Gifts from the Orchard

The yield from the 2009 harvest of Kenny's peach tree was the most we have ever had! He picked a bushel for "show and tell" yesterday that beg to made into something yummy. Celebrating the Lord's provisions.

Recovery Gardening on a Shoe String

"Recovery" pertains to both the continued healing of the surgery foot as it continues to build strength and for the slow reclaiming of the gardens as Suzan is able to do more. Here is a BEFORE photo of our dividing hedge row in the back yard. Pretty scary, huh?


Mulch and woodchips didn't fit the budget this year, so making new friends in orange trucks were in order. Not premium product of course, but free woodchip/mulch and free delivery with a smile is not a bad thing at all. (photo not original... yanked from a google search).


After lots of pitchfork and wheelbarrow hauling, and Suzan learning how to back up a trailer (close your eyes and imagine the calamity), the hedgerow was reclaimed!

Wrangling Trouble and Relocating Spring Growth

MANY hours were logged-in this past weekend hauling loads of damp cat tails from the banks of the pond to the compost area, weeding, cutting back and thinning out dry grasses, major pruning of bushes and trees, re-directing climbing vines, and transplanting new residents.

Thank you to the Stonebacks for sharing your zebra grass and to Christine Sames for sharing all of your lilies! They have been successfully transplanted and are all taking root in Perkiomenville.

WOOT! For Working Parts

We no longer have to use scary electricity maneuvers to start the tractor. Thanks to Ken for having the patience to fix it and a BIG "THANKS" to Dennis for being an expert consultant!

Fab Weather and the Pond Lady

This weekend's weather made it possible for hours of yard work catch up. Mass post-winter clean up was accompanied by hose fun, sun burn, and yes, a broken lawn mower.

Sunday evening, Suzan finally had a chance to get into the pond and clear out some of the over grown cat tail plants. Just as she was heading out, Ken and the kids had spotted a 3' water snake. Ken double-checked the Internet to identify and make sure that the snake was harmless, which it was. So, fighting slithery snake phobia in an effort to teach her kids not to be wimps (even though she was freaking out on the inside), she decided to proceed with the mission. Then her hero jumped into action: Ken spotted the snake near the bank (with a frog in it's mouth!) and was able to capture it! The task was put back on track, and even though it was a bit unnerving rooting around for things unseen, with the help of the kids and metal rakes, a portion of the over grown plants were uprooted and cleared out.

Meadow Frontiers

For a few years, we have talked about putting camp sites along the path of our upper field, leading to the fire ring area. Today, Hayden and his friend Jonathan were given the task of planning the site locations. They set out with a check list, a google map of the property and flag markers. As you can see, they took the quest seriously (and yes, we are still pondering Hayden's choice of head safety gear). Morgen helped finalize the map after she got home from school. They came up with a solid plan that we intend to implement over the next month. We look forward to working on this project and sharing the meadow with our friends this summer.

Spring Activities Have Begun

Spring was celebrated at the Knott meadow this past week. Not only was it the official start of spring on the calendar, but we were finally able to have the lawn tractor repaired. "Inga" is running smoothly again and has her blades sharpened and is ready to go! We also trimmed back the zebra grasses and pruned up the cherry tree out by the pond.

Other signs of spring this week: a picnic basket lunch in the fort for Morgen + Hayden, the early purple and yellow blooms, and pond visitors— a blue heron and a mallard duck. Welcome!