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| Shows dates plants were put into east bed |
Thursday, June 21, 2018
Thursday, June 21, 2018: Okra, West Bed
I moved two young okra plants out to the east bed this morning. I still have one more okra plant in an air pot inside. These plants are all from seeds I harvested last year. The first plant I took outside already is blooming and fruiting. I may let the first couple of fruits mature and harvest seeds for next year.
The veggies in the west bed are really coming along nicely. No doubt in my mind that the beets are in front of the basil and the carrots are along the south side.
Wednesday, June 20, 2018
Wednesday, June 20, 2018: Okra, Hydrangea, Mike S.; goldfish; Marvin
As promised, Mike S. stopped by this morning and looked at the floor at the south door. He did not have a firm answer, but he rapped on the tile just east of the door and it sounded hollow. He suggested taking up the tiles and see what is going on underneath. He said he would try to find time in the next couple of weeks. We have plenty of replacement tiles. He was relieved to find no obvious issues with the foundation. He feared he would find cracks.
A week or so ago, I noticed the tree Hydrangea (Quick Fire, #70 on our map) was listing severely toward the east to the extent that you could not walk along the steps from the back patio to the top pond. I could pull on the trunk to straighten it, but I needed to put something in to hold it. Today, I used another part from the hoist I bought a couple of years ago. We'll see if it lasts. The ants really seem to love this tree/shrub. There is a continual line of them going up and down the trunk.
I noticed this afternoon that I already have a good sized fruit on the first okra plant I put out on May 22. The plant I put outside on June 11 is still doing OK. I have two more plants growing inside that I think I will go ahead and bring outside tomorrow.
The plants in the west raised bed (carrots, beets, dill, basil, kale) all seem to be doing well. It doesn't look as if the rabbits (and we have a large population this year) have found them yet.
I changed one-half of the water in both the fish vases today. I filled both vases up to the brim. I need to ensure the water level will hold while I am gone for three or four weeks. Otherwise, I will have to transfer the fish back out to the pond before I leave town.
Got a call from the Marvin people this morning saying they would be out Friday morning with my replacement shade and a new lock for the south door.
A week or so ago, I noticed the tree Hydrangea (Quick Fire, #70 on our map) was listing severely toward the east to the extent that you could not walk along the steps from the back patio to the top pond. I could pull on the trunk to straighten it, but I needed to put something in to hold it. Today, I used another part from the hoist I bought a couple of years ago. We'll see if it lasts. The ants really seem to love this tree/shrub. There is a continual line of them going up and down the trunk.
I noticed this afternoon that I already have a good sized fruit on the first okra plant I put out on May 22. The plant I put outside on June 11 is still doing OK. I have two more plants growing inside that I think I will go ahead and bring outside tomorrow.
The plants in the west raised bed (carrots, beets, dill, basil, kale) all seem to be doing well. It doesn't look as if the rabbits (and we have a large population this year) have found them yet.
I changed one-half of the water in both the fish vases today. I filled both vases up to the brim. I need to ensure the water level will hold while I am gone for three or four weeks. Otherwise, I will have to transfer the fish back out to the pond before I leave town.
Got a call from the Marvin people this morning saying they would be out Friday morning with my replacement shade and a new lock for the south door.
Monday, June 18, 2018
Monday, June 18, 2018: Rosemary and floor settling
I decided to re-pot the other rosemary I brought home from the MoBot the weekend before last. It was in perlite, but wasn't rooting. I used the last 1-liter air pot. We will see if it perks up.
On a sadder note, I noticed yesterday that I have some subsidence occurring at the south door of the sunroom. I have been having some problems with the door and have had the Marvin people out twice before to adjust the door. Yesterday, I noticed there is one cracked floor tile and there is obvious settling right in front of the door. I called Mike S. (carpenter) today and he said he would come out later this week to have a look.
This is disconcerting. As you may recall, Mike had an engineering company come out on September 30, 2014 and test the soil before the footings were poured. After they took their samples, Mike had the footings poured on October 6, 2014. On October 18, 2014, Mike sent me the invoice from the engineering company along with their report. The report stated that "the existing fill soils observed are unsuitable for support of the proposed construction". I showed this report to the architect (Tyler) and he said he thought the language was a bit severe and that most of St. Louis is covered with fill dirt, but it is decades old. Tyler also advised me to keep the report "just in case". When I spoke with Mike about it, he also said he was disappointed with the language used in the report, but based upon his own soundings of the soil, he was comfortable we could proceed. He also assured me he would stand behind his work. We will see what happens next.
On a sadder note, I noticed yesterday that I have some subsidence occurring at the south door of the sunroom. I have been having some problems with the door and have had the Marvin people out twice before to adjust the door. Yesterday, I noticed there is one cracked floor tile and there is obvious settling right in front of the door. I called Mike S. (carpenter) today and he said he would come out later this week to have a look.
This is disconcerting. As you may recall, Mike had an engineering company come out on September 30, 2014 and test the soil before the footings were poured. After they took their samples, Mike had the footings poured on October 6, 2014. On October 18, 2014, Mike sent me the invoice from the engineering company along with their report. The report stated that "the existing fill soils observed are unsuitable for support of the proposed construction". I showed this report to the architect (Tyler) and he said he thought the language was a bit severe and that most of St. Louis is covered with fill dirt, but it is decades old. Tyler also advised me to keep the report "just in case". When I spoke with Mike about it, he also said he was disappointed with the language used in the report, but based upon his own soundings of the soil, he was comfortable we could proceed. He also assured me he would stand behind his work. We will see what happens next.
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