Hi Annie,
Sounds like you have been getting quite a bit done. I'm so glad Pat and I were able to visit you for your Plant Sale because I can now really visualize what you are writing about
I'm also working on a dry stream bed. It is in the backyard outside the conservatory. For the last few years when torrential rains have come, the water found its own way through the back yard and down the stepping stones. It has really eroded the soil along its path. It has been on the never ending "to do list" to dig a ditch with berms on either side to have the water flow where I want it to vs wreaking havoc wherever it was going on its own. The ditch is dug - Mike made short work of it with the mini bucket on the backhoe. I lined it with heavy plastic and got a load of round 1" - 3" rock that I'm slowly dumping on top of the plastic. Not as much color variety as I was looking for, but it will have to do. It has been so hot and muggy the last two weeks that I can only endure moving rocks about an hour or two at a time. I really hope to finish it up this weekend. When the rock is done, I can tackle planting the berms on the sides and cleaning up that whole area of the garden. The ditch serves a useful purpose, but it is also becoming another nice garden feature.
Oh, I forgot to mention earlier to tell your bee keeping friend that Pat and I drove by her house on the way out. I love stone houses to begin with, and her house along with the barn, walled garden, and other outbuildings is absolutely fantastic!!!