A miracle

Last Monday this is what the beds looked like. Just starting to fill #1, I had no idea how I would ever get to even finish this one by myself.


Did manage to get half completed and planted in one day. Unfortunately it was a day that topped out in the 90's. Such good planning on my part!!

By the end of the week I had gotten the rest of it filled, with lots of digging and hauling on my part, mostly from Medway!! I decided that I would get started on filling #2, but that I would not plan to even use #3 this season, as it was just too daunting a thought to maintain in my overworked brain!!

Sheila came over Saturday and gave me the needed boost of enthusiasm, and together we got #2 started and completed 4 layers (about 5"0 of Lasagna gardening). She has been telling me that she has just the right tractor that we need and offered it to me on several occasions. I could not see how that would be any help as it was in Walpole, but her offer included bringing it over for us.

In order to get it into the area needed I would need to do a lot of prep work, most difficult being moving the carefully stacked bricks that my son in law had piled oh, so nicely, but right in the middle of the only path we would need to get the tractor into the garden area!!

Well, due to all the work that Sheila helped to accomplish I had the needed energy when she left to relocate all the offending piles of bricks, thinking that I would finish the prep work on Sunday to be ready for the tractor next weekend.

Well, Sheila left me an email message Sat night that I got early Sunday morning, and that's when the miracle got off the ground.
We quickly rearranged our plans for the day, and they (Sheila and Jimmy) came over with tractor in tow.



We dug in,



quite literally

and Jimmy manned the machine!



Hubby, Mia and I had raked off the accumulated branches on a long used compost pie on the woods side of the house. WHO KNEW??!! LOL --- There ended up being more than enough to fill the other two beds!!! We all pulled together and got the layers ready to have the most lush, worm filled pure compost scooped up and dumped into the beds!!

This was a compost area that I used for anything needing to be dumped in the front area of the gardens. I had never accessed it as I had the compost pile on the other side that always supplied more than enough for the gardens. This left side gives you an idea of what the pile looked like before being used.


Here you can see the sand showing at this level - that is what is under this whole area. It had to be filled with about 30 feet of sand to build on as it is a wetland area.




Look at how much is still left to be used!!




Have you seen such beautiful deep, dark compost? It looks just like an expensive loam, only it is loaded with night crawlers and other creeping beneficial critters!!



Here remains the evidence of the miracle of the day - Tractors tracks in the lawn. They will be gone as soon as it gets a good soaking.


And HERE it the end result. #2 and #3 all ready to go!!!


TA-DA!!!!!




And look at this great flower- laden Strawberry plant that greeted me this morning as I was taking all these photos!!!


Now I gotta get to work! Have a great week!!