How about those old fashion (you can still buy them) big edging scissors.When I was a kid I spent many an hour sitting and cutting the edge of the lawn with these. Thank goodness that we had a very small city yard. LOL
I like the ones with the more upright handles best. I will admit I don't use them often in the garden but they do come in handy from time to time.
There are things like Montauk daisy which just don't lend themselves to anything BUT cutting individual stems.....tedious. Autumn Joy and other tall sedum- have to catch them at the right phase when they can be broken off.
I have to get the pruners on last year's big Goldenrod stems. Brittle but fibrous.
Clouding and gusty out there. Bad for drying out new plants, unless it comes with rain.
I worked on the Autumn Joy yesterday one little stem after another. Yuck.
There is always the brush cutter attachment for the end of a weedwacker...I think that would work since the grass is stiff enough.
I think my back yard neighbor used his chain saw to cut his down...he has 3 big clumps.
A hedge trimmer would also work....
Holly---
They still sell edgers--like the old ones in your picture--but they are now either electrical
or run on batteries. Aisle #2.
And--the handles are on top....I have often thought to get those--but I bought one
of the B&D trimmers.... Still in box. haven't looked yet...
AAARRGGHHH---this would mean I have to read a manual....OH, NOOOO!
G
LOL Gita! Not a manual--noooooo. I'm going to need to try out my weed eater for the first time very soon--definitely feeling some trepidation about that, and suspect I'll resort to reading the manual!! :-)
Today--Thanks to the generosity of Paul ("Terp')--I am the proud owner
of a mature-size, deciduous, orange Azalea.
Yesterday--I demolished whatever was left of the pile of rocks and bricks that were
still (???HOW??) holding up the rotten stump (from a Birch Tree).
This is my "Stump Bed"--and I always put my BIG POT--filled with gorgeous flowers,
on top of the stump. Last year--the "featured plant" in it was that NOID Caladium.
I know you have seen many a picture of it...
Dug out remnants and the rotted chunks of roots, almost a trash bag full--amended
the soil a bit--and the future home of my Azalea was just a sitting there and waiting.
So--here are some pictures....
1--The "Stump Bed"--on the left--July-2010
2--Paul un-potting the Azalea
3--Paul planting it
4--Taa--Dahhh! All done!
5--Sitting pretty--all the buds will be opening soon. They look red--but will be orange.
I will be taking a lot of pictures for you.
Now "SHE" is in my hands...and I now have to find a new place to put my BIG pot on...
Before the planting--I took Paul to see the wholesale GH and then Chapel Hill Nursery.
They DO NOT have any Fine Pines in yet--and may not be able to get them.
Then we went to "Mission Barbeque" for lunch (my treat) and, after Paul helped me
carry in or out some heavy pots and the 2 bales of pro Mix--we loaded his car back up
and he went on home--NOT empty handed, of course....no one ever does.
It was a lovely day spent with a lovely Guy. He is TOPS in my book!
Thank you again, Paul!! You are a GEM!
Gita
The flower buds--getting ready to open up.
I can't wait to see them!
It is now pouring rain. Mother Nature watering my new Azalea in---Royally.
I'm getting rid of my last miscanthus for multiple reasons, one of which is because they're such a pain to cut back. In addition to loppers, I have used a "saw saw" (reciprocating saw), both to cut them back and to divide them. Electric hedge trimmers didn't work very well, maybe because mine are really dull.
Very nice Gita and Paul! It looks beautiful!
Wow Gita,That is going to look just great. Can't wait to see it in bloom. Nice job Paul.
Paul is such a sweetheart!
But I'm sure you showered him with goodies too, cuz you are also such a sweetheart, Gita.
I should soon see open blooms on my yellow deciduous that Paul gave me at swap here.
I planted my baby lettuce out before the rain. Asparagus is coming up. It was a steady rain for a while here around dinner time.
I think all my plants were grateful for the nice drink that nature gave us this evening!
What a nice guy you are, Paul!
Looks great!
Look at the buds on that gorgeous azalea! Nice job, Paul!
We needed that rain. I hope we get another inch next week. The worst part of gardening (for me) is the watering!
Gita, your garden is so lush and wonderful-looking in that photo and that azalea is going to make it even more beautiful.
Paul, that was so nice of you!
What a beautiful azalea that is, Gita. Lovely gift and quite an addition to your garden. We're lucky Paul joined the group.
Ah yes, Sallyg received the first one. I rescued that beauty without an inkling of what the blooms looked like. I hope it is thriving in Sally's sandy soil.
I'm getting rid of my last miscanthus for multiple reasons, one of which is because they're such a pain to cut back. In addition to loppers, I have used a "saw saw" (reciprocating saw), both to cut them back and to divide them. Electric hedge trimmers didn't work very well, maybe because mine are really dull.
Great Balls of Fire is the cultivar.
The sawzall saws all! Metal (torch blade) and wood.
Paul, for a minute there I thought you were going to break out in song and hop up on a piano aka Jerry Lee Lewis. Goodness, gracious... ha ha
LOL Aspen, that's what I was thinking too! Really excellent job on that installation Paul, it looks fantastic - You Da Man!!! < =D That bed is gonna be soooooooo beautiful later this Spring!
