[Cob] Another mixing way.....

[Patrick Newberry]

Been sold on the wheelbarrow  meathod for years. Works great for single
person operations

Pat
www.gypsyfarm.com



 <snip>

So this is my method:  I use a wheelbarrow and fill it with dirt and
grass 
clippings (been dry here, straw is hard to come by). Then I sit on a
stool 
and mix the dry mix by hand, breaking up clods of dirt/clay and mixing
in 
the grass.  I have a bucket of water next to me so I tip the
wheelbarrow, 
sit on the ground, and start making "bread".  Sift the dry ingredients
and 
use water from my bucket to make the dough and I knead it with the palm
of 
my hand and turn and mix, add dirt if necessary, add clippings as
necessary, 
etc.  Since I am sitting next to the wall I'm working on, it's easy to
take 
the "batter" and plop it on the wall and knead it into what exists
there. 
For me, this saves time, I always get the right mix, (with a tarp I
would 
either make it too watery or too dry and spent alot of time adding a
little 
more water, a little more dirt, a little more water, etc..), plus it has

saved my back and my legs and I don't need to walk back and forth, back
and 
forth.  The tarp is now a canopy that I move with me to stay in the
shade 
:-)
</snip>