Too many garden projects

 As per usual I keep starting new projects which means I'm not getting anything finished!

I've got a crazy paver path going in to meet the gravel driveway of the carport. This is replacing the trip hazard of a very large paver sitting high, then a smaller paver sunk down lower which then creates a step up to the concrete slab along the front of the house! This is clay soil and it's all still settling around the septic tank that was put in before we bought the house. I'll let this settle, but no doubt it will need a proper base. What you can't see is the rocks in this area growing so many weeds that I still need to deal with...

We bought a playground for our daughter's birthday that I still haven't finished assembling - or decided where it's going. It also needs a fence around it as the property is not fully fenced. And after the crazy winds blew it over, we have some repairs to add to that list!

I planted my first 'tree', and it's not fun thanks to the dry, hard clay. For this one I added gypsum and a bag of compost that I forked through while I decide what my plan is going to be for planting future trees. This one is the arrowroot pot guild so the tree is just a mulberry cutting that I poked in the pot right before we moved. You can see it desperately needed to be in the ground (or at least given more water and fertiliser)!

Then there is the pit that was put in before we bought the house. So much bare soil, so many weeds to pull, and a round bale of mulch to finish spreading. I was meant to finish mulching before I started planting flowers, but I had to put some sunflowers in. Oh and then I was given some bulbs that were already sprouting, needless to say there is still a lot to do over the pit, but at least there are pretty flowers now.

And I've also got lots of bare dirt/and weeds where the trucks and excavators were driving. Thankfully we have a grey water sprinkler which I moved around regularly so the grass has covered most of the paths. You can even see our completed project in the background - a fence for Archie! This puppy pen area hasn't grown much so I've added grass seed and left the grey water hose there to help it along - the test patch is very thick and almost ready for it's first hair cut.

Arrowroot pot guild

 Arrowroot does best in the ground, but I needed to pot some up so I could take it with us when we move. I dug up a small tuber so it doesn't overtake the pot and decided to create a self watering pot in a bucket (buckets have handles so it's easier to carry). Now it's a bit boring having just one little stick of arrowroot in a bucket so I added a comfrey and strawberry. 

I have to say this little guild is perfect and they have grown so fast! These three plants all prefer to stay out of the full afternoon sun, and they enjoy the more consistent moisture of the self watering pot. I did buy a fresh bag of potting mix for this one as comfrey pulls up all the nutrients. Since  I've been cutting the comfrey to feed the chickens and add to any plants that need a boost, I will have to start feeding this pot regularly.

They say once you plant comfrey you'll never get rid of it... unfortunately mine disappeared when Ray helped me weed. After months of searching I was very lucky to find this single plant for sale. The lady at the nursery told me they finally filled all their special orders and only had one extra - it was waiting for me! Hopefully I can propagate it soon so I can have a backup - I'm not letting this plant die!!