Compost Out of Pallets

Just before winter I followed instructions I found online. They instructed me to purchase a plastic tote, which I did, then carve holes all around the cover and a few in the bottom, which I did, and then stick it outside and add food. Well as you can guess this didn't provide enough air flow or enough drainage AT ALL.

So all winter we added food and all winter nothing happened. I expected that because it was winter so it wouldn't do much with all the freezing. But when summer came, it did the same thing... nothing. It just rotted. So today I finally had the chance to change it for the better! Mavis built one out of wooden pallets and I wanted to do the same. Since I finally have wooden pallets (one of the downfalls of having a car instead of a truck... you have to rely on others to help and they are busy too), and a few hours where it wasn't either burning hot or absolutely swarmed with mosquitoes.

This was the starting point:
Getting the pallets:
I had some extra wire fence stakes, so I grabbed four along with my cordless drill, the long handled mallet, and plenty of screws. I used the stakes to hold the sides up while I pieced it together. The stakes have what I'll call wings on the bottom six or so inches up. I pounded the stakes into the ground so these wings would hold the bottom of the pallet down.

Here's the right side and the back:
Here's a slightly better view:
I did that for the three walls, then used long screws to screw the sides together. I only did that at the tops because I ran out of longer screws. I'll pick up more tomorrow and add more. With the screws in place, the stakes were pulled up (except one).

Here's three walls up:
Here's another view:
Next was the hinges. I had bought hinges forever ago when I thought this project would be done much earlier in the year. I bought four total, two of one kind, two of another. I chose a strap hinge, because it allowed the greater movement and stability overall. I secured them in at angles because my drill couldn't reach well (I didn't know I had a drill bit extender until I was done). I also chose the lightest pallet for the door because I wanted it to swing without a lot of strain on my part.

This is after I added what was in the blue tote and added in some saved leaves to dry it out a bit:
I re-used the stakes to support the front sides. Where the hinges are, there are two stakes. One on the outside and one on the inside. The third stake I pounded in on the outside of the non-hinge side. It stuck out too far so I screwed it in. The screws from the hinges also stuck out too far, so I used the mallet to pound them flat.

Done!
Some things you might want to do differently:

• Depending on where you locate it, you may want to raise the front a bit above the ground to allow the door to swing without resistance. Bear in mind that this may also require a latch to keep it shut.
• If you have very pesky wildlife, you may want to add a cover or chicken wire to keep them out.
• I kept all of my pallets the same way, but if you click Mavis' link above, she alternates hers. Whatever works for you should be what you use!

A Quiet Afternoon

Despite the fact that there is only one blueberry bush, it grew berries again this year.
We were quick to cover them, but as you can see I got the wrong sized net. Oops.
We folded it over four times and it should deflect most of the bird invaders.

Pallets stored out of the rain, ready for projects. There are more on the other side.

Gramma's garlic forming their scapes.

Tiger lilies getting ready to bloom.
These have grown alongside the house for as long as I can remember.
They are nearly chest high now. We love them as cut flowers.

Looking down the driveway toward the road.
More tiger lilies growing in the front.
In the back and to the left is the white lilac bush.
The stone wall is the 1800's era graveyard containing the bodies
of the family that owned the farm where our property now resides.
It isn't ours and we don't maintain it, but have always felt free to
go in and out at our leisure.

As Gramma says they do make quiet neighbors.

We Didn't Know We Were Poor

While purging old files at the office today, I came across a photocopy of this poem. I have copied it here exactly for you to enjoy. I can't seem to find it anywhere online or for sale. There is a page number [6] on the bottom left corner, and on the bottom right, it says Good Old Days Summer Special. Searching online for these terms and such doesn't seem to bring anything up. If anyone has more information, please e-mail me (found under the Contact Page), as I'd love to learn more.

We Didn't Know We Were Poor

By Ione Boss

We grew up in a house by the side of the road
With nothing modern to lighten the chore,
Just a little old shack, with an outhouse in back,
But we didn't know we were poor.

The Depression had hit Oklahoma,
The sandstorms had done lots of harm,
Some people were sad, for they lost what they had,
But my daddy would not leave the farm.

He worked day and night on that old sandy farm,
And he plowed till his muscles were sore,
But he made the crops grow, from the seeds he would sow,
And he kept the wolf from the door.

