This rock with a hollow, a vaguely squarish little dish, has been staring at me for a couple of years.
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Now half of the boulder is underground. It is quite heavy. I know that because I dug a hole, lugged the rock down the hill, dropped it in the hole, and lifted, twisted and jockeyed it until the cavity was on the top and it "looked right". A little tired, I sat on the bench to catch my breath and admire my handiwork. And realized that it could not be seen from the end of the bench where Lorna usually sits. So I grabbed the spade and did it all again.
Yesterday I removed the nodule barriers in a couple of lengths of bamboo, turning them into pipes. Think about that process for a while - easier said than done. Then, after a little notching, drilling, I lashed them together with waxed cord. I fished 1/4" tubing through the tubes and oblong holes cut in the pipes.
After I anchored the bottom of the pipe assembly in the ground, propped by a couple rocks, I plugged the end of the tubing to a water source. I adjusted the flow is as low as possible, which gives me a steady trickle.
Will small birds like a one-bird bathtub with shower? Actually use it? I do not know. I like it and after plants and moss have grown in, it will look like it has been there for decades. I like aged gardens that do not appear new, neat or "tended".
- Gunnar
