Some of the things you’ve asked about . . that I remember:
- Irrigation System – Folks, I don’t know about most people but for us, there has to be a utility/benefit that is greater than the cost or we simply don’t do it. Whether it’s an accessory for the tractor or an irrigation system, we’re really trying to do the things we need to do and nothing else. We have a garden that’s 70′ on the long sides, 62′ on one end and about 32′ on the other end. We had to work around trees/shade. To put in an irrigation system, which would probably mean punching a second well, for a garden that size that gets watered 2 – 3 months a year just isn’t going to happen. Next year I’ll plan my planting a little better so that soaker hoses will work better. About 2/3rds of the garden now has soaker hoses which does cut down on the watering a bit. But, because of the shape of the garden, I made some crazy row system out there and part of it just doesn’t lend itself well to soaker houses.
- Watering the foundation – the best thing to do is google it. There are pros and cons but I learned to do it when we had major foundation issues the first time I lived in Texas. We had foundation problems and the foundation repair folks told us to keep the foundation watered. We will bury soaker hoses here and that will take care of watering the foundation.
- Strawberry Patch – It will get fenced before we plant anything. Deer normally don’t eat asparagus or rhubarb but when they’re faced with starving or eating things they don’t like . . just like humans, they’ll eat things they normally don’t eat. With the drought here, by fall, they’ll be just about eating the stone off our house!
- Canned goods under the longarm – I thought by some chance no one would notice. Yep, we store things anywhere we find a spot. There’s still room in the sewing room closet for canned goods but the things under the longarm are mostly either things for very long term storage or the things I want to use right way and keep from getting buried so the new batches of canned goods (like tomatoes) will go into the pantry and I’ll use what’s under the longarm before I start using the new stuff.
If there were other questions, I’ve already forgotten what they were!
Denise says
It is necessary to water your foundation if there is clay in the soil. Dallas is clay soil and there are foundation problems galore. However we live in the hill country now (like you) and there’s no clay anywhere around us. It’s solid limestone underneath. I have never heard of anyone having to water their foundation here or heard of any foundation problems. Most people have sprinkler systems around me anyway so maybe that’s why the subject never comes up. But I do know clay expands and contracts and that’s the problem with foundations cracking in Dallas. Clay soil. If you have clay soil in the hill country I have no idea where you are. Kinda curious of course. I’m far far west Austin area..
Judy Laquidara says
It isn’t only areas with clay in the soil. The first time we had to have our foundation repaired (and thankfully the only time) was in an area with very sandy soil and no clay at all. The foundation repair company installed the watering system around our foundation there. Here, the soil isn’t full of clay at all. We have very good sandy, rich dirty here and finding any house at all in this area without foundation issues was difficult. My understanding, and I’m no expert, is that any time the soil dries out and shrinks and then gets wet and expands, there’s a chance for foundation damage. Keeping the soil uniformly moist is the best way to avoid damage, no matter which soil type you have.
BettyB says
Watering the foundation! I had forgotten about that task we had when we lived in Plano, TX. Know just what you are talking about!
Betty B.
Barbara says
Judy, I have a garden as big as yours. We have rainbirds on poles. Two run at a time, and the nare hooked to a timer. We water twice per day and each sprinkler runs 10-15 minutes depending on how hot it’s been. When the first two shut off, two more start up, then two more until a total of six sprinklers have run. (two at a time, so three ten-minute intervals). With six sprinklers, we can water the whole garden. It works well for us.
Becky R says
Judy, is your husband still losing weight? He sure looks like it.
Amy @ Heritage Homemaker says
Even after 6 years, I still can’t get used to our last frost date up here. We don’t plant our gardens up here until after Mother’s Day….it’s almost as bad as waiting for Santa Claus 🙂