April 4, 2013 - Promises, Promises

I really shouldn't show you what a sad state of affairs my front flower bed is in.  Actually, my entire front yard looks like it has been abandoned.  We had so much stuff blow off the pine trees this winter, it was all I could do to try to keep the mess cleaned up, let alone get anything else done out there.  The front yard always looks nasty in the spring, while the back yard is always so nice and green.

More than a month ago, I decided the bed by the front porch needed to be revamped.  It had been several years since I had dug a trench in the front of it and installed a perforated drain pipe, then covered it with rock to aid in draining water runoff from the driveway.  That worked fine for a while, but soon the soil built up to a level higher than the edge of the driveway, then the violets took over and created a solid barrier, and it was right back to square one with no drainage.

I tried to bribe Grandson Kevin with $$ to dig it out for me, but he wasn't interested in doing that four letter word........W-O-R-K.  So his father, my youngest son, said he would do it for me.  Like I said, it has been more than a month, and Son has used every excuse possible to NOT dig the bed.  Every time I ask him, he says he can't do it today, but "call me when you want it done".  I don't know how many times I've heard that.  Promises, promises.  I give up.

So.......here I go again!


Our irrigation water was turned on this week.  As if the people who did our recent sewer connection hadn't made a big enough mess, we discovered they had also broken some sprinkler lines.  I had just begun to dig out the bed, but work had to stop for repairs, and to let the flood subside.  This is how far I got on Tuesday.  I did get the pile of dirt shoveled up and I sifted out the roots.  That soil is being stored in the garden cart to be reused when I'm ready to fill the planters.  Wednesday (yesterday) was spent digging up lines and repairing them, flushing the dirt out and getting all the sprinklers up and working again.  At least I got Mr. Granny off his butt long enough to help.  Good thing, because I've never met a connection I couldn't cross thread.


 This morning I did some more digging.  The hardest part was right up next to the driveway, because the violet roots had grown down into the rock below.  It took me all morning just to get this much done, and then it started raining.


It doesn't make it any easier when the bed is full of huge roots like this.


 I shoveled up all the dirt, then got the new power washer out and cleaned up the driveway and the edge of the porch.


I moved the dirt, a shovel full at a time, over by the fence.  There is a low spot there, so I'm using it as fill, and will seed it in grass when I'm finished.  If I ever finish.  I think I need to dig it out about 2" deeper.  The plan is to cover it in weed block cloth and bark mulch, plant two small evergreens, and then set the three planters back over the tall sprinkler risers before planting them with something colorful, probably geraniums, dwarf marigolds and lobelia.

I'm glad I got rained out.  Now I can sit and enjoy that cup of tea!




18 comments:

  1. And all I did was plant a few plants today. That looks like a lot of work.

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    1. I ran out and planted my 6 strawberry plants and a parsley just before dark last night. Good timing with the rain today. My seedlings had to stay on the patio, as I didn't want them to get over watered. The sun is just now coming out, but I don't know if it would be worth the trouble to move them out for just an hour or two.

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  2. You tire me out reading what you are doing! Discouraging I would think! It will look really nice when you get it done tho! I planted a few sugar peas today! Nancy

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    1. Good for you, Nancy! My sugar snap peas are now tall enough that I can see that lovely row of green from the kitchen window. It's pouring rain again, so the garden should really shoot up in the next week if it stays as warm as it's supposed to be.

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  3. All I did today was fatten myself up with Ethiopian and chat up pretty women. You're making me look bad.

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    1. You're making me jealous. Not with the pretty women, with the food. I warmed up leftovers.

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  4. Goodness Granny - you're a real pioneer woman living in the suburbs! If it was my kids, I would drive them over and make them do the work for their grandmother. Sheesh!!

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    1. I'll bet you would, Shannan! And you'd probably be on the end of a shovel right along with them :-)

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  5. The weather finally broke here and reached the mid 60s. I raked all the flower beds around the entire house, cleaned out the truck, swept the garage, organized the garage work bench, swept the front porch again, and had the kids clean out the chicken coop. My flower beds look so nice! Now I've got to clean up the gardens around the barn, bring in compost for the vegetable beds, and put some mulch in a few flower beds. It feels so good to finally get outside and work! Next week is supposed to drop back into the 40s for highs, so I've got a lot to do before then.

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    1. You were just dreaming you did all that, weren't you, Langela? It didn't really happen. ;-)

      We're cold, cloudy and rainy now, but at least that keeps me inside doing a bit of cleaning. Not that my kitchen floor really needed mopping....never! I wish.

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    2. I tell Mr Farmer that all the time. The housework WILL suffer when I'm working outside and meals will be easy and quick.

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  6. Granny, you can work like nobody's business. An inspiration. So I'm going to get my stuff done this weekend -- and make that longer list I've been threatening to make.

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    1. Stefaneener, I've barely made a dent in my list. I don't move quite as fast as I used to!

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  7. Broken sprinklers, ugh! It looks like you worked pretty hard at that bed and I'm sure it will be gorgeous again soon!

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    1. Erin, I thought we had them all taken care of, but when I turned on the sprinklers under the pine trees, we had another break. I think it was the sewer people, as something heavy drove over the sprinkler head and shattered the line underneath. One of the hardest areas to dig out to repair, thanks to the concrete on one side and the tree roots on the other.

      Son John (the oldest son) stopped by this evening. He read my blog and will be here Sunday to help me finish the flower beds!

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  8. I hope when I am your age, I can do half the stuff you do! You are my mentor!!!
    You do deserve a cup of tea and a rest...robbie:-)

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