The Fruits (Or Vegetables...) Of Our Labors

 We've approaching our fourth summer in our house. When we moved in, the backyard was just dirt, and not your regular dirt, but this clay dirt that turned into cement when it got wet. Since we moved, we've put in a lawn, and two garden areas. This spring, we're getting closer to having the kind of gardens we want. And to do that, we need...

Grow boxes.

There are many ways to get grow boxes. The easiest way is to just buy them. You can buy from a store, or from someone who builds them out of their garage, or you can build them yourself. 

We chose Option #3.

And we used pallets for the wood.

Thanks to my friend Jeff, we were able to pick up some pallets he had at his work and we've used them to build three grow boxes and two tables. We're looking to build two more. Are they pretty? No. Do they work? That remains to be seen, but early reports show positive results. 

We have a smallish lot, but we're trying to be more self-sufficient. These will help us do just that.

Elevated grow boxes...the only way to garden.

Some See Free Pallets - Some See Free Grow Boxes...With A Lot Of Work

 Free...

I give you the pallet, something that allows modern civilization to exist. The pallet allows for tons of food to be delivered to your store, and then, to your homes. I can't imagine how we would transport and store the food, the auto parts, the clothing, basically everything in our modern lives.

Because pallets are so important, it goes to reason that you can find pallets everywhere. Drive by any industrial part of town and you'll see pallets. And not only are they important for their original purpose, do a quick internet search on the things you can make with free pallets. 

It's endless.

With enough pallets you can build your own shed or even a home. We're not looking to build either, but something more simple...grow boxes. 

I have a friend who runs several businesses. He's got the Midas touch, very successful. I messaged him a few weeks ago to see if he had any pallets lying around that he no longer uses/needs. He did, and we drove down to his business and picked up a few. Such a nice gesture. I saw the above post in our local town Facebook group. We've gathered the pallets and will hopefully gather more, then...

The hard work begins.

My wife and son have drawn up some plans on how we want our backyard garden to look. It's going to take time, but it could be something great.

I'll keep you posted.

Prepping For Spring Projects...

 Spring...so many project, so few weekends.

Tomorrow we're going to try something new. We have animal issues in our backyard. One issue is cats...not ours, we had two when we moved and now have none. No, it's the neighborhood cats giving us fits. They consider our garden beds their own private litter boxes.

Though unsettling as this is on its own, the second animal issue is our dog. You see, the dog knows a cat's been in his territory, and the dog finds the cat's "gifts." Then, well...I'd rather not say what the dog does with those gifts. Needless to say, it causes problems for the whole family.

We need preventative measures.

Hence, a new project.

My wife and I went shopping today to figure out a way to keep the dog out of the garden. It would be great if we could keep the cats away as well, but cats are adept at getting into places they should not be. We walked around Lowes looking a various things and imaging how they could work. We have a plan. Tomorrow we'll see if it works.

If we can pull it off, it's going to be fantastic. Usually, similar projects we try like this work as intended (to some degree...). Let's hope it works better than we hoped.

Time will tell.

Hiding In Plain Sight...

 Of course, the sunflower plant was there the whole time. I just didn't see it. Then, as if overnight, the sunflower plant exploded.

Now, it's almost the tallest thing in our backyard.

That's the thing about yard work...it's never ending. Literally. Each year we've been able to take care of more and more of the space that needs de-weeding. The goal is to have less work to do in the yard as time goes on. Thank goodness for the fabric ground cover to deny the weeds any light.

We have a garden in the backyard and that's where the sunflower plant grew and grew. We'd been trying to stay ahead of the weeds, but this summer, it was a lost cause. We had many issues that came up this summer...a wedding, a grandchild, you know...the basics. Every time I saw a weed get big, I'd pull it.

But, I missed one.

Personally, I love sunflowers. They're happy flowers, fun, in a word...sunny. For now, we're letting it continue to grow skyward. The flowers are now sprouting which is good for bees, and it looks nice. We will be taking it out of the garden when we take out all the plants in the fall, so it will be eventually go. I'm hoping next year I'll be more on top of things. Then again...

Since the plant was so sneaky, it's earned its right to stay. Well done.

Ever Wonder If God Created A Cloud Just For You...?

