to go. There is a family dinner at the fire station afterwards. My cousins are in their 80s. I don't know if the younger generation will continue it. My kids rarely go. My son did when he lived there. My daughter has only gone a couple of times since she married. Decoration was a big thing when I was a kid. Family came home from out of state to go and we had a huge dinner at Grandmas. Pot luck was so good. People parked at the church just up the road and walked to Grandmas. Now most of those people are gone and the kids are scattered to the wind. I miss those old days.

I put the turkeys in the dog pen yesterday. It's not ready for them full time yet, but they seemed to enjoy a larger area. One of them is a gobbler. He did a few seconds of a courting dance toward another bird in the big pen. They are sweet birds. I was able to just walk in the pen and pick them up when it was time to put them up for the night.

I told DH that I was thinking about trying Guineas for pest control again. I figured he would tell me a hard no. But he said to find some and we would try it. Last time we had them, he worked nights some and they were much too noisy. I messaged a friend and she has eggs in the incubator. In a little over 2 weeks they should hatch if they are going to. None of the farm stores had any, only chicks.

Our well bucket from Lehman's came yesterday. I am glad to have that on hand.

I ordered 2 new thermostats wafers from McMurray for my old incubator. I am going to try to get it running again. It is an old Sears one from 30 years ago. But I got better hatches out of it than these new ones.

Hubby finished repairing the trailer that we haul stuff in. It's a horse trailer that we bought used 10 or so years ago. He is thinking about trading it in on a new box trailer. The trailer store has one that we like. I wouldn't be surprised if a trip to the trailer store is in today's plan.

Mail is getting lost. I had a insurance statement in my informed delivery, but it never arrived. I also mailed a check to pay a bill, and it was never delivered and it has not shown up on my bank statement. We always take our mail to the post office to mail instead of putting it in our mailbox at the highway.

DH has lost over 20 pounds. His sugar is dropping and his back is feeling a little better. He carries all his weight in his belly. I just hope he can keep it off when he stops the shots. I have lost 3 pounds. It's a struggle and thyroid issues don't make it easier. I know some is water weight because I can see sock lines even in the morning.

Time to get busy. Have a blessed day everyone.

I miss the decorations we had here when I was young...I'd give anything to have one of those days back. My mama and grandma would make flowers out of crepe paper and dip them in canning parrafin. We always did the pot luck over at Lick Creek where daddy's people are buried. When daddy was alive and healthy, he and I would spend every weekend in May going to all the decorations from one side of the county to the other one. I have one this weekend where my aunt is buried, the second weekend I have two and the third weekend at Lick Creek. Now that I'm financing it all, I'll be broke when the month is over. My DIL and the grands usually go with me now.

The old neighbors across the street from me bought four guineas years ago. They immediately relocated to my yard and my dogs had no problem with that. I loved them and they helped a lot with ticks but they drove DH crazy. I haven't been able to talk him into any more. He worked at home then and he was outside from daylight to dark.

 

[anna43]

My mom (born 1921) told me that when she was young that everyone would take lawn mowers, clippers and scythes to the cemetery the week before Memorial Day to clean off their family graves. They'd take a picnic for when they finished. Cemeteries were not maintained in those days. Back then it probably wouldn't have been such a big job but today there are way more family graves.

When I was a child my grandmothers would pick peonies, iris, bridal wreath and any other blooming flowers and with ferns make bouquets to take to the graves. We'd do a lot of driving from cemetery to cemetery -- places like New York, Iconium, Warsaw, Corydon, Cambria, Allerton, Humeston, Garden Grove and several country cemeteries. Warsaw and New York are no longer on the maps so I'm not sure I could find them. A couple are in Appanoose and Decatur Counties and the rest are in Wayne County all in Iowa. The counties are all bordered by Missouri on the south.

I would still visit graves and take artificial flowers, but it's too far for me to drive by myself and I'd have to get a motel for a couple nights because no way could I drive, go to the cemeteries and drive back in two days. I'm a whole lot closer to Minnesota, South Dakota and Nebraska these days. My cousin, who passed in November, told me he longed to visit the graves before he passed, but I don't think he was able to do so. Makes me want to go on his behalf as well as for myself. My youngest dd has been to most of the cemeteries with me and knows where to find the graves. My late dh's family are buried in Boone, Dallas and Polk counties.

