Project Update

After several mornings and evenings of enjoying the uncovered deck, Jim decided it really would be improved by a roof.

Mid-morning on the 22nd we headed to the lumberyard for supplies, then stopped at Dutchman Metals to order roofing to match the house.

These are both thriving Amish/Mennonite businesses. I don't know the background of the families involved except that many in the area are related by marriage. Nor do I recognize the finer points which would specify the exact denominations of 'Plain People' who live in the area.

The businesses all use computer technology and often it is young women who do the office work.

At the metal shop we were informed it would be half an hour or more before the roofing was measured and cut, a good excuse to putter a few miles up the narrow winding road to Sunny Valley and enjoy a serving of soft ice cream.

Later as we headed for home the sky grew purple-black, lightning zipped through the clouds.

By the time we reached our house, a mere 15 minute drive, the heavens had opened and rain was pounding down. 

The rocking chairs left on the deck were soaked; when tilted to bring inside rain water streamed from the cushions.

There was first of all the rank tired smell of ground too long dry, then as rain continued to pelt down  the scent of refreshment and renewal hung on the damp air.

Showers continued through Wednesday evening, temperatures slightly cooler.

It was astonishing to note how quickly the meadow grass turned to green again, while seemingly exhausted container annuals pushed out gangly-stemmed blooms.

Jim went directly to work on Tuesday and on Friday the 'deck' became a 'front porch' when the roofing metal went on. 

An experienced helper would have made the task easier and though Howard offered his assistance his days have been long with building for clients.

I suspect Jim rather liked the challenge of devising ways to work over head.

I was called at the end of work days to gather tools into the wheelbarrow so that everything could be put under cover for the night.

I did occasionally hold a level or hand out wood screws; mainly I kept a pitcher full of raspberry iced tea on tap.

I kept an appointment at the eye clinic, made bread, roasted a chicken, steamed the excellent green beans Matt bought at the Speck Ridge auction.

A question was posed on the facebook page devoted to Jim's maternal line, so I happily went down various rabbit holes to discover and type a report of the relevant data. 

I can interrupt most any scheduled work when family research calls.

The porch roof has diminished the amount of light streaming into the east-facing kitchen. I don't think this is a problem as during sunny weather the reflection of light on the counters and appliances sometimes made the work area too bright.

My half mug of milky coffee seems to taste better when sipped on the porch. I raise my face to the slant of the morning sun as it shimmers on the heavy dew clinging to the meadow grass. 

In early evening the distant barking of dogs, the clatter and groan of a combine in the soybean field up the road, the shushing whisper of dried leaves falling from the trees along the north ravine are a peaceful accompaniment to the book I'm reading.

Jim comes out, sits in his rocker for a few minutes, then reminds me that if we're going to walk our evening loop around the meadows we'd best get moving as darkness now comes earlier. 

 

Mid-September

The main work of deck construction is finished!

Jim has mentioned possibly putting a roof over it, but for now has turned his attention to tinkering several of his tractors.

There are steps off the right hand edge--where I thought a ramp might be built. That may happen later as well. 

The 'beds' for the outdoor cats remain tucked against the left hand rail of the original porch, an eyesore, but the two old cats, Willis and Sally, are accustomed to them.

I'm hoping to see brick pavers laid along the front edge of the deck, but have been told that the ground there is packed so hard it would take some vigorous work with a shovel, a layer of weed barrier, and sand to provide a stable base for the bricks.

We drove to Glasgow on Monday thinking that Rural King or Lowes might have patio furniture. The websites of both stores showed a selection in stock and on sale. When we got there we were told that the furniture had all been removed from the sales floors in early August.

I admit to being annoyed--if an item isn't for sale, remove the details from the stores' websites!

For our first morning using the deck we dragged out some folding camp chairs; on the second day Jim carried out our Amish-made bentwood rockers, purchased when we were living at the Amish farmhouse with its large wrap-around porch.  These have been in the east sunroom. Unless/until there is a roof over the deck we'll be hauling the chairs inside during rainy weather. [Rain would be a novelty at this point! We are back in drought mode.]

