I water the vegetable garden when I am up early, to help avoid evaporation. The goats are a little surprised at the early feeding but anytime is a time for bread frenzy. this morning I also had a wild turkey as my companion up the driveway.
I cleared the irrigation pipes in the back yard, applied preen and laid a few pavers. the same principle – ensuring that I have access to the pipes without having to clear overgrown grass. I can also speak to Mike about a spigot in that area of the yard. The ground falls off sharply from the level of the patio outside MJ’s room; it would benefit from a load of topsoil. When I replanted the back oleander, I ran into hard shelf only six to eight inches down.
I also pruned the valley oaks on the back slope. One was overhanging the fire lane and needed to be cut back. One had a single enormous branch growing out of its top like a mutant tentacle. I lopped that off in hopes of a fuller, more manageable tree. I cleared the deadwood and pruned the lower branches of the valley oak nearest the new stone planter, mostly to allow access without impaling myself. That same theory applies to the valley oak encroaching on the pergola and side border garden.
I finished off with mowing the grass in the back yard again, with a bit of weed removal. The grass seems to grow at a great rate. I wouldn’t be surprised that mowing encourages that growth, with liberal application of grass seed.
MJ flies home from San Diego this afternoon. I broke off early to try my hand at enchiladas.
A Year at the Snake 