Ants In My Pants

in my shoes, on my legs and they weren't happy!  They attacked me so much I decided to make sure I didn't have fire ants.  Zoom in on this and see my new enemy.

I was not wearing my glasses due to extreme sweating conditions so at first I just thought it was some small stinging bug I had accidentally smashed.  I began to get cold chills, took some Benadryl (because I am allergic to paper wasps)  and called it a day.

My last clearing project had been completed and I had moved to my next restoration project.

More tiny excited ants!

Was it the chain saw, the fire, the tractor, or the mowers that had them mad?

My smarter (than me) sister said, "It's going to rain.  They're moving the nest and you're in the way. There's gonna be a flood".  Okay, that's logical.  

To my next superhuman job I had chosen.  Another over grown part we have neglected since all the rain and life seemed to get in the way. Dad had tall "deer proof" (ha) wire here and it sadly needed removing and clearing.

The ants were still out in force.  I had speckled legs and had to dance and empty my shoes again and again. I worked anyway.  Ants were every where moving house.  

Then it rained, almost three inches. and my sister was right!  The ants have disappeared and I can trim to my heart's content with no dancing.

One more spot cleared!  My table is a painted air tank with a piece of wood on top just right for two cold drinks in the shade.  Saved all the metal I found in the fence row and kept the old tree stump.  I have three Virginia Creeper wreaths also drying on the stump.

It's amazing how work you can do when you're not doing the ant dance.  I hope they're gone.

The Cold Frame...

that's what it was called when it grew early spring plants.  The structure partially underground was covered with hinged glass doors so the sun's warmth could coax the garden plants into early growth.  On warm days the doors were thrown wide for "toughening" the plants.  During nights of frost and ice the doors stayed closed.

The ground was composted and enriched naturally.  The tomatoes and peppers were started on Lincoln's birthday and the potatoes must be in the ground by St. Patrick's Day.  So many rules that worked...sometimes.

This is how it looks now.  That's right another &%*# project I've dreamed up for me to try to accomplish in humid triple digit heat indexes. I feel compelled to right all that has been neglected.  Dad built this Cold Frame and began plants here every spring.  Now it sets minus the frame with only the cold rock walls left.

I  must remove the weeds after trimming overhead limbs and enrich and rework the soil into a nice loose soil.

I think I will grow worms in this...fish bait, earth worms, creepy squiggly worms that people string on fish hooks to catch wonderful tasting fish with...yes, worms!  We have night crawlers and red worms now I just have to build them a cozy nest with rich soil they will enjoy staying in.

We all enjoy fishing and this location for the bait will be handy.

Raising rabbits and worms to sell were part of the money I earned growing up.  Wasn't easy but always sold out. Hopefully I will have a new successful worm village by next spring.