The temp the last two days has been in the high 70’s F which makes outdoor work a little warmer than when the temp is lower. A gentle breeze is blowing which helps a lot. The time of day I was out there had the big tree in back shading at least some of the workspace.
I was able to finish digging out the peonies and there are ten still alive and a few odds and ends roots that may or may not root again. I put them on the bricks and washed them down with the hose. Once they are good and dry will pack them in some nice dry sawdust or use the bag of orchid wood chips I never used to keep them dry and then plant them in the spring.
I was able to remove the matted detritus on the top of the bed. I hauled my outdoor fire burning circle out of the garage and put the detritus and bits of dead wood in it. I tried to set it afire but it didn’t light easily so I watered that spot down. Will let this stuff dry out a bit more and take the time to build a fire in there. No way do I want the mugwort sprouting anywhere else in the yard, and I’m being real careful not to load the trash bin up with too much of it as yard waste is forbidden in it.
The old bed pretty much has very loose planting medium, bits and pieces of the decomposed wood, the landscape fabric underneath — and the ants.
I put some more tero down and will leave it like that for now. Next step will be to shovel the dirt into the wheelbarrow and haul it out back, far from the house and outbuildings. Let any ants in there frolic freely in the field. After that the landscape fabric will be pulled up and put in the dumpster. Once everything is exposed, I’ll decide how to approach ant armageddon.
Tao Talk 
gorgeous and some fantastic trees!
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Thank you, Carol Anne. It’s coming along nicely. Yes the trees are like family members and I have a fond affection for them.
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A lot of hard work! You’ll sleep well tonight. (K)
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I did! And my muscles and joints are hurting (in a good way.)
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I hope the fight against the ants goes well
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Thank you, Sadje. Me too.
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🧡🧡🧡
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You need to come to our house please! lol. You going to use Tero ant killer?
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Yes, I have the small containers out there for now with bigger ones for outside on the way. That said, when I put them down a few days ago they seemed real interested. I put some more down yesterday after clearing that stuff out and they ignored them ::sigh::. I have the boxes of borax on standby (for them and the poison ivy.)
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Cool…hopefully they will track it to their major nest.
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Looks like you’ve been pretty busy, Lisa. We’re currently going through a pretty wet period in good ole New Jersey with on-and-off rain – definitely not the kind of weather that makes you feel you want to be outside!
Sadly, it also impacted by beloved annual Rock the Farm festival, which was postponed on short notice until June 1, 2024 – definitely the right call. In addition to rain there’s a good deal of wind, especially close to shore where the venue is located. They forecast gust of up to 60 miles, so it also would have been a public safety issue to conduct an outdoor event, especially of that magnitude.
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Yes, I have and I was out there again today. Will take more pics to share. It’s almost done. The logs will take a lot more work.
Sorry to hear the weather is pitching a fit there. That is a big cancellation and what a headache it must be for all involved. Did you hear about the mudfest at Burning Man this year? I almost had to laugh as I learned how much money it costs to go and how many private jets fly ultra-rich participants in so they can put up their air conditioned domes.
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Good luck with the rest of it, Lisa, looks like a huge project!
The cancelation/postponement of Rock the Farm is a minor inconvenience of fans of live music like myself but unfortunately a real headache for the CFC Foundation, given the event is their key annual fundraiser to support their addiction post-rehab programs.
Apparently, all sold tickets remain valid, but I think I’m going to buy a new ticket for June, so they can use the money I previously spent on my current ticket as a moderate donation. If most folks would that, it could help them out a bit.
Somehow I missed the Burning Man fiasco, which I guess should have been renamed Raining Man! While Rock the Farm also offers VIP packages, I don’t believe they are anywhere close to being comparable to Burning Man. Plus, the funds are supporting an important cause.
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Christian, I hope others do like you do and consider the $$ for the ticket a donation to the fund and buy new ticket next year.
LOL on Raining Man! I think it caught my attention when I read an article about people blockading the festival because the “heart” of the festival has been corrupted with all of these mega rich people flying in and the ordinary folks who used to come have been outpriced and locked out. Maybe Mother Nature flipped the script on them?
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Good work, Lisa! I’m impressed!
~David
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Thanks, David. LONG OVERDUE. I hope this takes care of the issue.
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Good job, Lisa. I did the same thing the first year we lived here in Michigan. It took me three years to get the gardening beds around the house the way I wanted them. We finally hired a guy to come and put drains in to drain the water away from the foundation. He graded the beds and replanted my day lillies and other plants. Then we rocked everything. I think all the decaying bark is an invitation to the ants to make a home. I had them too. I planted lavender where the ants lived and they seem to be gone. Good job. Let’s hope the ants stay out in the field.
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Thank you very much, Colleen. Lots of hard work and expense I’m sure. That pile of cut logs is going to be a major effort.
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Oh yeah! Just take your time and be safe.
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