Whipped

I have been neglecting my little farm. After a ridiculously high water bill last month, I decided to stay home yesterday and fix a couple leaks in the main line, get a few things done around the old place. High pressure main line shutoffs require a lot of time to rest and dry so my day was pretty much shot.

I fixed three leaks and decided to prune a few fruit trees. I am embarrassed to admit how long it has been since I had dead wooded the deciduous trees. Let's just say a while.

When I first got the place we had a couple hundred avocado trees as well as a couple hundred valencia oranges. I took most of the avos out for the horse pasture and corrals, saved a few choice fuertes for family fruit. Horse now long gone, bought my arab Jasper as a yearling, passed away at a spry 28.

I still have a hundred or so valencias but the grove is at the end of its lifespan. Forty plus years old. If the greening doesn't get them, old age will. In 1993, when we were rained and mudded in for two weeks I pruned every tree in the place.

Now one satsuma plum tree pretty much kicked my ass yesterday. Rusty saw, old loppers, old body. There was a lot of high growth that I lopped, limbs were coming down banging me in the head, lost my glasses twice, got scratches and cuts all over my arms. Serves me right for my neglect.

I am going to dead wood every tree this year. My vow. I have three peaches, two apricots, a Santa Rosa plum, avos and a hundred or so oranges to give haircuts to and by god I will. Yesterday they got the best of me but I will be back. Like McArthur, I shall return.