Hi, everyone...

Seems that the ol' Bobert is somewhat back so...

We are having a difficult time wrapping our heads around the new property in terms of gardens... The "top" soil is tan colored and we're not sure if that's because it's all washed out and has no nutrients or what... But that's what it is... In the woods, just slightly darker... We bought 4 yards of it for various and sundry uses... We also bought a yard of pine fines cheap ($40) and will use it in mixing soils for all our trees and shrubs...

I have constructed two 10 ft X 5 ft. raised box beds... They still need to have posts to hold them in place but the beds are ready once the post holes are dug and posts set... We'll grown veggies in them... We already have about a 15 ft X 15 ft plot that I tilled and have tomatoes, cukes, eggplant and peppers growing in it... I brought down 8 decent asparagus plants for the raised box beds and well grow squash in them, as well...

The poor tomato plants have been thru Hell... We started 6 plants (3 varieties) back in Virginia then they came down with a load of other plants when they were on 6 inches tall... They rode on the floorboard of the truck and didn't like the ride and 2 were badly wilted by the time I got here and went directly into P-Vine Plant Hospital but all are fine now... We'll be late getting tomatoes but at least they are the variates that we know and like...

We are slowly digging holes for the trees but have only actually planted 2 camellias... The other trees are sitting in pots which are sitting in their holes... The soil here is also shale so I'm digging the holes 25% larger than I ordinarily dig them to give them as much decent medium before they have to fight with the shale... Hope it works...

The P-Vine has about 40 deciduous azaleas which she grew from seed which are now up to 20 inches or so... We're going to find an area where they can all grow together... That will make for a great show with all those native colors (oranges, yellows, roses and whites)...

I have an engineering problem with my pond for which I have a plan: divert water from an active creek that is also on our property... Mr. Kubota and I have put in a woodsy primitive road and I have found some decent fallen trees and actually pulled one out onto the road and will cut it in 12 foot lengths and push them to the end of the road into the creek to act as a dam... Once I get it dammed up then I'll rent a pump and pump that water some 200 feet to the pond... The I'll set a permanent submersible pump in the creek for maintenance...

Okay... That kind catches me up on my gardening... Good to read what everyone else is doing...

Nice to be gardening again!!!

B~