As I mentioned yesterday, I’ve been doing some intense gardening. At this point, it’s actually more like landscaping than gardening. I’ve been digging down to about twelve inches to reach the root systems for the mass of blackberries that have monopolized our side yard for some time, and now I’m tackling an old, rotten cherry tree stump as well. So, “gardening” feels like a misnomer at this stage.
I’ve been learning quite a bit from this experience, such as the proper way to double-dig a bed, and the difference between a border spade and a digging spade. Actually, it’s my knowledge of, and appreciation for, gardening tools that has expanded the most. For instance, I read in a book that I would need a spade and a fork to double-dig a garden bed, so I nabbed an old unwanted set from my brother-in-law’s house when he moved out. I figured that I was good to go, and I got started double-digging an old bed under our kitchen window as practice for the new big garden in our side yard. I quickly discovered that those tools were not going to work. the prongs of the fork were bending every which way when I tried to loosen soil, and the spade wasn’t strong enough to handle even the smallest of obstacles. In fact, the handle of the spade snapped in two about halfway through the job. I didn’t know where I had gone wrong, and I determined to find out. As I learned, I had unknowingly grabbed a border spade and a manure fork from my brother-in-law’s garage.
What does it matter, you say? I’ll use the fork as an example. A manure fork is used for mucking stalls and managing hay and compost. Those jobs require lighter prongs than digging does, so the fork I had been using was woefully unequipped for loosening soil that contained rocks, roots, and countless other things. A digging fork, in contrast, has strong square-edged prongs that are thick and heavy, appropriate for a digging job. A good fork will be made of heavy stainless steel, and it should have a good ash wood handle.
If this is sounding nerdy to you, you’re right: I’m an official gardening geek, and I’m not quite sure how to feel about it yet. I will say, though, that my newfound love of gardening has fueled my design work in an unexpected way: I race through my work as reasonably quickly as I can in the hopes that I’ll have an hour or two at the end of the day for, say, digging out a stump, or building a manure stall or two. It’s sad, really, but at least I’m being productive.
I’ll keep you all updated on my progress, both through writing and photos. I’m currently stuck trying to hack out an old, rotten cherry stump, and it’s become my nemesis. It’s sitting out there right now, mocking me. Actually, I’m going to go work on it right now. Be back tomorrow!
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