Bind Weed, Red Clay & New Garden Boxes

Last year we we couldn't keep up with the persistence of bind weed in the garden. It is by far the most vigorous plant I have ever come in contact with. Bind weed pushes through the ground on great white spaghetti like roots that grow 20 feet into the soil. Bind weed twirls gracefully up the fences, forks out over the lawn with perfect balance and come up to grab the delicate stems of your fresh produce. You can hoe it and put the remains in your bucket and next day it will be back.





Bind Weed August 1, 2010

 

 Bind weed is so beautiful in late July and August. Her deep green leaves and burgundy blush on the cream tipped buds mesmerizes me. The bud opens to the sun as white as a wedding gown. When we moved in, the lawn was blanketed with the white flowers of bind weed and I was taken by it's beauty. It wasn't until it took over my garden that I began looking for solutions. Garden boxes is one of them. Garden boxes with a heavy duty layer of weed cloth on the bottom on top of the lawn. Paul had mentioned building wooden garden boxes for the spring growing season but I had no idea they would be so spacious and beautiful. I am a lucky wife to have such a talented and willing husband. Here is how he made 3 - 3'x7'x24" high garden boxes. Cost was $200.



Shopping list

200 coated outdoor screws 31/2" long
water based waterproof cedar stain
12 - 2"x12"x10'long lumber
3 - 2'x4"x8' cut into 22" pieces for inside corners
36 ' of weed cloth we used a natural cloth made out of corn.

Tools Needed:

skill saw
screw driver gun
staple gun
carpenter's pencil
tape measure
framing square
paint brush
2 saw horses
and 2 extra boards for a work surface.







  Line up the boards onto a few extra pieces of lumber to keep the boxes off the ground and level.

It was snowing outside and we did all of this under the carport. We listened to country music and the work went really fast.  Below Paul is putting in the screws to hold the box together.

 
 

The garden box is 24" high so we make 6 - 12" layers then paint on the stain.

 

 

These 2 saw horses came in handy. Notice the 2x4's lying under the saw horse. The next day the sun was out and the stain had dried. We carried the separate layers out to the garden and decided where to put them. Once we figured out where they would go, we attached the 2 layers together with 2x4's by screwing the 2x4's on the inside corners. We turned the boxes over and attached the weed cloth to the bottoms with the staple gun.

Next the trailer got hitched to the white Ford truck and Paul went off to town to buy some clean dirt. The boxes were filled one by one, load after load with the finest richest dirt I had seen since moving from Southern California. The red clay here in Utah is beautiful to look at but the hard pan is difficult to sink a shovel into. When it is dry it is hard as a rock and when it is wet you can sink to your ankles in the orange red mud. Growing delicate vegetables and flowers is difficult in the heavy red clods of plowed up earth. Big Sage, Rabbit Bush, Juniper and oh yes, Bind Weed do well. This black gold promised success with this year's vegetable and flower crop. We of course put in a bottom layer of llama manure then filled it with the new soil.

Below are my beautiful garden boxes filled to the brim with lovely rich soil. Paul is already plowing the cow manure into the cornfield. But that is another story.

Time For Dog Obedience School



This is Kollie now 6 months old.



Kollie is a teenage bombshell, full of independence, lot's of bursting energy and smart too! I was crushed one day when my obedient little puppy refused to come to me. "Kollie?" I repeated. No response except for a little come hither look in her eye and off she went in the other direction. All those hours of training and treats have gone to the wayside. She and I are at a crossroads and I am the one who needs training! Walker our 2 year old Australian Shepherd needs experience socializing with other dogs and training so we signed him up first.  Our human family members and Walker signed  up for obedience classes at the Hitchin Post in Enoch,  just up the road from us.

