July 1-2, 2011

The Bloodmobile didn't show (had received a post card weeks before, but no phone call this week -- hmm), but it was still 4:00 by the time we arrived. Sally had a funeral to attend Saturday, so we came in two cars. Another hot and dry week, although there was about .1 inch in the gauge. It was 94 Friday and 95 Saturday.

Wasp

I thought I would see what was in the well house. Luckily I donned a glove before grabbing the lid and lifting it open, because this wasp nest was right next to where I take hold. I sprayed the ones that stayed around and squashed the nest. I always try to wear a glove (or look first), because once I was stung by a scorpion (really hurt). BTW, there was just one mouse taking shelter inside.

Watered Everything

Same as last week, though things didn't look quite as wilted. It sure eats up time doing it all by hand.

Garden

Sally picked green beans (many too big), chard, spinach for breakfast, 4 cups of basil, and two jalapenos. She's really excited about the acorn squash and has decided that this is going to be our main produce for the year. There are lots of squash growing and they are still flowering like crazy. (You can see some fruit and also drought damage on some of the leaves in this picture.) I didn't understand why, but she started pulling up the distressed looking green bean plants.

I picked 3 or 4 cups of blackberries over both days. I got another 2 cups on the shortcut on the way home.

Road Maintenance

I brought the wheel barrow out from town since I planned to start work on the erosion just below the house. I first filled it with some of the extra rocks around the house, and then wheeled it down to the work site. I spread the rocks into the ruts left by the heavy rains.

I then took the wheel barrow over to the bluff just upside of the barn. I decided to take mud from the front in order to minimize the distance I had to push it. (I usually harvest from the back by filling buckets and loading them into the truck, but with not far to go I thought I would try this.) Here is a picture of the borrow pit I created. Some of this needed to come out anyway because the hill keeps creeping toward the barn. This is the first time the side door to the barn has actually been able to be fully opened since we bought the place.

I say mud, but with our current conditions it is extremely hard, heavy, clumps of clay. Working a bit loose with the adz left me panting and soaked with sweat in the heat. I'd break some loose, take a breather, shovel it into the wheel barrow, and then do it again. Wheeling it over to work site was also difficult due to the weight – especially those loads I had to run up hill.

After getting the mud into the ruts and covering the rocks, I'd stomp it in and further break up any big clods using the shovel. I'd then dress it using some gravel from any nearby source (there are many) -- sprinkling the gravel over the top. Without the gravel, when it gets wet the mud will stick to the truck tires and get pulled out. Four loads was all I was good for. Many more are needed. This is a picture of the finished product in one area.

Brush Whacker

I made the mistake of filling the tank and then tackled the area in front of and behind the barn, and by the spring. Since I still had gas I did the hill by the house. Since I still had gas I started working on the hill behind the house. I was wiped out, but if you leave this beast sitting up right with gas in the tank it will just drain out somehow. I then realized I could just leave it on its side – which I did since I was ready to quit.