 I began my day with a project in the front yard. The location and time of day are important considerations when it comes to each project. In the morning--to avoid the sun--it's best to take on projects in the back yard. The opposite is true for projects in the front yard.

It's all based on the location of the sun.

Because the longest days of the year are literally yesterday and today, the sun was up before we were. That didn't stop me this morning...I had things to do in the front yard, even though I knew it would be hot. Still, I thought I could get things done quickly so I wasn't too worried.

Turns out, I had more work in the front yard than I thought.

The temperatures began to rise and then, the sky began to darken. I looked up expecting to see a tiny cloud temporarily blocking the sun. What I saw brought a smile on my face...there was a cloud but it was not tiny, or even on the smallish side. It was huge and it brought the temperature down significantly.

Such a blessing.

It got me wondering...was the cloud a heavenly gift? I mean, it could have been. I'm a believer of not only the existence of God, but that He sometimes hands out gifts/blessings. But, did the big cloud offer problems to others? These things get into my brain and drive me a little crazy.

I stayed outside another hour or so and completed all the things that needed doing. The cloud blocked the sun the whole time. Did God create the cloud just for me?

I'd like to think so.

Almost Every Square Inch Covered...

 Growing up, we lived on the side of a mountain, and I mean that literally. On the other side of our driveway was mountain and all that that entails.

In short...we had undeveloped earth right next door.

I'm used to a yard that's untamed, sort of wild. Others are not.

This is our third spring at our new location. The first summer we put in a yard complete with grass and a sprinkling system. Last year we put down fabric and covered it with little rocks to keep the weeds in check. We surrounded the house with this rock barrier. Still, there were areas on our lot that were uncovered, and thus, prone to the explosion of weeds.

This spring, we're out to cover up almost every square inch.

Last week we put down fabric and covered up much of our weed-infested front yard. It looks so much better. Next, we covered the slope in the back yard. We didn't have time to cover it with rocks--that's a project for another day. It got me thinking--when we're done, we'll have the flower beds in the front yard and the raspberry plants in the back. Everything else is covered by concrete, grass, fabric and small rocks. It's amazing the lengths we're going to just to make sure what grows is what we want to grow and keep out everything else.

Over the past three seasons, I've collected rocks in one section of the back yard. They were too small to place somewhere else. There's so many of them. The problem is I have to basically move each one by hand, one-by-one. It's going to take a while to clear out that pile.

Like everything else, yard work is never-ending. Where we live yard work is interrupted by winter, so we get a break, but as sure as morning follows night, spring follows winter and we're at it again. Hopefully, the work we do now will help in the future.

We'll see.

Well, There's Your Problem Right There...

 Every year, without fail, I'm forced to remember things I once knew but apparently have forgotten. I'm talking about yardwork, but with me and my age, it could be anything.

I work at a job where we're supposed to know literal volumes of information in order to do the job correctly. It's so much to learn and retain that many times after I've learned it, it may not be remained. Of course, I'm usually reminded that I've forgotten something when I do it wrong and it's found out I did it wrong. Then, my aging brain searches for that time when I learned that particular tidbit of knowledge I somehow forgot and wonder why I failed to recall it when needed.

The same thing happened to me today. We live in an area that has four seasons, meaning, we have snow in the winter and hot temperatures in the summer. Because of this, we shut down our sprinkling system in the fall and resurrect it each spring. I remember being told when we put in the system that the secondary/irrigation water is not clean--not by a long shot. We have a filtration system to remove the gunk and silt that's in the lines. The water was turned on a few weeks ago.

I noticed the pressure in our lines was low and I couldn't figure out why. 

Then I remembered.

The filter.

There's your problem right there.

Cleaning out the filter it reminded me of when I forget things at work and probably other places that I haven't yet remembered I've forgotten.

I guess I'm getting old.

Spent My Days Chasing Rainbows...The Kinds You Get From Functioning Sprinklers

 To me, sprinkler systems and frustration are synonymous.

And today, offered further proof.

There was some good news, however...I know what I need to do.

We've had such a wet winter and spring, we haven't really needed to turn our our irrigation water until now. Two years ago, we put in the system. Last year, we turned on the system and it worked perfectly. This year...Nope. The controller was shot.

