More Seedlings Planted Out and Being Prepared.

The cold frame is producing good results. Planted out today were Cucumbers (two varieties), Beans (two varieties) and Corn. Looking forward to some wonderful vegetables. The Dill and Basil seedlings purchase earlier finally found their way into the ground. Most of the Basil went into the big Tomato bed amongst the Tomato seedlings. Supposedly to ward off the fruit fly. The remainder will be planted close to the kitchen. Some dill went into the Cucumber mounds and some into a pot near the kitchen.

Over the river (our paid workplace) the Travelling Irrigator experienced a disaster when it rolled onto its side. A poly threaded joiner on the spray head stripped its thread. Spent a lot of time trying to find a replacement but there were no spares to be found in the collection of poly fittings. Being after 5 that was the end of irrigation for the day. A good topic for preparedness.

Preparedness

When our watering system was set up many years ago we put taps at regularly spaced intervals to make it easier to access water from any point in The Orchard and garden. The original thought was it would make it easier to attend to a grass fire but in fact the real benefit had been to allow individual trees to be hand watered when they are in need. During dry spells not all the trees suffer. Some either have found somewhere to put their roots to obtain moisture or are just resilient. Others  need more attention.

Gradually over the years we have collected inexpensive but good quality hoses which are kept at each tap (well almost each tap). With so many projects on the go efficiency was achieved by not dragging hoses about and also allowing multiple points to be watered simultaneously.

Being prepared for a break or breakdown makes a lot of sense. For the want of a backup spare the entire day's work can collapse into chaos. A good example is our watering system which is split into three parts enabling the isolation of all or one part should there be a problem such as a burst ot broken pipe. The entire water distribution system consists of 1" poly pipe. There are two spare parts kept. One is a 1" poly joiner for big breaks. The second is a stainless steel hose clip in a suitable size for 1'' pipe for small holes.

Part of preparedness is thinking about most likely scenarios and having a plan (and a part) at hand. Just like having a spare set of mower blades. Lowering the dependence on outside help is part of preparedness.

One important item is organisation. If it can't be found because the storage system has no methodology then it is a complete waste of time. Whether that be tools or parts. Nothing more frustrating than scrabbling about in bins or shelves looking for something you think you might have and not being able to lay your hand on it quickly.

Trying to be self sufficient and live life simply involves a lot of work and time is a precious commodity. Planting, watering, harvesting and many other tasks are time critical and cannot be put off indefinitely.