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Early spring or Fall is planting time.
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Jul 8, 2020 00:53
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I made grass    These are all pictures from Tuesday, it's grown in very thick all over the yard now. I'm really happy that all this effort is bearing fruit. Or, well grass. I'd say that after planting 10 days ago we're at 50% total coverage with little more than watering. We bought one bag of quick start for what we though was going to be a rough patch but it grew in fine. Today we re seeded the large patches and moved our hoses around but it's raining now which is saving me the extra effort. This is from yesterday, my front yard. Most of the ground in this photo was dry, barren ground or clay. 
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Jul 12, 2020 20:17
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Wow, it's a rough time of the year to be starting grass and that looks GREAT. Keep up the watering and it looks like you'll be fine.
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Jul 12, 2020 20:25
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So I've been told. I had no idea, we just had to get it going. It was this or sod and that would have cost a fuckin fortune.
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Jul 12, 2020 21:26
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Rhyno posted:So I've been told. I had no idea, we just had to get it going. It was this or sod and that would have cost a fuckin fortune. Worst case if it doesn't entirely fill out you can overseed when it cools off and you'll have a nice thick and healthy lawn in the spring.
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Jul 12, 2020 23:02
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Tons of new growth sprouting up in the back! Just gotta coax it into a few barren spots and we'll be looking good.
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Jul 14, 2020 16:28
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I really need to get better about watering the sod I put down in the front yard this spring, I covered up a bed that was previously small rocks. I dug out as much of them as I could but after years of the bed being there the rocks were pretty well embedded into the dirt. The sod took okay at first but it’s definitely stressed in the heat compared to the rest of the established lawn.
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Jul 14, 2020 16:52
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how many rocks are you talking about? while sod is obviously temperamental i think you would need to to have some REALLY bad underlying conditions to be causing that. can you pull up the sod or has it rooted in? if it's rooted in well but still stressed, you might be having a water retention issue. also hello everyone i manage a 130 acre nursery in new jersey so if anyone has any tree questions i am happy to help
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Jul 15, 2020 20:50
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This kind of hardscape: The tiny rocks just embed themselves in the dirt over the years and you get a nice inch thick+ layer of compacted dirt and rock. I would have had to dig it all out and bring in topsoil and I already spent way too much time cleaning up the rocks in the bed already. The sod is well established, I haven’t been able to lift it up for a while now.
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Jul 15, 2020 21:48
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A 50S RAYGUN posted:also hello everyone i manage a 130 acre nursery in new jersey so if anyone has any tree questions i am happy to help What's a good time of year to remove an air-layering I started mid-spring on a red maple?
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Jul 15, 2020 21:59
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Hubis posted:What's a good time of year to remove an air-layering I started mid-spring on a red maple? we don't do much clonal propagation, but where are you and where is it going (outdoors or a greenhouse)? an air layer should be fine 'indefinitely' (not literally, but long enough that you can wait to plant it whenever it's seasonally appropriate)
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Jul 15, 2020 22:35
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A 50S RAYGUN posted:we don't do much clonal propagation, but where are you and where is it going (outdoors or a greenhouse)? an air layer should be fine 'indefinitely' (not literally, but long enough that you can wait to plant it whenever it's seasonally appropriate) Thanks for the useful feedback! I realize it's kind of a weird question -- it was just something I'd been idly wondering about, and when a tree expert happened to present themselves I figured I'd take a shot. Purpose is mostly just technique practice on landscape trees for bonsai (the branch was one I needed to prune anyways, and while a. rubrum isn't a super great species for bonsai the branch had some mojo so I figured I'd practice a bit). I got some Japanese maples at a decent price that are nice varieties but with pretty ugly grafts onto the root stock, and so my plan there was to grow them out a bit and then air-layer them off the grafts. Seasonally I'd ideally want to plant/pot it in early spring, so my concern was whether leaving the air layering to winter over would put the roots at risk for freezing (since they wouldn't have the protection of a pot/soil around them, etc.). If I removed it this fall it would go in a pot outdoors, but in a "sheltered" location (I've got plans to hack together a "cold greenhouse" for wintering things that should stay in the 30's).
