Bogieblog

Odds and Ends Week of 9/18/2022

Okay, technically this on was on 9/17. Found this feather in the back yard. Not sure what it is from, maybe a hawk? Looks like it was a natural loss as the end is clean.

The tree by the shed (north side of house) turns pretty colors in fall. However, it only changes in sections and at such a slow rate, that it is never mostly turned at the same time. Interestingly the southwest side (full sun) is the first to turn and had already shed a lot of those leaves between the first and second pictures (first was 9/19, second was 9/23)

Friday afternoon I unpacked the P61a (basement pellet stove) from its summer nap. I would normally wait a little while, but I had replaced the ash pan door gasket at the beginning of the month and the adhesive needed to be heat cured within 30 days of application. Since it was super windy in the 40's, I figured I could fire up the stove and let it run for 1/2 an hour without overheating the basement (which was at 65*).

It started up fine and there was no whiff of smoke (as there had been during start up at the end of last season), so replacing the door gasket accomplished my goal. Oh, and I had forgotten how the smell of fall is the heated metal smell that arises during the first burn or two. I let it run for 30 minutes then reduced the set temp down to 65* until we get further into the season.

When the evening news said that the wind would continue thru the night and into Saturday, I decided to unpack the P43 (main floor stove) and get it going too. I had been using the mini split for the minor heating needs thus far, but with 100% increase in electric cost, the pellet stove is less costly to run. Add to that the house just feels warmer and the forgotten perk of using it as a hair dryer the next morning, and it was a win. Did have enough solar gain yesterday afternoon that the stove didn't turn itself on until after I had turned in for the night.

 

Rain Rinsed Rock

In the previous post, Rain and Yard Preparation for Future Project, Cop Car commented, "The closeups show a completely different story on your existing shed than did the distant photos. And...I didn't realize that the pad is stone rather than concrete until you mentioned it."

Understandable as the rock was covered by rock dust. So I took pictures of the rock after the rain, which makes it much more evident what material was used

 

Rain and Yard Preparation for Future Project

Finally got some rain yesterday - 3/4" in 20-25 minutes

That wasn't nearly enough, and we got that amount way too fast for the ground to even attempt to soak it up, but it's something anyway. Last weekend I removed this raised bed (16" tall total) ans well as the covered dirt pile under the black plastic (where the cinder blocks are). The dirt in the raised bed was completely dry all the way down. I understand being raised, it will be drier than surrounding areas, but it is also in a low spot of the yard and gets a lot of shade from both the east side tree belt and a huge tree on the west side. 

All of the dirt from under the plastic went into filling in ruts that were left by the crane and bucket truck from the tree work that was done. I removed plants (tansy, thyme and creeping phlox that has been "holding" there for years) from the planter. Some was re-homed and others are in pots to be transplanted in my yard. Some of the remaining dirt was used elsewhere and the rest was removed by the guy in the next paragraph.

Had a local guy come in and install this 16'x18'x pad. It is a total of 12" deep (4x6 PT lumber used). Eventually it will hold a brand new 10'x14' shed with a 4'x5' ramp and leave plenty of room for planters and perhaps and outdoor sink that a hose hooks up to. Right now they are estimating December for install. But after sending them pictures of the pad, I'm on the wait list if something opens up because of cancellations. So that date could potentially move up (not likely, but maybe). Note that there is only one panel of fence left instead of 2.

The left, front corner in this picture encroaches the area, but does not completely cover that area, where the raised bed used to be.

The stone in there looks much nicer after the driving rain we had yesterday. Once the new shed is in place, I can empty and remove the 8'x10' metal shed that is at least 20 years old (it was moved from my old place and looked bad then). The pics, taken last year, don't really show the dents and stressors that are present but the roof has to be cleared of snow since it is so dented up there it won't slide off itself. Really can't complain about the cheap money we spent at HD so many years ago for this metal thing - who would have thought it would last this long without caving in?

