We have managed to clean-up most of the yard. Just look at how pretty it all is!
Part of the final challenge in cleaning up the back section before finishing the fencing was a Russian olive tree. It had grown wild with several new baby trees around it. For those not familiar with this tree, let me tell you — that tree is nothing short of evil! The wood is super dense, loaded with knots, and it sprouts some of the deadliest thorns I think I’ve ever seen! This picture gives a little bit of an idea. Those spikes poke out from the branches and tree trunk!
We’ve trimmed and cut it down as far as we can. Now we will finish it off with salt water and time. Not only do we not want to get pierced with these tree stakes, but we have animals that deserve more.
The work on the inside has now begun. We decided to attack the kitchen first since there will be no moving in until we can eat! First — get rid of the tiny kitchen counter!
I’m just under 5 feet tall — the top of the counter was almost to my chest. Trying to use it would have meant having to use a step stool, so it had to go! The counter top is significantly higher than the stove top….
So Jim disconnected the pipes and the counter was moved. What we found had our jaw dropping. The counter had no flooring at all; it was sitting directly on dirt. The wall behind the counter was almost non-existent with the outdoors being visible in spots.
Its safe to say that this is our new challenge for November. I’ll try to keep everyone up-to-date more consistently, but it appears it will be a while before the kitchen will be usable. After the wall and flooring are done, we will have to also redo some of the other walls and rewire the room. **sigh** I’m telling myself when its done it will be wonderful….
We have been chopping, cutting, mowing, scraping, and sweating. This overgrown mess is pretty much cleared up and most of the results looks like this: 
Well, Jim was examining it and discovered that not only was it in horrible condition, but the way it was put up was causing some major problems with the house.
We will be removing the jacuzzi later (Jim has to figure out how it was connected to the plumbing and electrical system first). I’m not sure what we will be doing with it, if it works because it is a very small unit, but I’m sure we’ll figure something out.
The archway with tiered logs will also need work and we will want to completely redo the steps, but it seems that this will be a perfect spot. It’s the very center of the property, so we will be able to easily access the chicken/pig run, the round house, the future garden plot, Jim’s workshop and work area, and the house from this spot. It has enough shade to be comfortable in the summer and has enough room for a nice picnic table plus add the grill and smoker. Ah, the dreams we have!
After clearing out the weeds (inside and out), we decided this old chicken run will be perfect for use as a hatchery. Some repairs will have to be made and minor modifications, but overall the structure can be used. Such a great safe home for those baby chicks! I can picture it already….
Each section of brush started out looking like this. Then, as the clearing began, we often found debris, like this:
The prickly pear cactus has little pears that grow on it that are soooo good to eat! I gathered a basket of these little gems last year from patches all over Albuquerque. A few we ate (they taste like a cross between pears and apples). The remainder I made juice out of. I thought about making jelly, but chose to make juice which I’ve used as fruit juice or to add to my sun tea. I could go on and on about the nutritional value, but I’d rather discuss how tasty they are!
The socorro has a few medicinal qualities, but for me — its just so cool looking. When we finish clearing out the property we plan on making this our cactus corner. We have some yucca we will be transplanting here to add a little variety, but this will certainly remain our mini “desert paradise.”
Tomorrow we start on the north side of the house so that we can park our vehicles without fear of starting a prairie fire.
Then he surprised me. He brought over our picnic table and some chairs and set it up in the newly cleared yard. What tickled me to pieces is the umbrella. It an old one he found buried in the bushes. He cleaned it up, attached some pvc pipe to it, and put it in the center of the table. Now we have a shady spot to rest during the day when we take breaks.
So, we worked on clearing some of that up today. I worked like a fiend gathering up all the piled dried branches and used the wood chipper inside the fence. A small mountain of debris is now about one garbage bag of usable mulch. Jim tackled the nightmare outside the fence.
Tomorrow we hope to finish clearing out the debris and weeds around this section of the property. For now, however, I’m taking a long, hot bath, heating up some soup for dinner, and then crawl into bed.
Although its still early in the season, we ended up spending our profits rather quickly with fresh herbs and greens, not to mention honey and baked goods. We didn’t quite have enough for some of the handcrafted items, but maybe next trip…
The musician that came out this time was really good and all the vendors tried to drop a little into his hat. It was amazing to see what artist had. They have beautiful drawings of bugs! I confess to not having paid much attention to those pesky things before, but the detailed drawings presented how pretty some of them can be.
and is enjoying his “secret” corner.
LeeFran Homestead 