We seem to have collected an assortment of chairs: a pair of faux wicker cushioned armchairs that live in the west sunroom [seldom used] a very comfortable wicker rocker with cushion presented by our niece, and a huge wooden Cracker Barrel rocker donated by her daughter. 

Jim quite regularly decides he isn't comfortable with the chair in his room where he watches TV, so there is a grand shuffling of furniture. The wicker rocker has moved to the east sunroom, as has the Cracker Barrel rocker. A dilapidated leather rocker/recliner is now back in Jim's space.

The resident cats enjoy checking out these changes !

New retaining wall for the sloping area below the porch. I debated how I wanted to handle this; there is no depth of decent soil there, nor is the 'bed' wide enough to allow for shrubs, even of a dwarf variety. I thought of dwarf hydrangeas or such in large tubs, but a discussion with the owner of my favorite nursery discouraged that. 

Jim laid some of the extra pavers over the relocated 'dirt' and plunked the various planters there. The plants in them have struggled during the prolonged heat and drought, with little in the way of bloom to show at the end of the season. 

This is the area where my Lauren's Grape poppies have self-sown each year. Hopefully those which have sprung up the past two seasons around the side door to the shop will do so in the spring and I will have seeds to scatter elsewhere.

I need to grub out some iris and invasive lemon balm which have tangled in the space below the downstairs window--always another job to consider, another area to refurbish and maintain.

 I bought 8 pansy plants at my favorite nursery last Friday, potted them up last evening.

Persian Carpet zinnias raised from seed. They've grown lanky in their container but have survived this arduous summer.

I had no idea the Michaelmas daisies /wild asters would be as invasive as they've become. 

They are so aggressive that some have to be weeded out, but the variety of purple, lavender, rose and dusty pink means that some of each color are keepers.

Monarda Lemon Bergamot, raised from seed is a winner.

I gave a plant or two to daughter Gina for her color-coordinated raised beds and she now has a thriving clump of it.

Bees and butterflies are much attracted to it.

Ragged cosmos in the raised bed along the greenhouse wall. Limited watering there, but they have survived, pushing through the branches of buddleia.

Cosmos in the newest raised bed.

The soil mix purchased for that bed hasn't been really satisfactory--it has settled and compacted, not enough humous to retain moisture.

Poor germination of the achillea seeds purchased this spring. They were designated as 'shades of red.' 

Six seedlings made it to the transplanting stage--one languished and died. The remaining five are thriving in one of the black bin-beds and this lovely blossom is rewarding. 

No break in the heat forecast until next week--and still no rain!

 

The Heavy Looking-On

Grampa Mac had a designation for a person who didn't quite pull their weight at a given task: according to him that man--whether hired or volunteer 'help'--was 

'doing the heavy looking-on.' 

The term could also apply to a female who stood, arms wrapped in her apron, and instructed the menfolk how best to do what they were already doing.

When Jim and I work together on a project, I often feel that while he is doing the 'skilled labor' I am merely holding the end of a board to be sawn, trotting off to fetch something, sweeping up the debris.

The current project is no different.

I do take credit for the grand idea! 

The raised bed plantings I hoped to maintain near the front door have not worked out as I imagined.

Howard and Jim obliged me several years ago by laying out pressure-treated timbers and hauling dirt. I raised plants from seed, bought a few more at my favorite nursery. The seedlings of Michaelmas daisies [aka asters] blue prairie flax, achillea, and blackberry lilies planted in the east-facing bed under the kitchen window immediately leaned into the light, grew rankly into a colorful but untidy tangle. The planting at the side of the steps fared little better. A nursery plant of common sage [salvia officinalis] became a sprawling shrub spilling onto the walkway, obliterating lavender, thyme and germander set in nearby. 

Extra seedlings of coneflower and the asters in shades of purple, rose and dusty pink were bunged into the smaller strip for want of any other place to put them. 

They took over!

