Sunday, June 7, 2009

The Carnage Ends

The logging operation has come to a halt. Seven days later, the pasture has been cleaned up of major rocks, limbs, branches, and holes filled. The stumps and many rocks remain, but I trust the horses to navigate the clearly visible stumps as effectively as they have navigated the forest prior to logging.


Here is a picture of the effort after Day 5, prior to cleanup but after all the trees were felled.




Although the brown dirt looks garish, we need just a few good rains to green up the place, although we will not be growing any grass of substance until it is limed, fertilized, seeded and rested. Still, the horses are very happy to be back out, and I am very happy to give the horses some much needed "alone" time.

The outdoor garden continues to surprise me. I had all but given up hope for carrots, onions, and turnips, but as I weeded this afternoon with my favorite chicken, I noticed all three were up and doing well. The summer sweet corn and pole beans are also up and the peas are in blossom. The squashes have also come up and the cabbage in the green house is developing heads as big as a softball. Simply amazing.

The outdoor garden is suffering a bit from shade from a huge, ancient oak tree on the south face. I thought long and hard about taking it down to give my garden 8 full hours of sun, but in the end I decided not to. That tree will out live me. It sounds silly to get sentimental over a tree after clearing about 50 from my pasture, but those were mostly scrub pine, a few maples, hemlocks and poplars. I kept the healthy, spectacular trees, like one beech my neighbor taught me how to care for after it suffered a pretty large wound decades ago. And it will be the same for this mighty oak. My garden may have to limp along, but it would be completely selfish of me to cut down a tree that is so incredible in its beauty and age.

My sad garden cannot compare to nature however. While logging, we discovered Lady Slipper, a wild orchid that grows in the forest. Irises also grow wild around here. I have never seen such beauty naturally occurring in a place in which I have been so fortunate to live.

1 comment:

Sarah Henderson, BCCDC said...

Hmmm...can you add the "before" picture to this post for a better comparison?