Mon-Tues, planted the Roma and Amish Paste seedlings finally. They are rather wee, but they'd also managed to attract some miniscule flying insects, so out they went. Hopefully the wind outdoors will have dispersed the little things and the tomatoes will fare better. Planted Basil with them, and will get some marigolds to keep them company as well. I did have a go at planting some marigolds from seed, but only one made it (and will be planted, of course).

Today, L kindly cleared some of the ground in the shade/sun area by the road, and I planted the iris from SIL Doris there, as well as all my shade/partial shade plants from over in the herb garden: sweet woodruff, creeping myrtle, dwarf bleeding heart, a few bits of pacchysandra, more iris, and tall meadow rue.

Finally got the gingers moved out into the garden. Poor things were so pot-bound! But now they have plenty of space to spread out. Decided to leave the currant bush where it is, but had to lift it to cut the pot off of it and put it back in. I'd thought about putting it by what I think is a Rose of Sharon, but the berries have a rather strong tart smell that I don't think my MIL will appreciate, so it stays away from central part of the backyard.

Put out the baby Dill, Rosemary, Parsley, and Lemon Thyme I'd gotten at the farmers market. The dill is looking quite unhappy, but hopefully it will perk up.

The Pennyroyal I got from Jeni is looking quite perky and lively. It's a mint, so I'll have to think on whether or not I leave it where it is... well, I suppose as long as I harvest every year, it should be semi-manageable... otherwise, I'll have to fence it in.

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Seems like only a few days ago William started cutting some of the hay. The haybine isn't cutting as prettily as it should, so L was out the other day with a fork, fetching some of the cut hay out of the still-standing hay, so it could all be tedded. The haybine both cuts the hay and runs it through chains to break the hay -- this helps let out the moisture faster. The first piece was tedded -- spread out and fluffed to dry more evenly -- then raked back into rows either side of the tractor. Brother Raymond cut a second piece, and that was it for yesterday.

We got a good bit of the rain last night, along with a rather pretty display of lightning, but the humidity is so much lower today and it's nice and sunny, so tedding and raking dried out enough of the first piece that they're able to start baling!

Judging the weather and how much can be done at any time is a bit of a gamble at times. You want to be able to help the hay dry faster (tedding), but if rain is coming you can't leave it loose because it'll get wetter and be more likely to rot than if it's in windrows. The sloped shape of pile hay sheds water.

So, L is out there now, helping to get the hay in :)

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Unboxed a bunch of stuff this week, especially yesterday despite the heat and humidity. Did have to take a few breaks, of course, and drank lots of fluids. The southwest room is finally looking halfway decent instead of scary. Needed to get it more or less in order so we could move some stuff into it from other places in the apartment. Seed grain for fall and/or next year's planting is in buckets to go to the barn. The big box that's been under the table in the kitchen since we moved here is finally empty, and will also be going to the barn, yay! Table we had in the bathroom during my surgical recovery period is finally out of there and being useful elsewhere. Various things are tucked away here and there, many books moved to at least the correct bookcase or part of the apartment. Some vacuuming done.

Much more to do of course, but things are looking up.

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Tried the Berkshire Brewing Co., Berkshire Ale, Traditional Pale Ale last night. L kind of liked it, but I wasn't keen on it. Too bitter for me, without other redeeming characteristics. We picked up a porter and something called River Ale by them, and will try one of them out tonight. I thought we ought to try different types, so there we are. Picked up two more of the Steel Rail Extra Pale Ale though, because I definitely think that's worth sharing.

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Probably should take that small box of books down to the barn now, and see if I can find a mold I thought I'd brought up. Not really important, but I might as well do a bit of decorating while I'm doing stuff around here :)