I just have to wonder if it was really spring or a false alarm again. We worked out in the yard today. That was my plan for yesterday too but we made a run out of town to see if we could get plastic for our greenhouse as finding it in our town is impossible. We had been to Lowe's last time we were out of town and they didn't have the width we needed so this time we stopped at Tractor Supply. And we didn't make it to the plastic till we spotted some 6 ft by 8 ft prefab greenhouses. The price looked good so we checked it out. They didn't have the one we wanted in stock but will have it this coming week. So we will go get it when they give us a call. So the project for today was to make a place for the smaller greenhouse closer to the power source and water source. The best place would be in the back yard. I had already decided that I was taking the pyramid bed out that was in the back and with doing that it made a perfect place for the greenhouse base.
I had strawberry plants in the pyramid for several years and every time we turned around out back this thing was in the way of some equipment. So out it went and Rodger and Jason used railroad ties for the base of the soon to be greenhouse so we had something too anchor too and it would be level.
This took some leveling and using the tractor to haul rocks and dirt to fill it in so I don't have to trudge in mud when I water. So this is where the new lil greenhouse will do. Much more convenient and it will serve my needs well. Much easier to put up and when I am finished for the season I can take it down, put it in the box and take care of it till next season.
While the fellers were doing this I got all happy with the pruning shears and started on the grapevines here at the house. They did sure look scraggly.
These things sure look ratty before I got in them with the shears. It is a lil late in the season to prune grapevines but they did not bleed at all so all is well. Not as many limbs after I finished.
Now there, don't they look all better now. They say ya cant over prune grape vines so I guess we will see. But I think I helped em some.
I got those done as Rodger and Jason were workin on the base for the greenhouse and I made my way around the house intending to prune the kiwi vines, Too bad I didn't make it that far.
I stopped at the shrubs on the east end of the house and just started clippin the limbs off to trim them up a bit, and after workin my way thru all of em, i had the bright idea to just cut em down and take em out. They are a pain to work in as they make me itch so dang bad. I had Rodger take the chainsaw to the main truck of them and I pulled the rest of the roots out. I should not be pulling on stuff like that. Now I am so dang sore I can hardly walk.But we went from a nice row of big spreading junipers to this.............
Now that I have mud, what to do, oh what to do. Not sure just yet how I will finish this off. The main reason for taking out the shrubs was they grow branches toward the base of the house and they push the under skirting material off. So now I got that fixed and had to hose the house off cause I left muddy glove and hand prints all over the siding. I may just get a load of gravel for the drive way and put it all the way up to the siding. And if want plants there they will be in containers. After all this mess dried out. The shrubs also kept a lot of moisture at this end of the house too. SO they is all goney gone. Rodger used the tractor bucket and he helped get all the mess hauled away in the middle of finishing up the greenhouse base. When I went back around back of the house this is what I have.
I guess now its dig out the grass send in the building and plant some grass in the areas where the pyramid use to be and around the edges of the base before the chickens excavate all the dirt over the hill.
We finally got all the tools picked up and put up and I had to use the hose to spray off the under skirting on the end of the house where I got mud on it so I got the brainy idea to hose off the front porch. I had to get the dirt off the porch that Luna had brought in this winter so we can sit outside and enjoy the nice spring weather that is coming soon. I had too many chairs so I had Jason come get 2 more to take to his house to use so they can sit on the porch in nice weather if they want too. Now to find a couple smallish tables to sit drinks and such on would be nice. Wonder what I have around here that I can re purpose into small side tables. I will have to look around tomorrow and see what I can come up with.
On Saturday we planted the fruit trees that arrived that I had ordered a month or so ago. I got a replacement for my apricot tree that met its fate with the weed whacker last year. And we added 7 more apple trees to the orchard too. Most of the new ones are old fashioned standard varieties. We now have Wolf River, Moyers spice,Keepsake, Gold Rush, Smoke House, Stayman Winesap and Granny Smith apples. Just so have it I had my hand pruners with me in the orchard and got most of the trees pruned there. Somehow I got in this pruning and whackin off limbs mood lately. No people limbs tho.
And who knew pear trees had these huge thorns on em?
And trust me these big damn things hurt when ya get poked. I ain't too sure about this tree and how long its gonna live. It is supposed to be a Keifer Pear. My other big pear tree don't have thorns. The deer mangled a couple of my apple trees. I am pretty sure one of em is dead but I paid good money for it an will give it a chance. The deer broke the top off of the tree during the rut when the bucks rubbed their antlers on the tree, Kinda made me mad with all the dang trees and they kill my lil young apple tree in the middle of the field.
Our grape vines we planted last year look pretty good. They will get pruned a lil bit and staked up so they will grow upright as soon as we have time and weather permitting. I still have to tend to the raspberries too. Rodger will mow them off for me and I can spread compost over the area and thas about all they need. Not sure how the strawberries are gonna do over there this spring. But I have plenty planted here at the house if I never see those plants again.
I think that is about all we have accomplished this past week. So till next time, blessings from the McGuire homestead.
Stella
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