Monday, September 25, 2006
Major rain storm
We had a major rain storm over the weekend. There were over 3 inches of rain in the rain guage and the bucket in the backyard was full. My guess is 6 to 7 inches in about 4 hours at my house. The major event was a leaking skylight in the living room. We posted buckets and moved furniture and today I called a guy to fix that.
In the yard I went out during the rain to watch the water wash away my mulch. It didn't do it. The wood chips that I put down when they took out the tree just sat there with the water rushing by. Further down the large pine nuggets floated from the beginning of the pathway to the false gate at the end of the path to the woods. They stopped there. The water was running fast over the landscape fabric, but it held in place. This morning I used the pitchfork to move all the stuff back where it belonged. It looks like nothing happened in the back yard at all.
The area around the parking pad for the RV holds a couple of inches of water. That means that the front lawn will be pretty soft for a while and I better not plan on using the RV for a week or so. The parking pad for the RV does not seem to cause water to get too close to the house; one of my worries when I put in the pad.
This evening I noticed that the steel cable holding the Bradford pear together had come out from one of the branches. I need to call and have it reattached.
Still pulling burmuda grass.
I put up a hummingbird feeder. I am using a solution of 1 cup of water to 1/4 cup of sugar for the syrup. Three of the hummers zoomed by me this afternoon as I was pulling grass.
In the yard I went out during the rain to watch the water wash away my mulch. It didn't do it. The wood chips that I put down when they took out the tree just sat there with the water rushing by. Further down the large pine nuggets floated from the beginning of the pathway to the false gate at the end of the path to the woods. They stopped there. The water was running fast over the landscape fabric, but it held in place. This morning I used the pitchfork to move all the stuff back where it belonged. It looks like nothing happened in the back yard at all.
The area around the parking pad for the RV holds a couple of inches of water. That means that the front lawn will be pretty soft for a while and I better not plan on using the RV for a week or so. The parking pad for the RV does not seem to cause water to get too close to the house; one of my worries when I put in the pad.
This evening I noticed that the steel cable holding the Bradford pear together had come out from one of the branches. I need to call and have it reattached.
Still pulling burmuda grass.
I put up a hummingbird feeder. I am using a solution of 1 cup of water to 1/4 cup of sugar for the syrup. Three of the hummers zoomed by me this afternoon as I was pulling grass.
Tuesday, September 19, 2006
Clearing bermuda grass from planting beds
Much as I don't like it, bermuda grass is what I have and it crawls far and fast, both on and under the ground. Today I dug a trench around the laveneder bushes and removed all the bermuda grass, then filled it with mulch. Now I can go along the trench with the steel blade power edger and trim the grass that crosses the line. Seems to work in other areas.
In a small area by the port to under the house, I have planted a Carolina jasamine. This is on a trellis and is now growing fine. When I planted it originally, I placed landscape fabric around the area and covered it with large pine bark chunks. This space is only about 5 feet wide and is right at the corner of the house. It is difficult to mow around because of the placement. Today, I put in a stray piece of plastic border that just fit. Dug out the trench like for the lavender area, but installed the plastic border instead of mulch. Then I put back the fabric and the pine bark. Now I should be able to use the string trimmer on this area and keep it neat.
At the end of the sun room I am digging out the bermuda grass and sifting the soil to be sure of removing all the bits and pieces of grass. This is tough, but it is the only way to permanently get rid of the grass in the area. I am digging about 8 inches down, removing the soil onto a piece of plastic fine chicken wire kind of stuff that is attached to two pieces of board. The grass and rocks do not pass the mesh. The soil and the small organic soil amendment do. I put dog food down at the bottom, then replace the sifted soil. It is slow work.
I will plant boxwoods, azeleas, day lilies and hostas here. They are patiently waiting.
In a small area by the port to under the house, I have planted a Carolina jasamine. This is on a trellis and is now growing fine. When I planted it originally, I placed landscape fabric around the area and covered it with large pine bark chunks. This space is only about 5 feet wide and is right at the corner of the house. It is difficult to mow around because of the placement. Today, I put in a stray piece of plastic border that just fit. Dug out the trench like for the lavender area, but installed the plastic border instead of mulch. Then I put back the fabric and the pine bark. Now I should be able to use the string trimmer on this area and keep it neat.
At the end of the sun room I am digging out the bermuda grass and sifting the soil to be sure of removing all the bits and pieces of grass. This is tough, but it is the only way to permanently get rid of the grass in the area. I am digging about 8 inches down, removing the soil onto a piece of plastic fine chicken wire kind of stuff that is attached to two pieces of board. The grass and rocks do not pass the mesh. The soil and the small organic soil amendment do. I put dog food down at the bottom, then replace the sifted soil. It is slow work.
I will plant boxwoods, azeleas, day lilies and hostas here. They are patiently waiting.
Tuesday, September 12, 2006
Seeding the lawn
It is late summer. Time to overseed the lawn. Keep in mind my lawn is huge in the back and OK in the front. I picked up 50 lbs of Pennington Kentucky 31 grass seed the other day at Sam's Club. 50 lbs does not cover the full lawn, but it will do the front and a good part of the rear. The front is reseeded over the crab grass and foxtails and other noxious weeds. There is new fertilizer on the front, too. The remainder of the grass seed was spread on the back where the weeds were obvious and around the perimeter of the lawn and around the tree mulched areas. This should give a better look to the edges of the lawn in the spring. The crab grass will die in the winter and the new grass should replace it. With new grass in place and proper fertilizer it should grow thick enough to shade the crab grass seed and at least slow the growth of the dreadful stuff.
In other work, I have some new plants to put at the end of the sun room. The sun room is the addition to the house and the end generally faces southwest. I am digging up the bed in preparation to planting the area. I have to do this to remove the deeply rooted bermuda grass in this area. Remember, this area used to be the main lawn. I am sifting all the soil and removing the rizhomes by hand. I made a sifter by nailing some chicken wire to some 2x6 board pieces that hang over the sides of the garden cart. The soil in placed into the sifter and broken up to find the bermuda grass. Then the soil only is replaced. I am putting dog food into the dirt to feed the worms. Still trying that trick. More on this later.
In other work, I have some new plants to put at the end of the sun room. The sun room is the addition to the house and the end generally faces southwest. I am digging up the bed in preparation to planting the area. I have to do this to remove the deeply rooted bermuda grass in this area. Remember, this area used to be the main lawn. I am sifting all the soil and removing the rizhomes by hand. I made a sifter by nailing some chicken wire to some 2x6 board pieces that hang over the sides of the garden cart. The soil in placed into the sifter and broken up to find the bermuda grass. Then the soil only is replaced. I am putting dog food into the dirt to feed the worms. Still trying that trick. More on this later.
