Yeah, since I'm inside sick and aggrivated because I am sick, I'm writing
way too much. I went to Wally world today to return some merchandise. On
my way back since I wasn't in such a hurry (I wanted to get home before the
garden shows on HGTV..........small comfort for me on a dreary Saturday when
I am sick and would rather be outside). There is a brick ranch house that
stood vacant for a long time at the cross roads just behind where I live. I
always kinda liked the house. It sits on a LEVEL lot, which is almost
unheard of unless you build a house on pasture, which IS common. Behind
this house is a marshy, swampy, boggy area. Full of cattails, and other
stuff, I wouldn't be surprised if there were a few ducks hanging out in
season. But originally the area behind this house was supposed to be a fish
hatchery. Enough detail. The house has been there for a good amount of
time. There was a spruce? (the trees get huge and their branches look pagoda
like. I love them and always get their name wrong, sorry) well actually two
of them that were planted on this lot, you don't have these come up by
accident here. Not native. There WERE two of them. I noticed a few weeks
ago when I started seeing signs of people living in the house again that the
first thing they did besides mow the five foot of grass on the 3 acre lot,
was to cut down a struggling apple tree and a diseased peach tree on the
corner of the front/side yard.

No problem yet with them. Then I noticed last week that they had completely
removed a huge spruce ? tree and it had been well over 140 foot tall and
glorious. I was starting to cringe and started taking an alternative route
to Wally (this is my back road route).

Then I noticed that they'd limbed up a beautiful magnolia tree at the corner
of the side yard near the back portion of the huge yard. It wasn't too bad
at the time, and despite that I really wish they'd left the magnolia alone,
alot of people don't appreciate the habits of these awesome old Southern
trees with their ground sweeping branches you can step under and between and
find solitude and fragrances. I've seen benches and seats put under old
ones in yards in Nashville before.

I adore and realize that magnolia's are slooooow growing trees, and I've
seen my share of knuckled and brutalized trees too. It always has been a
sore spot with me since I protested with several old ladies on my street in
Inglewood over the removal of 6 magnolia's that were in front of six houses
behind my old Kroger and that they wanted to remove when they built a super
Kroger. These magnolia's were over 150 years old and their fragrances could
be smelled for blocks and it is still a memory that I hold to myself as a
child first smelling them walking to school when we moved to that street.

The bulldozer drivers assured me and the five old ladies who'd chained
themselves to the bulldozer when they were taking a break, that they were
NOT going to 'doze the trees, since they grew in the grassy median next to
the sidewalk across from the houses that were sold and being razed. When we
unchained and went to Mz. Inez's house to celebrate the victory with a lunch
and some homemade raspberry tea, we were horrified to discover that no
sooner had we gotten out of sight, the construction boss told the drivers to
level the trees before we came back to check on things. Assholes. Six
magnificent trees, pruned by the Historical Women's Society to ensure they
never bled to death from their wounds, and carefully limbed up to three foot
so that the houses they lived in front of would have a view of the street.
The flowers on most of those trees were larger than plates.

Fast forward to me now here in Eastern Tennessee in a rural area that until
the interstate cut through, the families owned land of for over 100 years or
more. The trunk of the magnolia is about 3 1/2 foot or more. I had kept
hoping the knuckling I was seeing would cease. I was wrong. The other
spruce? has been butchered UP to a height of about 7 feet.

I almost wrecked my car as I slowed down for the stop sign at the corner
where the house is and glanced to the magnolia tree. It's been destroyed.
They have limbed it up over 8 foot in height, and then got a ladder and have
TOPPED it and pruned the tree into a CIRCLE shape...................maybe
the screams of agony I felt were the trees they were butchering in their
sleep. Come spring time, the rising sap of those trees will probably be the
demise of them. The magnolia for certain. You can't prune one of these old
slow growing beauties so brutally and have it survive. As for the spruce? I
will smell the scent of her when true spring comes and hope it doesn't send
out invitations to the pine borers. Not sure if they attack spruce or not,
so don't flame me about this statement. I learn by reading, listening and
mis-speaking sometimes.

