tunafish

all the blossoms on my apple trees are yellow and wilted. is that a death knell for them this year?

27.5° so far

Wow.. did not know that. I'd probably find a "safe" spot for the cowbird egg and see what happens. at lease the phoebe's will be good.

fascinating. Is your theory that the mom will bail if she notices the cowbird? I would call your local Audubon.

Are the peach trees already cooked for this year due to that cold in Feb?

Burning bushes provide great privacy in warm season and offer wonderful color appeal in fall, but they are incredibly invasive. How big are the bushes? To keep the deer off our young apple trees we simply put three stakes and two wires, about two feet apart in height, going around the trees. Barely noticeable from 10 feet away but enough to keep the deer off. They hate touching anything unnatural or unexpected, and so they don't dare to try feeding on them. What's the secret to uploading photos on this place? I'd love to post more pics, but even my screen shots often exceed thr file size.

You might be thinking of a different kind of arbor. Deer haven't touched mine and I've got them walking through my yard at least once a week. The Green Giant was bred to have superior pest-resistant qualities, and thus, it isn't a tree that deer will typically choose to eat. Keep in mind, however, that if there aren't other food sources available, deer will occasionally snack on them.

we tried to tell em I hate myself for knowing that. ::logs out::

only things not in a tunnel are garlic and sugar snap peas. we know better. --- looking like a good chance at some beneficial rains here this weekend.

look, I don't make the snow nor do I make the maps. I'm just here to post other people's content, OK? [sorry about your winter]

Haziest sunset yet here

I was serious about pics of the Holly. Trying to help diagnose. We have 3 of those green giants. Planted 5 years ago and are now about 20-25 feet tall. The last 2 years had the most growth. As a general rule, the first year after planting a tree they sleep. Second year they creep. 3rd year they leap. Be patient and make sure in their first 2 years they have enough water coming out of and going in to winter. You want the roots to grow deep, so don't over water, but if we're in Stein in late April or October, give them a few Gallons a week.

57° outside with a temp of 64° inside. Not AC worthy yet.

Ha, they're great for weed control. It's keeping them out of the garden that's the challenge. We have a little "dummy" garden set outside and away from the real garden that they ravage. Between the "weeds" and the false garden, they no reason to burrow into the actual garden space. Impossible to keep them away, otherwise, as we're adjacent to the town rec fields where they run rampent. Can't shoot em and don't have the time to put chickenwire under the garden fence.

Pics?

Awesome. This is the best of both worlds.

74 off a low of 33. I will have to check... might be my only 40° swing in 5 years at this location.

I get it. Dandelion and clover aren't for everyone. But would it kill people to throw a small polinator garden into their landscape design? That's a pretty happy median. People keep their golf course but also help out the local polinators, which have a significant importance in our ecology. https://www.usda.gov/peoples-garden/pollinators

whatever illness Stein has...it's contagious.

I'll never understand why dandelions are so despised. They bloom for a week then they're gone.

Manually yank them out? About the only non-chemical approach that's at least somewhat effective.