Deirdre's Garden Diary: Composting

:: Brick Walk ::

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:: 1.10.08 ::

Get Down, Get Down, Get Down...

I finally got around to putting the bricks around the vegetable beds. Oh...My...God...It...Is...Taking...Forever, and I am not even trying to make it perfectly level. I don't want to mortar the bricks or place them permanently on the ground so I am just laying them out as straight and even and flat as possible.

I had to dig the dirt out of all the boxes and move them up and closer together so that there were no large gaps and so that a full brick would fit snug next to all the sides. Moving all that dirt and wood and bricks around was killing my back so I have been doing a little at a time, like one box a week! I know, I know, tell me about forever. When I have all the bricks down, if I ever get them all down, I will dump some crushed granite over them to fill in the cracks and help keep the weeds out.

It really changes the way the garden looks, I haven't gotten use to it yet. It looks a lot more formal and kind of sparse with the beds empty. Maybe it's because it isn't finished and I am feeling anxious about it. I hope once Spring gets here and the beds are green and full and there isn't any grass or weeds around them...just pots of beautiful flowers and herbs...I will like it a lot more.

This is still on going, there is a lot more to do but at least it's started. Now I hope I have enough bricks to finish it the way I want with paths also on the outside edges. I wanted to add some more raised beds this year also, so of course I will have to go around those too! I need to go back to the Habitat store and see if they still have some of these in stock.
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:: 7.30.07 ::

Project For Pennies

I found a really good deal on some cheap paver bricks at the Habitat for Humanities resale store. They have locations here in DFW where you can purchase almost any kind of building material that has been donated and the profits go to Habitat For Humanities charities. The stock varies from week to week since builders bring their extra supplies and donate odd things like old doors and windows, flooring or even bathtubs and light fixtures that they have pulled out of old houses when working to fix them up. Sometimes there is some really cool stuff.

I got lucky and found these bricks at one of their stores. The bricks were a good price, a VERY good price at only twenty cents each. They are multicolored and some are a really pretty orange and purple. I am on a tight and limited budget so I've been buying them a little at a time with each paycheck, 50 here 100 there. I think I almost have 1,000 now and want to get at least 500 more while they are still in stock (which is disappearing fast!).

I am planning on using them to make walkways around the vegetable beds.
I need to get it started though before they sale out of the bricks and I am left without enough of them to go all around the beds. I guess I need to go out and do some measurements and estimate exactly how many I need...but it's hot out there! I'm going to put it off for a while longer and just keep buying bricks until they run out.... lol

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