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Post by woodeye on Feb 25, 2023 8:17:22 GMT -6
It was not the best of conditions out there yesterday, but I managed to get the ends of the Iron Curtain closed in. The highest temperature I saw on my phone during the 4+ hours I was out there was 32°, but at least the wind chill wasn't real bad because the surrounding timber blocked the wind off of me most of the time. The Iron Curtain seems to have gotten uglier as construction went on, and there is still lots of work to do on it, but I think (hope) I have it deer proof enough to keep those 4 legged miscreants away from my onion plants. Which, by the way, are going in the ground today, all 10 bunches of Candy onion transplants have been sorted and counted. There will be 453 transplants that I will grow as bulbs, then a big handful of small transplants to be planted closely together for green onions. With all that said, the time is very near for my deer to have something green to stare at. Hopefully all they can do is stare. I'll flatten out the ridge with a garden rake today before starting to transplant...
NORTH END
SOUTH END
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Post by hmoosek on Feb 25, 2023 8:20:01 GMT -6
That’s looking awesome! Good job!
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Post by chrysanthemum on Feb 25, 2023 9:22:45 GMT -6
I don’t think it’s ugly at all. You’ve done a great job. I’m especially impressed that you got it almost finished up in freezing temperatures. The things we gardeners do!
453 onion transplants? Wow! I hope the planting goes smoothly today.
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Post by rdback on Feb 25, 2023 10:53:56 GMT -6
Well, there goes the basketball court. I guess we could still play "clay court" tennis.
Seriously, awesome job woodeye! Looking forward to seeing it turn green this season.
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Post by woodeye on Feb 25, 2023 16:05:14 GMT -6
Thank you, you folks are so kind.
Onions are all in the ground now, was actually a good day for planting them, cloudy with temperatures in the high 30's and low 40's. No wind hitting at the garden, a definite plus. It took 3-1/2 hours to flatten the ridge with a garden rake, plant 10 bunches of onions (627 plants all total), and then water them in. Time for a break until Monday, I see naps aplenty in my future until then...
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Post by heavyhitterokra on Feb 25, 2023 17:10:33 GMT -6
Woodeye,
That fence looks awesome! 453 decent specimens from 627 total ain't too bad a percentage either.
That pile of oak leaves already accumulating along the bottom edge of the chainlink looks like a potential lifetime mulch supply to me. Possibly even a potential worm bed, especially if there were vines growing along there for some shade. Easy-peasy collection site too!
Nice!
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Post by woodeye on Feb 28, 2023 5:58:18 GMT -6
Thank you, heavyhitterokra.
I did some research on whether a wild rabbit can get through chainlink fence fabric. Being naïve, I really didn't think they could get through it. But my research says otherwise, research says if they can get their head through the hole, they can squeeze their whole body through. Bummer! I think for now, due to the high cost of hardware cloth or chicken wire, I'll see how it goes. The wild rabbits around here love bush green beans, but except for those they don't bother any of the other crops I usually grow...
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Post by chrysanthemum on Feb 28, 2023 7:46:17 GMT -6
I don’t know how our wild rabbits and your wild rabbits compare in terms of size and population density. We do have them around here, though. So far, thankfully, that’s one animal that hasn’t gotten into my garden as far as I am aware. We do have rabbit fencing at the bottom of the main garden, however. At the bottom of the other, there is 2 x 4 and 2 x 4 mesh. It seems that skunks and armadillos can get through that, at least when young.
My neighbors have chain link fence all around their garden. They, too, have had skunks, armadillos, and coons (and, of course, squirrels—I forgot to mention those), but I haven’t heard them complain about rabbits. Maybe we just don’t have so much rabbit pressure down here. Sometimes when I put alfalfa pellets in my garden, I wonder if I’ll attract them. So far I haven’t seen it.
