These yucca started out as a house plant (one) I stupidly decided to plant one in the front flower bed then as new little ones grew I cut them off and planted them in the other bed. I started getting concerned about how big they were getting and decided to dig them up...... big job.
This is just one stump. There is no tap root thank goodness but there is about 10000 little roots comming off the whole stump and they are wrapped around everything within a twenty foot area.
I dug and dug around this one thinking it was the biggest and I could take care of the biggest first.
I finally got it out with the help of my neighbors tractor and it left a very large hole.
Turns out that wasn't the big one. Just on the other side of the side walk was "The Monster". My wife grabbed a shovel to help me with this one it took several hours of digging .
"The Monster" is out it was so big that when I attached it to the box blade to lift it so I could carry it away to the burn pile the front end of the tractor came off the ground. I finally dragged it accross the yard leaving a mess behind me as I went.
The roots are about 1/4" thick but there are litterally thousands of them from each stump. In this picture I was pulling another stump from a red bush and two yucca stumps came with it. The bed had a good border and good thing it did because the roots just kept wrapping around in the bed they were about 2" deep in the whole bed they were up under the sidewalk and the slab of the house. We have learned from past experience that even a small piece of the tree will grow into another so we are being very carefull to get all of them out. We cut a piece of the stalk one time and layed it in the dirt and two new trees grew off of each end. i just wanted to have a place to vent and to pass on some information so maybe someone else won't make the same mistake. They are a cool plant and very sturdy because they all survived Hurricane Ike. So if you want some of these yrees just don't plant them close to the house......Ron
oops wrong picture this is the right one.
OH, MY! What an ordeal to remove those. I hope you've recovered from all tha digging and pulling.
Now, what are you going to be putting in those beds to replace them?
Crow
Finally ~ the music of chainsaw!
Rucky ~ I had seen that photo in another thread where your post convinced me not to put mine in the ground. It passed on this past winter and now, I don't even need to grieve. Thank you! and Congrats!
and I agree
Now, what are you going to be putting in those beds to replace them?
Oh dear! Thanks for sharing...
Good luck getting them to stay away. My parents had yuccas in the backyard (way away from the house, thank goodness) when we first moved in about 30-something years ago. My dad dug those things out, the grew back. He put kerosene on them (shhhhh!), they grew back. Now, he just leaves them alone. LOL When they flower, he enjoys them and laughs at his foolish attempts to get rid of them.
Yes Stephanie I have dealt with them before so I know what to expect I have worked very hard to remove all of the roots and I sprayed the ones I couldn't get up with brush be gone. So I have my fingers crossed.
crowellli I have some Hibiscus trees, Dwarf crimson bottle brush, Flowering maple giants, Agapanthus, some tea tree and lots of Lantana because of the deer which are back eating my little trees I planted. I also have some different kinds of sage and believe it or not I am going to plant some Rosemary and Pinappple sage I love the contrast of them together and the deer don't like the rosemary. I am also going back in with some Vinca (periwinkles) I love them and they are very forgiving. I have turned the whole area into a huge flower bed. I will take more pictures as I progress.I boought a load of sand today for the side walk I am puttin in next to the car port and picked out a pallet of field stone for the side walk and border. I have a vision and I hope it works out. Its sure been a lot of work. And its sure gonna feel good when I burn the pile of yucca. Thanks for the intrest........................RON
Ron, please do post pictures as you go along with the improvements. The plant combination you have in mind sounds really nice. I love a mix of things that flower, texture plants and anything with a good fragrance. I have both upright and trailing rosemary and I just love it. Thankfully I don't have a deer problem. I do have people who are walking by and will pick your flowers if you aren't looking.
Crow
Crow I would gladely give up a flower or two I am loosing trees I have a Tulip poplar that was 6' tall now 1' tall.
The project begins with a field stone walkway along side the patio/carport. I plan to use some of the stone as a border also If I have any left I'll use them in another project planned for next year I have too many projects for this year. I know its fixen to get hot so my work days will shorten to mornings and late evening. I hope to get this one done this week. I am no landscaper I just do the best I can, Photos to follow soon.....Ron
Wonderful job Ron, good luck with you redo.
LOL. I have to tell you, I looked at your first photo and thought "one plant" and just chuckled. I know just how you feel. I have the same problem with obedient plants.