No problem, I thought. I'll just go get another one. I bought one last night and took the day off work to get it up and running and to check all the lines. Things didn't go as easily as I would have hoped. When I hooked up the controller, the system wouldn't work. I heard the valves click open, then they'd close. We went to the hardware store and they said it might be a bad unit. So, I bought another one.

This one also did not work. I kept wondering if I had messed up the wiring, but that's unlikely. Wiring is not that tough, and I followed the instructions. I went to the store where I bought controller #2 and explained my situation with a store employee and a customer.

Turns out the customer is a professional landscaper and sprinkler guru.

Thank, goodness!

He explained that the reason none of the controllers worked is because we were using a DC-powered unit before and I was trying to use AC-powered controllers now. I bought another controller (hopefully, the last one...), and tomorrow I'll pick up the other parts I need to make it work.

No, the system was not fixed today, but thanks to that last trip to the store and talking to the guy with the answers, I know what I need to do. Looks like the rainbows will have to wait...

But they're coming.

Who Says You Can't Find Good Help These Days...?

 See these two? They are two-thirds of an incredible crew, a crew that went above and beyond, a crew I would hire again in a second...

Of course, they won't work again in this neighborhood...their choice.

I've blogged numerous times about how many rocks lie just below (and deep below...) the surface of our property. I'd laugh more if it weren't so depressing at times. You want to plant a tree? You'd better pray there's no big rocks were you want that tree to go because if you do, you'll need to find a new place for that tree.

So, what do you do if you want to put in a fence?

You hire big guys with big machines like diggers and jackhammers.

Last winter Cory was the first to answer my queries about putting in a fence. I took that as a good sign. He said ours would be the first project of the season. I told them on more than one occasion, it was rocky where we lived. They took the gig anyway.

It took them twelve hours to put in the thirty-odd posts. To put that in perspective, they worked another gig, put in a third more fence posts, and they did it in half the time. Cory told me ours was the hardest job he'd ever done. He also told me that as he did the job that took half the time, he realized how easy that job was and by doing the season's toughest job first, it would make the others feel easy by comparison.

When Cory added everything up, he could have charged us double for the labor, but he didn't. We're glad he didn't because we hadn't budget for much extra. That would have sunk us. I wish I could have tipped them the extra labor--I'd have done it gladly. 

Cory's business is C & C Fencing. They advertise on Facebook in the spring, then take down the ads after they schedule work to last the year. Because of all the construction going on, they're swamped. They might not even be able to take on new work, but if you're lucky enough to hire them, I say go for it. They're good workers. As far as not coming back to our neighborhood for a job, they'd turn it down. In fact, they told me that if any of my neighbors asked who put in our fence, I was to not tell them. 

Yes, good help can be found nowadays. And we have a fence to prove it.

Maybe Money Does Grow On...And From...Trees

 Last year, we conducted an experiment. At the time, we didn't call it an experiment, nor did we think of it as such, but that's what it was. We were experiencing our first spring in a new land and we wanted to plant some trees.

For Round 1, the first tree we planted did not survive. Truth be told, it was probably dead/dying when we put it in the ground. Our Round 2, we bought three small fruit trees and asked the experts at the nursery what we did wrong in Round 1 and how to keep the new trees alive for Round 2.

We planted three trees. They survived the first year, which I would think would be the toughest year for a newly planted tree. It's been so much fun seeing the blossoms, watching bees buzz around them, and looking forward to a small, but wonderful harvest.

This spring, we've visited a nursery or two. We've even considered picking up another fruit tree to add to our humble orchard...

Don't think we're going to be doing that.

Not because we don't have the room or great places to plant more trees, but because of the cost. My wife checked out trees similar to the three we planted last year and the cost floored her. We paid around $100 for the three trees last year. This spring, one tree begins at $75. It made me worry (just a little bit...) that someone might come along and dig them up and steal them out of our front yard. I know it's a silly thought, but that's what went through my head when I saw the trees in my yard and heard how much they cost now.

Of course, it's not just trees that have gone up...everything has. I don't believe it's going to stop any time soon, either. We probably won't be adding trees this year, maybe next year or the year after that. I love having fruit trees--glad we have our three.

