Life in Tee Harbor, Alaska

Picture Tour of My Homestead

We have been getting out and working in the yard as much as we can this past week.  The yard needs lots of work yet - everything looks so wild and out of control.  I have these buttercups that take over EVERYWHERE - they are hard to keep up on.  I don't have a lawn at all, and we really don't want one.  Would rather have garden areas for flowers, shrubs, and edibles.  So, it is a work in process...any ideas are welcome!  We try to keep things looking natural - rock borders, etc. mostly because it is cheap  :o)

Our home is on five acres owned by my dad who runs a marine repair business and uses this property to store boats.  I have claimed more area as mine each year I've been here - now over 10.  Here is the house seen as you drive in the driveway.  We have been working in the side yard on the right to get things tidy - but it sure is hard when you lack storage space.

Here you can see the whole layout.  One of the big projects this summer will be to clean the log siding and get it sealed.  Sure looks bad when it is wet! 

On the left behind the trucks, is the future home of our chicken coop.  That big pile of dirt is getting moved and used around the property.  Then the coop will be on the left with a fenced area for them to run around when I'm not home.  I would like to be able to let them out and roam around when I am home.

Just beyond the dirt pile is my veggie garden.  I have peas, strawberries, potatoes, beets, red currents, raspberries planted and onions to go in (I got 1/4 planted tonight).  It is about 25' x 20'.

To the right of the garden we have our camper, which we could move to beyond the shed and open up this area - for more garden  :o)  Under the tarp is my chicken coop project.

To the right of the camper, I have four smaller raised beds.  They are about 2 1/2' by 4'.  I have zucchini, cabbage, carrots and radishes planted in them.  Then our little greenhouse is 8' x 8' which will hold our tomatoes and cucumbers.  The hill behind I tried to tame a bit - I've planted a rhodedendron and a cherry tree up there.  I get all my dirt from the hill for planting beds - talk about alot of work!  I have an area dug out that I think would be a great spot for a root cellar...one project at a time!

The rhubarb is doing well here.  The raspberries have moved themselves from the other side of the greenhouse - guess they wanted more sun. 

Tomatoes and cucumbers waiting to be planted:

To the right of the greenhouse, I have my compost piles - made out of pallets and I have one of the black plastic ones with a cover.  I put the kitchen scraps in the one with the cover so the dogs/bears don't get into it.  Leaves and other garden stuff go into the other 3 open bins.  The blue tarp is where our wood shed will be going - right now we are keeping our extra lumber there.

Okay, now we turn around and are looking at the side yard toward the front of the house and the driveway.  The road is on our left, parallel with the house.  Here is where we have been working on a new pathway, laying it out with the rock and filling it in with rock.  To try to keep the buttercups down, we layered sheets of newspaper under the rock.  We have the clothesline on pulleys from the back door to a tree - works well.  We have a bird feeder hooked up to a pulley so we can get it way up off the ground where the bears can't get to it, but it is easy to lower down to fill up.  The birds really love this area and it is so entertaining to watch them from the dining room window.

And now we are back to the front of the house and where we started!

On the other side of those trees, we have a little pond.  We get mallards, geese and eagles here.

Well, that's it for our place.  Thanks for looking  :o)

Thank you!

1:53 AM, Friday, May 16, 2008 .. Posted by wstoller

Thanks for sharing! That's neat! :0)

view

6:46 AM, Friday, May 16, 2008 .. Posted by AnIntentionalPeasant

What a beautiful view you have behind your place. It must be wonderful to look outside and see mountains! I envy you.
Thanks for sharing your photos
The Intentional Peasant

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8:25 AM, Friday, May 16, 2008 .. Posted by CitySteader

Wow, It's beautiful! You are truely blessed!

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11:44 AM, Friday, May 16, 2008 .. Posted by Kitty

Love the tour, thanks for sharing. My son would live by the pond, lol..........Kitty

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6:48 PM, Sunday, May 18, 2008 .. Posted by hcorbin

LOVED your tour!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I have started what I cal "Tour Tuesday" on my blog:
www.choosingsimplicity.blogspot.com
PLEASE stop by on Tuesday and leave a link to this post. I enjoyed it so much and I know others would, too!!!! I really enjoy seeing how others put together their homes, gardens, yards, etc. Thank you for sharing!
Heather

Thank you!

6:34 AM, Wednesday, May 21, 2008 .. Posted by hcorbin

Thanks for participating in "Tour Tuesday"!!!
I enjoyed looking at your pictures, again! I'm sure others will, too!
Have a great day!
Heather

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7:18 AM, Wednesday, May 21, 2008 .. Posted by Deblyn

What an absolutely gorgeous place to live! I loved seeing all you are doing to grow your veggies and fruit! Amazing! Thanks for sharing!

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9:06 AM, Wednesday, May 21, 2008 .. Posted by Deborah

What a beautiful place to live! You are way ahead of me with your planting...I'm in Manitoba, Canada.
Nice meeting you! Glad you joined the Tour Tuesday.

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8:22 PM, Thursday, May 22, 2008 .. Posted by Anonymous

What a beautiful place! I love the little rock-lined walkways and the pond! What a great view! Thanks for the tour!! (came here from Heather's Tour Tuesday Mr. Linky)

ValleyGirl
http://swanvalleytammi.blogspot.com