On Sun, 22 Aug 2004 10:47:37 -0700, (Glenna Rose) wrote:
(snip)
When one of my middle son's work mates delivered a load of compost to my
yard while I was at work, both of them unloading it, they went into the
back yard. His fellow worker graciously said, "Your mother's eclectic,
isn't she?" When he told me that, I laughed and said, "That is a polite
way of saying your mom's weird." Later, the person and I talked in
person, and he told me they are like that also, using all sorts of things
in unusual ways, or "out of the norm" of the way others might use them.
Many people would buy new concrete blocks to build a wall rather than
acquire used ones if they had the opportunity. Most people would not use
concrete blocks for a raised bed, but when I got them for free (only labor
needed), it seemed logical (and longer lasting than wood).

I tried concrete blocks around my raised beds but found them too uncomfortable
to work around. I like to work in the garden in shorts and barefoot, and working
around those concrete blocks was too often painful and involved too much loss of
skin. Those things are rough. Anyway, my beds aren't exactly raised, since,
after taking the rocks out of my VERY rocky Ozarks soil I needed to fluff the
soil and add organic matter just to bring it to its original level. So far
having the beds at the original soil level seems to be working fine.

Two ideas, one I use, the other to try. I'm a horrid junk store addict
which was started by my grandmother when I was very young, bless her heart!

I get a lot of stuff from thrift stores, flea markets, and auctions, too. One
thing I keep my eyes open for at auctions is glass, in the form of windows,
shower doors, patio doors, etc. I've gotten some pretty good deals like that and
have just about enough stuff to build a good greenhouse already.

Those 5-1/4" disk holders that are now obsolete for most computer users
make great seed packet holders (except for the large packs of seeds),
complete with dividers.

Last summer, I was looking at golf club bags at Goodwill and asked someone
if they thought they'd make good garden tool holders. Me, not a golfer,
asked the right person. He told me that sometimes they get wheeled carts
for the bags and those work well. Yesterday afternoon, I stopped at one
of the stores and there it was . . . that lovely large-wheeled cart just
waiting for me! I already have some black 12-inch drain pipe to fasten to
it. Whether it works well or not, at least it'll be worth the try. It's
still in the car but later today will go into the garden. :-)

At the last auction I went to I bought one of those big-wheeled strollers for
use as a garden cart to haul tools and watering cans in.

OH! My potentially greatest garden find of the year is skylights. Yes,
skylights. I found some 4x8 domes at a rebuilder's center and bought
three. Two will be the roof of my greenhouse. Oh, back to the
greenhouse. This spring, when we had our neighborhood cleanup, I parked
the pickup (on semi-permanent loan from dear friends in exchange for
parking it here) near the dump boxes with a sign, "Flower pots and
unbroken window glass, please." Folks are already accustomed to me
collecting the pots for the garden club whose members start seedlings,
sell them and provide funds for various organizations around the community
so didn't think I was particularly peculiar.g The window glass was for
a greenhouse, decided to see what would come up from recycled before
buying the solar fiberglass (?) for the sides and roof. One neighbor had
just replaced *all* his double-hung sash windows, so with his and the
others, enough were collected for a small greenhouse and now I have the
domes for the roof! How cool is that? My middle son is an engineer who
I've asked to design the greenhouse to utilize the materials I have. So,
my greenhouse will be a green greenhouse, using nearly all recycled
materials, and should look attractive as well.

I've seen plans for a pit greenhouse that looks nice and efficient. With a nice
big water tank in it for storing heat, the guy who owns it says he can keep the
temperature above freezing through most of the Ozark winter without supplemental
heating.

More ideas, folks? What do you do that is out of the norm but serves its
purpose?