New Tools, part 1

New manure fork, compost (reused ice) bucket with a day’s junk, and newly-turned pile

So, our camera is back.

This weekend we retrieved, shoveled and spread maybe 7 yards of woodchips onto the veg garden’s paths. I weeded the paths first, then put down a year’s worth of saved cardboard boxes (flattened of course and spread out like a jigsaw puzzle over the paths). Then, in with the chips. It wasn’t particularly hard work; it just took a while.

Tom bought a manure fork for the task. Now, I thought we could get by with the tools at hand, as that is the tactic I take with most things around here, but (and I admit it) this was a great purchase. And as I also have admitted, I am a compulsive compost-turner. Using this fork for the job takes half the time, as it lifts twice as much.

But now I am wondering. If it takes half the time, will I enjoy it so much? (It’s kind of a meditation for me, turning the pile.)