My laziness caused this. Well, yeah, and the mighty gusts of wind we had last night.
Last fall I covered my herb bed (see the framing on top of a raised garden bed closest in that jumble in the picture?) with a deep layer of straw. The next day the wind did an excellent job of blowing my winter blanket of mulch clean off the bed. Papa Pea suggested we put a cold frame, minus the top, on the bed, gather the scattered straw and dump it back on top of the herbs but, this time, inside the topless cold frame. Worked like a charm. The mulch stayed put and was soon covered by a layer of snow. Sleep tight, little herbs.
The bed directly in front of the herb bed was fall planted in some greens I wanted to carry into the cold weather as long as I could so a cold frame with a cover was put on that bed. And we were able to have lettuce, kale, spinach, chard, etc. longer than usual because of the protection of the cold frame.
Before the snows started, I should have removed that cold frame, but my lazy self said I could just leave it there until I wanted to start working the bed this spring.
Even though the cold frame was tied to the frame of the raised bed with several lengths of baling twine and had a bungie and a hook and eye holding the lid to the raised bed framing, you can see what the wind did to it last night.
The cold frame with lid was torn from the raised bed, picked up and deposited on the top of the topless cold frame covering my herb bed.
The wind continued to blow today also. Not a bad thing because no more damage was done (that we've discovered anyway), and it should have helped evaporate some of our remaining snow and, I hope, hope, hope, dry out some of our mud.
I should have had my camera in hand this afternoon while Papa Pea and I were running some rough cut lumber through the planer. If you've ever done that you know tons of sawdust and wood shavings are created in the process. Mix that with the stiff wind and you'll know we had sawdust blowing everywhere. It's so embedded in my work jacket that trying to brush the stuff off didn't work worth a diddle. I think I even have some in my . . . oh, never mind.
The March wind doth blow. Somebody should harness it for power.
18 comments:
Hi Mama Pea
Sorry about your cold frame! Just be glad you have such a handy guy-he'll have that fixed in no time.
We are home from Nebraska and can't believe how much snow we lost while gone---it's just in those shadowy places and where hubby heaped it high from shoveling. I plan on setting up the cold frames today to get the ground warmed up to seed some spinach. Sure look forward to those first spring greens.
That is quite the wind you get there to be able to pick up that cold frame like that. But don't you just love the smell of sawdust? I think that comes from the days when I was a kid and we had hamsters. My dad would grind us up some wood shavings to put in the bottom of their cages.
Somebody, meaning, you and Papa Pea? I think the same thing this time of year, when the wind is blowing like 60, as Ralph Moody used to say. In fact, I've given up on all but wood chip mulch for the front yard, because the wind blows away any other kind of mulch.
Mama Pea,
Ouch!!!! So sorry to hear about your cold frame being blown apart like that. The winds are just as bad as all the snow. We've been getting some awful winds here too. It's going to be raining off and on most of the week. No complaints though, we need the moisture because of all the drought. Plus the rain will put out the massive fire north of us.
Just hang your jacket outside and let the wind blow all the wood shavings off. Make sure to secure your jacket really good so it stays.
Hugs,
Sandy
I'm so excited about the thought of seeing your raised bed garden, after it's planted and you have veggies growing in there. I have a few raised beds, but need more. Hate that the wind wreaked havoc on yours. Take care!
Sorry about your cold frame. Had to laugh about the wood shavings. He he!
Since I don't have a workshop or a garage, any sawing I do has to be done in the dining room. Nuff said? We have been having some mighty strong winds here, too. I just noticed this morning that - because of my very own laziness - my little hoop cover looks like an inverted camel. Once I can actually make it out there, I will have another thing to add to my list! Glad you have a handy partner there... :)
Sue - I don't have the least interest in going out into my garden . . . it's such a muddy mess. We haven't even ventured forth to try to resurrect that cold frame calamity yet. Besides that, our temps have gone back down into the deep freeze. Barely above freezing yesterday and today and down in the 20s at night. It ain't spring yet!
Sparkless - Never had a hamster but I do know what you mean about the smell of sawdust/wood shavings. I use them when I prep my strawberry bed each year for the season so the smell makes me think of that.
Leigh - I made that last statement kind of tongue in cheek. For all the high winds we seem to have around here, we don't have enough sustained wind for a wind generator. Believe me, we looked into it extensively and wanted to go that way, but the needed steady wind just isn't there.
Sandy - Hope that fire north of you is now under control.
The stuff actually in the fabric of my jacket was more like dust . . . very fine particles. I did wash it last night and you know what we did today? Cut pieces of plywood. In the wind again. Now same jacket is recovered in sawdust from the plywood. Why do I think my work jacket has to look clean anyway?? :o]
Laurie - You will see the gardening I do in my raised beds, I assure you. That's about all I post about during the growing season!
Kristina - Both hubby and I blew and blew our noses last night. I think that dust caused a bit of irritation!
Susan - YOU CUT IN THE DINING ROOM!? Set up out on your deck, for goodness sake!
Yes, I am very lucky to have a handy partner. And I know it! Although this morning he was a bit of a grouch . . . but only because he currently has about 13 must-be-done-now projects staring him in the face. That's why the cold frame crash out in the garden hasn't been touched yet. :o]
Bummer about the cold frame. Looks like mostly big pieces, so hopefully it will go back together quickly.
We haven't really got our spring winds yet. Ours often comes with severe weather. Since I run our county's Amateur Radio Emergency Service the windy, stormy days and night can get 'exciting". I just got my SkyWarn re-certification completed, but hopefully won't have to be out and about during the rough stuff watching for tornadoes and the like too often this year.
Your comment back to Leigh addressed the question I was going to bring up. My husband keeps talking wind power, but don't think we have the sustained winds here. So cool driving through Oklahoma last fall, and seeing rows upon rows of high-tech windmills rotating away in the rural areas! I've bought my seeds but that's kinda' it for garden planning for this year! I'm catching up..... and want to say hope Tucker is continuing to feel better! It's hard getting 'old'... be it human or doggie!
Mark - Hubby went out yesterday (in the mud) and fixed the cold frames. Unbelievably, nothing was really damaged. Guess we did a good job of building those things!
Interesting about your involvement with your Amateur Radio Emergency Service. Hoping you have NO tornadoes this year!
Lisa - Tucker will be nine years old this coming week. He's such a good dog, no trouble at all and very sweet and loving. He's still got a hitch in his get-along, something remains stiff or sore in his back leg. But he's still good-natured, bless him.
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