 

Things that Smell Good in the Gardens Right Now

The sweetspire (AKA Summer Sweet) is doing its thing. I have two varieties, a red and a white.

Then there is the tall phlox and the echinacea

Day Lilies Blooming in the Heat

I didn't mow last week, only spot mowed the week before, and won't mow this week. Been hot the last several days. At leasst hot by NH standards as it has been in the 90's. However, the lDay Lilies in the roadside and shrub gardens seem to be doing okay (I do water the roadside garden). The driveway garde is not going quite as well, but still have some decent showing.

Driveway garden lilies

Roadside garden

Shrub garden

And the yellow one by the porch

It's All Over Except for the Crying

Tuesday my former coworker texted me to see if the tree service could come on Wednesday. She was worried that wasn't enough time for me to get the fence down in time for their trucks to have access. I assured her that Wednesday was fine as the panels were already down and all I needed to do was move a couple of potted plants. So, shortly after 8 Wednesday morning they started setting up. They pulled back out of the yard at 12:20 (I know the exact time, because I had just clocked in from lunch when I heard them pull out).

This was the same company that took out the willow in 2017. At that time, he owned a bucket truck and chipper and I believe it was a one-man show. He has upgraded to include a crane and had 2 people with him. The bucket truck was placed behind the house where the chainsaw operator could reach all the trees to be worked on. The crane was in the side yard between the house and the shed. The chipper was at the end of the driveway. Originally the crane was to be at the front of the house, with the chipper in the side yard, but they decided that would not be the best configuration.

Flying tree :D

A couple of trees that have been topped but the trunks are still standing at this point

I had added the 3 entwined trees at the edge of the property, so was expecting 8 or 9 trees taken in total. However, Andrew had me come out and look at a tree that seemed healthy, but in reality was splitting along the length of the trunk. It was not evident from the backyard, but until he was next to it cutting down the 3 tree cluster. Since I didn't expect that tree to be taken, I don't have any good pictures of it. This picture is of the 3-tree clump with the split tree way to the side circled in red.

I told him to take it as well as any other trees that he found to be in trouble. In all there were 13 trees taken. Although there is obviously 1 small one (in diameter, not in height), they were mostly right around 15". Those that clumped had a correspondingly larger footprint. The large trunk to the right of center, with the darker inner weed is the cherry tree taken from the sitting area. The log just to the left of that one, is the cherry tree from the center of the 3-tree clump (the other 2 trees in the clump were maples)

They also trimmed up some of the tree branches that were making that long reach towards the house. Before (taken a couple of weeks ago) and after

So they left at noon-twenty, but the logs were left in the driveway until the guy that was the crane operator showed up shortly after 4pm with a log truck. I talked to him for a couple of minutes and found he is a neighbor, living about a 1/2 mile down my road. He and his wife ride their motorcycles by my place on a regular basis and we wave to each other.

I was happy to learn that the trunks will be put to good use. He takes logs taken from local cuttings to his property, cuts/splits and seasons it. Sure, he burns some but also donates about 20 cords to the local firewood bank per year.

Stump from the tree that was splitting

From the 3-tree cluster. The cherry tree is the larger portion to the left (I was sideways to the house)

From two trees that were growing together in the front of the tree line

The thing that sux (besides having a much better view of the buildings behind my house and the extra sun hitting the house in the morning), is that nearly everything that had to come down were black cherry trees, leaving all junk maples (except for 1 cherry over toward the shrub garden). However, dang those trunks are straight (6-7 trees came out in this portion alone)

And last but not least, my sitting area prior to tree cutting, then after. Having to put that cherry tree on the chopping block was the hardest decision, but I knew it had to go as hard as it leaned and half the crown was dead.

I didn't realize how odd a shape that tree was until I looked at the stump

Last night (Friday) I was out watering the roadside garden and the crane operator stopped on his way home. "Hey, those grown back yet?"

