Gardens Home & Garden

I have 1 or 2 wallflowers that are starting to bloom and a couple of primula plants, but that’s all, I’d love to see things like them in my garden but I know winter wouldn’t let them

The only things left in bloom in my garden are the heathers. The primulas would like to bloom but they are too cramped. I planted them in two's in large pots, thinking that it would make a better show but they just make a cluster of buds which don't have room to open properly. Is it too late to move them into open ground? They seem to be an extra large variety.

I put some in the garden and some in the raised border at the top and they seem to be doing better, I do like the fragrance of the wallflower. I did have 2 heathers but one died, I feel the dog peed on it, the other had done alright though

The joy of a neutered male raised with only a female dog - he never learned to lift his leg. The worst he does is run over a plant - and I use those wire garden fence panels to stop that.

My wild grape and western redbud have gone dormant for winter. Everything else is pretty much evergreen in this climate. It is nice having winter color and not having to worry about covering everything or bringing them inside for the winter.

Hopefully our rain this season will continue to come in short spurts over the course of several days instead of a couple days of constant downpours.

We have been promised a very wet and windy week. Sadly, I'm waiting for the builder to return to remedy a minor leak from around the chimney stack. It is only showing in a small storage area, but it is my little china museum, and the sooner it's fixed the less decorating it will need.
Also, I have booked a trailing session for Thursday morning - our return to working after having my second hip done. Heavy rain and high winds are forecast, but dog sports continue whatever the weather so we will just have to bite the bullet and dress appropriately.

Reminds me of those early Saturday mornings my dad would wake me wanting me to go stand in the wet field while his akita tracked me. I loved that dog but he didn't want to be out there any more than I did. And it was always me, because I was the only one he could wake and/or who wouldn't throw a tantrum for being woken (and yes, we were teens and my siblings were still throwing tantrums - heck they STILL throw tantrums).

I could do with someone to lay trails, I have to lay my own. By the time I reappear with my dog, the birds are likely to have stolen any food inducements, and any articles could have been moved if not well disguised.
What a silly weather forecast for our area today. I had packed wet gear and towels for both of us. It turned out to be a nice fresh morning with no rain before we finished the session. It was great to be back in training with Tally, plus a Rottie and a Lab. cross.
A slightly rusty pet trail to start - she missed a road junction and had to be called back, but she hasn't done a trail since July. However, she finished with a superb moving target (wo)mantrail. More like tracking, her head was down on the line, and she was so strong that I almost had to jog to keep up with her. Clever girl!

The storm arrived this afternoon. I keep checking the roof as the builder hasn't appeared yet. At 4.30pm our little town was hit by a tornado! The windows took a hammering. Lots of branches have been ripped from the woods and scattered on the roads! OK, I know that is tame by US standards, but it sounded like an explosion.

It’s windy here but not that bad, but it’s been raining since this afternoon, they said it will be windier tomorrow morning until Sunday here. The dogs haven’t really been out much today, which I thought they might be a little hyper but they’ve just chilled out, which I glad really as beau seemed to be limping on his front leg so I didn’t want to really walk him that far and make it worse, seems to be working as he’s not been so bad today on it.

Give Tally love for doing such a great job after so long!

I was glad I started working and didn't have to lay trails anymore. Not my idea of a fun morning activity...

Coincidental is that I started working at a new drug store and the manager used to track with his shepherds. So he and my dad would talk tracking whenever my dad came to use my store discount.

We had a 7.0 earthquake today just off the coast of Northern California, plus a 4.3 earthquake in Ferndale and lots of aftershocks all up and down from Alaska to Mexico and inland to the foothills. There was a tsunami warning early on but it didn't happen thank the Cat Gods.

Otherwise, we're sunny and mild. Highs in mid 60s (~17C) and lows in high 30s to mid 40s (~2 to 7C).

We don't normally get tornados where I am - a few dust devils but nothing serious. Those scare me way more than the earthquakes.

Two roads are blocked. Photos show old strong trees down and badly damaged. Their branches looking like matchwood. Anything that is not sturdy - garden pots, gazebos, car ports, seem to have suffered the most. Some tiles missing off rooves, or is it roofs? I suppose we will see more in daylight tomorrow.
The tornado seems to have centred on the waterpark and woods at the bottom of the lane, and on one of the major routes through the town. I don't appear to have any damage but I have been gifted what looks like a yew branch - in which case it must have come from the old disused cemetery. It must have looked like a witch on a broomstick flying through the air!

Glad you don't appear to have suffered any damage!

After our huge winter wind storms in 2023, I had my roof redone. Because of the storms, the insurance covered it in full without issue even though it was a 28 year old roof with a 25 year life expectency.

Still nothing here (fingers crossed) but they keep saying it’s coming through at some point, the wind is one element I don’t like as you can’t see it but look at the damage it can cause, rain you can see and do something about at a point, but the both together can cause devastation.
Glad you’re ok though Carole

Thank you.
A bit of tidying up leaves and twigs this morning, but there was nowhere local to have a proper walk today. Trees of up to a 2 ft. in diameter are down, and can't be hopped over because of the tangle of branches. I met our Council surveyor lady - logging the damage, and taping off the entrances to the woods for safety reasons. The three main areas of ancient woodland have been badly hit. If the woods were properly harvested as they did in the past, it might open them up to new growth. All they do these days is chainsaw into chunks and roll them just anywhere. At least, that is what the railway guys did a couple of years ago. The lighter stuff will go through the mincing machine, but not mature tree trunks. You would think that solid oak would have a value!
I don't think anyone was hurt though, and most of the domestic damage I came across was to fence panels. Plenty of work for someone.

