Gardening/Maintenance Thread

Postby **blackjack68** » Fri Mar 05, 2021 4:30 pm

Enjoy your lifetime of asparagus!

Postby **robbiestoupe** » Fri Mar 05, 2021 6:59 pm

Enjoy your lifetime of asparagus!

Funny story: as a kid my dad planted asparagus in his garden. I hated asparagus. As part of our chores, my brother and I had to pick the asparagus from the garden. Well, maybe 10% made it in the house and the other 90% was thrown in the woods. Sorry dad, asparagus crop is bad this year

Postby **King Colby** » Fri Mar 05, 2021 7:04 pm

I wanted to plant berries this year in a big sunny corner of the yard I just cleared out but I've learned Queen Colby has been house hunting on her phone so I doubt I can hold that one off long enough to make it worth it.

Postby **robbiestoupe** » Fri Mar 05, 2021 7:07 pm

I wanted to plant berries this year in a big sunny corner of the yard I just cleared out but I've learned Queen Colby has been house hunting on her phone so I doubt I can hold that one off long enough to make it worth it.

Yeah you want about 3 years to really get ROI on fruit bushes

Postby **tifosi77** » Fri Mar 05, 2021 7:24 pm

At the end of February last year, this is what our nectarine tree looked like.

Today, there is not a single blossom. Meanwhile, the peach tree (out of frame on the right) is jammin' with blossoms this past week. Do I have a dead nectarine tree?

Postby **mac5155** » Fri Mar 05, 2021 7:40 pm

Nah man, Punxsutawney Phil didn't see his shadow last year. This year he did. Obviously your peach tree didn't get the message. You're good.

Postby **Beveridge** » Fri Mar 05, 2021 8:40 pm

Don't speak ill of Phil.

Postby **Freddy Rumsen** » Sat Mar 13, 2021 8:37 am

Is it just me or are fruit trees way up in price this year?

Postby **blackjack68** » Sat Mar 13, 2021 9:44 am

Last year was a boon for the horticultural industry. Supply and demand has driven prices up.

Postby **NTP66** » Sun Mar 14, 2021 10:40 am

Figure today is a good a day as any to prep the lawnmower for the new season. Pressure wash the deck, sharpen and balance the blades, replace the oil and filter.

Postby **NTP66** » Sun Mar 14, 2021 3:09 pm

I love my Honda mower, but man, this is the second year in a row I need to buy new blades. The bottom blade had too many large chips in it to file off. I’m not even sure an angle grinder would have saved it.

Postby **tifosi77** » Sun Mar 14, 2021 3:50 pm

I have absolutely no desire to mow a law ever again.

Postby **NTP66** » Sun Mar 14, 2021 4:28 pm

I enjoy the start of the season. Good weather, I get to lose myself in music while making the lawn look nice, etc. By late July with the humidity, however, I hate it.

Postby **skullman80** » Sun Mar 14, 2021 5:35 pm

I love mowing the lawn. One of life's greatest pleasures. I love making our yard look too notch in general.

Postby **NTP66** » Sun Mar 14, 2021 5:38 pm

If not for the guy down the street who is semi-retired and tends to his lawn like one of his kids, I’d have the nicest lawn in the neighborhood.

Postby **mac5155** » Sun Mar 14, 2021 6:09 pm

I did crabgrass preventer on Wednesday. I'll aerate and overseed in about a month, and then fertilize again shortly after that.

Postby **King Colby** » Sun Mar 14, 2021 6:57 pm

I just did crabgrass preventer today. I think I also need to replace my Honda mower blades too.

I love cutting grass. It's like my form of meditation. Yard work in general is, although to NTPs point it does suck when humid.

Postby **count2infinity** » Tue Mar 23, 2021 4:03 pm

Planning on building some mobile raised beds for along the side of the house and maybe the deck... is there ahuge difference between pine and cedar for the build? Am I going to get a huge bump in lifetime if I use cedar?

Postby **NTP66** » Tue Mar 23, 2021 4:07 pm

I don’t think you’ll find many who would choose pine over cedar. There are just too many benefits from using it.

Postby **count2infinity** » Tue Mar 23, 2021 4:25 pm

I'm largely just looking at cost to longevity. I've got scrap pine and wouldn't need to spend a ton to make the beds, but if they're going to crap out after 2 years where cedar would last 15... well, okay. I'll pony up and get the cedar.

Postby **NTP66** » Tue Mar 23, 2021 4:28 pm

Personally, I’d pony up for cedar. It has natural protection against both weather and pests. I like the look of it, too, but that’s subjective.

Postby **mac5155** » Tue Mar 23, 2021 7:53 pm

I got about 5 years out of rough cut pine boards that were (a true) 2x14 when I did my raised beds. They rotted away after that.

I think if you do cedar and maybe line the inside faces of the wood with plastic you may get a little longer out of them.

Postby **King Colby** » Tue Mar 23, 2021 8:03 pm

I made grow boxes for my deck 3 years ago out of pine and sealed it. They're still fine

Postby **DigitalGypsy66** » Wed Mar 24, 2021 9:24 am

What about railroad ties?

Postby **dodint** » Wed Mar 24, 2021 9:28 am

I don't know how long they were there but the railroad ties built into the retaining wall at the old Allison Park house were a complete mess by the time we moved out. No idea how the buyers didn't complain.