Time for the dance of the "Ours!"

That bit of family business that started just before Christmas?

On beyond the fence line... that patch of land adjacent to our Southeastern border, extending Eastish?

As of lunchtime Monday, it's ours.  Not all of it; a couple of patches by the road got snapped up by a developer, and there'll be seven houses springing up on little lots.  But the bulk of the land, two decent-sized lots including everything along or near our fence, is now under our protection and won't be developed until we're good and ready.  It does include two strips connecting to the road, for driveways.

Hmmm, annexing the Realm to the (South)East.  Seems like there should be a word for that...?

Anyway.  This affects my plans for fixing the drainage below the pond, because fixing that drainage affects the downhill neighbors, and now we're those downhill neighbors.  So I have more flexibility.  Also, that area of (according to the USDA soil map) prime farmland down there does flood during a rainy spring, so I'll want to do something about the drainage there, too, before I start preparing a site for the spring victory garden.

(From there, the drainage ditch meanders across the lawn of actual next-door neighbors before crossing our driveway and heading across the front neighbors' side yard on its way to the road.  I think the part downstream of our new side yard is in reasonable shape at this point.)

Aaaand... there are big fallen branches to deal with.  And patches of probably-mostly-blackberry-vines.  Always there's work.

Anyway, this is why I'll be needing a few hundred feet of garden hose.  Come spring planting time, the new garden will need occasional watering, depending on the timing of rain.  (Eventually, I really ought to put together a water trailer for hauling water wherever it's needed.)

Comments

[Rob]

I just looked and found a 1000 feet of irrigation hose for $109 delivered (searched for "1/2", 1000', 57 PSI, Toro Blue Stripe® Poly Hose - EHD1335-100").

Run lines to where you want it, put on/off valves and tees where needed.

[Eric Wilner]

Hmmm... sounds like a deal on the backbone tubing for a drip/sprinklerette system, but not for temporary surface plumbing (I'll still need a great length of garden hose to run across the lawn to where it's needed, and drag out of the way for mowing).
Someday, I'll have to rent one of those trench-digging machines and bury a water line. Several water lines, to various spots. Adding a few yard hydrants in far-off places has been on the wish list for a while now.
(Any buried plumbing that crosses lot lines has implications for the future, so it'd have to be mapped and documented for eventual removal... always things to worry about. Surface hose doesn't have that problem, but has issues of its own.)