Louie saying 'get to work!'
The big task this week was to finish the raised beds which were delivered and installed last weekend. We found matching product and finished staining the planters. I called the manufacturer of this stain to verify the safety of this product and he tells me that it is an organic, food safe stain which is totally stable once it dries.
newly stained beds drying in the heat and sun
I think the beds look much better fully stained and should be better protected from the elements. Next step, waiting for the soil to be delivered. I will need 105 cubic feet of soil to fill these beds. I order a pallet to start and opted for a mix of G & B Raised Bed/Potting mix and Kellogg's Amend both of which could be purchased locally at Chalfant Big Trees Nursery.
hauling 105 cubic feet of soil
When the bags arrived, I helped unload them from the truck because, why not move them all twice?!? These bags were heavy and the pile looked formidable. I decided it was best to tackle it right away or it would become overwhelming. It took a lot of trips with the wagon to get them to the side yard to load into the beds. Turns out there were only 48 bags on a pallet so we took a break to run into town to buy a few more bags. As we filled the beds, we mixed and moistened the soil so the plants would have a good start.
Suzanne came over in time to consult on plant placement
The original plan was to just plant one side of the horseshoe with lavender. It turns out I have been collecting and repotting lavender for so long in anticipation of these beds that I had an abundance. Suzanne, a long time local friend, came over to help consult on plant placement. It was fun to move the plants around and decide which arrangement looked best. We decided that it made most sense to plant the whole thing with lavender. Now, instead of filling just one side today, I wanted to fill the entire bed before planting in order set everything in place to make sure we were happy with the plan.
one side filled...... two sides filled
Thank you, Jim, for all of your help with this...
finally, with LOTS of help from Jim and Louie, all three sides are filled and leveled
Doing this solo was fun but slow going. Once Jim finished up his irrigation repairs in the front yard, he came to help and the project went much faster with both of us working on it. With the beds full, it was time to position and plant all the lavender. Some of these plants have already been repotted twice as we waited and grew and waited for their home to arrive.
not quite right...
The first arrangement looked too crowded so we moved some of the smaller ones to the east side of the horseshoe. Then it was time to plant.
The moment I've been waiting for.... time to plant!
Everything is planted and hand watered
Finally the reward! Planting all the lavender in the new boxes was very satisfying. I am really happy with how it is coming along and think the plants will grow quickly now that they have some room. Next step, is setting up the irrigation, which is Jim's specialty.
Jim, the happy farmer, setting up irrigation.... with a little help from...
... the first bees
The bees have already found the lavender "field" and kept Jim company while set up the irrigation.
tired and filthy but happy! Xena and Louie say it's time for dinner
It was a lot of work but quite fun and we are so happy with the finished product. Now it I can't stop thinking about researching and embarking on another long awaited project.... beekeeping! More on that to come....
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