Well they took a few trees down here one year and when questions were asked to why they were being cut down I can’t believe the guy who was doing it said and I quote ( the wrong type of wood!!!) I went what?!?!? Wood is wood at the end of the day, how dumb does he think people are? They never replanted anymore after that.
I have seen they are giving out flood warnings again and they have cancelled the Christmas lights switch on where we live because of the weather warning and the Christmas market has moved to the stock yard indoors. So with the looks of it, it’ll be baton down the hatches and get ready yet again, especially for wales and south west.

Well it depends on what he meant by "wrong wood" and in what context. In our area, a lot of people have planted solitary coastal redwoods in their yards. These trees normally grow in groups where their shallow roots intersperse with each other to create a very strong base for the trees. Alone, the roots are too shallow to support the tree in heavy winds and/or flooding. So, they are the wrong wood for our area and cutting them down is often necessary.

And many people with large trees in their yards will improperly trim them rather than spend the money to get an arborist to determine the best way - making them more prone to falling over in a storm. And when the tree can reach over 100 feet within 50 years, it can cause a lot of damage to a lot of homes.

If looking at the downed wood for burning in fireplaces, etc, some types of trees burn too hot to be safe, so depending on the downed tree, it may not be safe to use.

After our last couple winters, the city chipped up all the downed trees and offered it as mulch to residents for free in the spring. Right after the storms, many people went to where the downed trees were in the streets as they were being cut and were allowed to take larger pieces for burning, projects, etc. It was just a matter of being there at the right time. And some firewood sellers would take the wood off the city's hands and take it to their property to season properly and then sell the following year. But these high winds and flooding have always happened here at times, so the city has had years to create a system for handling the wood.

They were sycamore trees and there was three of them, there is now only one left, one of the neighbours protested that the one behind their house in being cut down and would prefer for it to be left there as it provided privacy for her. So they left it up but told them that they would not be held responsible if it was to fall in her boundary, it’s about 30/35 ft high.
But surely at the end of the day if they are taking trees down it would be eco friendly to replace them and encourage the wildlife more. It’s all very well these people saying plant more trees, but they are cutting more down than planting to replace with housing. Well they are where I live,

The tornado's path through one wooded area. Sadly the little church, (disused), on the corner of the road has been clipped.

We lost a lot of beeches when there was an out break of beech fungus. They felled them so they wouldn't get it! A sort of firewall theory.

Well there are different folks doing it.

First there are private citizens who own the property where the tree is growing - they often don't want the bother/cost of buying and planting a new tree. For many folks, they don't want the upkeep that many trees require so cut down all trees on their property. Or they don't want the liability.

Then there are utility companies who will cut down trees that are a danger to power lines, etc, if they fall. In most cases, they won't plant new trees because they know in 10-20 years they will need to cut them down too. And no matter how much people love the trees, when it falls and the power is out for days to weeks, those people will be screaming more than they are about the tree being cut down.

Then there are developers who tend to clearcut for housing developments. They are simply looking at convenience and profit. It is a lot cheaper and easier to remove all trees and let new homeowners put in their own. And with no trees left, they can run sewer and water lines most cost effectively rather than having to go around existing tree roots. Most will landscape the front yards on new housing but don't really care what trees they put in as long as they are cheap. Many of those trees become problems in future years.

And then there are the municipalities. They often have programs giving away new trees to homeowners. They are the ones most likely to encourage the replacement of trees. But they usually don't have legislation to require it except in limited terms. A friend lives in a city where they require every home to have at least one shade tree in their front yard. They provided the trees for free. My friend keeps his one tree trimmed to 6 feet tall because he doesn't want it. He doesn't care about the birds, etc, he just doesn't want to deal with all the leaves, etc.

When the heritage oak next door got trimmed, I lost a fair amount of shade in my backyard. But I no longer have a tree at risk of falling on my bedroom while I sleep or dropping a massive limb onto my fence and pool and back patio. I accept the loss of one thing for the protection from another.

I had the 35+ foot privet tree removed from my front yard. It was healthy, but it was no more than 5-10 feet from both my house and my neighbor's and was growing through the utility lines. Rather than having to constantly get it professionally trimmed every year, I chose to remove it completely. I did put in a new tree - pineapple guava - that won't grow more than about 20 feet and will be popular with the birds. It is much better suited for that spot but won't provide the same amount of shade to the neighbor's house.

Once my new small trees in the backyard get big enough to provide a habitat for the birds, I am going to cut down the mulberry tree in my backyard. It was a volunteer tree grown from bird droppings so it is located near the fence. It is 35+ feet tall and the neighbor has trimmed back all the branches hanging over her side. Rather than keep it, I will remove it and put in a smaller tree a bit further out from the fence. The neighbor will lose the shade it provides but neither of us will get the dropped fruit and leaves every year nor have to worry about fallen branches doing damage. But I have tried to really think about all the aspects of putting in trees in my yard, including how they may be a problem to the neighbors. I won't grow fines along a fence because I know they will grow through the fence into the neighbor's yard and they may not appreciate that. My neighbor's bougainvillea tries to come through the wood fence and have to cut it back so it doesn't break it. On her side, she has a chain link fence where it works great but it is damaging to my wood fence. I try to consider those things as I plant.