Sunday Glum Chewing

A rescue from the Lowe's Death Rack.  'Iceberg'.  It called and I answered.  I really don't have a spot for it, but I just couldn't leave it there.  
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I think the Koi enjoyed the rain.
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Ranger, the Koi on the left, is 24" (60 cm).  Rita is about 28" (71 cm).  Little Les in the corner is only about 17" (43 cm).  Boy-Koi are smaller than the ladies. 
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There's Agave sebastiana 'Silver Lining'.  I read it doesn't like summer water, and so gave it none, but it began to look very stressed, with the leaves folding in half lengthwise to minimize sun exposure.  I watered it heavily several times and it began to look far better and grow.  
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Perhaps when it is more established it can do without summer water, but not yet.  It's about 6"  (15 cm) wide now.  

The largest of the Agave desmetiana 'Variegata' pups I planted are 14" (35 cm) at least.  They look great.  I ended up throwing out a lot of them.  I felt bad, but I just had no room, and the effort involved in giving them away was more than I could manage.  I did give away at least one hundred plants.
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'Ebb Tide'
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I love the blurred out rosebuds on the right in this photo.
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They make a nice abstract painting.
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I'm glum today.  One of the neighbor's sad, trashy trees dropped about 25' (7 meters) of itself into our garden.  When it rained a couple of days ago it was also quite windy, and the whole top of the tree snapped off.  It appears to be rotted.  At least the tree did not bring down the power line with it.  I will have to cut it up as best I can.  I'm tempted to throw it all back over the fence, and I probably will have to, as I have no room in my green waste bins for 25' feet of tree.  I was so glum about it I couldn't take a photo.  Maybe tomorrow.  The tree grows at a 45 degree angle into another neighbor's yard--the part of the tree that did not snap off, that is.  It is really not a tree but a sucker that sprouted from a stump and grew into an unhealthy mess that appears to be rotting from the inside. 

No need to be glum, really.  There are, after all, roses.  
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Comments

  1. Sorry about your unpleasant fall. The garden is resilient, the tree will get cut up, the koi are happy, there are roses, all shall be well. Eventually.

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  2. I would definitely launch the broken tree top back into the neighbor's yard - maybe it will "encourage" them to do something about the whole mess. On the tossed out plants, I wonder if you've got a freecycle.org group in your area. I get rid of all my unwanted plants that way and I've never had one go unclaimed!

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  3. I understand your glumness. We currently have a large Douglas fir limb that has been hanging precariously over our fence for at least a month, waiting for someone, either us or the neighbor, to figure out how to reach it to take it down. Some spindly shrub branches are holding it suspended, half in our garden and half in the neighbor's, just out of easy arm's reach. So far, no one has touched it. I was thinking of climbing on a ladder and cutting it in half, so that we get half and they get the other half.

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    Replies
    1. Be very careful, that sounds risky.

      The offending item here is lodged in the crotch of a lower branch and the trunk. It's a mess...

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  4. 25' of tree falling in my garden would make me more than glum, I'd be angry. You are a much kinder person than I. Obviously since you managed to give away 100 baby agaves. What a nice thing!

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  5. Seems reasonable that your neighbor should be responsible for cleanup. And proper pruning of the remaining tree(s).
    Let the roses brighten you up. If that doesn't work, there are always the puppies!

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  6. I can understand your reaction to the neighbor's tree. I had something similar happen to me at our former house. When 1/2 the tree at the rental property next door came crashing into our yard during high winds, I campaigned to have the property manager remove the tree, which was clearly no longer viable. My request was ignored until the property was sold several months later and the new owners did take the blasted thing down. I hope your situation resolves well.

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    Replies
    1. I'm thinking maybe gravity is what is going to resolve it. Gravity always wins.

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  7. Beautiful flowers and plant images dear Hoover, the Iceberg rose will thrive with your love and care. I think the owner of the fallen tree should be responsible for the clean up and disposal of the debris. Don't feel glum, just look at your beautiful roses and the agave pups to brighten you up.
    xoxoxo ♡

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    Replies
    1. Hard to be too glum in a garden. You are quite right.

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