A lot of people probably think I'm crazy, but I find cemeteries to be beautiful places with a real sense of peace.

Ironically, I've lived in this town for over 40 years, and I've never been in either cemetery in town.

 

[SouthernBreeze]

We're getting ready for our shopping trip this morning. A beautiful day to do it, too. Sunny and 89 again, today. Rain moving in overnight, though. Rain off and on all weekend and next week.

I went out to look at the tomatoes and peppers. One of the raised bed tomato plants was wilted down and laying on the ground. I have no idea what happened to it. It looks like hot water was poured over it. Sure, hope I don't lose anymore. The rest still look healthy for now.

 

[nomifyle]

Its raining here today and tomorrow. The chickens are out running around in it but the goats, who could use a bath, are all under cover.

yesterday DH told me one of the tomato plants has small tomatoes on it, probably the grape tomato plant. I need to visit it.

 

[philkar]

Warm here today. Despite all we push ahead. Sweet potato slips looking beautiful and hope to get in the ground this evening after sun begins to set. Same with pepper plants. Added to outdoor kitchen making processing area a little more streamlined. Working on pasture area. Turkeys are strutting! 6 weeks old! Praying for at least one female! Trying to learn how to cook for just three with no leftovers! Harder than it sounds!

 

[anna43]

It poured all night and early this a.m. Currently it's not raining so I'm about to head out to run errands. I need to call the plumber because I don't think the check valve on one sump pump is working. Probably dried out due to years of drought and non-use. Dread that bill especially since I also need to schedule annual generator checkup and plan to ask for quote on some electrical updates. I really need additional plug-ins in the basement that are on the generator.

I had to raise the plant light again this a.m. It was on when I went down to turn it on, and I know I turned it off last night. This happened one other time so guess I'm going to have to double check in the future.

If it's not raining when I get back from errands, I will check the asparagus and hope I have more to cut. I need to call a friend who always gets rhubarb from me because it needs cutting. Also, have a bunch of stuff to take across the street to the senior complex as donation for their garage sale this weekend. Guess I'd better get moving.

 

[John Deere Girl]

DD3's wedding and receptions are over, the latest book is finally published and available on Amazon, the surprise (from DD1) trip to South Korea completed, and now just have to get DH's cataract surgery checked by the surgeon, and then have dinner with DS1 and DDIL tonight. Then I can head home tomorrow and begin working in my garden. Y'all have been making me crazy with all this garden talk!

What is the name of your new book? I have all of your other books.

 

[nomifyle]

The rain has stopped for now. I took a cat nap for a little while, they are invigorating for me. The control cord got pinched again last night in my chair and I had to sleep just about sitting up so I didn't get good rest. We turned the chair over and moved the cord outside of the chair so it won't get pinched again.

The rain makes everything look so green, and now that it has let up the dirty goats are out stuffing their faces.

The other night I was leaning on DH and accidently pinched his side and its still hurting. Going to Lowes on Tuesday and buying building materials for the camper repair and also 50# bags of feed aggravated it, so unfortunately he's in some pain. The rain today and tomorrow will give him time to rest it.

I'm still working on the laundry and almost caught up. The kitchen is almost in good shape.

 

[school marm]

What is the name of your new book? I have all of your other books.

Armageddon Pharmacy: Herbal Medicine When the Drugstore Is Closed.

 

[Meemur]

I may be somewhat scarce for a bit: I'm fine!

The tree guys were supposed to come today to remove the dead ash, but it was pouring rain with frequent lightning. They will try again tomorrow, and then I have some helpers coming. We're going to try to finish clearing the fence line and some of the other outside projects where I need another set of hands.

I will be glad to have these tasks finished. The tree is especially worrisome. It has gotten to the point that it is dropping larger limbs whenever there's more than a slight breeze. I hope it can be taken down tomorrow. Next week, more wind and t-storms are in the forecast.