But I am sickened by the stupidity of these new residents butchering not
only the evergreen trees that took probably 50 or even 100 years to attain
their magnificent stature and shape, but I LONG for a magnolia tree of the
size these idiots had. And I would have never limbed it up in the first
place. I'd cleaned out underneath her boughs and put a bench or a chair. To
sit and enjoy the fragrances of her blossoms. But then again, that's just
me, now. These trees were planted with love well over 90 years from what I
understand. The evergreen trees might not take such a long time to grow,
but they were quite old, never the less. The magnolia was just butchered
and it's just wrong......it wasn't blocking any view, it sat well away from
the house on the large side yard where the cross street runs, in fact it was
perfectly positioned in the yard. The front evergreen they cut down they
might not have liked it so close to the garage, but it too, was well over 15
feet from the house or building. And just past the field across from them
is an abandoned fish hatchery and then I-40 where it splits off at I-81.
Not like their view is blocked of seeing the mountains.

sorry about the rant. But as it's not my tree, doesn't mean I can't feel for
the loss of them. To have a tree of that size would be impossible to plant
and see a fraction of the growth before I died. Such a loss and waste of a
wonderful Southern tree.

madgardener slipping back into the bushes again..........

my mother planted a copper beech because my stepfather had one in the yard when he
was a kid. they almost lost it in the first couple years but it has thrived altho it
shouldnt have. It is now amazing, like you say large sweeping branches near the
ground. Ingrid

"madgard" wrote:
alot of people don't appreciate the habits of these awesome old Southern
trees with their ground sweeping branches you can step under and between and
find solitude and fragrances. I've seen benches and seats put under old
ones in yards in Nashville before.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
List Manager: Puregold Goldfish List
http://puregold.aquaria.net/
www.drsolo.com
Solve the problem, dont waste energy finding who's to blame
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Unfortunately, I receive no money, gifts, discounts or other
compensation for all the damn work I do, nor for any of the
endorsements or recommendations I make.

You're not alone. We all feel the loss when people hack-up beautiful old trees
and bushes to try and suit their taste. We have an over abundance of yuppy,
cookie-cutter yards where I live.

There were three, huge, stately, old blue spruces in my grandparents front
lawn. I remember playing under them when I was a kid, getting my feet poked by
the needles when I was barefoot. My grandfather used to tell us how he'd
planted each tree when each of his daughters was born.

When my grandfather died in the late 80's the first thing my grandmother did
was hire a guy to cut all the trees in her front yard down. She hated them.
Her idea of a nice yard was tiny, manicured, flowering bushes planted in a
single row around the entire edge of the house. I guess there's no accounting
for taste.

On occasion I see someone design and build around big old trees. It's usually
the city and large business's that do it here. I guess they don't want the bad
press that comes from cutting them down.

Laura B.

(Thalocean2) wrote in message ...
You're not alone. We all feel the loss when people hack-up beautiful old trees
and bushes to try and suit their taste. We have an over abundance of yuppy,
cookie-cutter yards where I live.

There were three, huge, stately, old blue spruces in my grandparents front
lawn. I remember playing under them when I was a kid, getting my feet poked by
the needles when I was barefoot. My grandfather used to tell us how he'd
planted each tree when each of his daughters was born.

When my grandfather died in the late 80's the first thing my grandmother did
was hire a guy to cut all the trees in her front yard down. She hated them.
Her idea of a nice yard was tiny, manicured, flowering bushes planted in a
single row around the entire edge of the house. I guess there's no accounting
for taste.

On occasion I see someone design and build around big old trees. It's usually
the city and large business's that do it here. I guess they don't want the bad
press that comes from cutting them down.

Laura B.

I seem to have spent the last 25 years planting trees in my gardens,
only to move on and have the new occupants take them out - leaving a
cleared garden.
Very frustrating, but I reckon if I keep planting at least some will
remain for future generations to enjoy.