Give Thanks...For Neighbors With Toys

 Because it's spring and not yet hot (I wilt when it gets into the 80s...), we've dedicated these recent weekends to yard work. If you've read this blog in the past, you know yard work is not a favorite of mine. I enjoy a nice yard as much as anyone, but putting in the work to obtain such a yard...different story.

Yesterday, we decided to take on the weed field that is the south side of our house. I didn't get a picture before we filled multiple large garbage bags of weeds, but it was a literal carpet, mostly those goat's head sticker weeds. We might have stopped earlier, but the day was so perfect for yard work, cloudy with a light breeze. We kept going. By noon we had put down the ground cover layer of fabric and I had called it...I was done. 

The day before yesterday we ordered gravel...lots and lots of gravel. Now that the fabric was down, we would be spending the next couple of months moving the gravel to the other side of the house using our Fisher Price wheelbarrow. It would take time, but we knew we could do it little by little.

After putting in the hard work yesterday afternoon I was taking a nap when the doorbell rang. Our neighbor saw us working in the yard and she saw the huge pile of gravel. Turns out, her husband bought a new toy to put in their yard...a mini-backhoe. She asked if we wanted him to come down and move the rocks for us.

I was speechless.

When I did regain the ability to talk, of course we agreed to the help. Minutes later, he drove up in a brand-new shiny tractor. In about 30 minutes, we had the back and side yards covered with gravel. I still can't believe that the project we started and expected to take weeks, if not months to finish, was done by the time we went to bed. As luck would have it, my wife had just baked some chocolate chip cookies and we game him a plate.

Last summer, another neighbor asked us if we needed help moving some rocks. Once again, we did not turn down an offer for help. Once again, the neighbor had recently purchased a big toy--another tractor. I know these people did not need to help us. We're so grateful they did. But, if you think about it another way, maybe them helping is part to help and part just to play with the new toys. Either way, we came out the big winners.

I Guess You Can Be A Plotter Or Pantser...Landscaper

 There's a way authors use to describe their writing style and it consists of two words...

Plotter,

Or Pantser.

The two words come from the way a writer approaches a project. Many of the more disciplined writers (I'm painting with a broad brush here...) will sit down and plot out their story. They create outlines of the beginning, middle, and end. Then they'll plot out each chapter. When they're done, they can follow the outline and fly through the story, creating masterpieces in record time. Of course, they can spend months--or longer--plotting so it can take a while to actually finish a novel.

Then, there's the pantsers. "Panster" is not actually a word (at least, I get a misspelled notice every time I type it...). It does have a meaning, though. Writers who fail to outline and just go for it, us the "seat of their pants" approach, thus...panster. They take longer, usually, to finish a story, and sometimes the endings can be a little weird. Stephen King is a notorious panster...apparently.

But, can these approaches be applied to landscaping?

I suppose they can be applied to almost anything. Although, I would not like to drive a car or be in a building where the designer/builders used the "pantser" approach. And putting in a yard shouldn't be done "by the seat of your pants." Still, I wonder if there's a yard out there where they didn't plan, they didn't plot, they didn't outline or prepare or put any thought into what they wanted at all.

It's time for us to think about the back yard. In our family, my wife's more the plotter, and I have agreed with those plans. If we can swing it, it's going to be great.

Another Bumper Rock Crop...Just Like Last Year

 How quickly spring arrives. Why, it seems like just yesterday we were working in the yard, moving rocks. 

Lots and lots of rocks.

Last year, we put in grass. That was a minor miracle. We found the cheapest way possible to pull the sprinkler pipe through the rockiest land you ever saw. We helped put in the sprinkler system and when summer hit, we had a yard.

It was a blessing...something we needed. Now, with the big stuff in, we need to focus on the smaller things, like taking care of the space between the house and the grass. The problem is, the projects don't feel "smaller." They feel pretty big. Today my wife and I took on a couple of patches, the space at the end of the driveway and a section near the back door.

We only worked a few hours, but the difference was shocking. Now, we've got to just figure out how we can finish up.

Whenever I see someone post on social media the birth of a new child, I remember bringing home each of our four children. There's one thing I always forgot about bringing home a baby...the days of getting a good night's sleep were over. Working in the yard today reminded me of something I had forgotten--just how sore and tired my body feels after even a short time in the yard.

