Hello, 2019 - Where Have You Been?

I know that you know that we are both fine and just living it up here in the northern hills. Happily, we have no tragedies to report. My lack of blogging can be blamed on a little laziness and lack of motivation. 

I've Got Good News! 

I'm here to tell you about a big project that has been the keeping us busy. The railroad ties surrounding the cottonwood flower garden have (finally!) been replaced with a proper retaining wall!  I can't tell you how happy I am with the result but I can describe our efforts:

In case you don't remember my whining over the last nearly nine years, the photos below show some of the challenges. I have struggled trying to tame this area which is one of the first things visitors encounter. It has been difficult not only because of a variety of aggressive weeds but also because of the garden's structure. No matter what I did, I couldn't get it to look good.

Earlier this spring, I was finally able to convince Scott that paying a little attention to this garden would be a good thing for my sanity. After an estimate from a professional landscaper came in (waayyyy) over budget, we opted for a DIY effort. 

These tumbled concrete stones at Menards fit the bill. They have a good mix of color and some characteristics of the limestone we love. Scott determined the quantity that was needed and ordered online. 

Three days later, the pallets of block were delivered. The Menards crew was kind enough to figure out what we were doing, and placed the pallets strategically along the driveway. Each stone weighs 40 pounds so the fewer steps needed to transport each, the better. 

That night after work we got busy, starting on the north end. This "before" photo shows that the lack of structure was making it hard to tell where the flower bed ended and the weedy gravel began.

The first step: cutting a trench to hold the block. Scott did a lot of similar work at Grant Street so the work of this project came back pretty quickly.

The lower row of the two-block-high wall was set so it is level with the concrete curb of the driveway. A bed of sand gave the block a good foundation.

 A little stompin' does the trick to level and position a block.

We made quick progress the first evening. 

 It was amazing to see the transformation after just 17 blocks were in place. Onward!

We began the project in mid-May and then Mother Nature decided it should rain, and rain, and rain. It took us a while to get back in the swing. The photo above shows the next section before we dismantled the railroad tie wall. 

Amazing what time and moisture does to a solid piece of timber. Many of the ties crumbled with just a little nudge of a shovel.  

  We loaded the ties onto the trailer for disposal. 

A few of the railroad ties were still pretty solid so Scott used the Ranger's winch to pull them out of the way. He took them down to the east pond area where they can stop some erosion.

Progress continued from north to south along the east side. The height of the wall stepped up to three rows and back down to two as needed. It's always interesting to realize that the property isn't just "flat."

Notice the kitty litter bucket? When Scott built the brick walkway from the driveway to the barn in 2014, a large pile of sand was left over. Our never-ending supply of buckets became handy storage containers, stacked nearly to the ceiling in the barn. This project has nearly depleted that sand supply. 

At the end of a long day, we had another good chunk of the project done. The process was repeated over the next few weeks, the block winding around to the west side and ending at the edge of the concrete driveway.

The "end of the trail" on the west side...the blocks end where the concrete begins. A whole block was too wide and a half block was too short so a few scoops of river rock fill the gaps. 

The noTTafarm sign looks great with its new accent. We will soon add a secondary curve of block behind the sign to create a small river rock garden to keep this area neat and tidy.

I removed the bricks from the former walkway mid-garden and stacked them in the barn for future use. We'll need to get a small load of top soil to fill a few areas, and then determine what needs to be planted.

The east side.

This project gave us opportunities to sweat, lift heavy things, pull weeds and use a every tool in the barn. Plus, it was super fun to work together and achieve a great result.
Stay Tuned for Our Next Adventure!