field of schemes

IT IS DONE.  Finally!

Those dark spots aren't uneven beds, just the spots where I've watered.  Here is a better idea of the bed shapes:

Let me start at the beginning.  When we were looking at this property, I saw the potential for a big flower cutting garden in the front field.  But as is, it was looking a little...rough.  And this picture was taken in early spring, before the field filled in with weeds.

Fast forward to this year.  We ordered lots and lots and lots of compost...

...and hired someone to level the field.

Then the compost was spread and the field was heavily tilled.  Todd and I dug out those paths, which we'll later line with landscaping fabric and top with mulch.  The garden was plant-ready! 

Unfortunately, my plants weren't exactly thrilled at the prospect of another move.  These little guys have been through the ringer!

I got off on the wrong foot with my seeds, using the wrong soil, wrong containers, wrong light, and wrong watering methods.  They had to be transplanted again...and again...and again as we dealt with project delays (the original plan was to have the plants in the ground by mid-May).  I finally ran out of containers, so they had to sit, root bound and crowded, while the job got finished.  They did NOT appreciate yet another move, especially in this heat, but it had to be done.  I actually felt a bit down while I was planting, because I'm not sure that I'll get a single flower from my efforts this year.  Because of the huge delay, the plants are stunted and their stems are weak.  Look what happened with my snapdragons, which were supposed to be 3 foot monsters, but because of sitting too long in pots only grew about 15" tall when I finally got them in a bed.  Weak and small flowers, too.  They should've been spectacular...but the timing just didn't work out this time.  I accept that I did everything possible to have a great garden this year, and even if it's just a dirt patch with green sticks, IT IS DONE and all ready for next year's flower bonanza, when I'll start my seeds inside, under grow lights, in mid-March.  It's nice to have this extra space for new plant purchases this year, and I've already had a visitor...and a gift!

She loves it when I spend as much time outside with her as possible.

We finished another near-and-dear-to-me project last week as well.  Remember our eyesore of a chicken coop?  Before we moved in, I don't think the back of the property had been touched in over 5 years.  Yikes!!

The inside was full of garbage...old tires and metal junk.  Todd and I cleaned it out...

...and beckoned to the dozer.  It was going...

...going...

...gone.

We had the space flattened, because we're getting ready to extend our red barn another 30 feet or so.

Half of that new space will be devoted to my garden projects...hooray!!  I've taken over our two-car garage with my soil mixes, pots, and tools...and I need space for shelving (seed starting) and grow lights.  We're also adding a very cute chicken coop with a little fenced-in run in front of the white animal barn.  Things are really starting to come together around here!  It's been so nice to work outside, sweet-smelling hay fields  and tree-covered slopes around the flower field...

...and plenty of blue skies overhead!

We've even been walking through the back fields a bit, even though they're a month overdue for a mow and the grasses are chest-high in places.  There's a dog at the end of that leash...somewhere!

I had to remove 2 ticks from Todd's back after this, though.  Hopefully we'll get it mowed soon!  We're talking about mulching a path down to the water, so we'll always be able to get there easily, even if the grass gets a bit high.  But that's a project for another day.

Have a great week!