"Nah, give them a couple of weeks."  ;)

Just a Few Short Takes

The electric company has approved my application for installation of net-metering without any stipulations. So now it is just more waiting for the solar company to schedule installation. I am guessing, that as a smaller project, and being 30 miles away from their offices, that they may wait until September. But, that is just a guess - I'm not complaining, just putting in my bet.

 

The tree company has not been here yet either. At the same time, I'm happier to wait until a couple of weeks before solar installation so that I get max shade during the morning to keep use of AC to a minimum.

 

Low humidity is good for feeling cooler on summer days. However, at the same time, almost all of NH is in a moderate drought. Unless we get a decent amount of rain, yesterday's mowing is probably the last for a while. And even then, I didn't mow the front yard (between the house and the road) as it is the driest portion. Without even any morning dew (which has been the norm the last month or two), the grass in that area is starting to go dormant. Even the parts I mowed hadn't grown much since last week. I will mow the neighbor's yard today - from the looks of it, I'll be doing selective mowing there too.

Refreshed Sitting Area

The 20 year old wood bench I've had in the sitting area has seen better days. Then a branch came down last week shearing off part of an arm rest.

I put in the back of my mind that I should replace it, but hadn't started actively looking. Went to TSC Saturday and they had 25% of garden furniture. And one of them came home with me.The assembly was supposed to take 2 people 35 minutes to put it together. It probably took 30 minutes to remove all the packaging - LOL. Then it took me a couple of hours to put it together. I just don't do well with picture only instructions, plus it was a bit awkward to assemble with only 1 person.

Then of course I had to update the base as with just leg posts, it didn't set well on the soil that the old bench had been sitting on.

The old bench went to the side of the road and a couple of hours later it apparently had found a new home.

Blooms for Week of 6/19/22

Have a lot of things that are having an off year. The false indigo (baptisia) and rhodies out front flowered, but were not their usual showy selves. Most iris didn't deign to bloom. OTOH, the variegated weigala and peonies (pictured previously in this blog) were stunning and the azaleas in the newer bed, while still small plants, did very well.

But there is the ninebark. Year after year they put out flowers, but they just aren't showy or flashy and they are easy to miss. But every year I am stunned by the beauty of the after-flower. Even with the copper foliage, the red stands out and is attention getting.

The butterfly weed has just started going. And, seeing the baptisia pods (in the background), I gotta get out there and snip them or they will be all over (I already have plenty of babies thank you). Actually, I wouldn't mind the babies, but the stalks are woody and stabby so need to be actively cut down to the ground versus things like the butterfly weed that can basically be raked out

Oh yeah, the foxgloves in the "woods" out back are also looking nice. I transplanted 1 yellow foxglove over there a couple of summers ago. There are no yellows back there now, but they have sported into light pink and a patch of darker pink. The lighter ones nearly glow at night.

Peonies and Weigala

The peonies are doing superb this year, as is the variegated weigala. Edulis Superba is the first pink peony and Festiva Maximus is the white peony.

The roadside garden peonies are show stoppers. I need to get a more current picture of the Madame Emile Dabatene and Felix Crouse as this in early in the bloom cycle

The iris are kind of lackluster as most have declined to bloom this year. What has bloomed have been very pretty though.

The huge rhodies out front are also lackluster - for them. I guess they need an off year every once in a while. Th few blooms are very nice though.

Lupines - 1st year I've gotten blooms

Variegated weigala is outstanding this year. I don't remember it ever being so full of blooms

And just because, here are gratuitous cat on a box pics

My pictures and Typepad just don't get along. Now I have to upload each picture 2-3 times before they will take. However, the picture manipulation tool is actually appearing and working for me (it rarely does), so I guess I shouldn't complain.

Update: and now the post says it has been saved, but it isn't uploading (and yes, I "published" it). I guess it really thinks I have posted too many flower pics :D