November 20, 2023 (Monday)

Sorry Lois, no plumbing adventures today, I need to take care of the plant life. All of the houseplants that I took in need to be watered. I was most pleased with a potted parsley that was outside for the summer and will continue to produce sprigs of parsley late into winter.

Parsley

Parsley is one plant that can be grown in pots and brouught in to prolong the season

Ugly Fiberglass Bins

I’m still trying to find use for these ugly things

Years ago I was driving by a farm in Townsend, Mass when I saw a pile of fiberglass bins by the side of road with a “Free” sign. I’m still trying to find a use for them. Last winter I used them to store the dahlia bulbs. They can stack without nesting which meant that the bulbs had some breathing room. This summer I used them as planters for those dahlia tubers. The only downside is their appearance. They are truly ugly. The only thing uglier are the blue barrels.

Hügelkultur Experiment

Hügelkultur is a permaculture practice of covering logs and brush with soil to create a raised bed. In theory the logs and brush rot and release nutrients to the plants. I decided to give it a go with my ugly blue barrels. One problem I have with all the container gardening is having enough soil to fill them up. I thought it would be easy to dump some logs in the barrel and top it off with good soil. Even with a good load of logs it was hard to find enough soil to cover them. I was able to grow a few zucchini but the barrels are such an eyesore. Today I decided to empty them. It was almost impossible to tip them over because the logs acted as ballast. I had to snag them with a hook to remove them. I’m certain that the logs will eventually break down in a few decades but next year I’ll plant directly in the ground.

Hügelkultur Disaster

I filled a blue barrel with logs covered by soil with the hopes of gaining volume at little cost. Dumping it out was a real challenge because of the weight.

Ugly Blue Barrel

I tried growing zucchini in this ugly blue barrel. The problem was keeping it watered and finding enough soil to fill it up.

Daily Picture Theme – Rest

I participate in a daily photo challenge on the social media site Spoutible. Everyday there is a different subject announced as a Daily Picture Theme. I select an appropriate  photo from my collection to share. I have been sharing these exclusively on Improves With Age, my Substack newsletter. However since I have untaken the task of writing daily entries, I decided to introduce a daily picture theme photo to this website.

The Picture theme for November 20, 2023 is REST. I decided to use this analog photo of “Abigail” that was taken decades ago by my sister Pat. Cats are experts at resting and sleeping.

In 2013 I took part in a hike on the Wapack Trail here in New Ipswich. It was a very hot day and a rest stop was most welcome.