Careful what you wish for

 

 

In western Washington, early fall is like a second spring. The rain finally soaks the parched ground while the temperature stays fairly warm. All the plants, including the weeds, spring to life and everything looks fresh again. It's incredible how fast the brown landscape turns green, and now stays green for the winter. The opposite of most parts of the country.

I don't clean up the garden all at once anymore, I physically can't do it. I used to obsessively cut everything back to the ground in October, and then haul cart loads of leaves to build up a thick mulch on the beds.The worms and birds loved it.

It was never a fun job, and now worse with construction across the street, not to mention the poor old Silver Maple (the source of leaves) is slowly dying. The dead twigs and small branches on the ground make raking too hard. I have such affection for that tree, the perch of countless bird flocks and shading our house from the afternoon sun for over 40 years. Nothing can ever replace it, at least not in my lifetime.

Anyway, I'll see if Mr. Nguyen will deliver a load of compost for mulch. That should do the trick. We need bring in the big expensive boys this winter for tree pruning. The Leyland Cypress, quite an impressive hedge, the holly tree and palm tree fronds need trimming, those about 30 feet above the ground.  What happened? Not long ago, I did it with a step ladder.

Sometimes I walk by dark houses that are completely encased by out-of-control trees and vegetation. Easy to see how that happens and tempting. 

Considering this view from the kitchen window, let the Cypress grow another 10 feet up and they would be happy to oblige. Then they would be going through the power lines-- a new kind of city problem. 

How pointless it is, complaining about things you have no control over. But whenever I glance out the window (about 100 times a day) there's sometime offensive about this roof looming over our private space. This is a "backyard cottage" in progressive Seattle.  I suspect the neighbors on either side feel the same way.