Ribbon Drive

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Thinking about what to do with the driveway entrance and patio area.  I´m really happy with the entrance as is - two tracks with greenery in the middle, called a ¨ribbon drive¨.

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This example is perhaps a little OCD - couldn´t be trimming and edging all the time.

Rustic Garage And Shed by Chicago Design-Build Firms Avondale Custom Homes - via Houzz

 

From an article on Houzz - ¨Nowadays the design is making a comeback due to its environmental benefits and nostalgic appeal. Environmentalists are drawn to the design for several reasons: It requires less impervious material, features additional greenery and means far less water runoff.¨

It doesn´t have to be grass and gravel.  There are lots of examples with cement, brick, and cobbles.

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There are also new materials which hold up to traffic, but are semipermeable.  Don´t really like the looks of it.

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But a hidden substructure would be OK.

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When we first bought the house we had some large scale (4¨ -5¨)gravel put down, knowing that there would be a lot of truck and vehicle activity.  And in the interim it has almost entirely disappeared.  Sunk?  We´re not in a position to be spending hundreds of euros on gravel every 3 years, so building up an appropriate foundation is important. I wonder if this might be the occasion for landscape cloth.  Eww.

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I had thought about using something atypical like crushed shell.  You´d think Galicia would have it´s share of mussel, clam and oyster shell to dispose of.  But haven´t had much luck finding a supplier.  So I guess it´s back to gravel. Simple, elegant, old fashioned gravel.

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Una Granja para el Futuro

This is a lovely (Devon is gorgeous) and important documentary on the future of farming from the BBC.  Now a link with Spanish subtitles!

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Finca

We also did get some things done around the grounds.

V got out the strimmer and had a go at the bread oven, again.  In two months, the nettles were 3 feet tall.

He managed to get most of the area next to the neighbors done, and a path around to the larger pasture to the south of the barn.

The barn itself is covered in an overgrowth of blackberries worthy of a fairytale.  Even though he couldn´t manage them with his little machine, they did have fruits, so there´s an upside.

We were informed by the new neighbor that it was time to clean out the gutter running along the north side of the access road, which everyone seems to think hasn´t been cleaned out for the last decade or more.  The benefits are that the runoff from autumn rains will drain on that side of the road, and not alongside our foundation.  And to their credit, they all pitched in to help when we were out there on the second morning.  As a side benefit, we got 10 loads of beautiful composted earth.  I have reservations, since a lot had invasive roots of ivy, etc.  But I put together a hillbilly compost bin with old pallets and zip ties.  We have pallets left over for a future wood store.

The grapes growing along one end of the barn actually produced fruit this year.

And lastly,  put down some of the stacks of cardboard packaging from the flooring to try to suppress the exuberant nettles that spring up around the foundations.  We need to do something about the drive and back patio area, which will go to mud once it starts raining again.

And I derive no end of pleasure contemplating the woods along side.  I´m told that parcel belongs to an absentee local family heir who now lives in Asturias.  Mostly, it seems to be used by some hunters to train their dogs to hunt rabbits.

House Update

Back from 2 weeks at the house.  Got alot done, but we´re knackered.  The house is stunning.  I can´t believe I get to live there.

First the house:

A BIL and sister stopped the first two nights to help us put up some light fixtures on their way to the coast. 

V managed to sand and stain ALL the windows and the patio doors. I put a coat of linseed oil on the remaining beams and window frames, added some weatherstripping and washed windows.  And swept and mopped about 200 times.  The dust is unbelievable.

We ordered a few kitchen cabinets and a countertop from Ikea, along with a sofa bed (yeah!), and had that delivered.  

We put the cabinets together and modified the one for the farm sink so it can be undermounted beneath the oak butcher block, which got 3 coats of varnish top and bottom. At 80x50 cm (30x20 in) the sink was a steal from a pueblo on the way out of Madrid.  The stamp says it was made in the 1950s and it has it´s share of chips and scratches and a couple of faint rust stains - patina! The sink opening still has to be cut.  We were tired.

Having to think about the fixture above the sink.  It´s exactly in the way of shelving or a plate rack.

Met the remaining neighbor, a nice 20-something guy who´s fixing up his own place, along with his 7 month old water spaniel pup. His family goes way back in the area. We got some home baked goods to try, courtesy of his mother. The other neighbors sent us home with homegrown potatoes and onions.  I think we´ve been fortunate.

We had the plumber out and fired up the wood cook stove - that thing is a beautiful beast! Have to get a pumice stone to keep the top in shape. Heated all the radiators in no time, they will need brushing and painting, and then some.  Another project for the list.  He adjusted the water heater to the pressure level of the mains connection and we had no problems and toasty showers.

Ate, drank, and were mostly in bed by 10.  V says he lost 8 pounds. 

Now have the paperwork to apply to get the electric service connected, next making inquiries for internet setup.

Outside progress in another post.