Happy New Year! Looking for some help from you veteran WH owners: I'm in the middle of a full frame-off restoration of the '89 312-8 I inherited. These machines are so well put together that most of my work will be paint, wiring and replacing some worn out bushings, etc. Question for you or any other WH owner out there: on the rear wheel mounting flanges there are two set-screws that hold each flange to the axle. The head of the bolt is square, then there is a hex nut between that and the flange casting. Is this a lock nut or is it welded on to the flange as part of the attachment? Before I go putting too much torque on these things and breaking something I'm trying to figure out how they're hitched together! I've got some play in one of the flanges I'd like to eliminate - maybe replace the woodruff key? Thoughts/tips/pointers, please?

I can see that those are definitely Pittosporum (Dwarf), with those good close-up images. If you are willing to do a proper rejuvenation pruning on them, they respond beautifully to that procedure. Some people don't have the 'guts, lol. Rejuvenation pruning requires cutting the entire plant back to 6 inch stubs or less. That means all the way to the ground. Do it neatly and sharply; all you will need is a decent set of loppers for the job. The plants will make a terrific recovery this very first year, only they will be fuller and more compact. Another method of getting them into shape requires pruning part of the plant back this year, part next year, and so on. I much prefer the 'all at once' technique. I'd avoid fertilizing anything that you cut all the way back to the ground for at least a year. There will be enough stored energy in those roots to support the plant through a huge burst of new growth that always follows that kind of pruning. If you fertilize, you'll force even more top growth on a plant. That could put your plants in some stress and risk for insect and disease problems. Those Holly ferns would benefit enormously by a layer of mulch. Snip off any dead fronds from around the crown. I like Holly ferns. They simply do better in a shadier, moister environment than many other types of plants. The next plant does look like a Red Tip Photinia, at least if that new growth is red. Sometimes, it is really helpful to see a close-up of the foliage. If it is Photinia, it is one more plant that does well when limbed UP to a tree form. They make far more attractive small trees than they do shrubs, I think. Limb it up, but don't make a big ball out of the top part. That gardenia is covered with black sooty mold. That means that it is infested with whitefly, or another pest such as scale insect. In the warmer parts of the country where gardenias grow, whitefly is always the primary pest. You'll have to get rid of the insect before the black sooty mold will go away. I don't see any problem with the gardenia other than that it's pruned to a box type shape. In the future, if you're going to hedge up shrubs, try to prune them so that the widest part of the plant is at the bottom, rather than the top. If the bottom branches stay shaded by the top, the plant will get thinner and thinner down there. The shape doesn't have to be so obvious that the plants look funny....just barely perceptibly wider at the bottom. Yes, you have a small assortment of azaleas. I wouldn't prune them at all....but if you MUST be sure to wait until after they bloom...which won't be too long from now. Be aware that when tsmith recommended cutting out a bunch of geometrical shapes, it was not intended to suggest that you prune your plants to those forms. Yikes. If you're thinking about trying that little exercise, you would also need to cut your shapes to the appropriate 'to scale' dimensions for the mature plant. You have some nice plants, most of which need very little work to get them into good shape and you've made a good start. I'd just sit back and live with things for a long time before you start removing or moving too many things. Of course, any plant that is crowding doorways, walks, gates, etc., needs to be moved or put on the curb! If you decide you want to plant some color at the base of an established tree, and that tree is important to your property in terms of value and shade, be sure that you don't disrupt the root system around that tree too much. No tilling, no major change of grade, etc. Actually, the single most beneficial thing you can add all around a tree (or any plant) is a 2 to 4 inch layer of mulch. Just don't pile any up against the trunks. Impatiens is a nice annual for shadier spots. If you have sunny locations for annuals, select something that will thrive without the shade. Have you seen any new growth on your cycads?

Wow Claire...that before photo is amazing. You can really see where everything has changed. I can see that retaining wall so differently. The hoop and the pathway make such a difference. It looks like a different property! I guess that was before you put a shed in too? You get a lot of bloom on that rose bush. Very pretty. It is a pretty shade of red too. I really like your front yard. I like the large front window on your house and it looks like you have shaker shingles? One of my favorites...very Cape Cod too. Is that Miscanthus Morning light? What are the pink flowers? I have a rock border like that along a few beds in my back yard, because I really do like a casual rock edge. No it is not confusing. I can see the path and the hoop and now it all makes sense to where everything is placed. So why is your backyard so different? I have a large pile of broken pavers that I am going to use inside my borders for access and that will be one of my first projects in the spring, too. I will be moving a lot of plant material around then so it will be the right time to do it. LOL....that is funny about the cat. We don't have a cat so I was just guessing. I didn't realize catnip meant catnap..lol. I can see your photos perfectly and had no trouble viewing them at all. As for the stone company...I forgot you were on the cape. I probably won't be going down there for stone. [g] Thanks for sharing all your photos! Paige...I am always amazed when someone takes down a tree. I assume it had to come down. I say that because I have a large Norway Maple that I hate but I just don't have the courage to take it down. It is also a pretty expensive project from what I have heard. I would love more sun. Do you have any photos of your new beds? Anyone else have some of their projects done?

Well, of course it'll work SILVA. I've never done the indirect method, but I've seen lost of the results, and they're beautiful. Love your guitar. Your bizzyness sounds like mine. I'm mulching all my flowerbeds BY MYSELF. My Jeep holds 14 3-cubic ft. bags of mulch. I roll them into my wheelbarrow, one bag at a time, and to the site. Got 13 down in two days, and went to Lowes today and got 14 more bags. I figure it'll take about four trips. Working in 90/95 degrees isn't the funnest thing I've ever done (can't drag my buttons outta bed b/f daylight anymore), but hopefully, this w/cut down on weeding for the rest of the summer.