Mulch Mulch Baby

Edging and mulching has been completed! The place looks great!

The Frye Brothers do phenomenal work, if I may be so bold 😉!

The devil is in the details really -

We also pruned a bunch of spruce tree limbs today that were hanging low over the driveway. Loaded them into the trailer, drove them to Sunnydew Circle, where we unloaded them curbside to be picked up by the town.

Hard work never hurt anybody...😤

Timberrrrrrr!

It's done!

I cut down and cut up the two trees pictured below -

I cut the trunks up into ~3' length and have them stacked along the sidewalk with a free sign, hoping someone takes them all!  The limbs and all other pieces and parts, were loaded into the trailer and taken to the Franklin recycling center.

It's too bad really that these two died.  I planted them both years ago when they were no bigger around than my wrist.  The Hemlock stump won't be a problem since it's in the back corner where I dump my grass clippings and leaves.  However, the Weeping Cherry stump will bother me, as it's in my front yard and unsightly, to me anyway, but I'll worry about that project in the spring.

I'm happy that I got these two down, and other numerous limbs around my yard pruned back, and put to bed now versus the spring.

Fall Haircuts

After cutting my lawn I spent this past Saturday afternoon doing some pruning.  It's a regular fall chore that I've been doing for years, this year no different.

I like to trim my weeping cherry trees so they have a more upside down umbrella look.  Otherwise they get all squirrely with new limbs shooting up and out, which defeats the "weeping" looking.

Below is a Kouda Dogwood tree, which I planted when Emilie was born.  Hindsight being what it is, I should have planted it 3 or 4 feet to the right, as it's beneath the electric wire that runs to the house.  I trimmed this tree too, so it's clear of the wire but also I like them short and stout versus tall and lanky.

Before pic taken during the end of our hot humid summer.  The colored leaves are not the onset of Fall, rather stress from lack of water. Hoping it bounces back fine next spring

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After pruning the top - 

Onto the next fall clean up project...

Weeping Cherry Haircut!

Pruning our large weeping Cherry tree has been on my mind now for a couple years now.  It was too tall and it was becoming harder and harder to maintain and prune in the fall.  Also, it had grown into the wires; electrical, cable and phone, running to the house from the pole, so it was time.

Once I made my mind up it was something I needed to do sooner rather than later.  To that end, and instead of waiting until after it flowered this spring, I went to work hand cutting each branch and limb.

Before -

After -

Hoping my theory, of cutting now versus later in the year, is that the spring thaw will allow the tree to push out new growth immediately after waking from it's long winters nap, instead of putting it's initial efforts into the flowers and longer limbs.

Fingers crossed that what I expect to have happen happens.

Also, no one else in the house is pleased with the haircut I've given and the fact that there won't be any flowers this year.  This is true, about the flowers, but I'm thinking long term...

Take A Little Off The Top!

Well, it's that time of year again, pruning time!

In an effort to keep our weeping cherry tree in check so it doesn't get too squirrelie and out of control, I spend several hours trimming and pruning, from top to bottom and everything in between.  When done it always looks nice and neat, ready for the fall.

Before -

After -

TA-DA!