Finishin’ It

Well, we did it! We got the first wall filled and wired shut. Keeping with the trend of not checking our supplies as we have been working on all of this, we realized that the “slim-pickings” of the rock pile was not going to allow us to finish filling the wall. In realizing that, I made sure to get another order of rocks arranged for delivery.

The new delivery is beautiful larger rock with much less of the smaller pieces. I order the 2″ – 4″ size, but often get quite a bit that is under 2″. The amount of larger pieces in this last delivery will really help us fill the next few walls much faster. Though, we do have to be a bit more careful how we place the rocks so that we don’t end up with voids. But overall, it is easier and faster than the little stuff.

I had a moment of panic when we headed out to finish the wall because I had used all the wire on the previous sections and couldn’t remember if I had another roll. It is a very important component in the construction of the panels as we have to add wire throughout to ensure that they don’t get fat and wide. Some of the sections that transition from the slope to flat have a little extra give in the wire and really rely on the wire to make sure they keep a nice uniform look.

Good news, I had a fresh roll in the shop. Whew! Delay averted. Working in the yard in the evenings after work, however, is going to become more challenging. We got outside by 5 pm, and finished the last 2 sections around 7 pm. As I was wiring the top of the last section, I was having to get my face pretty close due to the low light. I forgot how fast the days get short in the fall.

This challenge may work out in our favour though. We can put a few hours in and then still enjoy the evening, rather than trying to truck along until late, shove some food in our faces and then go to bed. It will be slower going overall, but our backs and perhaps our motivation to continue should be much better off.

That being said, Kurt the digger is going to get back at it, cutting down the level we just finished to backfill behind the wall, creating the space for the next wall to go in. Once he has the wall backfilled and the level ready for the next wall, I will tag in and help get the next wall built. We will need to do this a few more times before we are officially finished.

As we were looking at the level that Kurt is going to be digging down, we noticed a plant growing. Not a weed, but a vegetable plant. Upon closer inspection we realized it was a tomatillo plant. The last time we grew tomatillos on that slope was 6 years ago, in 2015, when we first cleared the slope and plunked in some tomatoes with some wire cages. It was a weird find, but brought us back to the first bit of work we did on that slope.

Along with the wall, we have to start getting our garden cleared out for the winter. I will slowly start plucking out the plants that have finished producing and are dying off. The ones that are still producing will stay in as long as we keep getting delicious fresh veggies. I am slightly tempted to wait until a little further into October to pull the plants in the hopes that the spiders have frozen or are less apparent. By this time in the season they have gorged on bugs and are large and in charge in the garden. Makes it difficult to grab handfuls of plants to pull them out. I’ll get there.

Along with the garden winding down, it is processing time. Large bowls of tomatoes, both roma and cherries are being canned and dehydrated. Peppers are chopped and frozen or dehydrated. Carrots will be pulled and some will be kept for eating over the next few months while others will be shredded for baking or adding to the dogs dinners as a treat. We still need to pull our potatoes and will need to process those as well.