I finally got around to setting up my irrigation pipes in the hayfield this afternoon. While I had finished moving the hay bales yesterday I then helped my neighbor Curtis with something and that took longer than expected.
Of course I slept late this morning. I decided to wash my clothes during breakfast time as I was past due to do so. Then when outside I saw that Diamond broke a corral fence board. She wanted to eat the leaves from the smaller walnut tree and broke the top board to try to get to the leaves. She got some of the leaves, but not much as this board was a very top board on the fence. As it was a top board it was a smaller/narrower board as being so high cattle usually wouldn't push against this board.
So I had to find another nine foot long board. Curtis, when cutting logs in his sawmill, cuts the round parts of a log to make the item square, then cuts the square item into boards. He throws the round cuts and will use them for firewood next Winter. He had a cut that was too thin to safe as a fence board, but would work as a top fence board.
Also, being so high up I hadn't added fence wire to the top two boards. Well, now I added some odd-and-end fence wire to the top two boards next to the tree.
So that took some time to fix. Then I noticed that my rhubarb plants in the fruit tree area needed water. That should only take a few minutes to water. Then I noticed the smaller fruit trees also needed water. When watering my service berry bush I saw some of the leaves were eaten. A few evenings ago I had seen a deer in the fruit tree area. *sigh*
Then when putting the hose away I noticed fresh pocket gopher mounds in the yard. So I got a shovel and a trap and dug for the tunnel. And dug. No tunnels anywhere near the mounds. Did the pocket gopher dig to check out if he or she wanted to move there? So I put the trap away.
I've been helping out my disabled brother. After breakfast I called his Easter Seals / Goodwill consoler/helper to ask her a few questions. Then I talked with my brother. By the time I was done it was now 3:30 pm when I started on my irrigation pipes. So much for an early start.
When I put the pipes away I try to store them in the same order they were laid during irrigation so that when I put the pipes out next year I don't have to do adjustments to make the pipes fit together right. I don't know what happened but some of the mainline pipes did not want to connect easily. Eventually I shifted a few pipes and got them connected. One connection is not ideal. I'll see if it works once the water is started.
While I thought I had everything I needed to connect the pipes, I found out I didn't. I had to go back to the yard to get more tools or parts a number of times. Why didn't I remember to bring this or that?
By dark (I got back to the house at 10:50 pm) I had the mainline pipes connected, and one of the sprinkler lines connected. Tomorrow I need to connect the other sprinkler line, and also the extra sprinkler line used when I move an irrigation pipe line each time.
With my sore hip I wondered how all this pipe carrying will go this year. Amazingly my hip wasn't any sorer due to carrying pipes. My shoulders got sore, but that is common when carrying so many pipes so much distance. I am tired tonight.
I should get the irrigation going tomorrow. ...we'll see.
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