I also forgot just how rocky this land is. Yes, we had another bumper crop of rocks this spring...just like last year.

Give Thanks...Being Able To Work

 From my work window, I look out to a field. One day it will be a road linking more houses on our hill to civilization. But, for not, it's just a field. It's also a place where the neighborhood developers have building materials stored for future use.

Including top soil.

For the past several months I've watched dump truck load after dump truck load leave the field bound for hopefully greener pastures. Last week I was able to order some of that dirt be delivered to our house. We're nowhere near being done with our yard.

It arrived Friday. We basically had two days to get that dirt moved, or two mornings since I worked in the afternoons and evenings. Friday, I overdid it--worked and worked to get as much of it moved as possible. I paid for it--I was tired at work, but it needed to get done.

We finished up the job on Saturday--I took things much slower and that helped. Work, though a longer shift, was much easier.

I am thankful that I was able to work in my yard. I'm thankful for helpful neighbors. I'm thankful I could physically do the work and that we have a yard in the first place. Slowly, we're getting there. It's going to take many more days to get it done...and, as anyone with yards knows, it's never really "done." But, for one big mound of dirt on our driveway, that part of the process...is done.

We Turned Our Backs And...BAM...We Have A Garden

 To be honest, we thought we wouldn't get a garden this year. We had put in the grass and started landscaping the front yard. The backyard...well, that would just have to wait.

Or so we thought...

We asked my oldest and his wife to house-sit for us while we were gone last week--mostly to take care of the one dog and two cats. When we got home we found out, they didn't just sit around the house and eat all our food while we were gone (okay...they did eat our food, but that was fine...). No, no...they were busy. My daughter-in-law loves to garden and so they went a little crazy and put in a wonderful little garden in the backyard.

We do have great plans for our back yard--we just thought we'd missed our opportunity for this year. Thanks to some hard work (and us being gone...), they made it happen this year. What a wonderful gift!

The First Rose...

 My wife spotted them first, two rose bush starters at Costco...not necessarily known for its vegetation. Maybe it is for some, but when I think "Costco," I'm usually not thinking about plants.

But there they were.

And later, they were planted in front of our porch.

Yesterday, I snapped a picture of our first rose bud.

If you've read previous blogs, you know me and yard work don't mix. I am, however, finding myself doing more yard work this spring than I have possibly ever done before in my life. Okay...that may be an exaggeration, but it sure feels that way.

I'm never sure if what we plant is going to survive. The first fruit tree we planted didn't. Then again, we've learned a lot since then. We planted three more trees and they seem to be doing well--I mean, they're still alive after a few months, so I'd say they're doing well (much better than the first tree...).

We have plans for more, more trees, more plants, more flowers. It's only our first spring here. Hopefully, as time goes on, we'll get more green at the Eggnog House.

Things A Hat Might Tell You...If A Hat Could Speak

 If you do an image search for businessmen attire in the first half of the twentieth century, there's a good chance those businessmen were wearing hats...

I wonder if they even liked hats.

I don't think it mattered either way. Men wore hats, bowlers, fedoras, porkpies, panamas, to name a few. They were as integral to a man's wardrobe as a tie or a white shirt or even shoes.

Times have changed.

And, personally, I'm sad...I LOVE those hats.

But, I like hats in general, for both fashion, but mostly practical reasons. I've mentioned on this blog many times that I wear hats in the winter to keep my head warm and in the summer to keep my skin from burning off. Hats are also integral to my wardrobe. Take, for example, the hat I wear working in the yard. We're now in summer and that means higher temperatures brought on by more sun. I wore my hat last week as we moved rocks--lots of rocks--for landscaping in our front lawn. And when laundry day came around, I tossed in the hat so it could be returned to its original clean state.

That was needed.

If my yard work hat could speak, it might say it appreciated being outside, but I may be pushing it a bit. And it would definitely want to be washed more. I'll try to accommodate it in the future. Heck...I'd like it to stay clean and pristine in the garage. My many baseball hats might accuse me of favoritism (which I definitely am...I like hats that are red and sport a big "U" on them...). I have a couple of hats I wear in the winter, but since I've been working from home, I haven't been standing on a platform in a blizzard waiting for the train to come, and therefore, not needing my winter hats. They're probably the most mad at me...

