Growing Challenges

[sheepdog 10]

Having a working farm, and a business at the same location can lead to some difficult challenges. Old farm equipment can really be an eyesore, and while it is needed and used, some odd pieces don't get used much or are broken down and too big and ackward to do much of anything with. Thus is the case of our old bulldozer. It's an ancient one, I think it was made back in the 30's (so old it even has a pony motor) and though it was a good dozer and we used to use it alot, it's been parked in the same spot unused for quite a few years now. No hope of moving the monster, so this year I decided to camouflage it. I remember from years passed raising Luffa goards and remembered that they made a tremendous amount of follage, but when I looked for seed, I discovered that it requires a very long growing season, so it was way too late to plant from seed. Trying to find already started plants proved to be a real challenge, but finally at the Baker Creek garden festival I found several plants. I planted those in the single cell concrete blocks, to protect the base of the plant from wild men with weed eaters, and to make watering easier. Planted 3, along the tracks on the ground at the edge of the dozer. I also had to dig out and move one of my cane patches, since that is where I am going to eventually build a stone post, so those went in front of the dozer along the blade. I then proceeded to decorate the rest of the dozer, on the hood and top of the tracks with brightly colored plastic bowls, and also a nice big painted up galvanized water tub that had been used for the dogs water, but had sprung a leak. (yes, we recycle everything around here!) Non working shop vac bottoms also make nice planters. Anyway, the whole thing would of really turned out quite nice, except that we had so bloody much rain, and one of the large tubs I had placed just behind the blade was supposed to have some Mexican sun flower in it that grew to a height of 6 ft. which would of coverd the big gap you will see in the picture. My petunia's also all drowned, unfortunatly. But even so, I think it still looks pretty neat. Wonder if there is a Guinness Book of World records for largest plant stand? I may just have a winner!

[Quatrux 4]

Heh, nice idea to make something from thing like that ;)So you say that it's impossible to move it with any other equipment? Isn't it worth it to hang over the metal it has for money? It's weight is over 1 ton You could get some money, even though I don't know the prices of metal in your country :DNevertheless, it looks nice with decorations too, very original

[sheepdog 10]

Yes, it would weigh out a tidy check at the recycleing center. However, there is the problem of getting it there. I'm not sure we wouldn't need a special heavy duty trailer just to haul it instead of our current 16 foot flatbed. It would be quite a challenge just to get it on the trailer. We are talking about some massive dead weight here!But at any rate, it's probably worth more to sell it as a dozer. We do occasionally have someone stop by and ask about buying it, though not nearly as often as they stop to ask about his 1954 snub nose Ford dump truck. Hubby just isn't quite ready to turn loose of it yet. So I guess I'll just come up with a few more flower pots and do my camouflage job on it again next year.