Another step in the plan

So I got 2 quotes to have 5 trees and 2 stumps removed. First quote was $1,200. After talking with Allen, he assured me that I wasn't getting ripped off. It sounded right to me and his confirmation was just about all I needed. But, I thought I'd really be doing myself a disservice if I didn't at least call another company. I did and boy am I glad. $675!!! Trees and stumps. Wow. For the record, the company was Arbor Lawn and Tree Care. They did a great job. Not much damage to the lawn and my bedroom doesn't have a new skylight.

So, without further ado, the before and after...

Spring Bulbs?

So I wanted to put some bulbs in the ground this spring that will provide fall color. Anyone have any ideas?

5-year plan

You're all aware of the plan we bought last year for our yards. Step 1 (which is still under way) was to clear out the ivy in the backyard.

Step 2 was to take out some trees. Got one quote this weekend and another one coming later today. By end of week, those trees will be gone.

One of these days I will post a picture of the entire plan as it's too big to scan. Until then, here's all of the plants and trees we're going to be sticking in the ground.

Leaf Blowing

Well, I thought I would post a message to see if I can revive this blog.

This weekend, I decided to start Phase 2: Backyard Revitalization Project. Phase 2 consists of getting the lower section of my backyard ready for plastic weedbarrier and pinestraw. The first step is to get rid of the leaves. So I decided I would rake and blow the leaves off the upper section and also the hillside. At 9:30 I started raking. By 10:30 I was far enough along that I could leverage the leafblower to get the remaining debris. This process was going rather smoothly, until I looked up to find a Wake County Sheriff waving me down from the fence in my backyard.

Apparently, my neighbor called to complain that I was making too much noise with my leafblower. This is not the first time this particular neighbor has complained about me, however it is the first time it was in regards to my doing yard work at 11 AM on a Saturday. I am floored by people like this. I asked the cop if he was telling me to stop using the leaf blower, his response was kinda funny. He said, "No, I am just here to let you know that someone is complaining about the noise. As far as I am concerned, Saturday mornings are for doing yard work. It is too bad that one bad egg can ruin the bunch."

Later that day, I found out that the cop had talked to several other people about the person complaining. This started a very active thread on my Home Owners Community Message Board. I like my neighborhood, but the concentration of assholes seems to be far greater here than anywhere else that I have lived.

Pennington Seed

Last weekend I decided to gamble. I threw down some tall fescue seed. Last year, my front lawn was devastated by the drought and the extremely tall pine tree that sucks up every last drop of moisture. If you want evidence of that, our house is shown on Google Maps Street View. You can see the ginormous dead patch in the lawn. Also take a look at the pine tree. See, I told you it was big! My thinking was that if something, if anything grows, great. If it doesn't, oh well.

I seeded last fall and there's definitely growth, but I'm determined to have a full lawn this year. It may have some weeds (and I dug out a bunch, too) but it's going to be full and green.

The seed of choice? Pennington. From our grass seed tests on the paper plates, I remember Pennington holding up well. Will that mean anything in the harsher, less than ideal conditions of my yard? Who knows?

One other thing I did was to throw seed down in the backyard where I had pulled all of that ivy from last year. Over the winter, the whole area actually turned green with some weed that I can't identify. My hope is the seed will overtake the weeds. Maybe wishful thinking on my part, but, hey a guy can dream, right?

In a month and half, I'm thinking of fertilizing and then re-seeding again, as soon as possible.