Mulberry Maintenance...

Intended to write this last night but plum-tuckered after a hard day in the "field" I decided to have an early night instead.  As I said in the last blog - whether hail, rain or shine, I was going to get to the mulberry patch yesterday.  And of course it did all three on and off while I whipper snippered, pruned, fertilised, dug holes, planted trees and hammered in tree-bags.  There I was in my raincoat - soaking wet, wind and rain whipping at my eyes - while our neighbourly cows watched me over the fence thinking I must have mad humans disease!  This is the life! 

I had been thinking lately, that the mulberries were getting a bit of a battering by the wind and would benefit from a little protection.  So I whipper snippered a 2m width, 5m from the western fence and planted 22 acacia and astartea shrubs in three rows.  These are fast growing and will be a great wind break.  I think we should extend this barrier all the way up the fenceline to "melaleuca corner". (which by the way are growing fantastically well - see the new growth in the photo.  Ghuhen and Shufaa will be very proud of them one day!)

The mulberries were nearly buried under grass and weed so I whipper snippered around each one (only a couple of near-ringbarkings along the way) and also along the length of the reticulation pipes.  The water is up to my bootlaces (and very cold) and it is unlikely I will be able to get a mower in there before I depart for Cambodia, so I am thinking about whipper snippering the whole area.  I have a plan for future drainage too.

Today I took a trailer load of the old sawdust mulch down there (luckily the quad bike floats) and mulched each mulberry plus all of the screening trees.  A quick pruning and a few repairs to the fence and my work in that area was done!

So next it was onto the amoeba where yesterday I had planted a few additional tubes and spread the mulch which had just been dumped in piles by the loader.  Fantastic excercise - I made sure I did equal shovels and rakes on each side for symetrical muscles!  Today I banged in the star pickets (using our new post hole "banger") and placed the ringlock ready to be attached tomorrow (I just ran out of dry weather and energy tonight!)

On other matters, the house floor is well underway - progress pics tomorrow.  Have been talking with a tree cutter about felling some of our trees and have some serious work ahead to assess the best source of floorboards.  Gave Aaron the go-ahead tonight, though i have asked him to drop his price.  Given the time we have available and the fact that he has an "in" with the shire, I think it is best that he does the submission (much as I would really like to have a go at it myself and much as I appreciate the offer from Al re the plans).

Trish left a message tonight saying she had more tubes so I think I am in for some serious planting this week!

So am off to bed - dreaming of mulberries, peppermints and acacia seedlings - and looking forward to another day of good hard work tomorrow.