Truth is, I really like the "overgrown" look, so I like the front of your house. But I understand why you might want to stop the spreading and put something else there. So, have you considered obedient plant? :)
pbtx As of right now I am only starting out with plants that I have I will look into obedient plant . This project is taking way more time than I expected. What with the whole front of the house tore up. I have spent days trying to get as many roots out of the beds and as of right now I am ready for some new soil. I am going to put in about 3 or 4 yard of garden mix soil. But decided to paint the front of the house before I start planting. And I woke up today to find it raining so another delay. its ok though my new trees can use the water. I do plan on planting all of the plants I allready have then go shopping for things to fill in like the obedient plant I love coleus and hostas.
I liked the overgrown look also but was afraid of what was happening with the roots of those big stumps. And as it turned out I was right they were going out into the yard and under my slab under a sidewalk along the side of the house so now you know why its taking so long I want to do it right,I also have added the grassy area to the right of the bed because it was a useless area hard to mow. So one bed has turned into about 28 foot long by 14 foot wide. I am not sure why I do these things to myself I am enjoying it for the most part but yesterday the heat finally got me and I quit early and fell asleep as soon as I walked out of the shower. I'll have more pictures soon.......Ron
OMG what a job!!! I too learnd the hard way what to plant close to a house and what not to plant..lol
I had my BIL cut down some redtips and a crape myrtle that a previous owner had planted about 2 ft from the house.. he pitched a fit about doing it but I insisted.. he doesnt believe in cutting any tree down.. I never understand why people insist on using plants that arent suited for certian areas just cause they look cute or some reason like that..
Blkraven the sad part is I did this to myself I never thought that they would get that big. I recently retired and really didn't have the time before to pay attention to them. My wife had been complaining about not being able to plant anything else in the bed because she couldn't dig in the ground because of the roots. Well I should have listened to her of course. This is turning into a big project but I am injoying it. I'm kinda playing it by ear. They had a sale at the Houston garden center and we went and picked up some filler plants. The bed is turning out to be so big its gonna take a lot of plants to fill it.
Pictures today weather allowing.
I have another tree I am going to have to do something about soon When my daughter got married here at the house of course there were flower arrangements. In the vases were these curley sticks that my wife was facinated with she took one out and put it in some water and it rooted. Turns out it was Curley willow or Corkscrew willow. She put it in a pot and set it next to the house.It grew through the pot and now I have a tree about 5 foot from the house I'll have to cut it but my daughter wants me to dig it up and transplant it its about a 6" trunk so We have started a bunch of cuttings off of it. I am going to cut it down and not tell her. She'll figure it out next time she visits.
Ron
Ive dealt with corkscrew willow and your best bet it to just cut it down and root new starts.. it will grow fast as you know.. just plant it farther way from the house this time okay???...lol. the bad thing about corkscrew willow is its a brittle tree.. once its reaches full grownth it breaks easily so keep that in mind where youy plant it.. I started a ton for them from branches and made sure I planted them near water ( my home had wet land areas) and far from the house when I lived in MI.. they give a great winter silhouette though and I love them..
Thanks for the info I have planted several out in the yard. I would like to plant some along the shore line here but the bevers get all of the young trees I plant on the shore. They got all of my weeping willow and most of the cyprus.
The new beds are comming along we painted the front of the house today and my wife will paint the trim. (I am a terrible painter) I like to think of my self as a handyman but I hate painting.I am picking up some garden mix soil today and once its spread I'll put down the weed cloth then we can finally plant. Progress so far...
This is the walkway I put in .
Another view
I should have a finished product in a couple of days I'll have more pictures then...Ron
Oh wow, look at all those windows you have! I bet you're going to be able to have a lot more days without AC, now that the breeze can pass through.
Keep us posted...
I actually hate all those windows but I have to live with them. three of the four sides of this palce are windows like that. This used to be a families fishing camp, when we found it, it was a one room cedar cabin with cement floors cedar siding inside and out but it had a big white rock fire place at one end and it was on 3& 1/4 acres on the shore line of a lake so my wife agreed to buying it as long as I remodled it into a home. It is now a one bedroom with tile floors. I have remodeled the kitchen and bath but not happy with either and I will do them both again. This is only a 930 square ft home and considering we moved from a 2000 sq.ft brick home with a 2 car garage. My wife is a saint to put up with all my wims. I got tired of associations telling me what I could do and couldn't do with MY property. There is no association here and thats the way I like it.
