Not Yet May

Yesterday was the first warm full sun day of the season and already I'm sunburned to a crisp, so it goes.

Got to the farm early this morning, kicked around the greenhouse with Bah for a bit- finishing up on the basil transplanting. The Boss rolled up and wouldn't you know it. Just when you think its over- more burning.
I piled up the brush from behind the greenhouse and hill/wall that separates the yard from the horse grazing field. The morning was warm with almost no wind, so not bad conditions for a fire- especially considering that the wood is piled along the wood's edge by one of the smaller ponds/streams that feed into the main pond. Its pretty swamp around there, thick mud and lots of skunk cabbage.

Before the fire was even lit, I joined up with the Foreman and we got started spreading compost-- soon wished I was burning instead. We shoveled two front-loaders worth of compost onto the row of gooseberries. I had a terrible shovel and the going was slow. Our compost is deep brown/black, with a lot of half burned logs, trash, and chunks of pavement mixed in-- had to pick out this junk as we went along.

The day really started to heat up- it was over 80F in the field. Poor Bah was stuck in the greenhouse where its usually a good 10-15 degrees warmer than outside.

The Foreman and I took the tractor to the day neutral strawberry field, down back where there are 10 rows of raspberries alongside where we planted the cabbage, brussel sprouts and cauliflower last year. We built up another pile for burning with all the brush we brought in a wagon from one of landscaping jobs. After kicking the hitch pins around for a while it was back to compost. In this same field, there are an additional 5 rows of raspberries in a sad state towards the field's center. Apparently the foreman and boss planted them a few years ago in attempt to improve the soil quality in that area- it didnt work. We lay down 7-8 front loaders worth of compost.

After lunch, we finished up all the compost and the problems started. The boss came by and we started laying out and attaching up the irrigation pipes/water guns and drip valves. The Boss was angry. He and the Foreman were at each others throats all afternoon-- I played the role of little brother, i.e. getting dumped on by everyone.

Inside the pipes are rubber rings and circle springs that needed to be checked and/or replaced in every 30ft length of pipe. We laid out alternating water gun/ blank pipe/ water gun /blank, with 3in pipe halfway down the field- then put in a reduction piece then repeated the pattern with 2in pipe.We put in plug pieces on all the open pipe ends. We cut the extra lengths of drip line at the end of the fields that had them back to 3 ft and put in stoppers. The drip lines are all new in these fields so they wont need purging. Lots of shouting and names flew as we marched up and down the rows- moron being the second most popular word.

The main irrigation arteries are all set and ready to go. The pipes we laid in the fields are aluminum, whereas the main pipes leading there are galvanized steel. 30ft of galvanized steel is very very heavy, but also very tough and weather resistant- most of our steel pipes are 60+ years old.

The main pond is located in the center of one of the horse fields, unfortunately. So this year the Boss wanted to change where the main pipes go through the field stone/barbed wire fencing that keeps in the horses. Years past, he has threaded the pipes through the slats of a steel gate, but he's getting old and prefers walking through a gate rather than climb over it. The foreman brought round the old tractor and we flipped 700lb stones. The biggest rock we wrapped in chain attached to the front loader. Somehow the tractor didnt flip and the chain held as it dangled over our heads during a very tense shout match/ stone wall building session. One length of steel pipe goes underneath a dirt tractor road, so we excavated it and dug a new trench.

At this point the foreman had his fill of stern shout downs and calmly lost it. He drove off in the tractor across one of the harrowed still vacant fields toward the parking lot. He coolly circled around the farm stand several times in the tractor as the boss shouted his brains out. Me and the boss stood surrounded in horse shit as we watched the Foreman spin the tractor in circles. I was convinced the foreman had gone berserk and on the next pass he'd start tearing the barn or farm stand to pieces with the front loader. He finally returned with a cigarette smoking, apparently he'd forgot them in his car.

Surprisingly, the aggression remained passive from here on out. The foreman and I carried out and attached the steel pipes from the new fence entrance to the iron steering wheel valve, then from the valve some 200ft to where the water pump will go.

I got paid today. And after the boss stared a long time, folding unfolding and refolding the check, the foreman was also paid. We packed up and closed the green house- end of the day.