It was much more pleasant working outside in the cooler temperatures!  We were heading well towards 30C today.

One of the first things I wanted to do when I went back out was to empty the second tire planter and move it out.

This one still had the other half of the tire attached as a base.

Also…

It was on top of an ants’ nest.  The rim was full of ants, some carrying eggs, trying to find their way back to the nest.

I left the planter right where it was.  I can get it out tomorrow! :-D

For the garden itself, I focused on trimming, pruning and cutting.  There were a few rose bushes at the fence line that I was going to leave, but determined that they were not deliberately planted there, so I took them out.  I pruned the apple trees a bit, and cut away deadwood from trees and bushes alike.  I cut away lots of those vines, and so on.

Then this happened.

One of the problems we’ve found since moving here, is that so much of my parents’ stuff is gone.  The good, working stuff, that is.  Tools, equipment, supplies…  This was a fully functioning farm and, after 40 + years of farming, my parents had pretty much everything anyone could need, and then some.  What we’re finding now is basically the left behind junk.  Like these old pruning shears.  My husband was able to sharpen them, but they were clearly not going to last long.

Still, I didn’t expect a chunk to actually break off like that!

We’ll have to add “pruning shears” to our list of purchases.  Or, should I say, bump it up higher on the list.

So I made do with a small hand saw.  There is a large collection of old saws (and axes) here, with most of them being quite large.  I remember using smaller saws that would have been perfect for the work I was doing, but I have not seen any of them, anywhere.  Instead, we are using my older daughter’s hand saw, that she bought for herself a few years ago.

It did the job.  That’s the main thing.

Here is the garden now, from the south west corner.

Clearing that west fence line was the most work.

Here is the garden from the north west corner.

There is still a stick in there, that is supposed to me marking something my mom planted, but I don’t think there’s anything there anymore.  I’ll check more thoroughly when I start raking, tomorrow.

The fence posts are going to take a bit more effort to remove.  I can wiggle them from side to side quite a lot, but can’t pull them out.

All in all, a very good day’s work!

The Re-Farmer