Before it Rains Again

It’s predicted to start raining this afternoon or evening; I wanted to get one of the vegetable beds lined against gophers and filled before the whole place gets turned to mud again.

There’s always four times as much soil as you think. Then I wanted to incorporate a lot of horse manure into it to let the bed sit a while. That’s a lot of trips across the road (I caught a horse that had escaped and spent some time weeding with Mary on separate trips). Heavy barrow. I have blisters on my hands. I also loosened all the soil in the herb garden, where a gopher is busily working its way through my artichokes (and the latest victim, the yarrow). I’ve ordered more plant cages against the varmints…

This wooden gizmo at right is a fantastic tool for turning newspaper strips into small pots, which can then be planted straight into the ground without disturbing root systems. I may try to get the ones I filled to soak in rainwater this afternoon.