Goodbye tree

Right around the time we were paying a fortune for our new AC, we got news of another costly problem. You may remember that I asked recently for a tree identification. That's because the big beautiful white oak at the front of the house has to go.

In fact, two branches vanished already - the town decided that they were at risk of falling on the street (or some cars).

We got two opinions because we really wanted to be certain before we took it down - it is the only shade tree in our front yard and probably as old as the house (or older).

But alas, the diagnosis is confirmed - fatal root rot.

 And so, this giant tree has got to go.

Apparently its placement between the driveway and the sidewalk put the roots under a lot of stress. And when they replaced the curb a few years ago, it may have made the roots more vulnerable.

Our plan for now is to wait until fall so that we can take advantage of the shade at least for the rest of the summer. Plus one of the landscape people who helped diagnose the tree suggested waiting until firewood season, so that we can use or even sell the oak.

And so, here we are shopping for a new tree and getting estimates to take this one down. We can't put the new tree where the old tree is, both because of the root rot and because of the stressful location. So we have to look for where we would put it, too.

Another window

When we replaced our main floor windows last year, we had to choose between two companies. The first was the company we had used for the upstairs windows several years earlier - we liked the windows but were not impressed by their follow-on service. The second was a new company that ended up getting our business.

We are so thrilled we went with someone new. After the initial install, we've had to deal with them twice and they have been nothing but helpful.

First, in December, we were left with a slice in our screen as a result of the burglary. Our insurance would have paid to have it fixed, but the company didn't charge us (this stuff is all supposed to be laid out in contracts, but it never is as easy as it seems, so we're never really sure what we have to pay for and what we don't). Not only that - they came out the week we called and fixed it on the spot. No missed pick-ups and delays and haggling over the whole process like when we needed our torn screen replaced with company 1. We even told them not to rush because, well, it was December, so it wasn't like we were anxious to open our windows. But they booked an appointment immediately, after confirming that the frame itself didn't get dented and need replacing. Yay for company 2.

Fast forward to about a month ago, when I noticed this in the picture window:

Of course, if anything were to break, it would be the biggest and most expensive window in the house. And one that doesn't open and pop out, for an easy replacement. Fortunately, it was only on the outer pain of glass and didn't go all the way through.

I called the company who put me in touch directly with the (local) window manufacturer they work with. When I called to set up a time for someone to come take a look, they answered "how about tomorrow" and even said I didn't have to be there, since it was accessible from our front walkway.

Then the day after that, they called to say they would replace the window and that -the best part -it was free! They would make a new one right away! I was surprised they were even going to go through all the effort of replacing the window with such a small chunk taken out and told them that if they didn't think it needed replacing, we were fine with ignoring it. No problem to replace it, they said. Could they come out the following week and install it (someone obviously would need to be home for that one) - they even worked with my ear schedule and gave me a 2-hour arrival window that wasn't horrible.

One hitch in the plan - after I left work early on the day of the install, they called to tell me that the tech had accidentally broken the window while it was in his truck and he was working on an earlier job. Oops. I guess it happens. At least they were really nice about it and gave me an even later window the following week, so I wouldn't have to miss as much work.

Today they came out and, in one hour of what appeared to be a fairly intensive two-man job...

I have a new window (and a few pesky flies darting around the house to keep the cats amused). Painless. I guess it pays to think about the follow-on customer service, as well as the product and initial work. If I still had an Angie's List account, I would definitely give them a stellar review.

Plant identification

This post has two stories in it, and the first of them is really part two of a story I haven't told yet. But you'll just have to hear that one backwards.

I'm trying to identify a tree that we might want to plant in our yard (I'll explain the "why" we are looking for a new tree in a future post). As is usually the case, my source of inspiration is my own neighborhood.

This tree, not far from us, seems the epitome of what I'm looking for. Huge (well, obviously that takes a lot of time), paler green leaves that seem to let in lovely diffuse light, and interesting pale and dappled bark. The leaves are too high up for me to get a really good look and picture.

I'm pretty sure, however, that this tree in another part of town is the same tree (but smaller). So some close up pictures might help with the identification process:

I'm pretty sure this is a maple (the leaf makes me think of the Canadian flag) - can anyone confirm that? If that's the case, then I'll start doing research to see if maples are hearty enough for a black thumb like me.

Plant identification, second story. Yesterday afternoon I decided to do some weeding while forced to hang out outside with a toddler who seems immune to these hot, muggy days. I tried weeding around the holly bushes that were freed last fall when we had the back corner of our back yard cleared out.

And this is what I stumbled on. More than stumbled - repeatedly tore from the ground. Until a small thought dawned on me, a mostly forgotten rhyme..."leaves of three...".

Quick image search - yup, classic poison ivy.*** Fortunately I was wearing gloves. And I thought, at least, that I had kept the toddler  from touching any of it. After some truly OCD washing with Tecnu and some rubbing alcohol, I hoped I was safe (I'm updating this post 15 hours after contact, so I *think* it's safe).

I'm not quite sure what to do next, because it's not just in the mulched area under some bushes but in our grass. And instructions on how to eradicate it basically sound like practicing a scorched earth policy over years. D says he knows someone who just sprays the individual shoots with Roundup. I'm usually anti-herbicide, but I think I'll make an exception in this case. I see Roundup even makes one specifically for poison ivy.

Have you had any poison ivy run-ins lately? Any luck removing it? Or done any plant identification of your own? I'd love to hear about them.


***Edit: thanks to my lovely readers, I've since learned this is a blackberry bush and not poison ivy (and upon further reading, can verify that's true - this had tiny little thorns on it and poison ivy does not). However, we also assaulted it with heavy duty poison ivy killer so it probably has no chance of survival either way.