Jul
20
2010
And a general update. First, I have not been blogging on the home improvement front because we haven’t really done any home improvements lately. The new job pays less than the old one, and truth be told, things are a little tight. Plus, there is just never enough time to get everything done. I have made the decision that when I have time off, spending time with the family is important. So, the house sits in it’s 80 percent completed state. One thing that might happen, if a certain solar job comes through, is the front porch may be done this year.
Now, onto the wheat. This was done as somewhat of an experiment. I must admit that I expected nothing from this, and therefore I am not disappointed with whatever the outcome. To my surprise, the wheat is growing well:
Hard red spring wheat
As of last week, all the wheat stalks have heads and are growing well. It is a little stunted because of all the hot dry weather we had earlier this month, but by and large, I expect to increase the amount of wheat by about 20 times what I sowed. I left the weeds growing in between the wheat plants unless they get too tall, then I pull them out.
Exactly what I am going to do with this when I harvest it, I don’t know. I may make wheat beer. I could save it up and grind it as needed to make bread and pizza dough. Or I might collect it and plant it again next year. I figure that if I do that, I am making seeds that are adapted to my area. Each successive planting will yield better, more adept, more viable seeds.
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May
26
2010
I decided I’d give it a try. Last year, my mother in law made nice arrangements of pretty things for the thanksgiving table. After the feast was over, I decided to pull all of the wheat heads out and take out the grains, also called wheat berries. This provided me with entertainment for about one evening. I stored them in a can to do what with, I don’t know.
This spring, I found the can of wheat berries and decided that I should plant them. After the rototiller was fixed, I tilled out another ten by twenty foot section of garden. A little research showed that I had either hard red spring wheat or hard red winter wheat, since the berries were reddish colored. I scattered the wheat on the ground and low and behold, it is starting to grow.
Hard red spring wheat shoots
Now, I still do not know if it is winter or spring wheat, I’m betting it’s spring. If it is winter wheat, it will likely die off soon. If it is spring wheat, it should grow to maturity, at which time, I’ll harvest it and then figure out what to do next. It would be neat if I could get a couple of pounds of wheat berries out of this. According to several websites, wheat berries will keep for up to three years in a secure container. The ideal use is to take out small amounts as needed, grind them up into flour and use within a few days.
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May
23
2010
Most outdoor yard equipment uses some type of gas powered small engine. Generally, these units are reliable and will give good performance. Every once in a while, however, they won’t start.
This year, I went to fire up the trusty rototiller (Yard Machines 21A332A700) to start working on the garden and I spent quite a while pulling on that rope with nothing to show for it. It turns out, there were several problems. These are the basic trouble shooting steps:
- Check the fuel. Gas goes bad after a while, bad gas will smell funny. If the gas has sat in the tank all winter, drain it out and replace with fresh gas. Check the carburetor, most have a drain bolt on the bottom, drain about 1 tablespoon of gas out. If the unit has a fuel filter, check that too.
- Check ignition. Remove the spark plug and check for damage. Check for proper gap. The spark plug should have slightly grey/brown ash on it, that is normal. Black gunk indicates a more serious problem. If several attempts at starting were made, the spark plug should have a slight coating of gas on it and the cylinder should smell like gas. Wait about 5 minutes then ground the spark plug on the engine and pull the starter. You should see/hear the spark. If not, there is an ignition problem.
- Remove the air filter and be sure that the choke plate is closed.
- After several starting attempts, the carburetor throat should be slightly wet with gas. If not, there is a fuel problem.
- If everything looks normal (fuel and ignition okay) then the flywheel key might be bent. This could happen if the engine was stopped after hitting something. In many cases, the fly wheel key can be replaced.
Briggs and Stratton 6.5 HP engine with flywheel cover removed
With the rototiller, I found two problems, no gas and no spark. The gas problem was due to a clogged carburetor port. I took apart the carburetor and blew out all the ports with 35 PSI compressed air to make sure that no other junk was stuck in there.
Briggs and Stratton 6.5 HP engine ignition coil
The ignition problems were due to a mouse nest under the fly wheel cover. The mice chewed through the insulation on the kill wire. I tried to re-insulate the wire, but there was still no spark. I replaced the entire ignition coil. Briggs and Stratton has a good web site where one get know how and order parts directly.
I also installed a new, properly gapped spark plug. Total cost of repair, about $40.00.
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Apr
23
2010
Back in the day, way back in the day, when I was just a young lad of fourteen or fifteen, one of my jobs was mowing the grass at a local church. The Church had a cemetery behind it, which we also mowed. The one thing that sticks out in my mind is grave maintenance. In older cemeteries where wooden coffins were used, eventually the coffin rotted away and the ground on top of the coffin subsided. We had to go up to the large pile of extra dirt and fill a trailer full, then go back to the area in question and fill in the depression. It happened quite often.
Last summer I began to notice a small area in my front yard where the ground was beginning to subside. I really didn’t think too much of it at the time. This spring, the area had grown into something like I used to see in the cemetery, which made me wonder.
Depressed area in the front lawn
It may be a little difficult to tell from this picture (it is hard to take a picture of a depression), but the area is roughly six and one half feet by three feet and it is down a good 6 inches in the middle. I drew a box around it. It faces due south, which also makes me think it is man made. I was always told that graves should face east, but apparently that is not necessarily so.
European settlement began around here in 1680, the town itself was founded in 1703 and land ownership can be traced back the “Great Transfer /Groote Transport) land grant in 1728 by the crown. This general area was a part of at least two farms dating from around 1810. It would not be at all unusual for there to be a family grave or burring ground somewhere on the property. Many times those graves were unmarked, the information passed down from one generation to the next. The original farm house was across the street where the field is now, the foundation stones and wells still exist. This area is about 75 feet away from the old house. I believe that house was abandoned sometime in the late 1940’s in favor of the one at the end of the street.
I will ask down at the farm house and see if anyone knows anything. If another spot like this develops nearby, it is almost certainly a burring ground. Lends new meaning to “Knowing where the skeletons are.” What to do about it, I just don’t know.
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Apr
10
2010
The weather turned nice last week, prompting the grass to start growing. Since we moved in in 2004, I have done nothing to encourage my grass to grow, yet every year it grows vigorously starting about the second week in April. Sometimes, if it is a dry summer, by August things slow down.
All in all, the yard is in pretty good shape. I took a day in February, after the double blizzard, and picked up all the branches. The white pine lost three large branches. Today, I got out the trusty Toro Lawn mower and cut the grass for the first time. There was a lot of leaves stick and other debris that I mulched up too. That is going to make excellent compost.
Before things get too far along, I need to repair all the damage done when installing the solar system last November/December. Basically, I need to rack out all the stones and reseed a around the footings and where the trench for the conduit was dug.
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