Thursday, March 29, 2012

Shakstead

Welcome back to The Shak.

Today is cold and windy. I am tired. So, I will update you on my progress while wearing my pjs and relaxing with a cup of black chai tea with honey.
The new gate from the outside.
The tops of the sill blocks can be seen
 along the bottom of the gate.
The garden courtyard now has a gate. I built it from 1" x 4" x 8' pine boards cut to length. It is held together by mending plates. I hung it lower than the existing fence and built a sill to the outside using landscaping bricks. The bricks are held firm against the ground behind them by a piece of wood lath and a couple stakes. This gives the gate a good seal on the bottom with enough strength to roll the wheelbarrow over it without destroying the sill. It also keeps the vermin out.
The gate from the inside.
The sill is somewhat visible.
In order to make the gate lower than the surrounding fence, I had to remove much soil and create a navigable slope. You can see the landscape blocks I used as a retaining wall to the left and right of the gate. I have yet to remove the extra soil above the retaining wall on the right. That is pretty low-priority right now.
Another interior view of the gate.
The gate is held shut by two eyes and two eye hooks. One toward the top and the other toward the bottom of the gate. It all fits tight and will serve well as a barrier to the outside world.

I also dug a trench along the outside of the fence connecting the barn to the garage wall. Same as the other fence sections, I buried chicken wire. Here I planted two feet of chicken wire instead of just one foot. There was no gravel layer and the soil was easy to dig though heavier from rain and higher clay content.
Before repairs to the north fence.
I removed and replaced the boards which were both rotting and unlevel. It bothered me everytime I walked into the courtyard to see those unlevel boards with rotten lattice hanging all willy-nilly. I thought maybe someone would think I had hung them. Now they are new and level and I am happy to see them so.
After the repairs to the north fence.
I still have to replace the lattice.
I have not yet finished putting the fence together. I will be adding boards equidistant from the top and bottom boards and replacing the lattice soon. Because this section of fence is to the north, the lattice will not be in the way of the sun; however, it will do a wonderful job of blocking the wind.

You may also have noticed that all six raised beds have been rebuilt and are ready for planting.

Thanks for stopping. Come again soon.

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