Discussion: Countdown?
in: Swampfox; -
Jun 10, 2011 9:49 AM
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How many of these hedge plants are there? I assume they are not as ubiquitousnas Ratlum mountain laurel.
Jun 10, 2011 3:36 PM
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I have not attempted a census. They are unruly and would severely resist a counting.
However, I can estimate that the number remaining that I will attempt to remove this year is now under 20. I hope.
However, I can estimate that the number remaining that I will attempt to remove this year is now under 20. I hope.
Jun 10, 2011 6:11 PM
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I floundered on the first few, as there is a definite "iceberg" aspect to the these hedge plants, with respect to the above ground and below ground mass. But the basic technique I have arrived at is to attack from beneath the ground, from the sides.
Step one is to trim to the branches and other flailing parts as low as possible to the ground. I've kept these hedge plants trimmed very low for a while already, in hopes they might take the hint and succumb, but no such luck. At any rate, that means step one doesn't require much effort at this point. Step two is to dig around each plant on three sides (the fourth side being unapproachable due to the plants being back by a wooden fence), severing as many lateral roots as possible in the process. Step 3 is to bash the stalks coming out of the ground with a mattock, essentially a divide and conquer process. Then it is a matter of repeating steps two and three as many times as necessary until it is obvious the hedge plant has been severely weakened to the point that it is being held in place by only one last root--often, but not always, the main tap root. Then, step 4, which is to twist the entire remaining structure until the last root gives. Step 5 involves a victory dance and a downing of Mountain Dew, as something of a homage to the QOC Beer Chase.
Naturally all this would be much less toil and sweat if I had some large pieces of equipment manufactured by Caterpillar, something like a D10, perhaps, but I don't have that while I do have toil and sweat. So, toil and sweat it is.
The Beer Chase is especially in mind at the moment, because I watched much of Ken's excellent video of this year's Chase at Jug Bay, and it was fun to watch. I was amazed by how open the woods appeared to be, even the parts that were ostensibly medium green. It was also interesting to see how in the video "Big Eddy" and "Little Jon" appeared to be more or less the same height*; these videos are quite the leveling device, and I may see about trying to rent one after I am done removing the rest of my hedge plants, and use them to help re-level the disturbed areas in the yard.
Btw, I couldn't determine from the video if they were really drinking beer or not, but whatever it was they were drinking seemed to be served in little cups, which made me suspect it was actually some kind of Kool-Aid. Not that there's anything wrong with that. I also couldn't tell if any of the new, recently announced programs from O-USA had boosted starts or not, but there did seem to be quite a few parked cars there. And there wasn't a "big box" in sight so....
* As a Sidenote--Clem seemed to be the usual height in the video.
Step one is to trim to the branches and other flailing parts as low as possible to the ground. I've kept these hedge plants trimmed very low for a while already, in hopes they might take the hint and succumb, but no such luck. At any rate, that means step one doesn't require much effort at this point. Step two is to dig around each plant on three sides (the fourth side being unapproachable due to the plants being back by a wooden fence), severing as many lateral roots as possible in the process. Step 3 is to bash the stalks coming out of the ground with a mattock, essentially a divide and conquer process. Then it is a matter of repeating steps two and three as many times as necessary until it is obvious the hedge plant has been severely weakened to the point that it is being held in place by only one last root--often, but not always, the main tap root. Then, step 4, which is to twist the entire remaining structure until the last root gives. Step 5 involves a victory dance and a downing of Mountain Dew, as something of a homage to the QOC Beer Chase.
Naturally all this would be much less toil and sweat if I had some large pieces of equipment manufactured by Caterpillar, something like a D10, perhaps, but I don't have that while I do have toil and sweat. So, toil and sweat it is.
The Beer Chase is especially in mind at the moment, because I watched much of Ken's excellent video of this year's Chase at Jug Bay, and it was fun to watch. I was amazed by how open the woods appeared to be, even the parts that were ostensibly medium green. It was also interesting to see how in the video "Big Eddy" and "Little Jon" appeared to be more or less the same height*; these videos are quite the leveling device, and I may see about trying to rent one after I am done removing the rest of my hedge plants, and use them to help re-level the disturbed areas in the yard.
Btw, I couldn't determine from the video if they were really drinking beer or not, but whatever it was they were drinking seemed to be served in little cups, which made me suspect it was actually some kind of Kool-Aid. Not that there's anything wrong with that. I also couldn't tell if any of the new, recently announced programs from O-USA had boosted starts or not, but there did seem to be quite a few parked cars there. And there wasn't a "big box" in sight so....
* As a Sidenote--Clem seemed to be the usual height in the video.
This discussion thread is closed.