I toi have been living with neighbors from Hell! I have a new neighbor who wanted my 27 year old native Oak pruned or removed & he'd put up a new fence. I had an arborist come in who removed lower overgrown branches. He did not wish to disturb the natural shape(esp. not top it!). My neighbor wanted it all out or topped. Note: My Oak trunk is 20ft. from fence line. Pruning it on the fence line is ok & lawful, I know & can live with....but he's hired people to cut at dark & theyve been cutting it little by little for 6 months! Ive tried to catch them & can not....they always remove/drag brush they cut(dump it on wild lands of the school property below my house!) jump the fence & hide in a shed on the new neighbor's property! After putting in a camera, calling the county sherif (on a all night attack downing huge limbs on my Oak!)who called me "arrogant & told me Lady it is just a tree!" & Im not waking the neighbors up at thus hour or even in the morning! & Im not writing a police Report either!" So I did not call them back fir months & tried to catch them....No Luck! Their nightly flood lights between our properties create glare & my camera cant pick up the movement & show clear pictures! For a few winter months I let it happen.... felt helpless! As it warmed up, when I was awoken by Ax, saw or thump of a branch falling or dragging of branches down the hill...I get. dressed, I grab my camera, flashlight, comfy chair, warm blanket & I sit outsude my bedroom that is right in front of the Oak & sit there until daylight!!! I hear the new neighbor whisper to his wufe, I hear the people slip away from where they are hiding.In fact, Im certain it is the two young people on fhe other side of me(Ive seen the tools for cutting laying around their yard(Ax, pole saw). When the young grandkids(of a dear older garden loving grandma died🙁)the young grand-kid neighbors moved in....they clobbered down her metal shed in one day & cut down all the Oaks on the property with a chain saw! They set up a marijuana growing area in wine barrels on the shed foundation( I took photos when they were taller than I am!) & brought 2 noisy dogs to the propery: pit bull & alaska husky. They took to spraying Round-Up on my healthy veggie garden & Rose bushes.... They have become bolder since my 2nd & 3rd calls to the sherif's office the last few days(the shelf's deputies finally talked to both neighbors on both sides of me!) It did not help.... They cut & dragged limbs the bext nighf so I called again... this time the deputy only phoned me back lustened & said to get some sleep! I told her it is not just the Oak anymore. They are always home & watching what I do. They fojnd my outdoor exyra key & wenf into my garage & wrote F.....You in my cars front windsheild & put a 2in. screw into my back tire. I had to call a lick smith & replace all my locks! ....& buy a new tire! The neighbor who wants my Oak down harrasses me in the morning starting @5am by tgrowing bits of wood at my bedrolm wall & roof! He rarely leaves the house & does this throwing all day long.... along with the night cutting & destru tion of my plants. They are now spraying my Fig tree & Native garden as well! Nothing has a chsnce to grow!!! I am a member if ghd Native Plant Society & member of the local garden club. No one can beleive this Hell I am living!!! Thsnk you for taking time to share your neighbor HELLs.....It is no FUN! I had a peaceful 26 years at my lovely home & garden and it is SO SAD good people who love nature & their gardens find themselves with ruthless, nasty neighbors who don't give a darn about anyone but themselves!!!! & it is SAD that good people get bullied and are not protected by law-enforcement! THAT has shocked me more than anything else!!!!

as to pix posting.. at your album.. right click on the HTML code... it will say 'copied' .. and paste it right here where you type.. and if you see the pic after hitting preview.. we will see it ... if i were you.. i would wait and see on those.. and in the mean time.. go get some new ones.. its probably not to late to still get some young nursery stock .. kinda cover your odds ... ken

First thing I would do is fire your house sitter. It should survive if you can cut it back to white wood and the roots didnt turn into dust. I agree you should make sure its established before winter sets in if time permits in your growing season. I'm not familiar with Zone 7a but that would seem to be equivilent to NC, TN, AR, OK, etc. You may need to wish for an Indian Summer. In my climate I would give it a drink, perhaps some superthrive and then keep it in partial sunlight for a week then full sun until weather forces it inside. Good luck.

Be aware that pesticides are formulated in many different ways. Some formulations allow for translocation into the plant material (and distributed throughout the plant), and these generally are not the ones that are labeled for use on edible plants (fruits/vegetables). As such, no, just because farmers use pesticides doesnt mean that they are using ones that translocate into the fruits and vegetables but rather just sit on the surface....which is why you need to wash your fruits and vegetables well before eating them. You need to stop guessing, determine what was sprayed, and look up the product label. If its not labeled for edible plants, you should give the manufacturer a call and see what they say. I had a drifting problem from my neighbor and the manufacturer was very specific in that one application was enough to prevent consumption for the entire season.