This is so fun and exciting, helping to pick out a new toy! =)
Yardening (#4)- in 2014
So glad I have you all to discuss this with, as I am totally clueless! :-)
I found this battery-powered B&D one on Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Black-Decker-LST136-Cordless-Performance/dp/B00602J3V4/ref=sr_1_2?s=lawn-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1389741900&sr=1-2&keywords=weed+eater
Is anyone familiar with this model?
thanks!
that might be the current model. mine is a little different and ten years ? old.
Sally: I shy away from rechargeable-battery tools, because the batteries seem to need replacing more often that I like and cost more than I like. That's why I go with corded electric -- we find that in practice the cords don't annoy us. Has yours survived 10 years?
We were shopping for battery not long ago. We had three at one point. Yes they are horribly expensive.
Seems there is as much to maintaining the battery as maintaining the tool. Sigh
thanks for all this wonderful info! I went ahead and got the lithium battery model. woohoo--all set for grass-cutting this year!!
We've had our battery operated Black and Decker (2 batteries) for three years and, so far, the batteries last for 45 minutes with each use.
From reading the amazon website/reviews, it sure looks like Black and Deckers customer service is top notch, so no matter how you slice it, I'd be willing to bet you've got yourself one heck of a great new toy! YAY FOR YOU!!!!!!!! < =D So, when do you get to play with it!? ;)
We loved that (when we bought) the same battery and charger served for a mini vacuum also.= efficient.
Cat, resting your batteries while in use and only charging them as they need it will give them longer usefulness. Especially when using them like you plan to do, give them short breaks or change them if the start to heat up. Resting them will allow the charge remaining to recover a bit and give you more use per charge. Another very useful addition to your battery powered arsenal would be a drill that uses the same battery, you'll find all kinds of uses for it. They make screw drivers obsolete and you can tighten nut and bolts, stir a little paint, and yes, drill holes.
We REALLY need to get a rechargeable drill. Glad you reminded me.
I thought our battery was smaller than 36 volt- sure enough there are a couple options.
The 36 volt leaf vac looks tempting, but I would replace that tiny bag with something much bigger. But really- I wouldn't use it; I would grab a broom or rake, or ignore the mess.
I vote for ignoring the mess. I just wouldn't call it "mess." Nature's gift, or something.
I'm just SO not interested in power tools when I can handle a job myself. Give me a quiet hand tool that I can leave laying around out in the rain....
I have been a good girl today and "housening" instead of yardening. I wish I had popped outside to appreciate that brief period of sunshine!
We have 2 acres of edging and rock gardening to trim around. It takes us quite a while to get it all done with the power tools.
Ric, I never remember to rest the batteries. I hope if I go out there to look, I won't see one charging since last fall!!!!!!!!!
I wrote down all the 'facts" on the B%D trimmer at work today--BUT--as I was
wearing pants with no pockets, I stuck the paper in my apron pocket with all the other junk.
And--there it stays....I do remember, i think, that this was a 12" trimmer and a 12 Volt.
Also, that it had a 2 year warranty and a 30 day try-out period--to return it.
OK! I am a bit confused....what else is new?
Ric--about "resting" the battery. Does that mean stopping now and then while
I am using it--then continuing?
OR--Does it mean not charging the battery up (resting it) if you are NOT going to use it?
Like--letting it sit around uncharged until I need to use it?
How long does it take for these batteries to charge up? One hour" Two hours?
I'm still going to buy it--just biding my time. Gita
Not running continuously is what I'm referring to. If you're buying the Lithium Ion batteries they usually come with a smart charger that prevents overcharging, some even have a slow /fast selector. Like food slow is better.LOL Most chargers complete a charge in 30 mins or so. Teri, I'm sure you get short pauses as you move about, unless your doing your trimming in roller skates. LOL Using 2 batteries on big jobs and switching them periodically will give you more time but when they're dead, they're both dead.Then it's time for a beer, sandwich, and log in to Dave's.
Catmint is going to it as a lawnmower, so she may in fact run it down a lot. Which is a good thing because she can sign in to DG more often!
hey, Ric, thanks for the info about the battery. I'll have to plan on leisurely grass-cuttings where I pause and watch the butterflies periodically! Sounds good to me! :-)
Aaawww, that sounds like such a cute visual!!
I don't know which thread to post this in but I'm so excited because I just remembered that I have a Hellebore. AND IT'S GOT BUDS ON IT!
Oops. This is the picture that I meant to select instead of that second one which is yucky.
Looks good but where did the leaves go? Looks like a critter's been eating them :(
That's pretty exciting though, I can't wait for mine to start out. They're still putting out leaves right now. That polar vortex sorta zapped some of the fresh growth though.
I think the polar vortex zapped everything.If we got one of those in or about March,it would change all our gardens for the worse.
