The wild garden
Do you remember the mucky area down the back after the digger came through, that John tilled and sowed in the wild flower seeds? Well, we mixed the wild flowers with oats and alfalfa to give the bed some weight. And look! 
Lush. (All the rain has helped) It is growing wonderfully, many varieties of plants and not a thistle in sight!! Those are sunflowers reaching up too. There are so many varieties of midwest wild flower in there. I think we might be able to look forward to quite the display.
John and I cleaned up the elm that fell in the lightning strike, cleaving the walnut in two. The terrible thing is that the walnut is still alive.
And we could not bear to chainsaw it down. So, stupidly, we have lifted it back up off the ground and kind of winched it back together, as much as it could bear. I cannot imagine that it will survive for long though the leaves are very perky but I love this little tree, maybe it will grow on like this for a while. Stranger things have happened at sea.
Everything is ready for Wai, the rescue rat poison pot belly pig. I hope the vet gives him the OK today. 
I asked for him to bring his own bedding with him so at least some of the smells around the pig will be familiar. I am not sure how much he can see yet.
There is a pile of straw in the corner under the window to go below his blankets. We will just have to play it by ear at first and see what he wants. 
Monday 06/19 50% / 0.12 inScattered thunderstorms. High 79F. Winds WNW at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 50%.
Monday Night 06/19 20% / 0 inPartly cloudy skies. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 58F. Winds W at 10 to 15 mph
31 Comments on “The wild garden”
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All those wild flowers and lush growth are wonderful to see! You are a genius!
Not so long ago you asked a question 'why do we bother following a boring blog'..maybe the words were different but the meaning was still the same…I replied to that post at the time but here i can say it again..because of what we can read about pigs that need extra care, cows that have stern looks..peeks into the piggy bed and above all…somebody who cares trying so hard to save a tree….This is no ordinary blog..it is extraordinary and gives me so much pleasure…Stay Cool Miss C and have a lovely day
Sent: Monday, June 19, 2017 at 1:04 PM
I could not have said it better! Cecilia’s blog always makes my day begin with a smile and many times with out bursts of giggles! Cheers!
Right on! And don’t forget the memorable weather forecasts; e.g., today’s : “Who knows . . . Maybe today will be mild.”
oh I forgot to mention the sludge from the drainage the looked so nasty and has now turned into a lovely wild garden for bees and butterflies…..fantastic
Sent: Monday, June 19, 2017 at 1:04 PM
Wrap clingfilm round the bark scars as quickly as possible to help it heal. Good luck! Carol from Scotland
You have a talent for creating good things from unpromising beginnings. I love the cosy bedroom waiting for Wai, and the forethought that says he needs some familiar smells around him when he comes. Hauora pai, Waimarie 🙂
Your blog is wonderful I look forward to reading it every morning. Its so great that poor Wai is coming to stay with you. The wild flowers are gonna be so beautiful thank you for sharing them with us.. The hope the walnut tree makes it we never know it might just get better. Have a great day!
I think the tree might continue to grow, or at least part of it. Nice new garden!
Here’s hoping the native species continue to outrun all the rest; )
Such a sad story of your (Waif). Truly hope he flourishes under your tender ministrations; finally out of solitary confinement and back on a farm.
Get some threaded rod and bolt the two halves together and it should live. Or, if the roots are strong lay the halves down and gradually bend the branches up (like bonsai). You could likely use rebar driven into the ground to help train the branches.
I will tell John – that sounds like something he could do.. thank you!
Oh that area looks so very lush and green! I love it!!! Oh Wai’s story is tugging at my heart strings!!! Can you post the link were we can donate to the pig lady again for his care? Thanks!
And your tree – I hope it does decide to grow in spite of it’s injury.
How wonderful about the slag dump of greenery now! Sunflowers reaching up to the sky to soon feed birds. You saw the possibilities. Good on ya.
Rescuing, mending, healing & thriving in the lovely June sunshine. You & John are truly a Heroic Pair of Farmers.
With the amount of rain you have received it’s a wonder that you are not rowing around the farmy. I do hope your tree survives. i have seen trees with split trunks bolted together to keep them going.
Your wildflowers will be such a gift to the bees, butterflies and birds. I hope you get to welcome Wai to the farm today.
We had a beautiful maple that was split in a storm a few years ago and we did exactly what you have done. I couldn’t bear to chop it down. We were able to pull it all the way back together and it actually mended and continued to grow! Don’t give up!
Your post makes me quite happy today. I love the lush green and the promise of a riot of flowers. And the stern cows…and the trussed-up tree…and the space prepared for the poor little pig. It is all perfectly as it should be.
Last late spring during a particularly harsh thunder and lightening storm my apple tree had a nasty break/split. My son-in-law took duct tape and pulled the pieces together…he tightly wound the tape for many layers….this spring that section was covered in blossoms and now there is fruit.. we used nothing more than duct tape and were careful to put the pieces back as they were before the snap and breaking….worth a try
Kristin
I hope your little walnut tree survives, and the poor little pot bellied pig arrives and settles down well. I’m in Portugal at the moment and wow is it hot! ☀️ Have a fab day.
EVERYTHING Patrecia Upton said and then some! So you have a Siamese Walnut designed by nature, eh? We had a Deadoak (vs. Liveoak) tree that split in three during a snow storm and was unsalvageable. Way beneath the limbs of the oak there was a wee fir tree which has grown to be at least 20 feet tall and is beautiful! The old oak made way for this lovely new tree, so you just never know what you get by happenstance!
And no, you can’t always be a Polyanna, but blogs like today’s sure make up for the ‘bummer’ days! Keep on truckin’, Ceci, and THANKS!
I think what BakerPete said has merit- and we here in Mt Shasta are breathlessly awaiting Wai’s arrival and speedy recovery!
Way back in the 1930s my father, his brother and brother-in-law bolted several branches of a big oak tree back together after storm damage. The tree is still standing, really huge and the bolts are so grown into the branches they’re now barely visible. I stopped by to see it along with my aunt and uncle’s house with the old hatchery barn behind. I have photos and it’s almost unreal the size of the tree. Do bring the two sides together and bolt them, they will heal and the bolt will keep things stable and eventually be grown into the trunk.
I think Wai will be happy on the farmy, with that nice airy and light room and the smells of other animals around him.
Here to the Ws today! Walnut, Wai and Wildflowers! Hope they all do marvelously!
Nice rescue theme today… a meadow, a pig and a tree… now have hope ♡
Yes I’m anxious for Wai to slip into your loving hands.
I love Wai already, poor little darling – maybe not so little… so wonderful that he’s found a loving hone… you’re wonderful…
Like the others have mentioned, if you can get the halves pretty close together and bolt or chain them it should work. When I moved here (29 years ago last Friday!), there was a huge maple in the yard, more than 5′ in diameter. It had a crack down the middle and it was held together with links from a manure handling system from the old barn. Sadly the whole tree came down when we had some 100 mph straight winds some years ago, at least it just missed the house. Also many years ago my brother bolted a oak tree back together when it was damaged in a storm and it’s still going strong. It’s surely worth a try and can’t hurt.
That wildflower garden is going to be superb when it blooms. Laura
This is so picturesque! Like a vignette of your life. Thanks for sharing.
If you can manage to winch that tree shut, it could make it. That’s what my dad did to the old mimosa tree out back when I was young.