Dreaming of Spring Gardening in the Middle of a Wisconsin winter part 2

[jvls1942]

way to go, Barb Appleseed, somebody a hundred
years from now will enjoy the fruits of your labor.
our meal was a success. everybody showed up
right on time. I think that was a first.. Of course,
my telling them all that the food was going to be
on the table at noon, and I was going to eat then,
even if I had to eat alone..
today I hope to get the new wheels onto the
table saw. then I have to polish the top and treat
it so it doesn't rust. I have so much to do in the
shop.. I hope it doesn't take all summer to get
everything done that I want to get done..
I have tools to sort. the worst thing is categorizing
fifty non related items. I am thinking of just
having a junk drawer of odds and ends.
I claimed one section of the kitchen cupboards
for my cooking items. the ones that I use most of
the time. no more searching through all of the
upper cabinets for baking soda, or salt, or
baking powder,,, etc..
I found four unopened cans of baking powder
tucked away.. I combined all of the baking soda into
a quart jar and still need another pint jar for the
rest of it..

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

The frogs were creaking last night, so I guess the frost is out of the ground here. Now if my raised boxes would thaw. I need to get out there and pull back the thick layer of leaves from last fall to get the process started.

 

[jvls1942]

the swans are flying past. they fly from east to west
and then turn northward after they get past wisconsin.
I don't know exactly where they turn.
I have my wheels on the saw. now I need help lifting
the saw off of the saw horses to the floor.
I think , in a pinch, I can do it by myself.
what a nice day we are having here today. the snow is
melting very fast.. the river is full to it's highest banks.
the lake wausau is still iced over, but with three rivers
flowing into it, the ice will give way probably in a
day or so..

 

[Callender Girl]

Jim, one thing I have learned out here by myself is that just because you MIGHT be able to do something on your own, it doesn't necessarily mean you should. Be CAREFUL!!

While I am happy to think that subsequent generations might enjoy my apple trees (thanks for the nickname!), I sure would like for destructive rabbits to let ME enjoy them, for a change.

Would love to see swans overhead! There used to be a Trumpeter Swan nesting project on a state-owned pond about 3 miles away. The program ended, but once in a while, some of the swans still return to their old home. I spotted two in a neighbor's field a few weeks ago.

It was almost 80 degrees yesterday, and both the old and new rhubarb beds have decent-sized leaves popping out of the ground.. I can also see leaves sprouting on the four raspberry bushes I bought last fall. They had berries on them when I bought them, so I have great expectations!

I stopped at Menards in the morning and spotted a bench of "Needs TLC" plants -- most of which were perennials that just got a bit too much frost. For $1 each, I got three pink Bellis plants and for $3, a lovely primrose. They aren't much to look at right now, but I am (fairly) confident they will all survive and thrive.

 

[jvls1942]

back when I was younger and stronger and building
houses, I used to load that saw onto my truck . it
didn't have any wheels on it back then.
we have just one small flower bed. some kind of
lily . and a hen and chicks,,or something like that..
one peony .
a few rabbits wintered over in the black berry patch.
I wonder what that will look like this year.
we have raspberry patches too.
all in need of TLC..

 

[Ittybittyschmidtie]

I live in northern IL and we are about to have some 75-80° weather. 2 weeks ago I made the kids put some peas in the ground and then I did some spinach out back, everything has sprouted surprisingly! Today I’m going to be throwing a bunch of random seed everywhere to try to produce more random flower growth. Good luck to everyone

 

[Callender Girl]

Congrats on the sprouting veggies, @Ittybittyschmidtie !

Jim, I hope your blackberries survived their winter tenants.

Lisa, I haven't heard any frogs yet -- but I'd like to.

The garlic chives I overwintered in the garage have sprung back to life, and the rhubarb beds are looking great! Raspberry bushes are leafing out, but only a couple of the new strawberries are peeking through the mulch.

Even by Midwest standards, this is some crazy weather! It's predicted to hit 80-something again today -- and we have the possibility of frost for Monday!

I am going to plant potatoes today. I've cut them and let them dry on the kitchen counter overnight.

I cannot be trusted at Menards. After bemoaning that I'd bought one apple tree too many, yesterday I discovered a lovely specimen of a Honeycrisp, already budding up. Of course, it came home with me.

I also got two more chicks yesterday. I am grateful that Bomgaars let me know the shipment with the Sapphire Olive Eggers had arrived; store policy is that they won't hold or reserve chicks, so I raced to town.

BTW, I realized that even though no one wears name tags, I know the names of at least a dozen Bomgaars employees. Do I spend too much time there?

 

[jvls1942]

I think the blackberries will be OK. it is a huge patch.
it can stand to be thinned out.
after supper I went back out to the shop.
just to see what I would have to do to take the
chop saw table apart. It was mounted to the long
table that I am going to eliminate. well, I looked,
and then I removed a couple of screws, and then
I removed some more screws and before ya know it
I had it all disassembled.
I went to bed very satisfied and tired..
making plans of what I want to get done today.
going to buy eight more wheels. I want to put
them on the two jointers. I will make both of
them the same height so I can use either for the
outfeed table for the other..
about fifteen years ago I took a one night
course in apple trees. learned how to graft.
I grafted a tree and it grew.. then I accidently
slid into it with the tractor when plowing snow.
I also learned to cover apple blossoms
with those flimsy plastic sandwich baggies.
you don't have to cover the whole tree. in reality,
you use only a percentage of the apples. that's
all you cover.
let the moths have at the rest of them..
it is OK to buy chicks two by two. that's
not as bad as buying four at a time.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Barb, used to be everyone knew everyone's name around here. I know the lady at the Tractor Supply. That's about it these days. Congratulations on more chicks.

I was tempted to plant lettuce in my garden boxes but decided to wait until the cooler temperatures pass over the weekend. I did plant a raised planter yesterday with lettuce and put some clear panels over it to help it along. Way too warm out. We fired up the central air today.

 

[jvls1942]

we tried working in the shop yesterday. it got too
hot. after supper it cooled down to 72F so I went out
and did a little cleaning. I resigned myself to
not expecting to get it all done in a day or
two. a little each day does show progress
and it will get done eventually.
I have not heard any frogs yet.
but we do have our share of rabbits.
we never had grey squirrels, but there were
3 of them burying nuts all over the property.
great,,, just what I need, 500 black walnut trees..