Hilary

Hi Mad! I'm so sorry you are feeling sick. Yesterday was Chinese New Year's
so I tried to send good luck and wishes your way. I hope you are feeling
better today. It is 65 degree today and beautiful. I had a Chinese New
Year's party last night with 65 people. Today I have been cleaning and
straightening up and have no more energy to garden. Now I'm feeling guilty
because they say that it will be back in the 40's this week and down in the
20's at night. Gee, is it spring yet??????? (Get well quick!)

loony


"madgard" wrote in message
...
Yeah, since I'm inside sick and aggrivated because I am sick, I'm writing
way too much. I went to Wally world today to return some merchandise. On
my way back since I wasn't in such a hurry (I wanted to get home before
the
garden shows on HGTV..........small comfort for me on a dreary Saturday
when
I am sick and would rather be outside). There is a brick ranch house that
stood vacant for a long time at the cross roads just behind where I live.
I
always kinda liked the house. It sits on a LEVEL lot, which is almost
unheard of unless you build a house on pasture, which IS common. Behind
this house is a marshy, swampy, boggy area. Full of cattails, and other
stuff, I wouldn't be surprised if there were a few ducks hanging out in
season. But originally the area behind this house was supposed to be a
fish
hatchery. Enough detail. The house has been there for a good amount of
time. There was a spruce? (the trees get huge and their branches look
pagoda
like. I love them and always get their name wrong, sorry) well actually
two
of them that were planted on this lot, you don't have these come up by
accident here. Not native. There WERE two of them. I noticed a few weeks
ago when I started seeing signs of people living in the house again that
the
first thing they did besides mow the five foot of grass on the 3 acre lot,
was to cut down a struggling apple tree and a diseased peach tree on the
corner of the front/side yard.

No problem yet with them. Then I noticed last week that they had
completely
removed a huge spruce ? tree and it had been well over 140 foot tall and
glorious. I was starting to cringe and started taking an alternative
route
to Wally (this is my back road route).

Then I noticed that they'd limbed up a beautiful magnolia tree at the
corner
of the side yard near the back portion of the huge yard. It wasn't too
bad
at the time, and despite that I really wish they'd left the magnolia
alone,
alot of people don't appreciate the habits of these awesome old Southern
trees with their ground sweeping branches you can step under and between
and
find solitude and fragrances. I've seen benches and seats put under old
ones in yards in Nashville before.

I adore and realize that magnolia's are slooooow growing trees, and I've
seen my share of knuckled and brutalized trees too. It always has been a
sore spot with me since I protested with several old ladies on my street
in
Inglewood over the removal of 6 magnolia's that were in front of six
houses
behind my old Kroger and that they wanted to remove when they built a
super
Kroger. These magnolia's were over 150 years old and their fragrances
could
be smelled for blocks and it is still a memory that I hold to myself as a
child first smelling them walking to school when we moved to that street.

The bulldozer drivers assured me and the five old ladies who'd chained
themselves to the bulldozer when they were taking a break, that they were
NOT going to 'doze the trees, since they grew in the grassy median next to
the sidewalk across from the houses that were sold and being razed. When
we
unchained and went to Mz. Inez's house to celebrate the victory with a
lunch
and some homemade raspberry tea, we were horrified to discover that no
sooner had we gotten out of sight, the construction boss told the drivers
to
level the trees before we came back to check on things. Assholes. Six
magnificent trees, pruned by the Historical Women's Society to ensure they
never bled to death from their wounds, and carefully limbed up to three
foot
so that the houses they lived in front of would have a view of the street.
The flowers on most of those trees were larger than plates.

Fast forward to me now here in Eastern Tennessee in a rural area that
until
the interstate cut through, the families owned land of for over 100 years
or
more. The trunk of the magnolia is about 3 1/2 foot or more. I had kept
hoping the knuckling I was seeing would cease. I was wrong. The other
spruce? has been butchered UP to a height of about 7 feet.

I almost wrecked my car as I slowed down for the stop sign at the corner
where the house is and glanced to the magnolia tree. It's been destroyed.
They have limbed it up over 8 foot in height, and then got a ladder and
have
TOPPED it and pruned the tree into a CIRCLE shape...................maybe
the screams of agony I felt were the trees they were butchering in their
sleep. Come spring time, the rising sap of those trees will probably be
the
demise of them. The magnolia for certain. You can't prune one of these
old
slow growing beauties so brutally and have it survive. As for the spruce?
I
will smell the scent of her when true spring comes and hope it doesn't
send
out invitations to the pine borers. Not sure if they attack spruce or
not,
so don't flame me about this statement. I learn by reading, listening and
mis-speaking sometimes.

