Gardens are coming along famously. Just waiting for whatever catastrophe is coming. Drought, floods or frost? It's always something. Got a severe frost here couple weeks ago. Covered the strawberries and still have a few black blossoms but they are loaded with baby berries and should be ready to harvest in a couple weeks-early for this area.
Lost all of my small peaches and the trees were loaded this year. Broke my heart as these trees produce luscious peaches when we are fortunate enough to harvest any. Lost about 90% of the plums, some cherries and some apples.
Gardens are coming along, but I find this year that 30-45 minutes of hard work leaves me so out of breath and dizzy that I need a half hour rest to recuperate. The lawn chair under the apple tree is getting plenty of use. Parsnips, beans, tomatoes, beets, cukes, buttercup, butternut and zucchini squash, watermelon and corn are in. Some things are up-started the corn in the house and it's looking great-my most favorite veggie.
>>>Yes, our stone is WAY out of round and wobbles furiously as you pump. It also has the dribble can and we use water. Is this to control the sparks, or does it facilitate the honing process?<<<
The out of round never seems to matter much - the low speed enables you to follow the wobble and maintain angle and pressure with practice.
The dribble can serves for both spark suppression and cools the wheel as well as the piece being sharpened along with holding the bits of stone as a pumice paste on the stone to aid in the hone of the cutting edge. ‘Modern’ electric grinders will heat the metal to white-hot and you have probably seen ground metal have a blue cast to it from that overheating. The very finest blades for knives or scythes are made by many many layers being peened as they are made till it melds into one - layer upon layer - flatten and fold, flatten and fold - sometimes hundreds of times. Speaking of peening, that is the supposedly best way to put an edge on fine steel. I have never acquired the skill of using an anvil and peen to renew the edge that masters have. Actually on a scythe, I use a hand file to hone the edge periodically as I work with it... Seems to work pretty well for me.
Ah, my work periods have become shorter and shorter too. I really like my new large wheel rear tiller - I can just hang on and shuffle my feet along as it does the work.
Your garden sounds really great - hope the weather cooperates for you.