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Jul 15, 2020 22:51
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if you can (and you're sure the roots have developed), i wouldn't overwinter them in the air layering if you don't have to (if you get winter temps below freezing). edit: I'll touch more on this in a bit
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Jul 15, 2020 23:06
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A 50S RAYGUN posted:how many rocks are you talking about? while sod is obviously temperamental i think you would need to to have some REALLY bad underlying conditions to be causing that. can you pull up the sod or has it rooted in? if it's rooted in well but still stressed, you might be having a water retention issue. What do you grow? Trees or shrubs or what? If trees, do you start from seed or buy liners/seedlings? Are they in pots or in ground? The nursery business is pretty big around here and I've always been curious how it works. How did you get your job-horticulture/agriculture school or hands on experience or what?
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Jul 15, 2020 23:54
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Kaiser Schnitzel posted:What do you grow? Trees or shrubs or what? If trees, do you start from seed or buy liners/seedlings? Are they in pots or in ground? The nursery business is pretty big around here and I've always been curious how it works. How did you get your job-horticulture/agriculture school or hands on experience or what? igrow trees (ornamentals, evergreens, and canopy/shade) and what some stuff people might call 'shrubs' but are considered in the landscape trade to actually be small ornamental trees - serviceberry and redbud and things like that. i think next year I'll line out some arrowood and boxwood and stuff just because it's easy to sell, but at the moment i we don't sell anything that has a mature height less than 12-14 feet. i do very few seedlings - climatologically my area isn't good for it and if i wanted to grow a seedling out to just be a starting liner size it would probably cost me an extra year compared to a liner propagation nursery (ie it would take me about two years to get a liner it would take them about a year to grow). i'll seedling start stuff if i can't find it as a liner and i think they're personally interesting (i'm doing some red star whitecedar), but generally i try to line out stuff that's an inch to an inch.25 in caliper in the hopes of cutting out a year of maintenance time. because it's only cost effective to ball&burlap trees in late winter/early spring (and some varietals in the fall), a tree that isn't dug needs another entire year of maintenance - pruning, chemical control, weed control, irrigation, etc - and that cost generally can't be passed on to the customer in a saleable way unless you're lucky and you go from like 2 in caliper to a 3 in a year or something. i'll container grow seedlings until they're vigorous enough to handle being field grown, for the few seedlings i do grow, but almost anything a customer would buy from me did most of it's developing out in the fields. i know a few guys near me 'field grow' their container plants (they line out their containers in their fields and grown them out there), but i've never seen the point and imo it's easier to get a ball&burlap tree to transplant compared to something container grown, especially when you're a landscape contractor putting 100+ trees in the ground a day and speed matters. i'm pretty 'lucky' (if you consider working on a nursery to be 'lucky', i work around 70 hours a week year-round and don't make a whole lot of money) - it was my dad's nursery, so i've been working around trees for like two decades (I'm 30). i don't have any formal education about any of this stuff beyond like seminars and presentations, i failed out of community college when i went. trees are pretty good communicators, though, and they're resilient, so they are good teachers as long as you're listening and willing to be both reactive when you notice a problem and proactive when it seems like it may pop up again.
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Jul 16, 2020 17:10
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A 50S RAYGUN posted:i'll container grow seedlings until they're vigorous enough to handle being field grown, for the few seedlings i do grow, but almost anything a customer would buy from me did most of it's developing out in the fields. i know a few guys near me 'field grow' their container plants (they line out their containers in their fields and grown them out there), but i've never seen the point and imo it's easier to get a ball&burlap tree to transplant compared to something container grown, especially when you're a landscape contractor putting 100+ trees in the ground a day and speed matters. Have you experimented with Air-Pots, and if so do you think they're worth the hype? The demos I have seen showing the dense/radial root structure and how that translates to better health even several years post-transplant is really compelling to me, but I don't know how much of that is just marketing.
