Long Weekend at the Farm March 9 - 12, 2018

This is Archduke Charles rose.

Arrived early Friday afternoon.  Bert was already here.  Stayed through Monday.

• As soon as I arrived I changed my clothes and began painting the fence around the Rose Garden.  I worked on it a couple of weeks ago and made good progress, and got nearly finished on Friday.  One more paint session and I will be done.
• Saturday morning I began working on my corn bed in the Vegetable Garden.  Bert bought another yard of compost the day before I arrived, so it was ready and waiting for me.  I put a lot of the compost in the corn bed, but I saved a lot for the other raised beds.  I smoothed out the soil and loosened clods.  I didn't plant the seeds, though, because the weather channel said cold weather was coming.  I decided to wait until next weekend to plant my seeds.  I planted 7 tomato plants.  I dug out a lot of the soil in the beds and replaced it with compost.  Mixed it all in and planted my tomatoes.  I didn't plant any heirlooms because they just don't produce as many tomatoes.  I planted two Ichibahn eggplants, both in the large plastic pots.  I planted a bell pepper (can't recall the variety) in one of the large pots as well.
• Bert constructed some fencing around my asparagus beds so that they don't lean into the paths.
• I planted a Siam Queen basil and a Mexican Mint Marigold in a bucket in the Star Garden.  And I planted a silver sage in the pot that sits in the little wire chair. 
• Debra came by and gave me some wooly stemodia transplants that she dug up.  I have promised her a Cadenza seedling that I have, but I never got around to digging it up for her.  I planted the wooly stemodia in the Star Garden.
• Our neighbor Eric drove over with 4 bucketfuls of horse manure and dumped it by the compost pile.  I'm thrilled.  I have already used some on my Lady Banks rose and my Antoine Mari in the Long Border.
• Sunday.  I planted my 21 Strawberry Candy daylilies.  I was able to get 17 planted in the front flowerbeds.  I planted the last four along one of the paths in the Star Garden.
• I planted my Jabird Siberian Iris in the front flowerbed. 
• I had 5 yards of mulch delivered on Friday.  I spent some time mulching the middle section of the Long Border.  And I mulched the big empty bed in the Orchard where the avocado tree will eventually go.
• Bert and I hung the box spring around the old dead oak in the Rose Garden.  I will train some vines on it.  I have already bought the seed. 
• We drove down the road to Jeff and Amy's house to see the progress on their house.  We had a beer and sat on their back porch for a while.
• Monday.  I mulched around both plum trees in the Orchard.
• I cleared away dead debris in the Shrimp Plant bed, the Milk and Wine Crinum bed, and the Copper Canyon daisy bed.
• I sowed cosmos and zinnia seed in several beds in the Rose Garden.  I pulled weeds and spread mulch around the Fortunes Double in the corner of the Rose Garden.
• Weeded, weeded, weeded.
• Headed home around three o'clock.