The Hopeful Homestead

Garden Doin's

07:11, Sunday, April 6, 2008 .. Posted in From Day to Day .. 1 comments .. Link

Another BEAUTIFUL day here. The ladies & I spread some straw in the garden path for weed control & mud control. It looks really nice. We also weeded, I turned over the soil again in "squares" I'm not using yet, and the girls & I picked a bumper crop of rocks out of them! I'm taking a chance and leaving my cold frame open tonight, as the peas are quite leggy. I hope to get some "pea fence" in the next few days to get them climbing. It's supposed to stay warmer, so I think they'll all be ok. I was excited to see how well the onions are doing, and to see a few carrots poking through the soil as well. No sign of beets yet, but it's only been a few days. ALL of my greenhouse seeds seem to be duds, so I'll be direct sowing anything I can, and getting transplants for anything else, like 'maters.

The other GREAT idea (if I do say so myself...) I had today was to get our hammock out of the camping stuff, and put it up on the front porch. What a great place to spend the afternoon!!! Once they annoyed me out of it, the girls have been ~~fighting over~~ taking turns with it ever since. In fact it's getting dark & they're still out there. Who can blame them really, at a sunny 75 it's great spring weather here today.

The chicks are doing great in the bigger brooder, and are flapping around trying to fly which is really entertaining. Anyone who wants to come see them while they're little, cute and fuzzy had better hurry up. They grow visibly every day! We're starting to suspect who the roosters are as they seem to be strutting their stuff more than the rest. I think we ended up w/ 4 if the hatchery was right. THAT will be interesting in the basement in a few weeks once they start trying to crow! Hopefully we'll have moved them outside by then!!

So the coop is once again at the top of our to do list this week...

COOP- we need to close in the eaves, screen the windows, finish the chicken door, build the nest boxes & put the trim on. Once the building is all set, then we can start fencing. And fencing. And fencing...

In the garden, I need to get those peas taken care of, plant my potatoes, and get my strawberries in a pot. AND do some serious planning where it's all gonna go... I'd also like to work on the stone wall bed edging I'm repairing around the side of my little clearing. (then I can start planting in those beds...yay!!)

I need to bake bread this week, make more zucchini bread, and do something with the canned pumpkin in the fridge. I'd also like to get a batch of sourdough starter going...

I also NEED to sew... curtains for our room (green velvet mmmmmmmmmmmmmm) Hem the curtains in the girls' room, make the topper for their bathroom, and work on their duvet covers. I also want to make some more cloth napkins (using homespun), and the two aprons I got from E-bay last fall. (vintage printed panels, very cool!) AND I want to make slipcovers for a couple of pillows to put on my pew on the front porch to "spring" it up a bit.

Also inside I need to STILL finish the bulletin boards & GET THEM UP as headboards. I need to paint the green & white dresser, and get the new knobs on it. The basement is a shambles (again) AND my carpets could used to be cleaned, after mud-a-palooza last week. (boo hiss carpet)

Outside I need to clean out/ tidy the greenhouse again (perpetual dumping ground for all things coming & going) Some of this could be helped by taking the big pile of stuff to Goodwill. I also want to put more straw on some of the path areas we're trying to create & are hoping this will help slow the yard's rush downhill...

Now, before you start telling me to pace myself, please understand this is what I'd LIKE to get done. I know I won't get to all of it, but why not dream big!

Well I have a few "quiet" minutes while the girls shower, (time-lapse blogging...) so I must run. I hope everyone has a great week, and Happy Spring!

Peace~

Shari