The deer fence is finally up, our biggest project and necessity before the garden can really get going. It turned out to be both easier and more complicated than I expected. Because our garden is built on a moderate incline, we had to bunch the fencing at some of the posts to prevent the change in elevation from causing unwanted slackness. However, the whole process was faster than anticipated, with the entire fence up and ready to go in about two-and-a-half hours. And we were immediately reminded of what all the work was for as several deer watched us finishing up at dusk. Worrying that the deer would run right through the fencing in the dark, we...

What does your family like to do for fun? In our time off, we like to dig giant trenches throughout our front yard! I’m pretty sure our neighbors think we’re crazy. A little over a year ago, we bought this house with a beautifully seeded lawn sloping down to the front door. And now we’re systematically tearing it apart, first breaking the sod up by hand and then with a tiller and now digging trenches as deep as we can get. Well, it’s all in the name of rodent control, more specifically groundhogs. I’ve worked on farms with groundhog pressure in the past and, as you well know if you’ve experienced the...