I painted the front of the house and yesterday I shoveled 6 yards of garden mix soil into the beds (yes I did it all with a shovel by my self Its 4 am and I am not assleep I'm a little sore after all I am 60) today I will lay down the weed cloth and bark mulch and finally we will get to lay out the plants we have to plant I cant wait..........Ron
ron
why are you laying weed cloth down if youre mulching?? Ive found that as time passes and the mulch breaks down you then have an extra layer you have to deal with. Over time it ends up being soil, weed cloth, soil then mulch .. I can see using it under stone but Ive learned if I mulch heavy enough or use cardboard or newspaper (which will decompose)before hand to kill and block the weeds then lay the mulch down I have no problems
I don't know but this is the way I have allways done it I agree the weed cloth is a pain. I actually put it down because my wife who is the weeder in the family wanted it.Also I am not sure where Wells Tx. is but here in the humid gulf coast area weeds thrive. I wish I could find a plant that had a root system like these weeds. I used pine straw in between my beds in my garden and it worked really well at keeping the weeds down. But I cut down all of my pine trees so no more pine straw.
Its starting to get hot and muggy now and I was hopeing to finish with the planting part today but I just found out I'm getting company for a couple of days so I'll have to put it on hold for a while. I have the mulch I picked it up yesterday (4 yards ), the dirt yard that I use is only 4 miles from here but of course they didn't have the mulch I wanted so I had to go about 15 miles to get it. Its on the trailer in front of the house waiting to be spread. .....................Ron
Im a bit north of you but not much if yo look at the zones wer are in and it gets humid here too.. so humid I have to bleach my house to get rid of the mold on it on a yearly basis.. Ive put in all new beds since moving here and have very little weeding to do but I also have about 4 inches of mulch on most of them.. when I dug the beds I was amazed at all the roots I found.. I was just curious is all
No problem , I have been planting some but have had some company so they are delaying me some 2 friends from Wisconsin came to visit now a guy I went to High School with road his motor cycle over from Tennesee and is staying with me and everytime I start planting he gives me his opinion about what I should do so I quit untill he leaves I am the one who will have to live with these beds after he leaves so I'll wait untill after. Also blkraven you are absolutly right about the weed cloth I am have a hard time planting I may rip it all up and just mulch I have 4 yards of mulch sitting in my trailer waiting to go down. And its taking forever to cut a X in the cloth then the corners flop over in the way so I am glad you and I talked about the weed cloth I really don't like it. Hopefully more pictures next week I really appreciate the intrest and the suggestions...Ron
my mantra when gardening is work smarter not harder...lol.. Im always looking for shortcuts that WORK.. no point in taking a shortcut if you end up having to redo it in a couple of years.. you dont save yourself anything like that.. Im puting in some new beds too and I have gotten to where I dont dig anything up..I edge my beds then I cover the area with cardboard, dump my compost and soil to build it up then I plant.. no point it doing all that digging where Im not planting... Ill dig my hole about 3 times the size I need for the plant Im planting so the roots have a lot of room and admend the soil when I plant but I let the rest go..works for me!!!
ron i am so impressed with all your work! i keep putting mine off till i get off for summer break--i did put all my plants from the round up in -but its pretty wild looking around my house --enjoy your visit with your buddy --
Thank you all My buddy left yesterday and the weather gave us a break so we jumped on it and now we ar around 95% done I still have some plants to put in here and there but so far I like it. Of course with any flowerbed its a work in progress. We used mostly plants we had in the greenhouse and only bought a few for filler we'll go back out today and see what we can find to fill in some more. Thank everyone for your support...Ron
This is teh other bed I tried to make it like a hill country garden.
Another view of the big garden.
The grandkids made these for us for christmas so they get a place of honor.
I planted 3 kinds if hibiscus two double pink hib trees and a verigated red hib and a tropicle purple saucer hib. Pictures don't do them justice because it was dreary day (which made it a great work day) In the background are flowering maple giants that I grew fom seed they should be 4' to 6' tall .
and a reminder for us all to stop and smell the flowers. Speaking of smelling I have a large brugmansia that I want to plant in here to but the spider mites are killing it so I have been doctoring it with neem oil I'll plant it when its all better. I also have a ginger to plant in the smaller bed. There are about 5 sprouts comming up in the pot (ginger) does anyone know how to seperate them or should I just plant them as they are?...Ron
Wonderful job Rucky!!!