And would have the most to say.

The First Tree...First Of Many, Hopefully

 We weren't looking for fruit trees to put in the yard--it's still a little early. We don't even have a sprinkling system installed, but we saw the tree and snagged it. A few days later, we dug a hole and stuck it in the ground.

Tree Number 1.

In a tree-less yard.

Back before 1847 the valley in which we live was uninhabited. That summer Mormons entered the valley and set up shop. It was part of Mexico back then and had the valley been more appealing, it might have already been occupied. But, because no one else wanted it, it was available. I haven't done a lot of research about the area before the Mormons arrived, but I have heard that the people who first saw the valley said there were no trees...tree-less.

On the hill where we moved, there's not a lot of trees...kind of how it looked almost two-hundred years ago. One of the first things we planted at our old home were fruit trees. We're hoping to do the same here. We started with an apricot tree. We'll be looking for other fruit trees--those that do well in our climate. When we're done we plan on having a little orchard, like we had before.

It's just one tree. We'll have to water it by hand until the sprinklers are installed and we're glad to do it. It's strange living in an area where trees are few and far between. Maybe in the coming years, the little hill will have many trees. That's the goal.

Knight (Not Napoleon...), Give Me Some Of Your Tots

 Last week was harvest time at the Taylors. Our massive potato field needed to be gleaned of the golden vegetables. It ended a scientific and culinary experiment. Can we grow potatoes in a home garden?

The answer is yes. It can be done.

These aren't all the potatoes we found--others fulfilled their destiny and became food, but those remaining were cleaned and prepared for yet another meal, or snack, or side dish.

I have many cousins, and many of them grew up in Idaho. Back then, you could get your driver's license at age fourteen. There were restrictions, of course. If I remember correctly, a fourteen-year old could not drive at night. Why did Idaho allow such early driving?

Farmwork.

You got to harvest those potatoes. 

I remember in parts of the state, kids even had school canceled so they could help with the harvest. I waas always a bit envious of my cousins until one fall I happened to be visiting family during the potato harvest season and I saw how much work it took to bring those spuds in. It's a LOT of work. I think days of legal underage driving and time off for the potato harvest are long past. Still, I'm sure many a forty to sixty-year old Idaho native remembers those days.

We didn't know what we were doing when we planted several potato starts in our yard months ago. To be honest, I didn't know what I was doing--my son Knight had researched what to do and his hard work paid off. I've had the fruits of his labors and he did well.

Soon, my son will be leaving the nest to create his own household. I'm not sure where they'll end up--not sure if they exactly know themselves, and that's okay. They'll figure it out. I also wonder if they'll plant potatoes next spring.

Time will tell.

Is It A Saw...Or An Edger? It's Both

The idea hit me this morning. I knew after work I wanted to get in some yard work time. Well, to be honest, I didn't want to get in yard work time, but we do need to put some serious work into our yard. One thing I've neglected for years is edging.

It's not my favorite.

Maybe it's because we have over several hundred feet of curb to edge--that may have something to do with it. Last weekend I got up before the sun and began tackling the point where grass meets concrete. I got out the extension cords and our electronic edger.

The darn thing didn't work. 

It may have worked--and I'm sure it works really well--if you use it regularly. Since I hadn't, it was tough finding the point where the grass should end and the sidewalk begins. After a while, I ditched the edger and used a edging shovel. It works well, but it's tedious. I finished a section, then gave up for the day. I knew I wanted to do more edging today after work, but I had too find a way to make things easier.

My idea--a handsaw.

We have an old saw that I believe was my dad's. That means it's at least fifty years old. I dug it out of the basement and went to work. I've got to say, it worked pretty well. I had to be on my knees, but the saw did a good job. It wasn't fast, but when I was done with a section, you could definitely tell it had been edged.

I've got hundreds of feet of edging left to go. I'm going to pace myself and try and do a little every day. Hopefully, in a week or so, I'll be completely done.

Another thought hit me as I edged this evening. 

I sawed my sod.

Sorry...(not sorry).