Thursday, October 10, 2013

2013 To-Do List Update #3

When I did the last update on the To-Do List I stated that four of the thirteen items had been completed, with two more being roughly halfway finished. Not a lot has changed since this, as now I'm counting five completed projects, and one than is nearly completed. This leaves seven projects that have had little, to no, progress made. Of those, I think that three of them can realistically be completed this year, with another being completed either this year or Spring 2014 at the latest.

Build a chicken coop
I suppose I have made a small amount of progress towards this goal, since I have started collecting some salvaged lumber from the old house we're tearing down. We plan to use as much of the salvaged lumber as possible in the building of the chicken coop. I still hope to get to this before the end of the year, but am starting to suspect that it might be pushed back until Spring.

Build a hugelkultur bed
We need to do a garden plan to figure out where to put a hugelkultur bed, and that hasn't happened yet. I'm hoping that we can get to it this winter or next spring, which means the hugelkultur bed will definitely have to get pushed out to the 2014 list.

Repair the ditches and gravel the driveway
This project has been completed. The repairs to the ditches I made earlier in the year have helped a lot, so I finally had a load of gravel delivered several weeks ago and finished the task. It has been a huge help, and I'm optimistic that it will last for some time.

Complete the expansion of the herb bed
This project was complete when I did my last update, so no further progress has been made since then.

Make and install rain barrels
I'm calling this goal 90% complete, since I have constructed all four of the rain barrels, and have three of them installed. I'll make it a point to install the last one before the end of the year so I can mark this project as complete.

Buy and start using a lawn sweeper
This project is complete, since I ended up buying both a lawn sweeper and landscape rake, although I'm still not sure I made the right decision. I have more experimenting to do to figure out the best approach for collecting different materials in various locations. The lawn sweeper does work great for collecting grass clippings in the yard.

Finish clearing along the front edge of the yard and plant bushes
This project is complete, but will require some additional work as not all of the bushes survived. I'm also suspecting that the use of clover as a green mulch may not be sufficient, in which case we'll have to apply a fairly serious layer of traditional mulch, or I'll need to continue mowing around the bushes with a string trimmer.

Purchase or build a shelter for the tractor
This project is planned for later in the month. We have decided to construct a 20' x 24' wooden shed with metal roof. I plan to take a week off from work, during which time my Dad is going to come down and help me build it.

Fix a route to get across the road with the tractor
No changes to this since the last update, at which point I was considering it complete. I need to do a bit of work to be able to get the truck over there, but I can get the tractor over there with no problem, which was the goal.

Build the pallet compost bin
I haven't done any work on this, but still hope to complete it by the end of the year. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that I'll get to it before winter sets in.

Make a worm bin and start vermicomposting
I still have made no progress toward this goal. I'm not willing to write it off yet, though, since it is something I can easily do later in the year when the weather is too bad, or its too dark, to get out and do anything else.

Install solar panels on the shed
This will definitely be pushed back until 2014, or later. Now that I'm building a sizeable shed for the tractor, which I plan to later expand, it may make more sense to install a PV system there, rather than the smaller tool shed, I'm just not sure yet.

Replace the siding on the shed
I suspect that this project is going to end up getting pushed back until 2014. It should go fairly quickly, but I'd like my Dad's help and building the new shed and the chicken coop will definitely take priority. Now that we are also tearing down that old house I don't know that we'll find time to replace the siding before winter gets here.

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