On Wednesday morning, our last nice day until Sunday, I got the kitchen cleaned up, laundry put away, and was ready to go move hay at 8:45AM. When we got there, we discovered there weren’t only 20 bales as said, but closer to 60. The owner wasn’t around so we loaded up the obviously moldy 20 and swept the floor of the trailer.
She arrived about then and said she’d go through the remaining ones while we went home and unloaded. She had about 30 more for us, so we swept the floor again and loaded them up.
The first load had filled the back part of this area and we put part of the 2nd load here.
We moved the generator and the push mower and got 2 pallets down here to hold the rest of that second load. The loose stuff went into the Small garden. We finished about 10:30.
These jumbo crocus in the New East garden caught my eye and my tenant and I were checking out the bulbs.
In the New South garden most of the tulips had been nibbled on! In 40 years I’ve been here I’ve never had anything bother any of the bulbs.
This one in the New South garden was particularly chewed up.
This Chiondoxa lucillae had lots of buds and had been chewed down to them.
In the South Herb garden both of this type of bulb had been chewed. None of the daffodils had been touched. And you may have noticed it was only things in the south facing gardens that had been bothered. I checked the west, north and east gardens and there was no damage.
So I got a pail of bloodmeal and put a VERY light sprinkling all along all the bulb rows all around the house, just in case. Bloodmeal is nitrogen and I can get away with it now because the soil is too cold to produce much nitrogen yet. Too much nitrogen makes plants look lush, but in fact it weakens them and they become susceptible to pests and diseases.
It’s to rain by tomorrow morning, so that will activate the scent, the deterrent I am seeking against vegetarian pests.
My brother and I made a baked chicken supper with saffron rice and broccoli when he got home.
After supper we got the push mower and chainsaw that need to be repaired into the car. I will be taking them to their respective repairers on Thursday morning. I’ve got a zillion errands to do with my general helper before needing to be home by 11:30 when my helper friend arrives on Thursday.
We will be going out and starting work in the barn, cleaning it when he arrives. That’s going to be the majority of the work for the next couple weeks, especially when it’s raining. And finishing the raking before the grass grows.