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Jul 16, 2020 17:43
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air-pots are 'good', with the caveat that a lot of that comes from the fact a 'normal' container is just an extremely unnatural way to store a plant for an extended duration of time. the science on air-pruning as a practice is obviously very good and compelling (i'm biased obviously and think the 'best' thing to do is plant a tree and let it root how it wants). i think Air-pot as a brand is probably overselling it a bit, and i oversee and quote plant lists for millions of dollars worth of landscape installs and i have never once seen a landscape architect actually demand air-pot containers (nor would they realistically care, because any reputable landscape contractor is probably on the hook to replace a tree that doesn't transplant well for a year or two). i think you can probably do what you do with an air-pot if you just check to ensure you're not root circling or getting rootbound in your containers, and by regularly checking and doing some light pruning to root systems when its safe to do so. also, if you're not planning on transplanting your container plants to a permanent install, i'm not sure how much it really 'matters'.
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Jul 16, 2020 18:35
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From the business and sales side, how do I as an individual get access to a wholesale nursery very close to my house that's generally not open to the public? Not only are most retail nurseries that carry their lines farther away, but they generally don't stock much of the stuff I want.
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Jul 16, 2020 22:29
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it really depends on how big they are. we're relatively small (we dig around 3000 trees every spring) and we're still closed to the public mostly because the public doesn't know what they want and will never buy enough to make educating them cost-effective. that said, if a private homeowner who seemed knowledgeable called me and told me they wanted 25 eight foot white pines delivered to their house, i would almost never say no - we're closed to the public because in the few times I've had to deal with private homeowners, they do 'weird' poo poo like bring their whole family or balk at prices or want things way out of scope for what we usually do (ie spending half an afternoon walking around our above-ground inventory explaining stuff to a guy who then tells me he wants like a singular five foot Holly). i just don't want to waste my time with tire kickers. none of this helps you though - what i would do is simply call, explain what you did here, tell them you know what you want (or close enough), and ask if they'll allow you to buy. if not (like, if they're a big west coast nursery who send out truckloads all day), your next best bet may be to find a retail nursery they do work with and simply ask them if they'll source some.stuff for you. you'll probably pay ten percent extra, or whatever, but this way everyone gets what they want. this happens to us a decent amount - we're not open to the public but the garden center down the road is, so they'll call us up and ask for like three Japanese maples and a falsecypress or whatever and it's almost doubtlessly going to a private homeowner who just wanted something they didn't have. if that doesn't work - the retail nursery won't ask or the wholesale nursery won't oblige - your last bet is to probably find a local small landscape contractor, explain what's going on, and tell them you'll pay like ten percent if they'll just source the plants for you. if they're small enough and you're not just looking for like, three trees, they'll probably say yeah.
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Jul 17, 2020 01:13
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A 50S RAYGUN posted:it really depends on how big they are. we're relatively small (we dig around 3000 trees every spring) and we're still closed to the public mostly because the public doesn't know what they want and will never buy enough to make educating them cost-effective. that said, if a private homeowner who seemed knowledgeable called me and told me they wanted 25 eight foot white pines delivered to their house, i would almost never say no - we're closed to the public because in the few times I've had to deal with private homeowners, they do 'weird' poo poo like bring their whole family or balk at prices or want things way out of scope for what we usually do (ie spending half an afternoon walking around our above-ground inventory explaining stuff to a guy who then tells me he wants like a singular five foot Holly). i just don't want to waste my time with tire kickers. Thanks for the info, I am basically looking for three trees. Three Coast Live Oaks each in as large as a pot as can be reasonably delivered to my house (15 gallon probably). I will definitely just give them a call when I'm closer to planting time.
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Jul 17, 2020 20:33
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Putting this drainage pipe in from the downspout down to the drainage easement is gonna suuuuuuck. 
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Jul 17, 2020 21:58
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How deep do you have to bury it? You could rent a trencher and be done in a few hours probably. (Call before you dig).
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Jul 17, 2020 22:08
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devmd01 posted:Putting this drainage pipe in from the downspout down to the drainage easement is gonna suuuuuuck. RIP ur tree (which direction is the easement?)