 We were to leave our dogs at home for the first class. It is basically the humans that need training in communicating with their dogs. We were greeted at the door by a very large German Shepherd named Gunner. He was so gentle and well behaved. A beautiful and calm Siamese cat followed behind him and brushed past my pant leg. The wood floor was clear and open. The atmosphere was friendly and inviting. I could hear Ceasar Milan and my eyes caught his video playing on the monitor screen in a corner of the room. There where a few chairs lined up against the walls for us humans to sit while Pam gave her educational presentation on dog training.  My grandson and I sat down on the folding green chairs, while Paul went up and signed in for the course. Ceasar's heart warming and encouraging miracles gave me a spark of hope.  I was thinking of my little Kollie and our 2 other dogs and each family member and how we could achieve a harmonious way of life together. There were quite a few people there with various challenges and questions. Pam Williams, our trainer, explained to us that dogs are programmed just like wolves and our pets were not furry little humans. I felt my head sink as my visions of Kollie as my little baby dissolved. Though I could still love her as my companion and play with her it was also my responsibility to learn how to communicate in a way she could understand and educate her on the house rules. As Pam spoke and demonstrated with her own dogs, I was beginning to understand my dogs behavior better, I was beginning to see a miracle forming for our whole human and fur family!

 Our homework was to spend at least 15 minutes with our dogs heeling on a leash then having them sit down by our left side. Pam says we give verbal commands because we are human and need it but dogs can sense how you feel, what you want them to do and when to do it just by looking at you. Your expressions, your movements your posture all tell the story of who you are and what you can accomplish.We were also to grade the food we feed them also. This was a shocker. She told us to check the ingredients and change their diets. There is information on the internet about this grading system. I would check it out because in the 60 years dog food has been in business dogs are getting more diseases and ailments than they did before. If your dog is losing hair, scratching, has skin irritations, hip dyplasia or tumors, the diet is a good thing to check into.  Most vetenarians do not study nutrition. We love them and what they do for our pets but do your own research. It will save your dogs life and save on vet bills.

Here is the link for Grading Your Dog Food   .http://www.elkcountryanimalshelter.org/GradeDOG%20FOOD.html      Changing our dog food  has increased the shine on our dog's coats and their bowels are now firm. We also removed the ritual of dog bones after they ate because we found wheat made their bowels loose. Because the food is so satisfying they do not even look for their treat. Pam says we can give them a small slice of meat for training or treats. We also give a chunk of Taste of the Wild dry dog food. They love it and it is very good for them.



On the way home from our first dog obedience class, we formed our own alliance and agreed per Pam's instructions, to balance and center ourselves  before we walked into the house. This is one of the most important practices we can do as human beings for ourselves and for our pets. It felt good to be on the same page! Paul told us he was reminded of the training he did with his ultra cool dog Blizzard, a Great Pyrenees. He admitted he had forgotten many of the things he had learned when Blizzard walked the earth. This class was opening our eyes and our hearts. It is a lifelong process of practice and repetition

The truck pulled in the gravel driveway and we all exchanged confident smiles. We were ready and armed with knowledge. The door opened and our "energy" met with their "energy". Three sets of eyes looked up in awe at our balance and confidence. Little Miss Kollie hopped up to greet me and I told her firmly "Off".  It took only seconds for her to know that hopping up on my leg was not acceptable. We all made our way through the kitchen. It was quiet and still. They were reading us. I felt this thrill of accomplishment beam through my chest and I quickly took a deep breath to balance myself. Bedtime was equally as calm and quiet. We had become Leaders of the Pack and I felt respected and accomplished.

Read about when Kollie was a puppy just click on this link:
http://littleutahfarm.blogspot.com/2011/01/little-kollie-moen-border-collie.html


We will be taking Wind Walker to the first session and then we will take Kollie to the next session. We will use what we learn with all our dogs. But it is important to have Kollie and Walker each take a class for socialization and obedience training. The exposure and practice for our family is also valuable.


Contact information for Dog Obedience Training The Hitch'n Post Dog Training Center
 Pam Williams Trainer
The Hitch'n Post also carries some Pet supplies,and does Pet Grooming and Boarding

4200 N Wagon Wheel Dr

Cedar City, UT 84720
(435) 586-7530
Enoch, UT