[mid 90's in April is hot]
with the accompanying humidity...
but the weather has changed...
after all, it is only April...
and now, a cold front is swooping down...
out of the north...bringing clouds...
expected to drop daytime temps 15-20 degrees...
here in the sunny central valley of Nor Cal...
I'd been putting off the inevitable work...
not wanting to incur heatstroke...
so today's the day...
I have to start with the bean box...
the 4 hot days of warmth have started to awaken the pole beans...
and being pole beans, that means that their tiny, cute tendrils...
will soon become long, strong, grasping tendrils...
permanently attaching themselves to everything...
in the search for a pole to climb, up to reach out to the sun...
I learned the hard way, NOT to wait too long...
before giving them a place to spread their roots, and grasp & climb...
[it is almost impossible to not damage the seedling...
if you attempt to untangle the intertwined tendrils...]
the bean box, seen here on the right...
has to be freed of weeds & sprouted bird seed plants...
the underground drip hose removed & tested for leaks...
then the soil turned & amended...
[I still need to get compost...]
fertilizer added & then the hose reburied, fairly deep...
[so the stakes won't damage the hose...]
after turning on the water to make sure it works...
then a new sheet of black weed block is anchored in place...
and the stakes placed [pounded in with my 5 lb hammer...]
hopefully NOT cutting the newly buried hose...
the location of which is now invisible...
due to the covering weed block sheet...
only then, can the beans be planted...
after the planting...
which will be a mere augenblick* compared to the bed prep...
I'll sprinkle snail bait, string the twine for the climbing beans...
and probably collapse...
though if I have time & energy [HA !]...
I may start to de-clutter/weed the next target area...
as the squash & cukes tend to bolt rapidly too...
and need to go into the ground...soon...
the tomatoes can set for a bit...
anyway, I'm really glad to have cooler weather to work in...
not just for me...but for the plants...
which need to graduallyget used...
to the full sun so all my work won't be in vane...
seeing my little plants burned to a crisp right away...
so now, it's time...to get an early start...
[not 0-dark thirty, but close...I do need light...]
I've got my coffee, water & a radio...
my tools, gloves and Molly nosing about...
time to get to work ! I get my hair cut at 5:30 PM...
update & pictures later this afternoon/evening...
[*augenblick = "blink of an eye"...]
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