A late note on the cutting of the grasses: Just like Sequoia described, that is what our guys at work do with our grasses - Tied off at the top and bottom (VERY low) with twine, then loppers are used to give a nice clean cut right through it all. Makes clean up very easy, and makes the end-product look nice and neat. Mind, this is NOT what the Crape Murdering crew of nincompoops did last Fall; this is what the new, "Know What They Are Doing" crew does.
This rainy cool spring is actually really nice for our new plants- if you can get out and plant between the wet days.
I am completely baffled about what I did with the Tahiti daffodils from Gita. They are nowhere. Not even a new bunch of leaves (in the off chance they did not bloom)
I planted some forced paperwhite Ziva bulbs a few years ago. They have never bloomed, and they look terrible because the leaves come up in fall and get all frost bitten and tattered over winter. in teen-speak it's a Total fail!
So sorry to hear about the Tahitis and Zivas! :-( I think we should get more Tahiti bulbs this year.
sally--
here is a possible solution to your lost Tahiti bulbs....
You received them in a black, trade gallon pot--with NOTHING showing...
or if the leaves were there--they died off and now all you had was a pot of dirt.
is it possible (????) you just put the pot somewhere---and forgot about it?
Ifso--go looking for a black pot with (hopefully) some daff leaves coming up.
Do you know IF you actually planted these??? Anything in your 'memory banks"?
Mine are sparse--but given that the original clumps got pulled apart--and--
also that I planted them very late in the season---mine will take a few years to re-establish.
BTW--we are heading for 4 days of solid rain...Monday through Thursday...
G.
Well, first stage of the Great Lawn Trimming/Edging Experiment: I got the machine assembled!! :-o Now the battery's charging. Hopefully soon I'll be able to go out and tackle stage 2: seeing if I can get it to work properly!! :-D
Oh Catmint, thanks for reminding me of a job I can assign to my teen. Nya ha ha...weed wacking
Thanks for the picture Gita, I sure have not seen any of those this spring. And I've been all over the yard a hundred times, there are no pots with daff leaves in them. Total mystery. And no 'new' clumps of daffs anywhere. Makes me feel insane.
I do have lots of shoots on the Liatris you gave me in fall, Gita.
Forecast is for very upper 40s to all 50s for the next week's low temps. I am going to plant some thing in ground (Brugs) and start leaving my coleus out next to the house. I have to get some things in the ground - I just cannot keep straight of what all I have and what all holes there are to fill and how the twain shall meet. Worked on my online classwork an hour today- pfft on that!!
LOL Sally well hopefully my preteen will be old enough soon to get out there and do this chore!
speaking of which--I did it! yay!! I am woman, hear me roar--arrrhh. Now I suppose there's some kind of clean-up I have to do with this machine--back to the instruction manual! :-o
Had a great day, finished the front flower bed, dug up a few plants for the swap and planted and moved a few around. I did very well and may just move on to the back bed that I was working on a few days ago, if I could finish that one up as well it would be great.
yay Catmint! The only cleanup I do with a weedwacker is to put it in the shed.
What a gorgeous day! Put a Brug in the ground, potted caladiums. Must have done more than that I'm tired!
I found a tag for Gitas scented daffs from the yuk bed, but still no trace of Tahiti.
Got to make dinner....
Sally--
Those very fragrant "Daffs" were ID'd once by David--I think....they are not Daffs
Just tried to find it among all my little slips of paper--but could not.
Here they are again. Anyone know the name???
I finished up the other bed. That makes 5 beds finished until it is time to plant the annuals and swap plants. Ony 18 more to go. LOL Best day ever, worked all day no pain didn't have any trouble doing any of the jobs. even sifted some compost and move the wheel barrow around. What a great day.
Sounds nice Holly! Nothing like gardening thrrapy! :-) 18 beds to go--wow!! Would love to see them all someday! :-)
Hopefully at the Fall Swap. Some of them are pretty big and others very small, I count anything that I have to weed as a bed. LOL
Oh that would be lovely! :-). Yeah I like that definition of a bed--LOL!
Goodness Holly "only 18 more to go"!! Aaaack!!! I'm glad you are still pain-free, that is GREAT news!! < =D
Catmint, LOL!! ROOOARRRR!!! I just wipe my weed whacker down a bit with an old towel and stick it back into it's storage spot... "real" clean up is reserved just for the mower! =)
Considering the "lows" that we have in store for us now, I think tomorrow is a great time for me to pot up those Caladium bulbs tomorrow, along with the Lemongrasses I brought home from work yesterday. I got an extra one too, to go out back near the bird bath.
The Irises are REALLY budding all over the place; can't WAIT to have pics of those to share!! =)
OK all you gardeners get dirty and prevent Alzheimer's!!
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/265746.php
My Irises are not even growing yet. That's what happens when you dig them all up
and then plant them back in the bed. They have not really "taken" yet....I think...
The frost heaved most of them up--I went along stepping on each to gently
push them back a bit deeper....
My Mini Iris are growing--but no buds yet...Oh, well...all in due time.
G.
only found buds on one iris here o far and it is on with a south facing fence to warm it up.
My iris aren't that far along only the early blooming reticulated iris are blooming.
