What is the matter with me? It must be spring fever. I can barely put one foot in front of the other to get through the day. I took a nap today.....something I never do. If it isn't spring fever, then it may be because I got an early start on my garden.
The city removed the tree that fell on my garage...and my neighbor's house. There is thousands of dollars of damage done to my garage and to my neighbor's house.
The city's crew removed the trunk and the branches. They chipped up the stump, then drove off. I waited all winter watching for the city truck to come back and cart away all those chips. There is a huge pile of them on the narrow strip of grass between the sidewalk and the street. That is where the tree was.
Then it dawned on me: I am stupid. I am paying $7 to $10 a bag for mulch and there it is, sitting in front of me. There is no difference between what I was buying and what is sitting at the curb. This tree died from fungus. What's the difference. There is fungus in the soil naturally. I won't be spreading a disease if I use the wood chips in my garden. I have a bonanza of mulch ...free for the taking. I am taking it or as much as I have room for. Putting my back into it, I shovel wheelbarrow after wheelbarrow of wood chips . They mulch around my plants . I have two beds: one for vegetables and one for flowers. For once, I have enough mulch to do the whole yard. Greedy me. I lay a tarp on the corner by my old mulch piles and shovel more tree chips into a pile. Let it rot in place. It will be good to go next spring. There is still more wood chips. The next day I work at it some more....but with less energy than the first day. The third day brings more shoveling ....fewer loads than the day before. yesterday, I could only manage one load. Today, I managed one more load and quit.
My shoulders, knees, feet, back are stiff. I can barely move. I walk around the house and yard as if I have a bad case of arthritis. A nap seems a good idea. Last task of the day is to make a sign on a stick. It goes in the much reduced pile of wood chips at the curb. It says,"Free Mulch. help yourself"
By the way, the city says it will not pay for the damage the tree did. The city says it has no obligation to inspect each tree. I consulted with my insurance representative. I am suing the city.
The city removed the tree that fell on my garage...and my neighbor's house. There is thousands of dollars of damage done to my garage and to my neighbor's house.
The city's crew removed the trunk and the branches. They chipped up the stump, then drove off. I waited all winter watching for the city truck to come back and cart away all those chips. There is a huge pile of them on the narrow strip of grass between the sidewalk and the street. That is where the tree was.
Then it dawned on me: I am stupid. I am paying $7 to $10 a bag for mulch and there it is, sitting in front of me. There is no difference between what I was buying and what is sitting at the curb. This tree died from fungus. What's the difference. There is fungus in the soil naturally. I won't be spreading a disease if I use the wood chips in my garden. I have a bonanza of mulch ...free for the taking. I am taking it or as much as I have room for. Putting my back into it, I shovel wheelbarrow after wheelbarrow of wood chips . They mulch around my plants . I have two beds: one for vegetables and one for flowers. For once, I have enough mulch to do the whole yard. Greedy me. I lay a tarp on the corner by my old mulch piles and shovel more tree chips into a pile. Let it rot in place. It will be good to go next spring. There is still more wood chips. The next day I work at it some more....but with less energy than the first day. The third day brings more shoveling ....fewer loads than the day before. yesterday, I could only manage one load. Today, I managed one more load and quit.
My shoulders, knees, feet, back are stiff. I can barely move. I walk around the house and yard as if I have a bad case of arthritis. A nap seems a good idea. Last task of the day is to make a sign on a stick. It goes in the much reduced pile of wood chips at the curb. It says,"Free Mulch. help yourself"
By the way, the city says it will not pay for the damage the tree did. The city says it has no obligation to inspect each tree. I consulted with my insurance representative. I am suing the city.
Labels: an early spring
posted by gardenbug at Thursday, April 08, 2010
2 Comments:
Great idea about the mulch - but don't overdo it!
Too late. I already overdid. Yesterday, Chris and I visited an Alpaca Farm. The animals are adorable!....so dignified with huge gentle eyes. I wanted to hug them, but the animals are stand-offish. I got a sweater and a hat made from their softest yarn. It is lovely. I also bought a sweater for Chris knitted from the same stuff. It is like wearing whip cream...warm and weightless. Then I made a deal with the owner to come back today and relieve him of some of his Alpaca manure for my roses. There is more shoveling in my future.
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