Wednesday, May 11, 2022

Rufus Had A Spa Day. 5.11.22

 Rufus has been panting more, which I take for being too warm.  So I gave him a haircut and a bath.


He KNOWS what's about to happen.  Even though he really doesn't like the face and paw parts, he jumps onto the table anyway.  I use mix of scissors and clippers depending on how sensitive an area is and how evenly I want it cut.  Then he gets a good bath, which he likes a lot.

After.  There's that handsome boy!


Not as nice a cut as a professional groomer, but a lot less stress for him and for me.

Lilacs, Again. 5.11.22

 I can't believe how big these lilacs grew.  Of course, they are at least fifteen years old.  They survived a big move from the Vancouver house the the Battleground house, about six years ago.  That set them back but they are doing better now.



Installing Drip Irrigation For Raised Beds And Container Planter. 5.12.2022

 Today I completed the drip irrigation installation for the new container planter.  Since there are ten nearly round, 25 gallon containers, I made round loops from 1/4 inch tubing which had four emitters.  The ones for the potatoes had 7 emitters, because they will need to soak more deeply.



I might add a length with another emitter or two depending on my observations but this seems good so far.

For the tomato (Johnson Dwarf Cherry), I also covered with kraft paper to reduce fungal disease risk.  The paper covers the emitters.

The drips work nicely.  Over about an hour, the contents of the containers are fully watered.


Then I checked the soaker hoses for the garlic bed.  They worked fine, so I put them under the kraft paper mulch.  I can't believe how big the garlic plants have grown.  The variety is "Music", and I grow them from the biggest bulbs from the previous year's crop.  


Then I checked the soaker hoses for the onion bed.  They work fine.  I cultivated between rows and intend to lay a kraft paper mulch soon.

So that's drip irrigation installed for three of the six raised beds, and the main lines in for the remaining three.  Almost ready for summer.

Edit:  Here is what the drip irrigation system looks like for the container planter.



Monday, May 09, 2022

Lilacs. 5.9.22

 Despite losing some lilac  blossom clusters to late frost, there is a nice show.









First Tree Peony. 5.9.22

 This is the first tree peony of the year.  I don't know the variety name.