This is what is left of our wood for our stove. We are at that juncture where we wonder if it is worthwhile to find someone who has some firewood available, and if so, how much we are willing to pay. This room, measuring about 10’ x 10’, was full to the doorway at the beginning of the heating season. And even though we have cut back on the amount we have to use each day because of warmer weather, we burn anywhere from 10 to 12 pieces a day. To make matters worse, not all of the wood in this picture is ready to burn. The middle of the pile is from a photinia we cut down this last summer, and it will need to dry out some more, unless, of course, we want a chimney full of creosote. So, in order to get a better idea of just how much wood we have left, I moved the photinia against one wall and piled the rest on an opposite wall. We have about two weeks worth of wood.
Now, if we lived in a colder climate, or we didn’t have a heat pump for back-up heat, we might be in a world of hurt. We can bite the bullet, throw on an extra sweater and endure. And snuggle a bit more.
Staying active helps to keep warm as well. That was partly the reason I moved wood today. I worked up a bit of a sweat. And, I made some progress on cleaning and organizing the barn. One can now walk from one end to the other without having to step over bags of lime, yet I have a long way to go.
I also started working in the greenhouse. The shelving units are in place, and I can tell that I am going to have to move more in from storage… after I figure out where to put the stuff that is stored on them. In the barn? I don’t think so. Not yet, anyway.
I have to back up a little. Although the shelves are in place, or rather, positioned the same way we have in previous years, I am not so certain that it is the most strategic plan. Typically I create two long rows of shelves, one in front of the other, and while everything manages to sprout, the plants on the lower shelves tend to get stunted because of the lack of sunlight. The plants on the second row of shelves suffer even more as they get even less sunlight. I could rotate trays around to insure that all plants get sun, but that sounds a bit too much like work. As I sit here writing, I think that I will try something different.
As my regular readers will know, the greenhouse is round. I am thinking that by placing shelves in two concentric arcs I might be able to get more consistent light to more plants. I have another project for tomorrow.
The seeds should start to arrive Wednesday.
4 comments:
In my high school class play, we made a giant rotating set with 3 scenes separated by walls. For each scene change, we would close the curtains and rotate the set to show the next scene. The whole thing rode on used roller-skates. Would anything like that work in your round greenhouse? You would not need the walls, just a floor ring to set your stuff on. A problem would be that as you rotated it, the entry door would get covered. I don't exactly know how big and heavy the dome itself is, but maybe you could put the whole thing on rollers. Then the door would move with the tables. But then the solar collector would not be aimed correctly. Never mind. STOP LAUGHING!!!
Shelving units with wheels would solve the whole issue.
Cart wheels from the hardware store are pretty cheap.
Do NOT read Cardgrrl's blog ever again.
i'm building one of these this fall it could help with your wood problem. it is funny how your life and mine seem to be taking a similar track.
http://www.grannysstore.com/Do-It-Yourself/Masonry_Stove_Plans.pdf
just starting our farming life check out the photos
http://picasaweb.google.com/clarinetsara
good luck
Brett Budde
Post a Comment