What did you do in the garden today?

[WthrLady]

No way I could stand that.
I need the sound of nature, alpaca fights, and to be able to hear any creepy people sneaking up on me.

 

[Smokerbill]

We do bull fencing. And my posts are the 8 footers.

That makes sense. My posts just need to stop chickens and deer.

DH is 53 and wears aids and hearing protection. I wear it on the mower and the tractor, but that's all- oh and post pounding, ALWAYS for post pounding. Once time I forgot and OMG, I blew some nerve with the tone of the driver and it pounded for DAYS. My eardrum was going insane. It felt like I had a tadpole trapped behind the membrane. Gross and disorientating.

My ears are in bad shape. Terrible tinnitus and hearing loss, but I think that's from when I was a kid. Driving a one cylinder John Deere tractor, shooting shotguns, playing my guitar through high output amplifiers. All with no hearing protection. And I still like to crank it when I hear Deep Purple playing Highway Star. LOL No hearing protection.

Farm store Tposts are super heavy duty and do cost an arm and a leg. 9.50$ each and weigh 10 pounds each.
My feed is up to 22$ a bag not fancy.
=========
continuing lid update - blue seal
3 pints of shredded beef tonight
PLINK PLINK PLINK
100% sealed withing 2 minutes of removing from canner

Got my Tposts at the local hardware store, and they were the same price as the same posts at Home Depot., but maybe cheaper elsewhere And sometimes I don't paying a little more at the local store, because if they don't get business, they could shut down. It's worth it to have a hardware store a mile away from my house. And it's cheaper to pay more locally than to drive 20 miles for a bargain.

Mine are hanging around on various pieces of large equipment, where they need worn. Pair hanging on the mower, the tractor, one on the sawmill. DH just has two pair, one on the shop wall and one on the barn wall. If mine aren't handy....... Just sometimes I have a moron moment.
The time I forgot to put them on doing posts, they were actually around my neck, I forgot to pull them UP and on.

Earplugs for me. I can't stand headphones pinching my ears. And I don't like my ears sweating.

 

[saysfaa]

...Yes, I prune the branches in late November. I was told to take off any branches that cross another, does that sound right? I am all for correcting mistakes.

Early spring is better because the wounds heal better, you can see if there has been any winter killed branches, and other reasons.

Taking off branches that cross other branches is good - you don't want them rubbing against each other. It is also good to prune the branches that are not growing well (take them completely off or prune them back to where they are growing well) and the branches that are growing well (take them back part way.)

I looked up several sites about how to do it. There are a surprising number that don't explain well but this one does - https://www.mehrabyannursery.com/growing-guide/pruning/how-to-prune-a-pear-tree/

I might prune an ornamental fruit tree a little differently but most of the steps are for the health of the tree at least as much as for the fruit production.

 

[chickengr]

Isn't it a bit harder to transplant melons? Interesting comment you had there. Thanks.

I guess I am lucky it is still alive.

 

[Smokerbill]

The big raised bed has a new "fence" around it now. It's still a work in progress, but at least it's deer and chicken proof. I even strung some ropes across the top to hopefully make the deer think real hard before they try to jump the fence into my garden. Pictures to follow...

Pictures...

Before...



After...

 

[saysfaa]

Peaches! And more peaches!

We spent yesterday evening making supports to go under the branches of our peach tree. The peaches are so heavy, that without the supports the branches are breaking in two.

So we used 2x4s from an old project to support the trees limbs.

If you are experiencing a similar issue, I created a video to show how easy it is to remedy.

DIY Fruit Tree Branch Support


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Have you considered thinning the peaches? That is what we did in the orchards. You do it when they are about the size of a golf ball (or by that time, anyway, preferably). There should be one peach per six inches or so for mature trees. I don't remember if they are further apart on young trees. Probably. You will get as much peach, I think, they will just be nicer and not damage the branches by breaking or by rubbing on supports.

 

[nao57]

Lehmans! Thats where I got the lids I'm currently using.
And Ball says you do not need to simmer their newer (now been a few years) lids. I still do anyway, lol. But not for the pressure canner.

That's an interesting point to bring up. A lot of people have found things that are new. Like people said in the past that you can't can meat. And people have found you can. And there's people about the lid thing you mentioned that have talked about it.

I'd heard some people say you can can non-uniform jars too like old pace sauce jars. And stuff you wouldn't normally think of using, like recycling glass jars from stores. Is that part true though? I'd wanted to find real references to confirm.

And your wonderful comment brought up the opportunity, reminding me to ask about it.

People are starting to get back to being more practical I think now.

 

[nao57]

Pictures...

Before...

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After...

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I like it. But I feel grateful I don't have to work that hard to protect things I grow. That would be a pain to have to go that far. :O I'm amazed. But the fencing you did looks nice and clean. It looks solid.

 

[member 655102]

Early spring is better because the wounds heal better, you can see if there has been any winter killed branches, and other reasons.

Taking off branches that cross other branches is good - you don't want them rubbing against each other. It is also good to prune the branches that are not growing well (take them completely off or prune them back to where they are growing well) and the branches that are growing well (take them back part way.)

I looked up several sites about how to do it. There are a surprising number that don't explain well but this one does - https://www.mehrabyannursery.com/growing-guide/pruning/how-to-prune-a-pear-tree/

I might prune an ornamental fruit tree a little differently but most of the steps are for the health of the tree at least as much as for the fruit production.

I agree with @saysfaa and would also like to add that each and every tree is unique.

 

[First time Chick mom]

Early spring is better because the wounds heal better, you can see if there has been any winter killed branches, and other reasons.

Taking off branches that cross other branches is good - you don't want them rubbing against each other. It is also good to prune the branches that are not growing well (take them completely off or prune them back to where they are growing well) and the branches that are growing well (take them back part way.)

I looked up several sites about how to do it. There are a surprising number that don't explain well but this one does - https://www.mehrabyannursery.com/growing-guide/pruning/how-to-prune-a-pear-tree/

I might prune an ornamental fruit tree a little differently but most of the steps are for the health of the tree at least as much as for the fruit production.

Thank you so much for the taking the time and finding information!! I will start pruning in early spring, that does make sense.