Great News!!! April 6, 2010

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I was not sure we would get our garden plot tilled at all this year, but the neighbor came by and turned it over for us. It turns out he does not have a tiller this year, but at least turning it over helps us out a lot.





So we worked at planting trees while he turned the soil.





Diggin Ho-o-oles, diggin.









Two of the trees got sticks with praying mantis egg sacs on them. We'd found them in the garden while clearing it out.





The same area we did last year. He had to go around the tomato bed we'd already planted.





We had him add a little extra area above last year's pea bed, which we'd already tilled and prepped for planting. I'm concerned about excess rain and fusarium wilt, so we are going for "higher" this year.





The posts are now driven in for framing the tomato cage.





We found sweet potatoes, one the size of a football. Good stuff to decompose in the soil. Makes me think I'd like to plant a field full of them, just to add organic matter to the soil.





We took photos of Michael standing by every tree we planted.





This bug was a pretty pewter color. Probably evil.





Friendship arrives in the form of tree planting help.





The ground got harder as we moved uphill.









Watering in 8 beautiful fruit trees.





Now on to a major headache. That electric fence.

We had to drive in three 6' grounding rods, ten feet apart. The first half of each one was not too bad, but by the time they were that far down, it took a lot to drive them. Rocks are EVERYwhere here!

We each took a chair and sledgehammer to our respective rods.













The goal was to actually get them below ground level so we never have to worry about mowing over them, or tripping on them.





Almost done!





Now to dig the ditch, to run the grounding cable between them.





A long day of work, rewarded by relaxing and playing a game of Pirates.





It was a bloodbath.





Good times.

~Faith

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