On Friday morning I was up at 5:30AM and got my post up. I got the laundry put away and sat down for while. Then I got ready and went out at 9:00AM and opened the cold frame. I got my rakes and got started raking the back yard.
I raked behind the Tonka garage and then got the backyard done down to the Kousa dogwood. It was 10:30AM so I went in to sit down for a while. I made some lunch and came out at noon and raked the backyard down past the house.
I was raking the perimeters into the woods when my #3 helper arrived at 12:30PM. She started picking up all the piles I had made.
I continued down by the cold frames and smokehouse where I noticed the trim holding the smokehouse on the cement blocks had come away.
Then I went and raked the perimeter of the gardens. My son had come out and raked the stones out of the grass on the edges of the driveway.
I had to sit down part way through and I looked up and noticed the trees were many different colors. Pastels for the most part: orange, green, red, pink, yellow…
I rested a while as she continued to pick up the piles I’d made.
The contractor had arrived because I had noticed another opening in the soffit. This one was up on the second floor addition, facing the woodshed.
He found a robin’s nest in that one. In checking the rest of the soffit, he found a huge hole it over the new addition roof. Many pieces of soffit were simply missing. Because of the size of the job, we decided to leave it as a fall job.
My #3 helper had finished the raking, so we got the plastic off the cold frame and moved the pieces to be repaired over to the unused side. The contractor went up to the barn to find pieces of plywood for the new gussets.
Little Trees II
My #3 helper said she wanted to learn to prune the fruit trees, so we got our equipment and went over to the Little Trees II. We started at the west end and worked our way down the row.
The first chokeberry only had a few buds, but the second was covered with them.
The #6 Reliance peach had gotten quite bent from the tobacco netting last year. So we had a lot to do on that. We got cleaned up and I got my photos and went to decide what to do next.
My #3 helper had 45 minutes left so we decided to hang up all the repaired wind chimes. We started in the New Herb garden and when all the hooks were full, we went over to the trees.
Last one in the crabapple tree
Only 1 chime left to do. When my helper friend takes down the bird feeder rope next week, I’ll have him take down the bell that hangs next to it. I have to put a new ringer in it.
Jonquil in West garden
I went over and sat near the contractor and we chatted as he worked on the gussets. He left about 6PM and I got the cat fed and got a shower and laid down on the couch to watch ‘Leave It to Beaver’ until bedtime. I had to light both fires as it was still to be in the 30’s and pull the shades.
On Saturday I have to be ready at 8:45AM to head out to the first tag sale of the year. When I get back, I have to mow the yard for the first time. That could take up to 3 hours. I don’t have to mow at the barn yet. In late afternoon, a couple are coming out the look over the farm.
