Just Little Bites ...

[Shawn T. W.]

I got home late this morning, and put on the backhoe (BH) on my Little Baby Fergie as it was starting to sprinkle, I've only gotten .62” of rain in the past 2 months, so it was very welcome, but I was hoping to clean out the creek that has been dry, and hopefully widen, and maybe deepen it, it has what I call “bedrock” that I have dug down to before with the BH, but it's like sand stone . . .

I cut the creek banks back some to be able to get across a couple of years ago, as my tiny tires couldn't climb the banks, and just up stream of there I had tried digging a “watering hole” to have a deeper spot to suck/pump water out to water my trees … this was the deepest spot on my property, and earlier this year there were fish up to 3"+ in there, as it dried up, I saw raccoon tracks ... Hopefully I can get it deep enough, and enough water to get the fish through the next dry spell ...

This is what it looked like today … looking upstream ...

This is the access I had dug to get to the watering hole, but heavy rains washed it out, as the back pasture drains into the creek …

So I turned around, and started to make it accessible, as I wanted 2 ways in/out, in case I got stuck … the other way in/out was the lower end of the creek …

I noticed the deer have been trying to paw at this one spot that was damp, I think I'm gonna try to dig out that spot if I can, not sure if it's a seep or maybe a spring … ? But wanted to get the other stuff done before I get it too wet in there!

Once I got down in the creek bed, I started downstream, scooping up the rock and gravel that had accumulated …

Once cleaned out, I turned around and was able to get the tips of the Piranha Tooth Bar under the edge of a lip of some of the “bedrock” and I broke up several pieces!

Turned around and tried to get it with the thumb, but, couldn't get a good grip on it, or lift it high enough …

So I tried the bucket, and just barely got it wedged in there to carry it off to a pile I'm making a back stop for my rifle range . . .

 

[Shawn T. W.]

Then I started on the widening project.

Unfortunately with this little SCUT the BH doesn't have much reach (or power!) but I kept picking away at the rocky ground …

Once I got as much as I could do from there done, and scooped up the “spoils” (stuff I dug up) to haul off to the pile, then I had a bit wider spot down in the creek bed to get into and dig from down there . . . I just kept taking little bites until I couldn't reach any more, then hauled off the spoils, then 2 more sessions with the BH … all done for today.

It rained on and off, but not very much, .08” total - just enough to get me wet … I got quite a pile of dirt/rocks accumulating!

This it for now, but it was getting late, and colder, and I still needed to get dinner … I need to call in the morning to see if my trucking company has another load lined up for me to pick up on Sunday, as the load I have now has quite a lot of leeway when I deliver it on Sunday … if I don't have another load lined up, I'm probably gonna put in another half a day on widening this some more in the morning, if we don't get too much rain tonight, and the creek starts to flow . . . !

That one section is now twice as wide!

I'm always amazed what this little overgrown lawnmower can do, just gotta take little bites and keep
at it!

 

[Alan W.]

Looks good. Time patience a bit of skill and a person can do amazing things with a small TLB.

 

[jkmfarmer]

STW - Nice work. I've searched the net and can only find conflicting answers to this question. How much water do you put on your apple trees per day or per week? I've planted some new trees and am interested in knowing what works for you. I'm in NW PA and in a bit of a drought. The new trees seem to be doing well so I'll probably just keep doing what I've been doing, and that is 8 - 10 gallons every other day. But I'm afraid I've just been lucky, and I'm interested in a 'proven' formula for success. Thanks....

 

[tacticalturnip]

More impressive work from you and your little red Massey; thank you for posting!

 

[CalG]

Play toys at play time.

A 5 inch rain can do so much more ;-)

 

[Shawn T. W.]

How much water do you put on your apple trees per day or per week?

I'm quite often gone for 3-4 weeks at a time, so if God hasn't watered them they get 5-10 gallons when I get home ... If we have had a 1"+ rain once a week, I don't water them ... I believe they do better with once a week watering ... This last 5-6 weeks though I've been swinging by with a load, and have been able to water every 5-7 days!

Started out hauling water out of the creek by dipping a 5 gallon bucket in, then walking it over ... Then used the bucket to scoop and dump ...

This is my current setup ... I have 90 trees/bushes between 45-6 months old ...

 

[bdhsfz6]

Nice job on the stream banks!

I really envy your ability to do work like that without breaking some environmental law. Around here, dry or not, I can't even spit in a stream bed without getting the DEP on my back. 5 years ago, I was fined $1000 for cutting back a stream bank without a permit, and threatened with jail time if I did it again. All I wanted to do was install some concrete blocks to control bank erosion during high water events.

When I tried to do it right, my permit application was denied due to wetland encroachment. I never did figure out how a dry hay field could be considered wetland. I swear these people were trained by the Gestapo!

Now, I've lost about 30' of my field along the stream due to bank erosion and the stream runs brown after every heavy rainstorm. I guess it's ok for mother nature to destroy "wetland" but I get fined for trying to save it! Go figure!

 

[Eagle1]

Nice job on the stream banks!

I really envy your ability to do work like that without breaking some environmental law. Around here, dry or not, I can't even spit in a stream bed without getting the DEP on my back. 5 years ago, I was fined $1000 for cutting back a stream bank without a permit, and threatened with jail time if I did it again. All I wanted to do was install some concrete blocks to control bank erosion during high water events.

When I tried to do it right, my permit application was denied due to wetland encroachment. I never did figure out how a dry hay field could be considered wetland. I swear these people were trained by the Gestapo!

Now, I've lost about 30' of my field along the stream due to bank erosion and the stream runs brown after every heavy rainstorm. I guess it's ok for mother nature to destroy "wetland" but I get fined for trying to save it! Go figure!

Yup the OP enjoys the freedom of living in a poor rural area with no permitting anything in many counties. The man power and services to permit anything do not exist and there are no enforcement types.
Only way to have a problem is causing harm to a neighbors property.
You can not run raw sewage into a neighbors land, for example, but the neighbor will have to complain before anyone else would look.
Different story within town or city limits, almost all of us out here own acreage not lots. Near me almost all properties are >40 ac most over 160.
On the other side is the county assessor physically visits every property every year or 2 to see if any taxable improvements have been made. You do not get to avoid the tax man...

 

[Shawn T. W.]

Yeah ... Most people are shocked when they hear I have a "poop-pond"! That's what I call it anyways, officially it's called a "lagoon" ... All sewage from my house goes directly into it, no holding tank ... It was located inside of this square fenced off section, as required by state law, but previous owners didn't bother to keep the fence cleared, or the interior either, the poop-pond needs sunlight and air flow (wind) to work!

I set about getting some sun and air flow, one little bite at a time! You can just barely see the green discharge pipe ... I was trying to keep most of this tree from falling into the "pond"! (Fence is on far right side going into the cedars!)

Got it one piece at a time over the fence!

Much better now! Left a few trees on the North and East side, house is up hill and East ...