A while ago the "dam" tank at the end of the little farm shed sprang a leak. We hummed and haaed a bit about putting a liner in it, but it was starting to look a bit dodgy in a few places, so ultimately we replaced it.

We came up with a bit of a cunning plan for recycling it though and we've finally had a chance to implement that plan. But first, we knew we would have to replace the small shadecloth fence that we put up in the first year we were here - it worked really well and we wanted to claim a bit more wind protected area in those paddocks - and we also needed to do something around the base to keep the blasted chooks out of the garden.

Then a storm blew up and basically blew the posts out of the ground (we'd not cemented them in as we knew this was an experiment and we'd undoubtedly have to adjust once we worked out if the whole arrangement would function).

So step one - rebuilding the full / chook proof / wind proofed / cemented in / wired down, you beaut new fence.

Posts in / braced waiting for cement to dry:

Fence now in place!

Now, back to the tank, which at 22,500 was not exactly a little tank - so handling it was a bit of a challenge.

What Adam ended up doing was using the tractor as a part ladder, part work platform, part holder upper of cut bits and with the angle grinder, he sliced it into quarters from the top down. Each "round" was then cut into quarters again and we ended up with curving panels of galvanised iron. Perfect.

We had cleared out an area in the vegetable garden paddock that we'd been talking about setting up, and I'd always envisaged something curving (value the edges) and interesting - so our Snake Garden was built.

So first things first - picking the site, in front of the two original beds we built last year.

So this is the shape we finally set up - winding, lots of edges, ends that will support trellis growing, a spot for a pond to be tucked in - perfect!

And is always the way around here - there's always somebody who elects themselves supervisor!

Whilst the construction was ongoing, the bed needed to be filled - so we pulled in a couple of bales of well rotted straw from the old Strawhenge - which is slowly diminishing in size, as well as many trailer loads of Alpaca poo from out in the paddocks. All of which had to be shovelled into place.... I tell you I don't care if I don't see the business end of a shovel again for a while!

The next project was a fence along the front. We've got this setup now so that the main chook / duck / turkey bunch are kept out, but there's room for the two smaller tractors and we give the two little flocks of Silkies day about outings in the area. The fence is also wire only as we'll be doing a strawbale bed along the fence and using it as vertical space.

Of course a fence means a gate, and a gate means a catch and hinges and he's got this new metal cutting "thing" which meant home made hinges and catches that work like a dream!

Next up we put a spine in the snake - giving us more vertical growing space.

And we have a fabulous garden bed, which is already starting to be planted out - slowly and cautiously as even though the weather has been glorious, there's a cold snap on the way and no promise that the frosts have finished. But wait until I can start filling it up properly!

Oh and he's also made some adjustments to the back of the chook house - I can now open up these secure hatches to clean out the houses and barrow the output directly into the gardens, or to continue the nightly easter egg hunt that is the finding of where the blasted ducks are laying this time!