OT: Pretend you're moving into a new (to you) home ...
IdaClaire
8 years ago
last modified: 8 years ago
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IdaClaire
8 years agoRelated Discussions
Moving into new home, new at lanscaping
Comments (11)A limiting factor may be water - is the normal rainfall distribution through the growing season sufficient to support the plants you want? If not, make sure you plant them within easy reach to water by hose! The most common plants at ground level in a spruce or fir forest are often mosses. Club mosses are particularly attractive (and we used to use one kind to make wreaths at Christmas!) I would not use mulch because that would likely smother the plants that naturally grow there. Removing the small trees would definitely help with opening the look, making access easier, and allowing rainfall to reach the ground more evenly. You might want to leave a few fallen logs to act as 'nurse' logs for plantings, removing any clutter of smaller sticks etc. I'd be inclined to then watch and see what - if anything - grows under there naturally to guide you in determining what will have the best chance of surviving under the trees. The margins (along the driveway etc.) are the easy place to start planting ornamentals such as the Rhodos, hydrangeas etc. I grew up in an area of the east coast of Canada where the forest trees are predominately spruce and fir with hardwoods mixed in. The forest floor had lots of interesting vegetation that would be a shame to bury under mulch. Rhododendron canadense (a short, deciduous shrub) grew wild in open areas of the woods so, in the right conditions of light and moisture, I'd expect that Rhododenrons and Azaleas should do well. Is there a park or garden nearby with the same sort of conditions so you can see what is normal for the local ecology?...See MoreOT? Homemaking when you're never home ...
Comments (26)Thank you all so very much for your thoughtful, moving responses. Wow - I'm overwhelmed to know that so many of you feel similarly, and also wowed that there at least a couple of you whose lifestyles are like mine - with your hubbies staying at home while you go out there and bring home the bacon. (It is an unusual lifestyle, and I've found, surprisingly, that even in this day and age of acceptance, many people still raise eyebrows at the choice that my DH and I have made in this regard.) I think that women just lean naturally more towards that nurturing instinct than men, which is pretty much what Red said. Not that there aren't men who make a home and do it beautifully (I think of my own dad, who adores making homemade soup and knows how to clean house down to the last perfect detail), but more often than not, home-nurturing is a feminine trait. Perhaps it is a combination of seasonal change and hormones and "the grass is greener syndrome" rearing up in me that's causing my feelings. We don't have kids at home, although 7 indoor cats are demanding and force constant cleaning vigilance around the house. I must admit, I'm thankful that DH is home to deal with the nastier aspects of this, as I have zero desire to wipe up kitty barf or clean up the misplaced "tootsie rolls" that magically appear on the rugs at times. In my past life (when I was married to my ex), I spent 4 years as a full-time homemaker, and I absolutely adored being at home. That was a period in which some of my fondest memories were made, as my mom and I got to enjoy hours of "girl time" together. We shopped, we lunched, we traveled, and on my own I decorated and gardened and cooked and sewed, and did not for one minute miss the outside workplace. After four years circumstances dictated that I go back to work full time, and I've now been at this job for 15 years. Just as I was thankful for my time off work, I'm also thankful for my job. I know it's enabled me to do much and have things and experiences that I otherwise wouldn't have been able to. A very important part of my life nowadays is traveling. DH and I love Mexico, and I honestly am not sure what I'd do if suddenly I were forced to give up our twice-yearly trips down south of the border. This thread has reminded me that there are indeed trade-offs, and I need to be increasingly thankful for what I do have and love and enjoy, instead of pining for what I don't have. I feel I'm rambling now. Just wanted to thank everyone for the wonderful input. There's so much to ponder here....See MoreDid you change the locks out when moving into new home?
Comments (37)I rekeyed all the locks at work, changing a few out so that all the keyways were the same, Schlage SC-1. The hard part was figuring out just how master keying works, there being masters, grand masters, janitors, restricted janitors, departments, sub departments, common, and guest keys. Those are my names, not official jargon names. Once that was done, I had a scheme that worked, so I did our house too. We have master keys (the 'rents), common keys (the younger people we were stuck with for eighteen years), and neighbor keys (can't get into the bedrooms or storage closets of the above key holders). Then my wife said to me something like "I wish MY work was that easy..." So I did that too. Except for one high security lock at the first job, and an odd gate key at my wife's job, one key opened all the locks at three different locations. Pure luck! We just couldn't tell anyone... PS: all our padlocks are high quality brass rekeyable ones (old habit from a hard learned lesson), so they were included in all that, so that's four locations if you include the rental storage site. One master key (on a very small key ring)....See MoreOT: Other plants you’re looking forward to this spring.
Comments (176)Nice link Bourbon! I do know about the Champaca. I've tried sprouting the seeds a few times without any luck lol. I may just order a plant. Its another one I would have to put in the greenhouse though and I am running out of room. One of the reasons I started adding more roses is to have more color in the yard during the winter months here plus I don't have to put them in the greenhouse like many of my plants. I really need to move further south! Champaca is also called The Joy Perfume Tree. Chanel no 5 is supposed to mimic the Ylang Ylang tree. I am probably gonna get shade for this but I don't really like Chanel no. 5 lol. I do like the smell of the Ylang Ylang tree. Something must get lost in the transformation to perfume. I haven't smelled the Joy perfume yet. This is a great website to search and read about tropical plants. I have only ordered seeds from here because a lot of their shipping seems high but its a good resource to read about stuff. https://toptropicals.com/cgi-bin/garden_catalog/cat.cgi?uid=Michelia_champaca I also have a couple Michelia figo aka banana shrubs which I can leave out in the winter here. It smells just like bananas and vanilla. They aren't as widely grown in North FL and they were when I lived in Louisiana but they should be....See Morebeckysharp Reinstate SW Unconditionally
8 years agoIdaClaire thanked beckysharp Reinstate SW UnconditionallyIdaClaire
8 years agolast modified: 8 years agoIdaClaire
8 years ago
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