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KDOGG331 said:
Oh and do you think it’d be easier to put it behind the current one or just make a new/second garden on top of the big hill in the front yard? Seems like kind of a lot of work to prep that area behind it? Especially where it’s already really overgrown and those grasses are very established and lots of roots from all those pine trees. All that competition is bad for plants too right? And there are also tons of wild raspberries there that idk how to get rid of but maybe I should just figure out how to tame them? That yellowjacket nest scares me though. Oh and also if I plant the plants too close to each other, will they cross pollinate/grow a hybrid or does that only happen second generation? Just don’t want to actually combine tomato kinds or anything. Trying to try new varieties.

And sorry for all the questions and everything, especially the dumb ones :lau :oops: but thanks again for all the help, info, advice, etc.
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@bruceha2000 sorry again for all the questions but posted this one right after you posted your other answer so i didnt know if you saw it but i had a few other questions but i am going to look up some other ideas too now aha
 
It's your long lost, tired, very hot friend from down under here who isn't quite sure where almost a week and a half went. We've been having a heatwave down here (which is very unusual) and it's been very hot and sticky here in Auckland. Sleep has been very hard to come by (this morning the cat woke me up at 2am and I was too hot to even try and go back to sleep). So I'm feeling that now that the afternoon has rolled around.

Australia has had terrible heatwaves too, so severe that springs that have never before run dry have dried up and there were awful photos of herds of Brumby horses (Australia's wild horses) dead because they couldn't find water. Now North Queensland (where our old friend Teila is) has been hit with terrible flooding. And I see parts of the US have been freezing their behinds off due to the polar vortex losing its sense of direction.

We've just had our first two open homes over the weekend and there's been a lot of interest. Our agent is working very hard and singing our property's praises. One person who did a private viewing is still very interested but they have to consider the commute. It's a very nice drive until you hit suburbia again - lots of farmland and beautiful sea views.

And finally, in answer to @bruceha2000 's question (a week and a half ago) about what the plan was when we do sell - as long a settlement period as possible and if worst comes to worst we'll be camping on my parent's 10 acre block that they haven't started building on yet. Caravans aren't too expensive to rent. We'll just have to put up with a lot of wind as it's very windy where they have bought.

@KDOGG331 you be careful around those wasps please. There was a lady up North who recently got stung very badly after disturbing a wasps nest. She headed for a water trough to get them off (she ended up with over 200 stings all over her). Then she started going into anaphylactic shock and it was only because her daughter was still staying with her (she decided to stay one more day and thank goodness she did) and quickly rang for an ambulance that she survived. Wasps are truly nasty!
 
JaeG said:
It's your long lost, tired, very hot friend from down under here who isn't quite sure where almost a week and a half went. We've been having a heatwave down here (which is very unusual) and it's been very hot and sticky here in Auckland. Sleep has been very hard to come by (this morning the cat woke me up at 2am and I was too hot to even try and go back to sleep). So I'm feeling that now that the afternoon has rolled around.

Australia has had terrible heatwaves too, so severe that springs that have never before run dry have dried up and there were awful photos of herds of Brumby horses (Australia's wild horses) dead because they couldn't find water. Now North Queensland (where our old friend Teila is) has been hit with terrible flooding. And I see parts of the US have been freezing their behinds off due to the polar vortex losing its sense of direction.

We've just had our first two open homes over the weekend and there's been a lot of interest. Our agent is working very hard and singing our property's praises. One person who did a private viewing is still very interested but they have to consider the commute. It's a very nice drive until you hit suburbia again - lots of farmland and beautiful sea views.

And finally, in answer to @bruceha2000 's question (a week and a half ago) about what the plan was when we do sell - as long a settlement period as possible and if worst comes to worst we'll be camping on my parent's 10 acre block that they haven't started building on yet. Caravans aren't too expensive to rent. We'll just have to put up with a lot of wind as it's very windy where they have bought.

@KDOGG331 you be careful around those wasps please. There was a lady up North who recently got stung very badly after disturbing a wasps nest. She headed for a water trough to get them off (she ended up with over 200 stings all over her). Then she started going into anaphylactic shock and it was only because her daughter was still staying with her (she decided to stay one more day and thank goodness she did) and quickly rang for an ambulance that she survived. Wasps are truly nasty!
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Good luck with all the home stuff Jae! Hope you find a buyer soon!!

And WOW that is a scary story Jae!!! I will definitely be careful!! Thank you!! I recently read a story about someone who accidentally mowed over them with the mower or maybe they were weed whacking actually but anyway, either way, they could not see the entrance under the brush and all of a sudden they swarmed out. Thankfully he dropped the weedwhacker and booked it to the house and only ended up with a few stings but I think he said when he looked at the weedwhacker, it was completely covered in thousands of wasps and he could only see a tiny part of the handle and I think the half acre yard/sky was covered in thousands of them swarming too but that yard being covered bit might be a second story, I forget, read about it on YouTube, but anyway, I guess when they swarm or get mad, thousands can come out. Very scary indeed.
 
