I’m filling in the spaces betweeen the stones I’ve cemented together for this section this year.
I hope to finish this part next summer with another 40 – 50 cm. If the weather holds out I may get the other section completed this fall.
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I’m using up the last of the cement, mixing it with fine sand (1 – 3) and filling in between the stones before covering the wall over to keep it dry during the winter.
Now on to other projects!
The weather has been unusually warm this October. There are lots of flowers and vegetables left in the garden, and the stone work could probably go on for a few more weeks, but I’m going to end it for this year, and start again when it warms up in spring. Today is another glorious fall day, and I did the final stretch of cementing this morning.
I’m quite proud of my progress this year.
It’s been so mild with only lite frosts that the tomatoes haven’t completely died yet.
If the weather stays warm next week, I’ll mix up a little more fine cement and fill in the spaces between the new stones to polish it off.
Before
After
I’ve been cementing the stones together rather haphazardly for the last few weeks, so now I must fill all the holes in between and put on the finishing touches before closing down this project for the winter.
The gothic greenhouse project looked like this at the beginning of this building season.
And like this a couple of weeks ago at the end of the season.
Now the weather is intermittent rain, and when it’s not raining it tends to clear up and freezes. I’ve covered the work with tarps for the winter.
With one part covered so that I can continue to lay some more stones before it gets really cold.
It’s pretty tight working conditions in there, but it functions.
With all the rain, the digging is at a standstill, and I can finally stay indoors a little more and get my backlog of computer work done. And next week I hope to start making a few batches of miso.
I took the course in stone sculpting a few weeks ago and really got inspired, but I still have to order a full set of tools for working at home. In the meantime I have plenty of work in the garden to keep me occupied. One major project is the gothic greenhouse. Stone work!
There is an extention to the back wall for creating a microclimate where I can grow grapes and apricots and other exotic plants.
Todays work
I’m at it couple of hours nearly every morning – about 5 buckets of mortar, stone by stone, an average of ten centimeters per layer, 3 meters of progress each day. At this rate, it will take me at least another 5 years to finish it.
But, I’m very satisfied with how much I’ve accomplished so far this summer, and I still have almost two months more to work on it before the heavy frosts stop it.
I mix 1 part cement with 3 parts sand from the farm sand pit. I try to get the amount of water just right so that the morter is not too wet or too dry.
But no matter how hard I try I never seem to get it perfect, and have a lot of smears and drips to clean up.
There seams to be no end to raw material.
A work of art on its own.
My gothic green house taking form.
I started this five years ago and it will probably take another five to finish. I started by digging and laying a 7 by 3 meter foundation deep enough to not be effected by ground frost. The front will be about 90cm while the back/north side will be about two meters high. The roof will of course be thick glass on a structure of heavy beams.
When done it will contain a wood burning stove as well as trees and plants such as apricot, peach, grapes and other semitropical fruits and flowers. It will also be used for propagating plants for the garden.
The most important use will perhaps be as a sitting room during the winter – sitting next to a cosy fire in a tropical setting while the winter storms rage outside.
Stones.
Sand and gravel
This farm has just about everything.
All I need is to buy cement, make a mixture of cement and sand and put the stones together. This is quite time consuming, tho, if I try to get everything in line and keep the stone surfaces clean.
timogarden 