Very Unusual House - Rogue River - Pruning and Odds & Ends

[mdvaden]

That pool looks dirty!

Are you referring to the ripple shadows? The pool water is almost crystal clear.

 

[sotc]

The lower farmhouse has some nice old trees too, including the Douglas fir with a 5.6 ft. diameter trunk.

Today's main task was the arborvitae hedge. Everybody pruning it so far has only sheared the top and pool side. Since the back side isn't in view except facing some forest, I gutted the entire back side of all the dead stubs and wads dead foliage. Now a ladder can be placed behind or in front to shear the top. Still needs a few more planted to fill gaps.

Shearing is my least favorite thing to do for pruning. I almost don't think of it as pruning. But when there's an opportunity to improve something, I will give it a go.

I consulted up there. They had some root rot issues on the cypress going up the driveway if I recall. Crazy place no doubt, like some of the stuff in Sonoma county

 

[mdvaden]

I consulted up there. They had some root rot issues on the cypress going up the driveway if I recall. Crazy place no doubt, like some of the stuff in Sonoma county

Some of the features were inspired by a certain few things near L.A.. The fountain was inspired by a Mulholland fountain, named after a man who worked with LA's water system many years ago. I haven't seen it at night or with all the water spouts going.

 

[Nutball]

You should plant trees on the concrete protrusions on the hot tub, that would look good. I'm sure they could afford it.

 

[Burnham]

Just....wow.

 

[Bermy]

Yeah, wow.
I like pruning. Cool job

 

[mdvaden]

Yeah, wow.
I like pruning. Cool job

Thanks Bermy.

Like 25 years ago, I was enthusiastic about shearing and shaping, but it got tedious and I felt the technique was so time consuming it could hurt average budgets for most residences. So I quit starting any shaping, and often dodged the work if that's mostly what someone wanted.

In the case of this property, the budget can handle it, there is normal shrub and tree pruning to mix in with it, and I sort of like the challenge of upgrading the place. Whoever was shearing before did not understand how critical consistent lines are to the presentation of a place like this. Here is closeup of a view I shared earlier, showing dips and rises in the boxwood hedge. It will take this autumn's pruning and next year's new growth plus one more shearing to correct most of the undulation.

This is one of the sections I haven't got to yet. Probably next Tuesday or Wednesday.

 

[Burnham]

Yup, that will make it right. Mario, you sure have the eye. Kudos.

 

[Bermy]

I have to admit...I leave the shearing and hedging to the hedge guy, but shrubs and specimen trees, fruit trees...I can get into my zen on a day of pruning.

 

[Nutball]

So, how do you maintain perfect height, when standing up close while cutting? On a hedge that long you almost need to be where your camera is while operating a radio controlled trimmer. Maybe some laser levels could help?

 

[mdvaden]

Some parts I can estimate, then stand back and see if more needs removal. What I'm doing on that lower section is driving skinny 4 FOOT survey stakes on the opposite side of the hedge about 1 inch out from it. Then I'm stringing a line, and adjusting the line by sight looking at a couple of angles and nudging it till it looks right.

Then I'm placing my hedge shear bar just beneath the line holding the blade level to avoid cutting the string line.

This lower section is the only area where I'm using the string line. Other areas like the driveway where the surface is flat and consistent where I walk.

I have to admit...I leave the shearing and hedging to the hedge guy, but shrubs and specimen trees, fruit trees...I can get into my zen on a day of pruning.

The reason I enjoy normal pruning of thinning and directing, and some fruit trees, is that it's opposite of shearing.

I've always described hedges and shearing as something that controls people. Once a hedge is set into motion and formed, it mandates that someone must prune it, and it must be done at certain intervals. And it sets it's direction, which is almost static to outward, excluding renovations.

For other pruning, a man or woman can continually determine the direction of growth and modify the form and density. Given time, a canopy can be shifted over many feet, leaned to the left, raised, wrapped around a corner, or be allowed to expand evenly in all directions with thinning as desired.

 

[stig]

We usually use a laser to mark the height, then put dots of log marking paint every 10 feet.
Once that is done, maintaining a level top is a piece of cake.

On a straight hedge, that is.
On one that follows the curvature of the ground, we do the survey stake thing, and use those to measure where to put the paint dots.

 

[squisher]

Frig it. It's just a hedge. Eyeball it.

 

[MasterBlaster]

Unless it's a cover shoot for Lawn and Garden!

 

[mdvaden]

We usually use a laser to mark the height, then put dots of log marking paint every 10 feet.
Once that is done, maintaining a level top is a piece of cake.

On a straight hedge, that is.
On one that follows the curvature of the ground, we do the survey stake thing, and use those to measure where to put the paint dots.

I have a laser, but it's fairly useless for a hedge like the one shown above that needs to somewhat follow a grade that drops and rises.

 

[Bermy]

I do one macrocarpa hedge in the village, belongs to my neighbour, I eyeball it...the top is level, but the front face usually ends up following the undulations of the old plank fence in front...rustic.

 

[Stumpshot]

Here's a pic of some topiary in town -- of a Jayhawk. Much more impressive than their football efforts this year! Or last.

 

[MasterBlaster]

Ha!

 

[SeanKroll]

Very cool, Mario.

 

[gf beranek]

Chia pet, or mossy pet?

 

[MasterBlaster]

A bit of both, I 'spect!