Major Expansion (an act...not a person!)

This year I decided to expand (the garden...not my butt/gut, that just happened without consultation! LOL)

Mom & Dad were very quiet about the subject because that meant that they would be helping with my new undertaking (parents aren't always given choices). But they were all for it when I reminded them of all the wonderful produce that we 'produced' last year. The small back garden was unexpandable, so some preparations to a new area were necessary before I could "dig in." The front of my barn had a large enough area, but the ginormous pine tree with its deadly tentacles (I mean roots!) needed to go! The fence that Gram had was rotten, so it needed to go, and the plants were in desperate need of therapy and a new home. Picture 1 shows the before situation.


I then had Alex use the tractor driven rototiller to break up the soil and treasure hunt for pine tree roots! It is amazing how quickly the tiller can find pine tree roots the size of my leg! But the power of the tiller was so great that it made match sticks out of the roots with little problem. Dad had a friend come over and drill the post holes for the fence posts (13 post holes in 40 mins). Let me tell you...that was amazing! If I had a place to store a tractor like that...you better believe that I would have one!


Eric came over and helped Dad and I put the fence up last week. Eric is 12 and is very much a gardener. He is helping me with the gardening this year while he works on his gardening merit badge for Boy Scouts. It is a shame that there isn't a house cleaning merit badge or else I would certainly be helping him (read: watching him) earn that one in my house! LOL

Because the rabbits are a major force in my little, but magnificent, Garden of Earthly Delight, Dad and I added footer boards to discourage digging. We also added header boards to keep the fence from sagging. All that is left to do is build the gate and plant the crops.

Tomorrow is Memorial Day and that is traditionally the day that Grandpa always planted his gardens. As a big proponent of tradition and the idea that "pretty much anything that Gramps did is good enough for me!", I will be out there in the fields after the Memorial Day Parade tomorrow. I am resting up my green thumb tonight, because tomorrow it will be working its magic.

BTW - In case anyone thinks that I am exaggerating about the killer rabbits, check out pic 4. I circled the two culprits that are laying, sneakily in wait for my tender, fragile plants to be left untended, unguarded, and unmolested......these rabbits are ~EVIL~!!!

Until next week,
I wish for you quiet, dignity, and grace.
Dan