The Evolution of Atlas: A Breeding (and Chat) Thread

[Leahs Mom]

I love spruce but the only ones I've had experience with grow very tall. I didn't know you could trim to keep them smaller.

 

[cppeace]

Yeah you can make then about 7 ft and really fat with good trimming.

 

[speckledhen]

Sorry to hear bout your son's job. Hope he gets it sorted out soon.

I don't miss house shopping at all. I ended up with my little house on a basement in town with 3 acres. I don't like having neighbors but I tolerate it. I will tolerate it a lot better when my privacy trees finish growing in lol. Eventually, I'll put up a fence or wall around the whole place.
When I next move, likely many years from now, it will be to a place in the country with no freaking neighbors. People whine about how loud my geese are. People called animal control on me saying I was cruel to my ducks. The animal control came, took one look at my fat healthy critters and laughed, never to return. I miss living without neighbors so freaking bad.

We sound a lot alike. I wish I didn't have neighbors at all. Getting chummy with the neighbors always ends badly so we keep our distance.

That Dr. situation sounds much better, that can be a big problem for people up here, you often have to drive 3-5 hours to see a specialist. My regular doctor is retiring this year, boy are we going to miss her!

If I had to drive that far to see a specialist, we would not go, period. As far as doctors, I know this is going to sound strange, but I would rather die, literally, than have my entire life revolve around how close I can live to my doctor and going to this specialist and that specialist, etc.(and please, Cheryl, and even Lisa, I'm not trying to be insensitive to what you're going through at all! Please don't think that I am judging anyone else for the way they handle their health issues) I want to live while I"m alive. That is really the way I feel. I never want to be the old person who only talks about their medical/health dramas like my MIL and BIL did, and lives for telling folks about the last doctor's report in graphic detail. Both my husband and myself decided that if we got cancer, we would not treat it, not if it involved chemotherapy and other invasive stuff. Some have said why wouldn't you want more time with your family? Well, I want be entirely present in my life, not always having this treatment or that treatment and always feeling crappy from the meds/treatments as well as whatever disease they're treating. I'm not at all sure my family gives a flying fig anyway. I watched Farrah Fawcett in her documentary battle her form of cancer. She, unlike most of us, had plenty of $$ to pay for any treatment in the world and all she did was suffer through torturous treatments and die anyway. But, that's just me and my DH. We really are two peas in a pod.

We are not all that far from specialists anyway. Usually, not more than an hour or hour and a half, sometimes closer.

To me, moving close to town, closer to people, having to restrict myself on my own property, hearing all the folks going about their days around me in a neighborhood is like a type of death. I'd never be happy in that type of life again. I can't go back to that. Might as well just pull the dirt over my head now. If I get Alzheimer's, I won't know what's going on, of course (God forbid), but while my brain is functioning, I need my nature around me, my mountains, my quiet, my fresh air and my animals. If I could get Tom to do it, I'd probably live in a more remote place than we are now, but he's a techie, likes his gadgets and internet.

I do feel that being close to other people is dangerous in SHTF scenarios.

 

[1muttsfan]

Not sure if cedar grows well down there, but it grows quickly, can be trimmed into just about any shape, and provides year-round privacy. And it smells good.

 

[cppeace]

There was some reason I rejected Cedar, but I can't remember exactly why. I'd have to look it up. I had mine narrowed to arborvitae or cypress and believe I was mistaken and got cypress instead of arborvitae. I don't remember lol I got them for clearance price at lowes last fall.

 

[speckledhen]

Leylands grow well in full sun. I planted quite a few of those for privacy because, after they're established, they grow fast. Two of mine died, but they were crowded and in almost full shade. The others are going strong. I also planted native rhododendron. A forest of those and no one can see you, but they grow best in moist, shady places.

Behind the barn, I planted three Carolina Sapphire Cypress, a different shade of green than the Leylands. hopefully, they'll provide shade in a couple of years for that hot western side.

 

[Leahs Mom]

I just looked at the Leyland. They look pretty but grow too tall for the part that I have to keep at 6 ft. or under. (Stupid Electric tower easement area).

 

[speckledhen]

I just looked at the Leyland. They look pretty but grow too tall for the part that I have to keep at 6 ft. or under. (Stupid Electric tower easement area).

Yeah, you have to use a hedge trimmer and keep them shaped if you don't want them to grow too tall.

 

[Leahs Mom]

So...I can keep them trimmed without them looking really bad?

 

[speckledhen]

I guess it depends on how well you can trim. Here are some images I found online of trimmed Leyland hedges. You can keep them as short/wide as you want.

http://www.kevintwelvetrees.co.uk/images/leylandii.jpg
http://l7.alamy.com/zooms/a8270075e...landii-hedge-after-annual-trimming-axp2cx.jpg
http://s0.geograph.org.uk/photos/63/21/632107_08810528.jpg


Well, it refuses to let me link to any more photos. Bizarro. But, if you just Bing "trimmed Leyland hedges", you get tons of photos.