Organic Gardening Info from Peaceful Valley

There it is.  The first tilled row of the GGP.  At the crack of 8 am (huck it up, farmers…that’s early for us city-folk!) I was out there, tilling up my back yard.  The actual tilling itself took about 3 hours.  We had to go over each row multiple times, stopping to dig up rocks and sundry other oddities.  Among the strange things found that had to be removed: 3 cigarette lighters, a 2′ x 4′, a Happy Meal toy, broken glass, an old irrigation pipe that went nowhere, and concrete support posts for what apparently used to be a deck.  The final stage was going over everything one final time, my son in my lap (he LOVES tractors!) to make sure the yard was as level as possible. (more…)

Saturday, I finally got to go out and get my hands a little bit dirty (well, not really…I was wearing gloves…but you know what I mean).  In preparation for the Great Garden Project, I need to get the yard ready for tilling.  The back yard looks pretty good, and all I really need to do to it is move a few rocks.  The front yard, however, is another story.

I grabbed my brand new rake , and got to work.  Now, this isn’t trying to be a sales pitch, but…this is one great rake.  It has the spring of any other rake, but the tines stay firm enough to pull any size pile.  It’s like working with a shovel, but with teeth and flexibility.  I HIGHLY recommend this rake!

In any event, I quickly  discovered just how important a good yard cleanup before any landscaping is.  I had actually considered just tilling in any yard waste back into the soil, but am I glad I didn’t.  I found a LOT of things that don’t belong in the soil.  I particularly loved finding SEVEN lighters, and the lid to the previous septic tank.

So, this weekend, the fun part happens.   Like most men, I appreciate big honkin’ vehicles that do more than just drive.  Vehicles that do things. OK, I admit it…I’m a little boy.  But I appreciate a big tractor, and I will be haivng a great time Saturday morning, when the tractor comes down and I get to thoroughly demolish my front and back yards.  I can’t wait!