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Jul 17, 2020 22:45
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Standing in it to take the picture, it’s the final ~15ft of the rear of the property. I’m gonna route the pipe slightly to the right of the tree to hopefully not flood it more than it already is in the spring. I know 811 is advisable but I am 100% certain that there isn’t anything where I will be digging. All of the utilities come in either through the front of the house or in the other rear corner wrapping around to the front. I’ll definitely be calling them when I do drainage pipes in that corner though.
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Jul 17, 2020 23:08
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So my wife and I want to add a small retaining wall (less than 2.5ish feet at the highest point). Right now, we have a small grass slope going to the edge of our driveway. The plan would be to dig it out, put in drainage, and backfill it to be even with the capstone. Problem is, we hate the look of drat near every retaining wall product. They all look like a variation of cinderblocks, just different colors. We like the look of various natural stones (river rocks, stacked stone, etc) but are having some problems finding products. Any good ideas of what to look for?
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Jul 18, 2020 01:56
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KKKLIP ART posted:So my wife and I want to add a small retaining wall (less than 2.5ish feet at the highest point). Right now, we have a small grass slope going to the edge of our driveway. The plan would be to dig it out, put in drainage, and backfill it to be even with the capstone. Problem is, we hate the look of drat near every retaining wall product. They all look like a variation of cinderblocks, just different colors. We like the look of various natural stones (river rocks, stacked stone, etc) but are having some problems finding products. Any good ideas of what to look for? The problem with natural stone is that a retaining wall is an engineered structure. To meet design goals it has to be done with known strength and size materials. Perhaps it would be best if you made it out of cinder block and lintels (something I've seen done for many low retention walls) and then put on a natural stone face and cap?
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Jul 18, 2020 13:15
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Motronic posted:The problem with natural stone is that a retaining wall is an engineered structure. To meet design goals it has to be done with known strength and size materials. I had that idea, wife wasn’t as jazzed about it but if that’s the only way to really get the look we want, it is what it is.
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Jul 18, 2020 14:45
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KKKLIP ART posted:I had that idea, wife wasn’t as jazzed about it but if that’s the only way to really get the look we want, it is what it is. I mean, it really depends on just how much soil of what composition you're trying to hold back. If you're in a situation where it's little enough load that you don't need an engineered solution with sleepers, etc then you're really just building a wall and you can make it out of whatever. If it needs to be an actual retention wall you need to be able to tie in sleepers and I'm not sure how you'd do that with just natural stone unless you could get some pieces that are very long, heavy and expensive to use as sleepers. I've got a 2.5' at it's highest wall around my back patio - it's natural stone and it's actually just dry stack. Because there's nothing for it to hold up other than 3 feet of soil (landscape bed) and then a concrete patio behind that. Didn't even need to actually use mortar or anything. But when you're saying "retention wall" I'm taking it to be, well....the technical meaning of that.
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Jul 18, 2020 14:59
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Motronic posted:I mean, it really depends on just how much soil of what composition you're trying to hold back. If you're in a situation where it's little enough load that you don't need an engineered solution with sleepers, etc then you're really just building a wall and you can make it out of whatever. If it needs to be an actual retention wall you need to be able to tie in sleepers and I'm not sure how you'd do that with just natural stone unless you could get some pieces that are very long, heavy and expensive to use as sleepers. Yeah I don’t think it’s an actual retention wall in the traditional sense of the word. I’ll try to make a diagram or take a picture. It’s only a couple of feet tall at the highest point and currently just a gentle-ish slope.
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Jul 18, 2020 15:01
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Yeah I myself need to build something that needs to hold back at most 2 feet of soil only at the deep end and I’ve been wondering how lazy I could get with it.
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Jul 18, 2020 15:05
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If it's on a slope and holding back any soil at all, I would suggest at least a minimum of engineering to stabilize and tie it to get ground, especially if you live somewhere with freezing temperatures. Lest you become another "what can I do about this crumbling retention wall" post in DIY.
