Welcome to Legal Tender Farm

Welcome to Legal Tender Farm

Monday, August 09, 2010

I May Be From Venus, but He Definitely Is From Mars

Sometimes, I am totally baffled by how Tom and I could so utterly fail to communicate.

Here's the deal.  He's going to use some old railroad ties and stuff to build some raised beds for next year's melons.  At first, I told him to build them out about five feet from the mow line that he had made when he mowed around the garden last week.  I was thinking that I needed enough space between the garden and the raised beds to be able to get my riding mower through.

After thinking about it overnight I decided that they shouldn't be that far out, that they should be closer, like a regular garden row/aisle and that I would just get rid of the grass altogether between the raised bed and the garden.  That way, the raised bed wall could be the border and would keep the bermuda from encroaching into the garden the way it continually does - at least it would for that small section that it would border the garden because we currently only have enough wood for two beds.

So, Tom set about scraping away the grass with the tractor in the designated spot.  I stood there for a while in the blazing heat to watch as he dug a big gouge in the earth and shoved it around a bit.  When he stopped, I offered this suggestion, "Um, I think you only have to lightly scape away the grass and not dig so deep."  With an exasperated expression, he said, "I didn't mean to dig it so deep."  I took that as my cue to leave him to his manly job and keep any further comments to myself and I went back in the house.

When I went out to the garden today, this is what I found.


A very nicely tilled up, grass free plot.  Clearly, the railroad tie was used to measure the proper width of the raised bed, which makes sense.  And the bed is to be about eight feet long, which also makes sense.  But...it's, like, right up against the first row of the garden, which makes absolutely no sense because there is no way I can walk between the rows. 

So, I can either keep my mouth shut and let him build the raised bed right up against the first row and then shift my whole garden over next season so that there is room for an aisle, or, I can explain to Tom what the problem is and he can redo it and move the whole thing over about three or four feet.

4 comments:

April said...

Here's my opinion. Thank him profusely for making it..then move it over yourself. It doesn't look like it would be very hard since the grass looks 'thin' there and then you already have a 'walkway' in which to put something down to keep the grass out of the garden. I say this only to help keep the peace :o)

Mosaics said...

Oh, no, the grass is very thick. It just looks thin because the dirt has been tossed over on it. I can't hand dig a three foot by eight foot strip of grass. I know he'll move it over if I ask him. It's just that he worked so hard on clearing that spot that I feel bad telling him it's not where I wanted it.

April said...

Maybe if you put it on you..like..honey, I realized after you dug there and the the railroad tie that I wouldn't be able to walk between..can you move it over alittle bit more for me..please? This way..it doesn't look like he misunderstood, again..lol

PumpkinPie said...

Maybe your husband likes mowing and it wouldn't be such a task to go over the area again.
I would say to MY husband, NEXT time you're out on the tractor (hint: tomorrow - ha ha), could you please do an extra couple of feet because this new area that you did doesn't work with the existing garden. It's not a big rush, but I really do need a walk way.