During this long hot summer I began making noises to the effect that a deck at the side of the house would be an upgrade in curb appeal, eliminating plantings that were clearly out of control.

Jim said, 'Why do you want a deck? You wouldn't sit on it!'

Jim, prodded toward an idea that didn't originate with him, can turn balky, so I let the suggestion rest for a bit.

[Jim's Mom always maintained that if a woman can drop the seed of an idea into the male brain, let it germinate and take root until he believes the plan originated with him, then the woman in question can respond with delighted enthusiasm and praise if the man 'comes up' with the desired project! It is a delicate balancing act!]

Early this week Jim announced that he 'guessed' we might as well get on with building a deck.

He instructed me that if I wanted to save any of my plants I'd best be moving them to temporary quarters.

I began on the side bed Tuesday evening, cutting back bristling gone-to-seed stalks of coneflower and the Michaelmas daisies, some of which were still in full bloom. I carried the plants one by one to the black bins near the greenhouse and tucked them into the soil. 

Jim, finishing a bowl of ice cream, poked his head out the door to ask, 'Why don't you pile them all into the wheelbarrow instead of making so many trips?' 

The wheelbarrow is old and wobbling; I usually manage to overturn it. 

Besides--I didn't think of that solution!

Having worked my way along the bed to the sage bush I began prodding around it with my garden fork. The soil seemed the consistency of cement. I exchanged the fork for a spade, at which point Jim emerged from the house and took over. He crashed about in the tangle of branches, the air redolent with the smell of bruised sage. I whipped in with the pruning clippers trying to remove dead branches.

'Get the big pruners from the shop, ' Jim directed tersely, prying at stubborn roots.

The sage bush came free finally in a welter of pruned and broken branches, dead brush and crushed leaves. 

I've given it an entire planter bin, watered it in, will do some judicious pruning and hope that it recovers.

This morning while Jim gathered tools I removed all the plants I decided to salvage from the bed along the house wall.

Using my garden fork I began lifting up the patio pavers that made a walkway along the bed. 

You'll have gathered that I do things the hard way! 

[Its undoubtedly why my back hurts constantly!]

Again, Jim had a better plan. I was told to fetch the 'dolly' stored in the shed. 

I hoiked it from behind a garden tiller and the wood splitter and trundled it out.

 I balanced the thing, Jim lifted the pavers with the point of a hoe and stacked them on the dolly.

While he moved soil, laid out timbers, I thrashed about in the wall garden, yanking out goldenrod, tangled smartweed, and a horrid prickly weed for which I haven't found a name.

I went inside and made a fresh pitcher of raspberry iced tea.

I pegged washing on the back porch lines.

I tackled an overgrowth of lemon balm by the porch corner, steadied the ends of timbers that were being leveled and screwed into place.

I haven't done much of importance to advance the project; I don't have the skills or the brawn to use the power tools or to place timbers and boards. 

I have to be content with the heavy looking on!

Bringing in the bucket loader to clear the soil from the dismantled raised bed.

Isn't it great to have a variety of tractors and equipment on hand!

Soil removed.

This is the area alongside the front walkway. 

The plants and old timbers have been removed.

 

A retaining wall going up.

 

Soil moved from one 'bed' to another.

Jim asked if I intended replanting the area now that it has been leveled. With some regret I've decided not to attempt that. 

The plan of the moment is to extend the paved area and line up my tubs there.

I would love to have decorative shrubs edging the walkway, but given my battles with weeds and over-growth it doesn't seem like something I can manage.

 Tubs dragged out of the way.

More planters and the patio pavers waiting to be repurposed.

This project is about using what we have, so the cost for materials will be minimal.

The effect of the finished deck will likely be more rustic than the elaborate decks Howard designs and builds for his customers. 

I've finished the day with various aches from my inefficient manner of moving things, along with the minor misery of a rash on both arms from pulling tall weeds and carrying them off to tip at the edge of the south ravine. 

No matter. Enthusiasm for the envisioned new look of the house front carries me along.

And the raspberry iced tea was a winner!