We had chickens and turkeys, some pigs and a cow,
And horses, I think three or four,
A roof over our heads, and nice feather beds,
Now, whoever said we were poor?

In winter, the snow would blow in through the cracks
And the wind round the chimney would moan,
But with a fire burning bright, and a kerosene light,
We were happy in our little home.

And Mamma would work in the kitchen,
While baking the bread she would sing,
And the meals she turned out, would make us all shout,
For the food, it was fit for a King.

There were beans in an old iron kettle,
And ham sliced thick in the pan,
Corn bread and potatoes, canned greens and tomatoes,
Now, try to top that if you can.

We never had very much money,
We seldom went to the store,
But no one complained, in sunshine or rain,
And nobody said we were poor.

The springtime I think we like best of all,
When the warm sun shone bright on the land,
Oh happy day, when our shoes [unreadable],
And we could run barefoot in the sand.

The wild flowers grew in profusion
And they were more lovely by far,
Than the prettiest rose, or any orchid that grows
When we brought them home in a jar.

To place on the old kitchen table,
To brighten it up for the day,
Their wonderful hues, of pink, gold, and blues,
Made a beautiful center bouquet.

In summer we'd hunt the wild berries
And the plums in the thickets were sweet,
Sitting under a tree, contented we'd be,
And enjoy our summertime treat.

At evening when the whippoorwills called from the hills,
We'd sit round the old cabin door,
With the whispering breeze gently stirring the trees,
And we never once thought we were poor.

In fall when the leaves would turn golden and brown,
Once more we would go back to school
With pencils and paper, notebooks and erasers,
To study the Golden Rule.

That little red schoolhouse I'll never forget
Though I live to be 90 years old,
The secrets we'd share and the fun we had there
Was worth more than silver and gold.

The months and the years have swiftly gone by,
Since we lived in those good days of yore,
So happy at play, on that old farm all day,
And we never did know we were poor.

P.S. I don't own this, and I'm not claiming it. I can't find anything out about it so I am using the information I have available.

Entering Summer

Baby marigolds growing!


Pea flowers blooming!


Pea flowers on their way!


Carrots (and some weeds) going strong!


Looking down the garden rows. It's just a 30 x 5 garden this year.


Thessaloniki tomatoes growing after an early bout with powdery mildew.

The incessant rains have stopped and now I've had to go back to watering... poo. ;)

May in Review

May came with challenges! I had some slip ups, but I'm trying to not take it to heart since this is my 'in-training' year, and after all, everyone makes mistakes.

I didn't get specific dates for all the activities that occurred during May, so I'll break them down by plant instead.

Strawberries I couldn't get the strawberries to come up by seed, but I'll admit I was a bit lax in watering them too. I got frustrated and gave up on the seeds. Instead I was in Home Depot and spied some beautiful plants there including some already with strawberries! I let my eyes lead my steps instead of my brain and bought three plants. I know they were definitely grown with pesticides and artificial plant foods. On my way home I stopped at a garden center that I'd never been to before and picked up two more strawberry plants, but these ones were separated from an established strawberry bed on someone's land. The difference? No artificial anything. They even made the loamy, sandy soil on site. I chose a spot behind one of the logs we use to mark the driveway's edge and dug them in. They get plenty of sun there and I haven't lost a single plant.

Tomatoes The tomatoes grew vivaciously and I ended up transferring most of them into larger containers, but it was still too cold to set them outside.

Blackberries & Blueberries The sticks produced lots of nice leaves and were doing well, then suddenly took a downhill turn and died. I'm not sure what happened, but I'll try again next year.

Raspberries I transplanted the two bushes I bought and they are doing well. I bought golden raspberries, but they are dead and need to come out.

Peas The peas are growing well and are enjoying all the rain that May is bringing us. I've been weeding them regularly, but as they get bigger, they trump most of the weeds.

Carrots Carrots weren't weeded for a long time because until their feathery leaves came in, I couldn't tell what was carrot and what was grass and weeds. I've decided that next year I will do rows. The scattering method resulted in one very dense spot of carrots and very few in the rest of the designated plots.

Cucumbers I started cucumber seeds, but accidentally left them exposed to the air when they'd just burst their roots out, so their roots dried up and I wasn't able to revive them. I started new seeds.

Squash I started yellow squash and they are growing well. I swear you can see them grow. They gain almost a 1/2 inch per day!