Month: March 2012

Barking Saga

by edgar62, posted in House, Garden and Dogs
Looks dirty, untidy and cheap.

Since I started clearing the bark away things have come to a screaming halt. I have already decided that I will get the bark moved rather than move it myself, however, it will cost me extra because of the rocks. That being so I will move the rocks. Friday i had eye tests and lots of drops so I was unable to function out in the sunlight for most of the  day. By the time I was able to go out, it was too late. Saturday I was in Adelaide, but I will get started tomorrow morning. Just as well it’s a public holiday so I won’t get called into work. I don’t have to dispose of the rocks at this time, just moved them out of the front garden so the backhoe can have a clear sweep through. The job should not take any longer than 45 minutes – and that’s being generous. However, it would take me the best part of a week to do- longer if I also get called in to work. Once it’s cleared I will be happy and I can take my time getting it altogether again.  The rocks have been removed so I’m just waiting on the workman to come and clear the area.

Hoe, Hoe, Hoe

by edgar62, posted in House, Garden and Dogs
Looks dirty, untidy and cheap.

Yesterday afternoon I started clearing the bark away and within an hour so so I had filled the trailer. What surprised me was the small amount of space cleared in relation to filling a 6×4 trailer. With dump fees at $15 per trailer load, this is going to be quite expensive. I am now considering  the wisdom of doing the clearing myself and wonder if it will be just as cheap to get someone with a backhoe to come and do it for me. That being so, I have arranged for this to be done.  So what’s the deal about the bark? Well,  it’s not just bark that has fallen from trees,  this is pine bark chips that have been used as a ground cover. It’s cheap, no maintenance and looks good until the weather takes its toll and leaches all the colour out of it. Then it turns black and looks really dirty. It’s not something I would consider using.  In a small area it’s managable but this is in a good sized area and I think it really detracts from the house. I’ll edge the area off with treated  Pine Logs and  use a particular wood chip that has been treated not to lose its colour. It looks attractive  and  is created as a decorative feature. However at $90 per cubic metre it is not cheap. In the back section I will have the area slightly raised and plant Roses and in the centre, the bird bath. I think it will look quite good when it is finished.

All quiet down here!

by edgar62, posted in House, Garden and Dogs

New South WalesThe rain continues to pound down in the Eastern States and the north of our State.  The area under water continues to increase but at the moment, despite the chaos, only one person has been killed. . In the north of this state  there may have to be food drops to people and communities cut off. Why such a difference in temperature and weather patterns – South Australia is larger than Texas.  Sorry about that but there you are! At the moment it’s mild here but not as warm as it should be. Something I have been painfully aware of is that we seem to have an almost constant wind. I am surrounded by trees and I spend a morning sweeping up leaves and twigs only for the place to be just as bad the next day. Same when  take the dogs out in the evening – there is always a wind. Summer’s end and I’m wearing a jacket already. Where does all the water from Queensland, the Northern Territory and the top parts of New South Wales and South Australia go and why do we not do floods over here? Most of it rushes down into the Lake Eyre Basin. The Lake Eyre basin is an area larger than France, Germany and Italy combined and for Lake eyre to o overflow would take a miracle of Biblical Proportions – really. However having said that it is believed that the flow from the Mississippi could fill Lake Eyre in about three weeks and about three days for the Amazon.

I realise that none of this has anything to do with my rebuilding the garden but with all the rain last week and the strange weather I have not really been able to do much outside other than attend to the weeds that the rain has allowed to spring up.  But provided it starts to clear up and dry out, I will get back into it again – unless my services are needed and I get called into work.

Showers with a few dry spells.

by edgar62, posted in House, Garden and Dogs

Not an encouraging sight.Friday afternoon and the sun came out. It ended up being quite warm so everything has a chance to dry out – well at least here, not so for other places. We don’t do floods here – a few puddles, but no floods. Other places, particularly in New South Wales, are in serious trouble with dams  about to overflow – and it’s still raining. This is not “normal” for this area – not for late summer early Autumn By the time the sun did come out and the day cleared up it was too late to get changed and go outside. I also had a pile of work to do for herself, who was hosting a Ladies Meeting at the church on Friday evening.  We had about 75 attending the meeting, which was good. Today, Saturday, started off quite nice then started raining again although it didn’t last very long. When we start the new week on Monday I will have to wait and see if I get called in to work. If I don’t and it stays dry, I’ll  move some of the rocks and see how much of the black bark I can get into the trailer. Amazing, great chunks of the country are under water and I’m talking about gardens and trailers. I really don’t have room to plant a lot of things and  a herb garden and the shade house are just about my limit. Do I mean the place is small – no I don’t. The place is a fair size but designed as entertainment rather than “garden”. And NO, I do not intend to turn the front garden into a  vegetable garden – I have no intention of going all ‘Good Life”  :o)   The photograph is the Warragamba Dam to the west of the city of Sydney. Not good.

Damp Thursday

by edgar62, posted in House, Garden and Dogs

Exciting – Wet Wednesday morphed into damp Thursday with everything still soggy and wet. The upper areas of the State are flooded and the rain is set to continue bringing more problems for an already flooded area. I think the sun came out today but I  must have blinked and missed it. Summer officially ended yesterday – and wouldn’t you know it. Still we are not too bad in South Australia only just over one third of the state is flooded. In New South Wales about 75% of the State is flooded and Queensland is not off the hook just yet. Amazing, really – for all our modern technology a few days of rain and everything grinds to a halt and half the country floods. And here we are, Morphed yet again into Wet Friday. Still can’t get any work done outside. This is not usual at all..