July 5-6, 2013

Sally was in Tulsa meditating, so another boys trip. Still no rain, and after a very cool week it was beginning to heat back up -- 90 Friday and mid 90s Saturday.

New Used Mower

I bought this Craftsman 19hp 42" mower the previous Saturday from a fellow in Wesley who was supposedly selling it for a friend that did not have internet access. I should not be so trusting, but I was desperate since the Murray had begun falling apart (disintegrated bearing on the blade shaft). He loaded it for me using ramps he had, and then it set in the back of my truck all week. I knew something was wrong as soon as I got home because I could smell gas, and could tell some had dripped out from the back of the mower.

The first challenge at the farm was unloading it. I tried the hill behind the house, but the tailgate was still way off the ground. Then I drove over to the creek by the swing and parked the rear wheels in the low spot. This was good enough once I placed some large rocks and limbs just past the tailgate. I then started up the mower just to be sure it still ran. I shut it off and then let it roll out, but it hung up on my rocks and limbs, so I figured I would just start it up again and back it on off. But it wouldn't start. I pulled the air filter and could get it to run by spraying carburetor cleaner in, so I knew it wasn't getting gas. Finally I realized I needed to check the gas tank, and sure enough it was dry. I filled it up with gas, got it started, and drove it off the truck.

I was anxious to get everything cut, so I did around the house and then headed down the hill to do around the pond, the barn, and spring. When I started over to do the upper section past the spring (where the swing is and where I unloaded the mower) it died. It was already out of gas. It has much more power than the Murray due to its twin cylinders and 4.5 more horses, but it sure sucks the gas. I got the rest mowed and parked it in the garage. I must say that I prefer the Murray foot pedal for forward and backward versus the stick this one has with neutral, reverse, and two forward speed notches. (They are both hydrostatic transmissions.)

Saturday I could smell gas as soon as I went outside. I rolled it out and put some newspaper under it to try and determine where it was leaking. I couldn't get to where the fuel line connected to the tank, the most likely spot for the leak, so I had to pull the tank out. I then dried everything off, added a little more gas, and waited and watched. It is leaking from the bottom of the plastic tank. Makes no sense, but it will need a new tank.

There are two other issues I know I will have to address. The starter sometime hesitates and is slow to catch. The other is more seriuos, a great deal of play in the steering. I don't know why I did not notice it when test driving on their level yard, but on the rough terrain we have it is a real problem. Apparently this is a common issue with many mowers built with this design, as I could find lots of others complaining about the same problem on the internet. I hope it will last through the season and then I can tear it apart and replace the worn component over the winter.

Garden

Of course it was bone dry, so I watered Friday and Saturday. Sally had bought a patio tomato for the house, but the squirrels were beating us to the tomatoes. So she sent it out with me to be planted in the garden. We'll see how it fares there. I picked green beans, kale, and chard again -- not quite as much as the week before. The squash is really taking off and does not seem to mind the dry conditions. I weeded, so it is in pretty good shape.

Nectarines

I was glad I had picked a bunch the week before, because the tree had been cleaned out and there were pits littering the ground underneath.

Blue Bird House Robbed

The house out front that had its first Blue Bird nest of the year and had 3 eggs the week before was robbed. You can tell because the nest is messed up and of course the eggs are gone. This was in-spite of the coon guard that is on the pole. I am really wondering what got to it and how it managed that.

Thistle

I noticed one, then another while mowing. Then I took the truck and drove up into the back pasture where I found a few. But then when returning I spied many that had already gone to seed up hill from the confluence of the creeks. I dug and bagged them them all, taking two bags.

Walnuts

I cracked the last of my walnuts, being somewhat surprised that they were still good. (They have been dry in the rabbit hutch, but we have had some warm weather.) I bagged them unpicked and am storing them in the freezer until I get around to picking them. Sally made some awesome banana bread this week with black walnuts.

Knapweed

I have really grown to hate this stuff and it makes me sick to see it blooming everywhere -- next comes its seeds to propagate even more of the vile stuff. With a little time on my hands I pulled all of it along the bluff above the spring and creek, and more on the hill above the road to the spring.

June 28-29, 2013

Sally was in Texas, so this was a boys trip (me and Tender). It was very hot for June: 100 Friday and 95 Saturday. And still no rain -- the rain barrels remain empty.

Garden

Needless to say, it was bone dry. After filling the bird feeders the next priority was watering the garden. Everything was very droopy but quickly perked up after watering. I waited until Saturday to harvest lots of kale, chard, green beans, the last onion, and some of the summer spinach (there's a lot). The squash is really taking off, with some of it beginning to bloom. I watered again before leaving Saturday.

Nectarines

The nectarines looked great, but were still a little green. But given the number of pits under the tree I decided to go ahead and pick about 60, less than half on the tree. I do not expect to see any of them next week.

Blue Birds

There was a new blue bird nest in the house out front with 3 eggs. The house at the pond, which I had cleaned out the weekend before, had a new nest and one egg. That is the third laying in that house this year. We have now had six different layings total.

Mower Died

I mowed down to the pond and was on my way back up the hill when the old '98 Murray threw the belt. I rode it down to where it was level and took a look. The bearing on the right spindle driving the blade had disintegrated. Back at the house I pulled the deck off to take a better look. I couldn't even tell how to get it apart, much less replace it. Given all the other problems it has, I decided I would retire it by giving it away for parts.

Saturday morning I checked Craig's List and the only one I found of interest was a 19hp Craftsman in Wesley. I called and found out a bit more about it and planned to go by on the way home. I checked again before leaving the farm, and it had not yet been purchased. The seller had a dinner engagement that kept me from stopping on the way in, so I just went out later that evening and purchased it. I hope there are no surprises waiting for me. He had some ramps and just drove it up into the bed of my Tacoma. Now the trick will be getting it out of the truck without ramps.

High Wheel String Trimmer

I took the high wheel trimmer down to the pond to cut the high grass growing around the bank -- something I was planning on doing, and not totally prompted by the broken mower.

Brush Whacker

Friday I used it to trim around back including the hill in the back. Then I was heading toward the barn when it died and I could not get it restarted. I let it sit overnight, but still could not get it started even after spraying carburetor cleaner into the carburetor. That should have eliminated fuel as the problem, which leaves spark. I brought it and the Poullan Weed Eater (hasn't run in years) home with the idea of taking them somewhere for repair. (Or maybe I will give them both away and buy a new, more reliable piece of equipment. These were purchased used 10 years ago from a fellow that was getting out of the lawn care business.)

Thistle

I spotted three more while mowing the road, so later went down with a shovel and bag. I found much more, and this time some of it had already gone to seed. That is bad news. While driving back I noticed a bunch across the fence on Jeff's. So I went over there and dug it up, bringing back the plants that had already started blooming.

Scrub Trees

There were several scrub trees growing up underneath the large cedar beside the path down to the barn. I have been wanting to remove them for a long time, so I took the Poullan chainsaw and cut them down. That was the easy part. Then I had to drag them up to the fire pit, cut them up, and pile them up.