But I am sickened by the stupidity of these new residents butchering not
only the evergreen trees that took probably 50 or even 100 years to attain
their magnificent stature and shape, but I LONG for a magnolia tree of the
size these idiots had. And I would have never limbed it up in the first
place. I'd cleaned out underneath her boughs and put a bench or a chair.
To
sit and enjoy the fragrances of her blossoms. But then again, that's just
me, now. These trees were planted with love well over 90 years from what
I
understand. The evergreen trees might not take such a long time to grow,
but they were quite old, never the less. The magnolia was just butchered
and it's just wrong......it wasn't blocking any view, it sat well away
from
the house on the large side yard where the cross street runs, in fact it
was
perfectly positioned in the yard. The front evergreen they cut down they
might not have liked it so close to the garage, but it too, was well over
15
feet from the house or building. And just past the field across from them
is an abandoned fish hatchery and then I-40 where it splits off at I-81.
Not like their view is blocked of seeing the mountains.

sorry about the rant. But as it's not my tree, doesn't mean I can't feel
for
the loss of them. To have a tree of that size would be impossible to
plant
and see a fraction of the growth before I died. Such a loss and waste of
a
wonderful Southern tree.

madgardener slipping back into the bushes again..........

thank you for the good luck and well wishing. It's beautiful here too. I
dragged me aching back and swollen glands outside in the 62o and swept the
side mini deck, gathered up some composted leaves and dumped them into the
garden, then took a sedum that had tiny gnurled and folded green hands
clasped tightly to the soil line in a broken pot and gently loosened the
soil and root mass enough to put it into a bored out lava pot a friend gave
me. The plant will settle with the rains and ?snow? we get until true
spring arrives and hopefully will never know it's been transplanted. I sat
while doing this. I also put a fitonia that was seriously ****ed off at me
for placing it in the bathroom on the windowsill in a narrow neck glass
gallon pickle jar in hopes to make a micro climate worthy enough that it
comes back for me. The pink fitonia is doing just fine. The white and green
one is crisping and wilting on me. According to my Houseplants expert
British book, they despise too much water in the winter, like a terrarium
enviroment, lots of misting, hate cold, drafty windows and more than
anything lothe and despise the heat from an air and heat duct (which is what
lies beneath it underneath the window sill 5 foot below) hopefully it will
realize it's in a much more hospitable enviroment and come back for me. It
will be my first pickle jar terrarium attempt g the day is awesome. Cold
again? arghhhh, well that figures, it's just Ground Hog day................
thanks again for the well wishing. party huh? it's been so long since we
had one of those..............living here isolated in the woods has some
disadvantages sometimes. Happy New Year to you too, Pat.

madgardener
"loonyhiker" wrote in message
...
Hi Mad! I'm so sorry you are feeling sick. Yesterday was Chinese New
Year's
so I tried to send good luck and wishes your way. I hope you are feeling
better today. It is 65 degree today and beautiful. I had a Chinese New
Year's party last night with 65 people. Today I have been cleaning and
straightening up and have no more energy to garden. Now I'm feeling guilty
because they say that it will be back in the 40's this week and down in
the
20's at night. Gee, is it spring yet??????? (Get well quick!)

loony

I'd love to have a magnolia tree. They are sooo beautiful. I can't imagine
someone ever bulldozing one down. There's a little bar/restraint close to
here, that had probably a 100 year old tree struck by lightening, that's bad
enough. It had the most beautiful branch structure, and the blossoms in the
spring were to die for.

Some people seem to have little respect for trees. My small back yard is
dominated by (my guess) a 50+ year old black walnut tree. The squirrels love
it, it's a pain to figure out how to garden under. I've been told - just cut
it down - but I won't. It's a strong, healthy tree, good form even though
it spits walnuts everywhere - and I figure eventually I'll figure out what
besides creeping charlie is compatible with jungalone.

