Saturday, March 10, 2018

Slow spring

I was hoping there would be more indicators of spring in the yard by now, but the weather is not cooperating (per usual). Nothing is blooming, not even the snow drops. Nothing more than last time is showing above ground. At least the rain/snow has stopped, for a while.

Inside, the seedlings are doing well. I gave them each a pinch of coffee grounds because I have a vague memory of reading that was a good idea. Today I thinned some of them and gave them each a pinch of granulated compost.

I did purchase a Havahart Above Ground Electric Fence Kit, from Lowes, to limit the dogs' ability to tear up the yard. I knew there would not be enough wire or posts in it, but Lowe's did not have any 17-gauge aluminum wire that was not coated, so a subsequent trip to Tractor Supply Co was required. I love roaming through TSC, looking at all that exotic-to-me farm stuff. In another life, I lived in the country and was even a stringer for the Farmer's Exchange for a few years, so visiting TSC is also somewhat nostalgic.

Today I broke open the Havahart kit and discovered right off the bat that the instructions are woefully inadequate. Thank goodness for YouTube. The kit in the video, though, is better than the one I got: it came with a tester and fence posts with a sharp end and integrated clips whereas my kit has no tester and the posts are green PVC pipe with holes for (included) cotter pins. Pretty cheap. While at TSC, I purchased more wire and some fiberglass posts with integrated clips; I think I'll get more posts, as I'm afraid the ones in the kit won't be tall enough for Legs (a.k.a. Clio).

As I'm sitting here, I'm thinking I just may return the Havahart kit to Lowe's and purchase the rest of what I need from TSC. Live and learn.

1 comment:

CommonWeeder said...

I, too, am waiting for more signs of spring, beyond the glory of my neighbor's golden Witch Hazel. There are a very few shoots here and there, mostly daylilies. Fortunately, I do not need any Havahart equipment. I do have squirrels and bunnies in the garden, but there is no point in trying to catch them. There is no sun today, but I remain optimistic.