I trimmed off last year's leaves, because they looked horrible and they were getting in the way of the buds. This year's leaves are coming up behind the buds. This is my first year with a hellebore, I think it's normal. If not, well then I hope I didn't kill the plant!
OK now I'm worried that i killed it. https://apps.rhs.org.uk/advicesearch/profile.aspx?PID=113
A link to Royal Hort Society declaring this an acceptable practice. Maybe different species act differently? I know next to nothing about my plant as it was a Big Box clearance buy.
Polar vortexes sound much more fun than they really are! Canada: keep your arctic air, thank you very much!
Yeah I don't know what's normal or not. Our leaves don't get ratty though. They still have theirs from over a year ago when I planted them. Pretty sharp little buggers too. They're like little steak knives on the edges!
I have read that one should cut off the ratty old leave of Helebores in late winter, so that the flowers will shine. I did it last year for the first time with no adverse results.
CONGRATULATIONS on your Hellebores Typ!!!!! =) Those buds look great, and I'm quite certain the leaf-pruning won't hurt them one little bit. The heat in some zones can be a bit more intense than in other zones, so maybe yours were just feeling that heat. We prune ours back at work with absolutely NO ill effects whatsoever.
While I'm at it -- Thank You for mentioning your Hellebores, 'cause I'd totally forgotten that I'd installed some myself. LOL!! Gonna have to remember to get out there and see how they're doing. This is my first year with them as well (installed them in September) ... hope they're ok!
They might not bloom this year Speedie. I planted two in the fall of '12 and only the one bloomed. I also planted two in the early spring of '13 and only one of those bloomed. The two I planted last spring were in 1C pots from the nursery too. I'm hoping they will all bloom this year.
One corner of the front garden is completely dug up by the squirrels. Even the perennials have been half uprooted by the squirrels burying acorns. I didn't know how bad the damage was until I uncovered the leaves that had settled there.
This area had been densely planted with layers of bulbs. I don't know how many have survived the squirrel attack. :( I think pretty much all the small, top-layer bulbs (crocus, reticulated iris) are gone.
I've tried both commercial and homemade squirrel deterrents, but with my clay being so hard, they take advantage of any disturbed soil.
I've never had luck with crocuses at our current house. The squirrels must get them all. My mom had hundreds of crocuses and I loved them. I didn't realize the irises were also squirrel-candy -- makes me sad because I planted a ton this year. So I'll have well-fed squirrels at least.
Thanks, Happy and Speedie! I'll be checking on that plant everyday, hovering like a first-time mom over her sleeping newborn.
My crocus bulbs survive the squirrels but succumb to rabbits eating the buds. :( I won't ever buy more of them. Or Dutch anemones, for that matter. Heartbreaking to watch the bud come up and get nipped off just before the bloom.
I have about 5 Hellebores. So far-I have not not looked enough to see if any
I have are in buds. Can't say I have been out there much...
Usually--when I see buds coming on my Hellebores, I cut off the old leaves.
Maybe leaving them be sort of protects the up-coming blooms???
The new leaves will follow soon after the buds appear... G.
My brand new weedeater arrived today! Woohoo! . Not too much out there right now for it to cut but boy am I ready! :-D
Sequoia, that's ok if my Hellebores don't bloom this year, as long as they stay alive I'll be happy. :) They were in 4" pots and 'rescues' from work. They just may have been too far gone by the time I installed them, but we shall see.
Catmint, CONGRATULATIONS!!! < =D I bet you never thought you'd be praying for more weeds, huh? ;)
I've had pretty good luck using human hair as a squirrel deterrent, and I've also heard that Narcissus bulbs are poison to squirrels, so if you plant those around the ones you want to keep, they will keep the pesky critters at bay... and look pretty while they work! (I tell people this all the time, but do have I tried it yet myself? Noooo! Shame on me!)
Speedie, I don't know if they're eating the bulbs. They're just so busy burying the acorns (there are a *lot* of acorns in my neighborhood) and the bulbs get dug up in the process. I have narcissus buried deeper, so they've only disturbed the top-layer bulbs.
I have tried pounds of chili powder as a deterrent. Did absolutely nothing.
thanks, Speedie. :-)
I'll be glad if my one hellebore survives the winter. It was pretty small still going into the fall.
Sorry you're having so much trouble with the squirrels, SSG! They are tough little critters to control.
I've also had a lot of little footprints and tiny indentations in the mulched areas along the front of the house. I can never decide whether it's from squirrels or the cat who stalks my yard a lot...
ss--
How about putting sections of wire mesh (hardware cloth) over the beds
where you have small bulbs planted?
Even chicken wire may work, but it has a looser mesh.
These all come in rolls at HD--look in the outside garden. G.