Archive for the ‘rototilling’ Tag
It’s been a beautiful and almost warm morning today which allowed me to get busy in the garden for a couple of hours. I’ve been doing my best to get all of the preliminary chores out of the way as soon as possible. Today was the day.
I was worried about my old rototiller as always. It’s been used hard for six years and I’m always concerned that it won’t start. To my surprise the little sweetheart started right up without any hesitation. Say what you want, those Sears Craftsmen tools are hard to kill. That was the best $150.00 I ever spent.
It took about 45 minutes to finish and now the soil is well mixed and loose down to about 14 inches. All of the root vegetables this year will be loving life. Here’s the finished product.
As you can see I finished rototilling and immediately began installing the fabric. I’m reusing most of the fabric from last year which will save me a few bucks. Thanks to this fabric 2016 will be a weed free year.
Next on my list was installing the sprinklers. I ran the hoses through the frames and fencing and attached the sprinklers. They should give me more than enough coverage for the entire garden.
Right in the middle of my workday the grand kids arrived to take their grandmother on a walk. I took a few minutes to chase the oldest one around the yard and to wrestle a little. A short time later they left for their walk and I returned to my final task for the day. The compost pile.
A few days ago I found a product in a garden center which when added to a compost pile promotes decomposition. I took the rototiller to the compost pile and stirred things up a bit. I sprinkled the product liberally through the piles, mixed them in, and covered everything with a tarp. It should make the compost I use later this year and next much richer.
With my list for today completed I can relax for a while. A nice hot shower will feel great and give me enough energy to get out and run a few errands. Since the better-half is working this evening my time is my own. Here’s a shot of the garden, end-to-end.
ALL I NEED NOW IS WARM TEMPERATURES
I’m being as lazy as I possibly can this morning and looking ahead to the beginning of a labor intensive Spring which is scheduled to begin on Thursday. Regardless of the cooler temperatures and crappy weather Lowe’s will be making a delivery which means much more work and a few aching muscles for me. It’s confusing for me to be so eager to get started with a project that will hurt so much but I’m forced to deal with the realities of the situation.
The garden is only moments away from becoming my main focus for at least the next three months. During that time I’ll be adding additional loam to all of the frames, fertilizing, and rototilling everything in sight to help loosen the soil. Then it’s just a matter of setting the fabric in place in all of the large frames to eliminate the need to weed this summer. Completing a general cleanup will then allow me to sit back and relaxing until the warmer temperatures decide to arrive.
Then comes the numerous trips to a selection of nurseries to purchase plants, plants, and more plants. Building and installing a few new trellises for the beans and snap peas as well as a box of .22 caliber ammunition for the assassination of the damn skunk. There are indications he’s already been visiting the property this year and I really have to get serious about ridding myself of him. With my luck he’ll have three or four relatives who’ll show up after his demise to make me even more crazy. It’s a wait and see situation for me, for him, and for them.
Welcoming the end of a rather lackluster winter season is something I’ve been looking forward to for months. In another month or two I’m sure to be complaining about the garden, the heat, the humidity, and wishing for Fall to arrive as soon on as possible. It’s a vicious cycle that we all seem to get caught up in every year.
Here’s my all time favorite garden quote. If it isn’t a little off-color then how can it be one of my favorites?
"A dirty hoe is a happy hoe."
I’ve actually been busy this week preparing to deliver most of my once beautiful garden to the compost heap. I posted a few days ago that I pulled most of the remaining plants to prepare for further work that was needed. That work began this week with the removal of all of the fabric from the frames and the collection of more than 100 metal clips used to anchor it in place. I always take my time with this part of the job because missing a clip or two isn’t an option. Two years ago I was happily rototilling the garden until I hit a few clips I’d missed. It wasn’t pretty when those few clips were twisted around the blades of the tiller which then jerked out of my hands when the motor jammed. Fortunately when the tiller hit me in the chest it wasn’t blades first. A close call and one I never intend to repeat. Who said gardening was a safe hobby?
As I pulled the sections of fabric from the frames I got another surprise. Apparently we had a few moles that somehow made their way into the frames and under the fabric. There were a number of tunnels where they were apparently nibbling on the roots of some of my plants. My first stop next spring will be to buy something that will discourage them from returning. Dead or alive is my motto, it’s up to them. You can just barely make out one of the tunnels in this photo.
‘Here are those clips I mentioned. A necessary evil.’
Removing the fabric itself is easy enough and worth every minute of my time. Never having to weed the garden all summer saves me a lot of back breaking work every year. The fabric is a little pricy but fortunately it’s reusable for at least a couple of years. The sprinklers I currently use are removed easily enough and I’ve been using them for five years. A good value for the money spent.
‘I cleared all of the fabric, clips, and sprinklers leaving just barren frames.’
Later this week if the weather cooperates I’ll be filling the entire garden with four or five inches of dark and rich compost which has been sitting under a tarp for two years. It’s rich with all of the necessary nutrients to give the garden a good start in the Spring.
Id like to continue writing but I’ve got more work to accomplish before the weather turns really cold and the ground starts freezing. More to follow soon.
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