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Post by woodeye on Feb 28, 2023 16:15:22 GMT -6
That's promising news concerning the wild bunnies, chrysanthemum. I haven't seen any around here for quite some time, but that's not unusual really. But boy when I get the bush beans in production, they must spread the word to their buddies, because it's not uncommon to have to deal with a half dozen or more per year. I have all the critters you mentioned, so I know I can't keep them all out.
The wild rabbits here are evidently not very smart, and when I ride to the garden on the four wheeler and see one, he just sort of freezes in place right out in the open. I used to try to discourage them with my fancy slingshot, aka "wrist rocket", and I'd use lead balls to shoot at them. Unless the lead balls are painted white, I can't really determine if I'm shooting over, under, or around them. I tried white marbles and I could see where the marbles landed. I've even hit the bunnies with the white marbles, but unless it was a head shot, which I never once accomplished, they just sort of looked at me like "what's up with you?". After that had occurred a couple of times, I brought out the heavier artillery and took care of the problem.
For now I think I'll just wait and see if there is a bunny problem and acquire more wire if necessary later on. Oh, I did install 2x4 mesh wire that is 4 feet tall on the cattle panels at both ends of the Iron Curtain, the sides are just chainlink fence fabric...
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Post by heavyhitterokra on Feb 28, 2023 22:33:48 GMT -6
I've got a chain link fence around my elderberries and it hardly slows a rabbit down. It's amazing what those little boogers can squeeze through.
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Post by woodeye on Mar 1, 2023 7:40:25 GMT -6
Thank you, heavyhitterokra. Well that does not sound good. I'll have to decide if I want to put chicken wire down the sides of the Iron Curtain. I found some online at Tractor Supply that has good reviews, 150' x 3', it is one inch mesh. The roll would take care of both sides. I may make that a project for later this month or early next month. As for other critters, some will be unstoppable for the most part. Deer deterrence remains #1, coons are #2, and rabbits are #3...
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Post by heavyhitterokra on Mar 2, 2023 22:12:49 GMT -6
Tractor Supply will price match plus 5% off locally. I don't know if they do that everywhere though? Atwood's was the lowest-priced competitor I could find to price match them with. Lowes will usually price match, but they stopped giving a discount on top of the price match, so Tractor Supply is where I bought my most recent wire. I bought a 24" inch by 100' feet roll to lay on the ground along the edge of my rabbit enclosure to keep dogs from digging under the fence. I don't remember what I paid for it though.
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Post by woodeye on Mar 2, 2023 22:42:18 GMT -6
I'll check into the price match at Tractor Supply. Shawnee has all the stores you listed, so it wouldn't be a big deal to scope it all out. I've thought more on it and have decided that I'm not going to take the chance of letting rabbits get inside the Iron Curtain. I think I'll go ahead and get one 150' roll for the long sides and one 50' roll for the ends. That way I'll be done with it and not have to wonder if they will get through it or not. I want to get 1" mesh that is 3' tall so that I can bury 1' against the chainlink fence and have 2' up the side of the chainlink. I'll see how close I can come to that plan...
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Post by FrostyTurnip on Mar 3, 2023 7:39:42 GMT -6
Oh my. I’m glad everyone is okay. I bet you were hurting badly after that and I am impressed with your physical endurance on the matter. The position you were holding when you cut those panels would have crippled me and I wouldn’t have been able to drive home for about an hour. Thanks for sharing, woodeye. I just learned a ton. If I’m ever in that scenario, I’ll ratchet strap them end to end in the u shape as George describes and spill it out of the bed before unleashing.
That was a good price, though. I could use a good 20 or so panels. I hope to pick some up here and there if availability allows.
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Post by woodeye on Mar 3, 2023 19:31:56 GMT -6
Thanks, FrostyTurnip. I'll keep an eye out for more panel deals like that, and will let you know if I ever come up with some more. It turns out that even if I had actually bought the 5 full panels that I thought I needed, it wouldn't have been enough to close in the ends. I used a total of 12 half panels because I overlapped the corners a bit.
Plus, if I find some, I'll haul them back on my trailer next time...
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