We Bit the Bullet—-Wednesday, April 12, 2017

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We had one last ditch on our place that was a dirt ditch.

Dirt ditches are a pain to work with…they fill up with mud, weeds and water plants, which go crazy happy in them; the water is soaked up in their little feet, the bank leaks making the farm road a mud mess, and the setting of the syphon tubes a huge job by the end of the summer. (A hole has to be dug in the mud to set each and every tube…Anyway, after much thought and deliberation we decided (at our ages) the cost of a new ditch made of cement would be the way to go.

.So we had the ditch grated in, surveyed and then opened up for the pour.

A huge great line of wonderful new ditch in the making

This is the ‘boat’ the cement will be poured into…

Here they are making the pour.

It took three loads of cement

By four o’clock yesterday afternoon—

It was done!  What a huge financial expense, but what a wonderful ditch we will have starting Friday!  (The cement has to cure first)

YAY!

Your friend on a western Colorado farm,

Linda

 

 

35 thoughts on “We Bit the Bullet—-Wednesday, April 12, 2017”

  2. That is just amazing, Linda. I had really never thought about how they made those cement ditches. Yes, big expense….but worth it, right? And tax deductible, too.

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  8. If it saves you hours of backbreaking work, I’m all for it. Wish I could get something like that made for our (much, much smaller) storm ditches, which have to be dug out after every storm event. Less important than crop irrigation, but still vital to stop the property flooding. Can’t see it happening, though!

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  9. I’m still not sure I understand how the form works, but cool none the less! I believe that’s the first picture I’ve ever seen of Terry WATCHING someone else work ;-D.

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  10. I always wondered how the cement was done for the ditches. I live in southern Idaho and see cement ditches all the time. I’m glad you take the time to explain things about farming that some of us know nothing about. I’m sure to you and your husband it is everyday stuff and think none of us are interested. I am at least.

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  12. J > As a civil engineer (retired), I’d know this technique as slip-forming. This is clearly a service for which in your locality there’s an extensive demand, so you get specialist contractors, and even specialist plant/machinery. These guys really know their stuff! Very impressed, not just with the work, but with your commitment to the long term, beyond your own lifetimes.

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  13. Pingback: We bit the bullet | A Small Country Living

  14. Yay!!! So happy for you to have that last dirt ditch gone! It is these huge expenses that really do make farm life a bit easier. Several years ago I had to replace 3 old pivots that were leaking and constant trouble. It was well worth it, but the old farm account took a giant hit! Now, in a couple of years, I will have to replace the last pivot here on the home farm. It is 22 years old and starting to leak, also. With our hard water, pivots don’t last much longer than that before they are totally corroded on the inside. Alas!

    Happy watering! Blessings!

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