Cloudy & 40’s today, rain this evening, maybe a snowflake or two since temps will be in 20’s overnight.
I’m spending time at the new house after hauling a load. I took the time yesterday to check out where I think I am putting the new garden. I have 4 raised beds (3’x6’) that I can bring with me - galvanized metal. The wooden beds are too heavy & old - getting some rot. I know these 4 beds aren’t going to satisfy my urge to grow flowers & herbs plus I need room for 2 tomato plants & some jalapeño peppers. My task/dilemma is to figure out how to site the beds and make adding more beds easy - an arrangement that works for tending the beds & looks good, too.
The site is at the back of the shop, with a southwestern view - lots of sun & warmth. There is a hose outlet a couple of feet away. There are some partial old cinderblock steps that look awful, but I can build a wood platform over them easily & use it for pots or my double wash tub where I grow herbs. The ground where the beds will go looks like it might have been where an old concrete slab or foundation were previously, but now grass. I need to do some exploratory digging/probing to make sure it’s dirt, not something covered with a few inches of dirt. I’m getting excited!
Visited the county co-op store yesterday morning (5-7 minutes away). What a great place! It probably has all the hardware & tools I will ever need, plus they get in plants (probably baby chicks, too) & I saw mulch - might have topsoil to help fill my beds. The folks there are SUPER friendly, always a ‘plus’.
Got my driveway & back door alarms working yesterday. The HVAC tech arrival & departure yesterday tested them out - working! The driveway alarm (I have it set to a barking dog sound) went off at 4:30 this morning, which was a little scary. The self defense plan is to flip all the lights on around the exterior of the house & ‘armed’ with phone & firearm, check out what I can see. In this case, nothing. I suspect it might have been the deer herd that hangs around - they could easily set it off.
I was supposed to go home this evening, but with the wet weather in the forecast which is not great for traveling, I’d like to spend one more night - plenty to do around here to stay busy!
The small pieces of slate (messy!) will be replaced with some huge slabs I have at the old house - they will make a small 'patio' & nice exit area from the shop. The shop is where my garden tools & supplies will be stored. There is also a VERY convenient half bath in the shop, plus a large double commercial sink for cleaning things up (with hot water!).