Janet Murdock

Thank you so much for your responses.  I think we will try the oven trick.  After asking more questions we have learned that people have had very good honey from this beekeeper in the past.  He said the bees appeared to have added honey after he tested the moisture content on a few frames but thought it wasn't enough to raise the moisture as much as it did.   I guess I will chalk this up to a good learning experience for us as new beekeepers.  We weren't even aware this could be a problem, we thought capped honey was good to go.   We have much to learn, but happy to do it.   Thanks again.

While waiting for our hives to mature we purchased 5 quarts of honey along with others in a group purchase.  We were all informed this morning that the honey we picked up is too runny and we need to dehydrate it.   I hate to buy a dehydrator for 5 quarts of honey.   They suggested just taking the lids off and leaving in a hot room for 5 days.  Will this really work?  I hate for it to ferment on us.  The last group honey purchase we made was almost black and tasted like molasses.  I give, lol.

Agreed! It was too good to be true, lol.

Last summer we filled in our in ground pool. We left the sidewalks leaving a 20 X 40 foot garden area in the center. The dirt used to fill the pool contained quite a bit of grass and straw so we expect a bit of settling over time. Not wanting to end up with plants lower than the level of the sidewalk as it settles we will plant in raised beds allowing for sinking/settling.

My thoughts are to mound rotting logs on the bottom of each bed. As things rot and settle the plants will end up at ground level. In a few years we will add more wood and a more traditional Hugelkultur can be used.

Today my husband found a source for free used tracks. Has anyone used these for raised beds? I like the idea of something recycled and different. But I worry the holes on the sides will cause the dirt/wood to dry out faster. I love that they can be molded to any shape we want. Too good to be true?

lol, good to know. I'll stop worrying about sink holes =)

Thank you so much for the response. I hear so many horror stories about filling in pools in such a rainy place. My sister has me having nightmares about sink holes, lol. Everyone tells me I'm nuts to use anything but dirt because it will be constantly breaking down and caving in. Even the gentleman who took down some trees for us wouldn't chip them into the pool because he said it would give us problems down the road. Guess I need to do some more research and make a list of items I can take. You've been very helpful.

Two summers ago we decided to fill our 40' pool in and use the space for a garden. The equipment to jackhammer the bottom of the pool had no problem getting into the backyard (narrow access). Getting a dump truck in to fill it is a different story. We need a smaller dump truck which means 30 loads not 10 - 15. Local construction sites charge for the dirt when using small trucks or wont sell it to us at all (free in their large trucks). We can not dump large loads in the front of the house or that would have been a good option. The original plan was to fill it with dirt and build two 40 foot mounds on top.

After 2 winters in a holding pattern (still trying to figure out the best way to get the dirt back there on the cheap) we learned that the water table comes up to about 4 feet from the top of the pool during our rainy Oregon winters. The pool is 11 feet deep at it's deepest. We have decided to fill the deep end with drainage rock and then top it off with dirt. After watching a video on straw bale gardening and how over time it raises the ground level I started thinking why don't we just do that and fill in the last few feet over time. This would be cheaper and get our garden going faster. And then I thought about the massive blue spruce we need to cut down. Could that go under the bales? Would it be worth using a spruce or would it be more problematic.

I read some articles that make it seem ok and then others that make me think it would be a huge mistake. I just want this thing filled in and my garden going.

Thanks