holly jolly

We have a beautiful holly tree in the backyard, which the utility company has told us they'll have to trim out of the reach of the power lines. We tried getting a quote from a reputable tree trimming company, since the crews the power company uses are notorious for hacking the tops off with little regard for the health or stability of the tree. I had a guy come look at the tree, and he gave me a quote for trimming it back, but then said that in his professional opinion, we'd be better off just letting the power company top the tree and then getting the rest removed, because we'd just end up paying to have it pruned year after year. We decided to just let things be and see what would happen, and just enjoy the tree in the meantime.

There are, of course, holly leaves ALL OVER the ground around the tree. I wasn't too worried about it until the day that I noticed Indy doing a hot coals dance any time he had to go over there to fetch his ball. He'd sprint over to the tree, stop a few feet short, and hesitate for a few seconds before carefully picking his way over to the ball and then high-stepping his way back to the safety of the grass. I promised him I'd rake up the sharp pointy leaves so he could frolic safely, so I picked up a rake at Walhell one night. Last Thursday, I had a day off so I kept my promise.



These two huge piles are in addition to what I'd scooped up Wednesday evening:


I was almost done raking them all together when the rake fell apart.


And the cat laughed, a lot:


I guess that's what I get for buying a $4 rake at Walmart. I think I can fix it, but at the time I didn't realize that so I was a bit pissy.

After I finished scraping the leaves into smaller and smaller piles and stuffing them into the trashcan and a big moving box we had in the shed, it was time to plant some of the hostas that I got from one of Evilducky's coworkers. With the help of my faithful gardening assistant, of course:



You know, it might've been a good idea to plant these the same day I cleaned up the beds and before I put the newspapers down.



The soil in the beds is pretty much all clay, so after the first plant, it occurred to me that it might be a good idea to give the rest of them a little help.

Ooh, yummy.

Much better!

"What, this mat? You weren't using it, were you?"

Now what am I supposed to do with a giant bucket of clay?

I guess I could make little animals and sell them on Etsy.

"Do whatever you want. I'm tired from all that work."


Nice job, Indy. Nice job.

no (day of) rest for the wicked

We aren't quite to the point of actual gardening yet, but we spent all day in the yard today. MB and my cousin MacGyver cleaned out the gutters, put on gutter screening, and cleaned out some disgusting, disgusting clogged downspouts.


While they worked on the gutter project, Indiana and I tackled the beds along the sideyard sidewalk. The people who lived here before us edged the sidewalk with brick and then filled in with rocks, which is a fabulous alternative to having to edge and mow grass in narrow spaces. Unfortunately, weeds were starting to make it out past the rocks, and it was only going to get worse. I've read several different times that newspaper makes a good weed barrier under mulch, so I figured I'd pull all the rocks out, dig up the weeds, lay down newspaper, and then replace the rocks. Of course, writing it out like that makes it sound easier and less tedious than it truly was, but we made it through.

I don't have a "before" picture, because I was positive I'd already taken one and didn't bother to take another. In this photo of Indy supervising, you can see the worst patch of weeds, though:


Step 1:  Weeds! Wah!


Steps 2 & 3:  Move rocks aside, dig up weeds:


Steps 4 & 5:  Lay newspaper, replace rocks:



Someone has to hold down the rocks in case of a strong wind:


Keep repeating the process:


Finally, nearly an entire day later, enjoy the results:


Here's what Kitters was doing while we were slaving away:


I have to admit, he seems to be onto something.