We rented a skid loader to move compost around today. It was so much better than trying to do it by hand.

We made an 8 x 8 foot raised bed for vegetables and annuals. I also consolidated several other beds into one. I figured anything that had lived in the others while being totally ignored last year was displaying an admirable will to live and deserved a space in the new bed. It is therefore quite a hodgepodge of stuff. But I am scaling my idealized gardening ambition back to fit my actual gardening skill and amount of time.

The compost is beautiful. It is crumbly and dark brown and full of worms. That upset the husband until I explained that worms are good. Worms make us happy. I don’t think he’s entirely convinced yet. Let me just say, that my horses make some good compost.

I planted my watermelon and eggplant seedings. I tucked them in with some mulch. Then I poured the rest of the bag onto the bed. This was last year’s mulch and it was full of ants. Millions of ants. I scooped out as much of the mulch as I could and took it to the compost piles. Then I had a lie down on the grass with Bozo the neighbor dog until I felt better. I looked it up online and there is no consensus on whether ants are beneficial or deadly to vegetable gardens. I guess if the seedlings are eaten we’ll know. Now I have to go buy some peppers and cucumbers and whatever else looks good.

We would have done more with the skid loadered but the husband got it stuck while turning the compost piles. I’m sure that he will explain to the rental company that this was entirely my error.