not quite what I intended

 So the paddock footing I just put down wasn't exactly what I'd hoped.  The stuff I used in my previous paddock must have been 3/8 crushed pea stone, not round - it definitely packed better than this mix. 

What happened was right after the material was spread we had a downpour that lasted over a day, followed by a ridiculous drop in temperatures.  The stone dust part of the mix became saturated and froze solid, and a small amount of the round pea stone is loose at the surface.  I could feel the stones through my boots, so I can't even imagine how uncomfortable it is for the mules.  I'm very frustrated and have no way to fix this, so let it be a cautionary tale.  The only upside is that once the sun warms it for a few hours, about an inch of the top layer thaws so it's not as torturous to walk on.

Also, this happened.

I took these just after daybreak, because it's a few hours later and now we're getting rain; this will probably all wash away by noon.  I hope this isn't a harbinger of how this winter will play out.

the late autumn rush

 Although it's been uncharacteristically mild of late, you can feel the winter in your bones.  It'll be here any moment now.  Time to clean up, lock up, and hunker down.  

I have a list of pre-snow chores about a mile long, but I'm fairly certain they won't all get scratched off.  I've pulled all my annual plants, brought the herbs inside, planted any late season perennials still in their pots, put away flower pots, pulled garden hoses...all the usual garden tasks.  My neighbor gifted me a couple loads of mulched leaves, so I fashioned a quick leaf compost area from leftover fence panels and lined it with chicken wire.  Mom added a couple loads of her mulched leaves, as well.  This will probably rot down to 1/3 the size, but leaf mold  is an excellent compost and mulch, so I'm very excited about it.  It's conveniently located on the forest side of the garden, and you can see my not so excellent compost bin at the top of the hill behind it.

I'm doing an experiment that I'm praying the mice don't ruin for me.  On Gardeners' World, Monty Don is always setting up potted spring flowers in the autumn, so all he has to do is set the pots out in the sun once the time is right, and up pop tulips, crocus, daffodil, etc.  I filled the bottom of a pair of large plastic flower pots (we can't all afford terracotta!) with potting soil mixed with sand for drainage, then put some Rip Van Winkle daffodil bulbs in the center of each.  A layer of soil, then some woodland tulips, another layer of soil and some hyacinth, a layer of soil and some crocus.  I put the pots in the old barn, and tried to cover them as best I could so the mice won't dig in there and eat the bulbs.  We'll see how it turns out.

I had Corey the Tractor Guy out one last time.  He did some last minute things like filling in the old stone well that the tree guys uncovered in the woods (dangerous!), leveling the landing the tree guys created (future manure storage area!), setting my garden ring, and the big project - new footing in the mule paddock.

First, the ring...I love it.  

I know it doesn't look like much right now, but once everything is green again and this thing is covered with squash or cucumber or pumpkin vines, it's going to look awesome.

Now...the paddock.  

So when I had this paddock made, I had asked for a stone dust/pea stone mix as a footing.  What I got was pure stone dust.  This is fine for a limited use paddock, or a riding ring, but for a 24/7, 365 living space, not the greatest.  My biggest complaint is that it doesn't drain very well.  It packs so tightly that sure, it makes a solid footing, but water tends to sit on top and in the winter, it freezes into giant ice slicks.  Not fun.  This also causes the massive amounts of urine the mules produce to sit on top of the material, bake in the sun, and stink to high heaven.  You can see how well packed it becomes:

I will say the stone dust definitely prevented any grass from growing through it, though.  That was perfect.  For the first few years it was  fairly firm underfoot, but lately it's been churning in with the soil underneath in thin spots, creating muddy areas.  Anyone who has livestock will tell you how much of a pain frozen mud ruts are for both caretaker and the creatures who have to walk on them.  Also when I body clip the little guy twice per year, the stone dust packed in his coat from the rolling he does dulls my clipper blades in minutes.  What's that?  Give him a bath first? lololololololololololololol...be my guest.  I know better than to poke that bear.

This time around, I made sure to specifically order a 50/50 mix of stone dust and pea stone.  Here's what it looks like in a pile:

And here's what it looks like in the paddock:

It's a little deep in spots, but it was no easy feat getting it in the paddock and spread with the tractor.  Fargo nearly shot over the fence a couple times, and both mules got a pretty good workout running around like chickens with their heads cut off.  It was easier than me shoveling it into wheelbarrows and spreading it by hand, though!  Fifteen yards would have taken me a week or more to spread alone. We're supposed to get a good rain tonight, so I'm hoping it helps tamp it down and settle it in.  This is the stuff I should have used for my gravel patio...live and learn.  I feel better knowing the biggest chores have been ticked off my list.  

Behind the house my new turtlehead plant in the bog garden, the dogwood tree, and most of the surviving crimson clover have all been eaten to nothing by the deer.  My first project next spring is definitely going to be that cat fence! For now I plan to settle in for a long winter and try to come up with some kind of design for my gardens.