More Neighbors

These neighbors have been very quiet.  They are only at home part of the year.  They were so quiet I didn't even know they were there until last week.  I went to pick some limes for a party and saw this home.

You may have to look closely.   It's a tiny little hummingbird nest.  I had no clue it was there!  I understand hummingbirds sometimes come back and use the same nests.  I need to avoid trimming this part of the tree.  Perhaps next spring we'll get to see these neighbors move back in.

I got to thinking that if there's one nest, maybe there are more.  I didn't see another hummingbird nest.  I know they can be territorial, so I wasn't surprised.  But I did find this nest in the orange tree that's next to the lime.  This nest is much larger and I have no clue what kind of bird build it.

I can't wait until next spring!

New Fence

I have now confirmed that I'm a lazy gardener.  Months have passed since my last update.  Let me catch you up.  When last I posted, we'd just had the tree trimmed.  It is finally filling out again.  I have definitely resolved to tend to the trees on our side of the fence and let our neighbors tend to the trees on their sides.

I mentioned needing to watch our pennies until we started getting Allen's retirement, as at least one of his former co-workers had suffered the worst-case scenario the government warned of.  They received around 1/2 the money for nearly a year.  We were extremely happy that the full checks started right away.

So that allowed us to tackle the next big project of the fence.  Our neighbors (with the tree trimming) wanted a block wall or perhaps a vinyl fence.  I convinced them that the ficus tree roots would rip apart a wall.  Then I started getting estimates for vinyl, wood, and even composite fencing.  Several of the salesmen said we should remove the vines from the fence, so I spent about a month clipping the ivy and climbing ficus.  Wow.  This side of the fence was worse than I thought!  Yes, you can see right through the fence.  In fact, the fence started falling down as we removed the ivy which really was all that was holding it up! 

We decided on this fence.  Even some of the vinyl fence installers suggested that a wood fence would be better for our yard.  So I convince the one neighbor to go with this fence.  The neighbor on the other side was willing to pay for half of the cost of the standard redwood fence.  The landlord of the house behind us declined to help with the costs at all.  Oh well.

Anyway, I do love this fence.  It's nice and sturdy with steel posts guaranteed for 25 years and treated wood on the bottom where it touches the ground.  It looks the same on both sides.  Now to get it (or side) painted with a clear protective coat.

Fences, Trees, and Neighbors

 Our huge ficus tree needed pruning.  We had it done a couple of years ago, but it was time again.  But frankly I was surprised when our neighbor told us she wanted it cut back so it didn't hang over her side at all.  She brought a tree trimmer with her and suggested we might want more of the tree trimmed.  It took me a while to realize she wanted us to pay for the tree to be cut back from her side.

That's not my understanding of the city rules regarding trees.  Perhaps I'm wrong, but I think we are responsible for trimming any trees over our yards no matter where the trunk is. If I'm right, she has a right to cut the tree as much as she wants on her side.  But I believe that is both her choice and her responsibility.



The timing was all wrong for us to pay anyone to do any major work since we were quite unsure about when Allen's annuity would begin and how much it would be.  But in order to keep peace in the neighborhood, we paid for the tree to be trimmed...  this time.

It looks so empty!  I hope it fills in before summer.  This tree will be as good about blocking the sun's glare on our bedroom window.

But it will grow back.

Good news for us.  Not so good for our neighbor.

Here's the way it looks from the front of the house.  It looks like half a tree.  I guess that's what it really is. 


Next, the fence.

Same neighbor wants to replace the fence.   The whole fence is in dire need of replacing.  We were not at all impressed with the way it was replaced before and we were not at all able to help pay for it at the time.  The termite infested fence was left in place and a new fence was attached on top of it.  We were able to remove  some of the old fence boards, but it's all supported by the old posts.   We need to be part of the planning and paying this time!

She wanted to put in a wall.  A wall might be nice, but that tree's roots would tear down a wall.  I think I've convinced her that a wall would not be a good idea.

I hope the fence negotiations go better all around. Can you tell I'm not a good negotiator?

It's February!!!

We have been having such crazy weather this year!  I brought my Plumeria into the garage in October to protect them from the night-time frost.  Then it got hot, dry, and windy at Christmas time.  We finally got a few drops of real rain the other day.  It is now February.  The tomatoes have not stopped producing fruit.  I figured the tomatoes would never ripen, but here they are!  Can you believe it?

When we lived in Alaska, my mother-in-law would send me letters this time of year telling me she was planning her garden and then shortly after that telling me about her tomato plants.  At the time, we had been dealing with feet of snow since October and driving on ice since that.  This time of year is Fur Rendezvous with ice sculptures, snowshoe softball, and downhill canoe races on the snowy hillsides.  The Iditarod will begin on March 1st this year (later than I remember) for the 1,000+ mile dog sled races from Anchorage (really Palmer) to Nome.  Spring doesn't arrive there until May and planting time is Memorial Day weekend.  We never did get a tomato to ripen there, even in the summer.  We had plenty of light, but not enough heat.  I think I would have cried to think of picking fresh tomatoes from last summers garden at this time of year.