Potatoes and Asparagus

Picked my first batch of Asparagus! Didn't weigh it, let's call it 1#.


Red Pontiacs. I did spread them out a bit before I covered them with a layer of well rotted manure.


In order, I planted a total of 5# of Red Pontiac, Yukon Gold, and Green Mountain taters. I'm hoping to get some rotted leaves from the town dump next week and mix those with soil for the next layer...I've never tried this mixture for potatoes yet.

Cut down a white ash

Got to pop my cherry on using a chainsaw bar bigger then 20"...put the 25" one on for this one!

Was cutting out some small stuff, all under 4" diameter, red maples yesterday and decided this would be a good BTU donor:


Sized it up this morning, decided I could justify the 25" bar. First time I used the bar I bought last year. My MS-360 with the 25", and the 024AV with it's 18":


Tree started to lean on it's own, so I didn't wedge. I should've stopped at that point and checked to make sure I was cutting straight, because I didn't my hinge was wider on the off side.


Mostly down. I'll let this settle a bit, then after I cut some of the rest away I'll twitch the small hang up out of the other tree with my truck and a tow strap.


That was all for today. I had a half-dozen medium sized red maples and boxelders I wanted to drop, but the wind picked up a bit, not a lot but enough to make it difficult to drop them with precision. I'll leave those for another morning when it's dead calm again.

Front section of fence is up!

Well, the front section of the fence is up. Not the most photogenic...even if you click for the larger version it's not easy to see the 1" x 2" mesh.

As I was admiring my handiworked, I realized at 40' x 20'...there will be a larger area inside the fence then the square footage of living space in my home!

Hopefully I can get the potatoes in this weekend (they'll be outside of and in front of the fence), and get the back side of the fence up this weekend. Still have to trench the backside, install knee braces for the 4x4 posts there, and I'm going to make a "cage" out of some fencing for the southwest corner post which is the shallowest one...that cage will be filled with all the rocks I've been digging up and the weight will help to brace it.

Amish Business Principles

Well, probably their general principles! From http://highcallingblogs.com/7394/figuring-out-success-with-the-amish/#more-7394

Legacy. Who will want this after I’m gone?

Passing on values. How can this help me teach the important things to my children?

Home and family. How does this business bring us closer, rather than push us apart?

Giving back. How can I use this to help others, even those outside my immediate sphere of influence?

Garden Updates

On Sunday I got a trench "rototilled" and dug on the front of the fence...gotta finish it by hand tighter to the posts then put up fencing on that side. Rocks anyone? You pay shipping, I'll send them.

Also rototilled the beds towards the driveway. They need another pass to break up the grass from being fallow last year more. I'll have the load of manure this year delivered here.

Today I got the Tall Telephone peas planted and garlic in.

Interesting article on shyness

http://www.smartplanet.com/business/blog/smart-takes/why-am-i-shy-new-study-offers-insight-on-introverts/5744/

Researchers have determined that about 20 percent of people are born with a personality trait called “sensory perception sensitivity,” or SPS, which facilitates an inhibited, even neurotic, demeanor.

Colloquially, we say those people are “slow to warm up” to social situations, or may cry easily, or offer deeper than expected thoughts, according to the study.

The results suggested that highly sensitive individuals:

* Prefer to take longer to make decisions.
* Are more conscientious.
* Need more time to themselves in order to reflect.
* Are more easily bored with small talk.

Those attributes complement previous research, which found that highly sensitive individuals are more bothered by noise and crowds, affected by caffeine, and easily startled compared to “non-sensitive” individuals.

All that may seem obvious, but the research suggests that sensory sensitivity is a result of an inherent nature to be more attentive to experiences — not the other way around.

I'm batty!

I have bats again!

I have bats!

At least four of them.

I didn't have them last year, for the first time since I bought this place in '99 they were missing. I assume it was that white nose fungus that's been killing them in their hibernation caves.

Let the dogs out a few minutes ago...and I look up and see a bat! Then another!

Sometimes I just lay in my pickup bed on summer evenings at dusk and watch them fly.

I'm a happy, happy camper.

More work done :)

Trellis netting is up, had to "stitch" a bunch of pieces together with wire ties to make it fit without stretching.

Peas (Little Marvel) & Onions planted along the front of the trellis. Bought more peas (Tall Telephone) to go on the back side but haven't planted.

Put up the brace wires on one corner. Learned I needed bigger turnbuckles then I had to properly tension it. Also learned too much tension makes them go out of square!

This is a great blog post explaining how H-braces work:
http://colliefarm.wordpress.com/2008/06/07/the-case-for-the-h-brace/

Who, me? Muddy? What are you talking about?

Dalmatian Heaven

If the photo doesn't show up, you may have to click on this link