JaeG said:
It's your long lost, tired, very hot friend from down under here who isn't quite sure where almost a week and a half went. We've been having a heatwave down here (which is very unusual) and it's been very hot and sticky here in Auckland. Sleep has been very hard to come by (this morning the cat woke me up at 2am and I was too hot to even try and go back to sleep). So I'm feeling that now that the afternoon has rolled around.

Australia has had terrible heatwaves too, so severe that springs that have never before run dry have dried up and there were awful photos of herds of Brumby horses (Australia's wild horses) dead because they couldn't find water. Now North Queensland (where our old friend Teila is) has been hit with terrible flooding. And I see parts of the US have been freezing their behinds off due to the polar vortex losing its sense of direction.

We've just had our first two open homes over the weekend and there's been a lot of interest. Our agent is working very hard and singing our property's praises. One person who did a private viewing is still very interested but they have to consider the commute. It's a very nice drive until you hit suburbia again - lots of farmland and beautiful sea views.

And finally, in answer to @bruceha2000 's question (a week and a half ago) about what the plan was when we do sell - as long a settlement period as possible and if worst comes to worst we'll be camping on my parent's 10 acre block that they haven't started building on yet. Caravans aren't too expensive to rent. We'll just have to put up with a lot of wind as it's very windy where they have bought.
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Jae, there you are! So good to hear from you :D

Yuck on all the heat, and those poor horses in Australia (hoping Teila is ok).

Sounds like good news on the interest in your home. I remember the pictures you shared with us, it's so pretty I'm sure the right person will fall in love with it.

Good to have a backup plan for where you can go when your place sells. Maybe you won't have to stay in a caravan, maybe you'll find your forever home soon.

Keep us updated, it's always good to hear from you!
 
Hi Jae! Did you have a nice birthday? I know you were hiding from us because you didn't want to share your cake ;)

Good luck with the house. You don't have to tell prospective buyers that you are moving because of the traffic (and how much worse it is now compared to when you bought the house) :p

KDogg, best be carrying some wasp killer spray with you. It works pretty well. I would consider spraying the nest in the stump at night once they are active again.

With regard to the garden, are the pines running along the north side of the area? You don't want all that shade if they aren't. And yes it would be a lot of work prepping an area close to them because of the roots. You can choose to have a few small gardens rather than one big one. That can be convenient or inconvenient depending. If you have one that has only perennials like berries and another with only "plant and wait months" and another "kitchen garden" with herbs and things that grow quickly (radishes and the like), it might be more convenient since you are planting things with similar "work" requirements.
 
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bruceha2000 said:
Hi Jae! Did you have a nice birthday? I know you were hiding from us because you didn't want to share your cake ;)

Goo luck with the house. You don't have to tell prospective buyers that you are moving because of the traffic (and how much worse it is now compared to when you bought the house) :p

KDogg, best be carrying some wasp killer spray with you. It works pretty well. I would consider spraying the nest in the stump at night once they are active again.

With regard to the garden, are the pines running along the north side of the area? You don't want all that shade if they aren't. And yes it would be a lot of work prepping an area close to them because of the roots. You can choose to have a few small gardens rather than one big one. That can be convenient or inconvenient depending. If you have one that has only perennials like berries and another with only "plant and wait months" and another "kitchen garden" with herbs and things that grow quickly (radishes and the like), it might be more convenient since you are planting things with similar "work" requirements.
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Is wasp spray safe to have near a garden? Was a little worried about that with the chemicals but also do not want to get stung so will do anything. Was also considering just taking the stump out before they become active again. Idk if that would solve it but might at least take away a nesting location? Especially if I fill it in?

And I am not sure on what direction the pines are so I will have to ask my dad. But the whole property is surrounded by pines. But this back area is very sunny. The front hill my dad doesn’t think will work because it is very shady and doesn’t get morning sun. It also tends to get dark first in the afternoon and when we get snow, that hill is always the last to melt. So maybe that would not be a good spot. He says the spot in front of the driveway is better. And I know for a fact the backyard is even better than either of those too and is very sunny. And yeah, there are definitely a lot of roots because of that stand of baby pines (which I don’t want to get rid of because the chickens love hanging out under there) and then obviously all the mature ones at the back. Although we were thinking of having some of them removed eventually. And also the raspberry roots seem to be everywhere too. But maybe I could just add a bit of dirt and plant there, the end close to the garden seems to be flatter. I love your idea about having separate gardens though. I may have to do that. Last year I had some plants in pots and I may do that again this year. Maybe lettuce, some peppers, and herbs in pots. Or maybe in front of the arches/rows? I don’t know. The raspberries are all over back there and I’m not sure if they’re wild or from the raspberry plant I bought years and years ago at a fair and never planted. Maybe a combo. It started spreading under the deck (had the pot under the stairs) and has since spread all over. Even into the side yard/next to garage. And that bush on the little hill in the back is a wild blueberry we think. We were thinking of getting some more blueberries but then we never ordered any. Maybe next year. I don’t know if the wild berries are safe to eat?
 

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