2009

First day of the new year. It's a brisk 31 degrees. I'm still sick though it seems to be getting better than the past two days. It's a good day to sit on the sofa, watch some movies, and sort through all these seeds for the swap I'm hosting. Or maybe a nap.

Later the same day: It seems a nap was out of the question, so I took the time to wintersow a couple of things. More rudbeckia (green wizard and cappuccino), green nicotiana, sweet autumn clematis, and some wormwood. I also added a few cuttings to the aero chamber - pineapple sage from overwintering plants, white camellias from Cheraw, and 2 tiny trimmings from a yellow brugmansia I made cuttings from this summer. I also added two pink rose cuttings from my own yard yesterday.



It may not be a good time of year to take cuttings since everything is dormant, but inside, under light and heat, I'm hoping it will force them into root production. The roses have already started growing new leaves from the buds after only 24 hours in the chamber. With 100% humidity and lots of air, I hope this system works as well as the ones I've seen online. I hope to see roots forming in 7-10 days or sooner. I sound like our next President with all this "hope".

3:40pm. It's still cold out. I'm sweating like a pig. The coughing has subsided and has been replaced by another onset of fever/chills. I only have myself to blame. I spent some time in the basement breaking apart two more motorcycle pallets. I decided to quit the third time I lost my grip on the hammer and had it land against my face and chest.

This is the stack of pallets I picked up for free from the Charlotte Ducati dealership. They have to pay to dispose of them, so they were more than happy to let me load the truck with as many as I could carry. I may head back this weekend for another load if I'm feeling better.



So far, I've broken apart 2 regular pallets and three motorcycle pallets. It's been almost a week now. I really thought I would be done with them by now.



I plan to use the longer pieces to frame in the top of the trellis at the entrance to the perennial garden.



The waste wood I'll use in the basement wood stove to keep the house warm whenever the temperatures fall below freezing at night. This stuff is so dry, it should last about 6 hours.