Update from my brother, a new fence, and more weeding

The name of the game this week was yardwork, and lots of it! We had some rain over the weekend - they even got some up north). Garrett had stopped in with his dad the previous Thursday and the two had put up the rails for the fence boards. He said he was expecting delivery on Friday and planned to work Saturday and Sunday. The weather wasn't conducive on Saturday, but he arrived early afternoon on Sunday, along with his nephew, and the two of them had the fence and gates completed in just over two hours!

Here's a before and after:

The before photo was taken about a year ago after I had cleared out various railroad ties, rebar and other assorted junk.

Ta da! We were so impressed with the work this fellow did and would recommend his services. We really appreciated that he capped the fence and the reinforced the gates. I asked and he provided a special type of latch and we are able to lock it from the inside. (I should note the fence on the right was installed by the next door neighbour before C bought the house).

What isn't in these photos is the other gate and fence between the back patio (in front of the garage) that encloses the entire back yard area. The fence is tall enough that C can play with Sage back there and not worry about her scaling the fence and escaping. Plus it just looks terrific!

I spent an hour or so last week digging out the Lily of the Valley that was growing next the garage. It was there when we moved in, and when reminded that it can be toxic to dogs, I decided it needed to come out. The photo on Wednesday were simply three of the items that I found when I was digging. Not pictured included a hockey puck, a rubber connection for something or other, and a few screws and nails. 

On Monday I turned my attention to prepping the back yard for grass/clover seed. I'd watched a few Y-tube videos to get an idea of what needed to be done. I raked up much of the loose debris (small pieces of branches, some wood, and rock) before using a heavy rake to scratch up the surface. The rain we'd had on the weekend had some spots quite wet, but other areas were hard and dry so it took a bit of time. I also got around behind the garage - no fence there anymore and took down several small Lombardy poplars. One had fallen over in the wind on Saturday night, just hanging on by one root. Another I was able to push over! The remaining three or four trees I cut down. The debris is piled up behind the garage and I'll leave it there to dry before having it hauled away, likely in the fall.

On Tuesday, I followed up on the remaining trees by drilling into the trunks with my drill and spraying Round-up in to the holes. I'm told several applications will kill the tree and I should be able to remove them more easily. (I see more digging in my future). The former owners had also allowed a tree of some sort to grow between the sidewalk blocks. After cutting it to the ground, I gave it the same treatment. I have no intention of lifting those blocks (24"X24") to get at the roots, so I'm hoping this will eliminate any future regrowth.

After I'd mowed the front lawn, I went back over the back yard with my heavy rake, watered the entire area down, and used a seeder to spread the seeds. I quickly realized I did not have enough grass and clover, so I cleaned up and went to the greenhouse for more seed. Back at the house I finished off the seeding and spread some lawn soil on the areas where I hadn't been able to loosen the soil to my liking. Another watering and I was done with the backyard.

We have an area in the front lawn where the city dug up the water main (perhaps - it happened before C bought), where the grass is patchy. I spread a bag of lawn soil, spread the remaining grass seed (with some clover mixed in), and gave it a good watering too. As I've told my son, it's likely we'll continue to see patches there, and in the backyard, and he can add clover seed as I've another full bag of seed to be used. According to the information I've read/watched, the clover will be the first to come up, in about 4-7 days, the grass is slower to germinate but will start filling in over the next 6-8 weeks. I've warned C too, that his water bill is going to be high for the next while. Hopefully less than I think though as there is more rain in our forecast. 

I was able to text with my brother early in the week, and he said things are slightly improved, but they are still concerned as the rising temperatures can change things very quickly. Here is a video he sent me, of his drive into La Ronge. 

I told him "I probably would have turned around, NO, I would have turned around". 

I was ready for a break and took the day off on Wednesday, except for watering the back yard a few times. I spent part of the morning organizing clothing for our trip to Halifax, and starting the packing process. We're planning to use one checked bag for clothing, and the second will hold Eli's booster seat, and other items that I have no knowledge of, but my daughter does. Later a quick trip to the thrift store netted me two pairs of shorts for Eli and a set of vintage salt and pepper shakers. Then it was off to Stitch and Chat at the library. 

Thursday was weeding day. Our neighbours to the south is useless too busy to take care of their side yard. As a result there are weeds of various sorts, including grass, creeping bellflower, thistles, etc. It is an eyesore and I was tired of looking at it. I took out all of the grass, thistle, bellflower, and wee elm saplings, but left the yellow flowering weeds. They are kind of pretty and I figured I'd leave something for them to do. Before and after photos are below, and I continued along the fence line (not shown) to get rid of the grass that has grown under the fence and next to our driveway. 

You can see I've left the newspaper, cardboard and stepping stones/rocks as well. I'm nice, just not that nice.

Friday was a quiet day, as it rained a bit which was nice, but not enough for the newly seeded back yard. I've been watering three times a day for around 5 minutes at a time to keep the soil relatively moist. In addition, I did some housework, laundry and vacuuming, and ran out to get a few groceries. It felt cool outdoors so when I returned I stayed in, and watched Y-tube videos of places we'll be visiting in Nova Scotia. Just 10 more sleeps!

Today, I'm planning to do a bit more weeding - I'm almost done everything I want to do outdoors. There is baseball and hockey to watch in the afternoon and evening. It should be a relatively easy, relaxing day!

Have a wonderful week ahead, everyone!