Cutting Remarks

On February 18 we had a sunny day with no wind and temps in the low 50's AND I had a day off from work.  I could have gotten a lot done in this day but instead decided to get out the chain saw and remove a tree.  Originally, I thought that I'd have time to take out several trees on this day.  As the job progressed, it became evident that for me, that was not to be.

A better blogger would have remembered to take a picture of this pear tree before  it was half on the ground.  Imagine a largish tree that in the summer nicely concealed the buiding down the street.  This tree was an Asian pear.  I loved the fruit and it produced a lot but it didn't store well and with things getting hectic for me in the fall, I usually only ate a few.  

 

The tree was inherited with the garden and had grown so tall that a lot of the fruit was too high to pick.  If you went to the NWFGS, you saw the constant demonstration of a great fruit picking tool that would have been ideal.  There would still the problem of storage and the fact that I'm the only one at home who enjoys the fruit. As trees are wont to do, this one created an increasing amount of shade, took up valuable real estate, and sent suckers up all over the place since the leader,  snapped several years ago.   

 I know that the suckering will get even worse now but that's something to worry about another day.  By the way, this is a great fruit tree, produces oodles of fruit, never had a pest or disease and was never sprayed.  If you like them and have the space, I'd definitely recommend growing one!

Good bye sweet tree.   Notice the orange electrical cord tangled in the branches everywhere -  I'm all about the safety with powerful tools!

Oh yes, safety is always a top priority in an operation like this.  One of my friends teases me about talking on the phone, supporting the receiver with my shoulder and ear while standing on a ladder, chainsaw in one hand drink in the other while smoking.  I've been talking to her while my ladder fell with me on it.   Geeze, some people just won't let you forget anything :)

When I'd carried away the last of the branches, the area looked really strange. The height there was good but the spread of the tree didn't work. So many possibilities palm? large grass? phormium? Do you have a favorite columnar tree that matures at 15 feet or less? Could even be an evergreen.

There was still some light so I did a little pruning on a sumac that I 'd planted several years ago.   Danger Garden asked on her facebook page if anyone else suffered from planting insecurity.  Made a plan about where to plant something and then stood wondering if it was a good idea.  Uhm, no.  I plant willy nilly and then regret the results for years to come.  A small chainsaw is an essential tool for this kind of gardening.  I'd never cut down a sumac before.  Doesn't it have interesting coloration?

 So, here's to cutting down a few more poorly placed trees and maybe learning to be a little more thoughtful in my decisions. (like letting ivy grow when it appeares because it's pretty and evergreen)

And hopefully no trips to the emergency room even though it's within walking distance.