Breaking ground
“There’s no going back now,” she said, for the 147th time.
Hello prairie fans, and happy Monday! Sorry I was too busy rearranging bricks yesterday afternoon to write to you. (Well, OK, I’m not that sorry.)
It’s been a big week!
Last Sunday night I received notice I was eligible for a COVID-19 vaccine (for unknown reasons) and was offered an appointment for a shot 2 hours away in Salisbury, MO. Not the location I would’ve picked, but OK. So early Wednesday I trekked out into the thunderstorm (complete with a wrong turn that sent me down some near-flooded dirt country roads) to get some of that sweet Pfizer juice.
The scene at the Knights of Columbus felt like something out of a zombie movie: uniformed army guys directing traffic, plainclothes volunteers buzzing around with “AmeriCorps Disaster Response Team” emblazoned on vests and t-shirts… it was eerie. It was also extremely fast and efficient, and I am incredibly grateful.
I am also pleased to report my parents finally have vaccine appointments, too. (Thanks to a tip from HB.) Can’t wait to reunite in immunity in a few short weeks!
The vaccine made me super sleepy, and I spent the next day and a half struggling to get off the couch. But get off the couch I did! And we’ve been making some moves over here in #TheFunkyard ever since.
Finally put up some squirrel baffles on our birdfeeders, only to learn that squirrels can literally jump from the ground six feet away and onto the pole. (It’s an incredible feat. Maybe they do deserve that seed.)
Broke ground! But to be honest, I just dug up a very small amount of grass and then decided I wanted to lay the edges of the flower beds first. So now there’s a single 1 foot x 1 foot square of dirt awkwardly in the yard. Still counts!
Picked up maybe 100 bricks from around the yard and arranged them into our first two garden beds. Yes, the previous homeowners left that many bricks. No, they (mostly) weren’t being used for anything — they were literally strewn about. (I have so many questions about these people and how they made decisions.)
Burned a HUGE amount of trash wood (which was also strewn all over the yard) and brush, again, left behind by the previous owners.
Went to a “how to start native plants from seed” workshop at the KC Farm School led by my new best friend, Patti Ragsdale from Happy Apple’s Farm native plant nursery. Can’t wait to put those skills to use, and see if Patti will hire me or adopt me or just let me camp out in her backyard (aka her prairie garden paradise.)
Put in a big ol’ order for 10 cubic yards of compost+soil mix for the new garden beds from Missouri Organic Recycling.
PHEW!
On deck:
Lots of sod cutting! Bye, lawn! The soil we ordered will arrive the 31st, so that’s our deadline to have the beds prepared. Wish us luck!
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I’m reading:
The Fantasy Of Political Intimacy by Eve Fairbanks. Just read it.
I’m writing:
Does Smoking Marijuana Cause Cancer? (for Discover)
Should You Walk or Run for Exercise? (for Discover)
OK prairie people, I’m off to go yell at some squirrels.
Take care please,
XO
Anna
P.S. I did start switching my garden plan over to Photoshop (er, Gimp). It’s much prettier; here’s a sneak peek. Leave me a comment with your favorite prairie plant so I can be sure to include it, there’s still plenty of room!
I need some legumes in there!
Already got Asclepias tuberosa I presume?