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Jul 18, 2020 15:32
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Yeah, there really isn't a lot to hold back. I think we are going to do an engineered solution that is made for building an outdoor wall, similar to this but rated for up to 3-4 feet just for some leeway, and then do some lighting with a system like this. It won't be for a bit, but I want to make a materials list to get an idea of cost and all that.
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Jul 18, 2020 15:46
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KKKLIP ART posted:So my wife and I want to add a small retaining wall (less than 2.5ish feet at the highest point). Right now, we have a small grass slope going to the edge of our driveway. The plan would be to dig it out, put in drainage, and backfill it to be even with the capstone. Problem is, we hate the look of drat near every retaining wall product. They all look like a variation of cinderblocks, just different colors. We like the look of various natural stones (river rocks, stacked stone, etc) but are having some problems finding products. Any good ideas of what to look for? I'm trying to figure out a similar project (a little shorter in my case)—the only thing that really stacks up to the look of natural stone is natural stone. The best option I have found is landscaping supply places, so I would call around. At least around here, some of them have locations where you can go look at all of the stone options they have.
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Jul 18, 2020 15:54
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Gave up after the sun peeked over the house, I picked the wrong weekend to do this. Gonna have to go pick up a mattock, our clay is really dense about 8 inches down.
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Jul 18, 2020 16:29
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My initial work assessment was correct, that suuuuuucked. Nothing but dense clay the whole way down; thankfully the mattock made relatively short work of it. Even managed to give myself heat exhaustion right as I was finishing up for the day so that was fun. Just need to throw the dirt back in and put the sod back into place. ...and then seriously consider spending the money on a trencher for the other corner I want to do drainage piping as there is over twice the length of this one to deal with. 
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Jul 19, 2020 17:31
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devmd01 posted:My initial work assessment was correct, that suuuuuucked. Nothing but dense clay the whole way down; thankfully the mattock made relatively short work of it. I've never heard of anyone who ever rented a trencher say they regretted renting a trencher
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Jul 19, 2020 19:53
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I regret renting a trencher, it was loving terrible at cleaning my gutters out.
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Jul 19, 2020 20:41
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What do y'all recommend for cutting grass in a very small, extremely hilly/rocky/stumpy yard? I've just been using this big rear end string trimmer but it leaves really ragged edges on the grass and it's super hard to get a uniform cut. Do they make a string trimmer designed for grass that helps keep a consistent level?
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Jul 19, 2020 20:47
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Sprue posted:What do y'all recommend for cutting grass in a very small, extremely hilly/rocky/stumpy yard? I've just been using this big rear end string trimmer but it leaves really ragged edges on the grass and it's super hard to get a uniform cut. Do they make a string trimmer designed for grass that helps keep a consistent level? Yeah, they have a couple wheels to hold them level, and usually even a height adjustment option for dialing in a long or short cut. Also, they usually use a metal blade instead of a string to get a really clean cut
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Jul 19, 2020 23:11
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| # ? Apr 27, 2024 10:44 |
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Sprue posted:What do y'all recommend for cutting grass in a very small, extremely hilly/rocky/stumpy yard? I've just been using this big rear end string trimmer but it leaves really ragged edges on the grass and it's super hard to get a uniform cut. Do they make a string trimmer designed for grass that helps keep a consistent level? Glibness aside, this is actually the opposite of what you asked for, but it might help because it actually works in a way similar to what I joked about above: making the trimmer more like a lawnmower https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qh6vPgX0cH0 So as shown, the Edgit (or similar devices) are helpful for using a trimmer for edging; however, another advantage is that they provide a big surface area for directing the airflow creates by the spinning trimmer string. In theory this helps to stand the grass up a little bit more so that as you cut it you are actually getting a more even length. Of course, trimmer string isn't angled like mower blades are (which helps create that consistent suction) so it is still not going to be as good, but it might help? Another simpler idea would be to go over the area you want to trim and hit it with a blower first to "fluff up" the grass a little more. Ultimately you are never going to get a super clean cut with a trimmer, just because of how they work. Even a mower with hardened metal blades will give a bad cut if the blades are dull or nicked. But maybe this can help at least give a more consistent height?
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Jul 20, 2020 14:21
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