Carlotta

"madgard" wrote in message
...
Yeah, since I'm inside sick and aggrivated because I am sick, I'm writing
way too much. I went to Wally world today to return some merchandise. On
my way back since I wasn't in such a hurry (I wanted to get home before
the
garden shows on HGTV..........small comfort for me on a dreary Saturday
when
I am sick and would rather be outside). There is a brick ranch house that
stood vacant for a long time at the cross roads just behind where I live.
I
always kinda liked the house. It sits on a LEVEL lot, which is almost
unheard of unless you build a house on pasture, which IS common. Behind
this house is a marshy, swampy, boggy area. Full of cattails, and other
stuff, I wouldn't be surprised if there were a few ducks hanging out in
season. But originally the area behind this house was supposed to be a
fish
hatchery. Enough detail. The house has been there for a good amount of
time. There was a spruce? (the trees get huge and their branches look
pagoda
like. I love them and always get their name wrong, sorry) well actually
two
of them that were planted on this lot, you don't have these come up by
accident here. Not native. There WERE two of them. I noticed a few weeks
ago when I started seeing signs of people living in the house again that
the
first thing they did besides mow the five foot of grass on the 3 acre lot,
was to cut down a struggling apple tree and a diseased peach tree on the
corner of the front/side yard.

No problem yet with them. Then I noticed last week that they had
completely
removed a huge spruce ? tree and it had been well over 140 foot tall and
glorious. I was starting to cringe and started taking an alternative
route
to Wally (this is my back road route).

Then I noticed that they'd limbed up a beautiful magnolia tree at the
corner
of the side yard near the back portion of the huge yard. It wasn't too
bad
at the time, and despite that I really wish they'd left the magnolia
alone,
alot of people don't appreciate the habits of these awesome old Southern
trees with their ground sweeping branches you can step under and between
and
find solitude and fragrances. I've seen benches and seats put under old
ones in yards in Nashville before.

I adore and realize that magnolia's are slooooow growing trees, and I've
seen my share of knuckled and brutalized trees too. It always has been a
sore spot with me since I protested with several old ladies on my street
in
Inglewood over the removal of 6 magnolia's that were in front of six
houses
behind my old Kroger and that they wanted to remove when they built a
super
Kroger. These magnolia's were over 150 years old and their fragrances
could
be smelled for blocks and it is still a memory that I hold to myself as a
child first smelling them walking to school when we moved to that street.

The bulldozer drivers assured me and the five old ladies who'd chained
themselves to the bulldozer when they were taking a break, that they were
NOT going to 'doze the trees, since they grew in the grassy median next to
the sidewalk across from the houses that were sold and being razed. When
we
unchained and went to Mz. Inez's house to celebrate the victory with a
lunch
and some homemade raspberry tea, we were horrified to discover that no
sooner had we gotten out of sight, the construction boss told the drivers
to
level the trees before we came back to check on things. Assholes. Six
magnificent trees, pruned by the Historical Women's Society to ensure they
never bled to death from their wounds, and carefully limbed up to three
foot
so that the houses they lived in front of would have a view of the street.
The flowers on most of those trees were larger than plates.

Fast forward to me now here in Eastern Tennessee in a rural area that
until
the interstate cut through, the families owned land of for over 100 years
or
more. The trunk of the magnolia is about 3 1/2 foot or more. I had kept
hoping the knuckling I was seeing would cease. I was wrong. The other
spruce? has been butchered UP to a height of about 7 feet.

I almost wrecked my car as I slowed down for the stop sign at the corner
where the house is and glanced to the magnolia tree. It's been destroyed.
They have limbed it up over 8 foot in height, and then got a ladder and
have
TOPPED it and pruned the tree into a CIRCLE shape...................maybe
the screams of agony I felt were the trees they were butchering in their
sleep. Come spring time, the rising sap of those trees will probably be
the
demise of them. The magnolia for certain. You can't prune one of these
old
slow growing beauties so brutally and have it survive. As for the spruce?
I
will smell the scent of her when true spring comes and hope it doesn't
send
out invitations to the pine borers. Not sure if they attack spruce or
not,
so don't flame me about this statement. I learn by reading, listening and
mis-speaking sometimes.

But I am sickened by the stupidity of these new residents butchering not
only the evergreen trees that took probably 50 or even 100 years to attain
their magnificent stature and shape, but I LONG for a magnolia tree of the
size these idiots had. And I would have never limbed it up in the first
place. I'd cleaned out underneath her boughs and put a bench or a chair.
To
sit and enjoy the fragrances of her blossoms. But then again, that's just
me, now. These trees were planted with love well over 90 years from what
I
understand. The evergreen trees might not take such a long time to grow,
but they were quite old, never the less. The magnolia was just butchered
and it's just wrong......it wasn't blocking any view, it sat well away
from
the house on the large side yard where the cross street runs, in fact it
was
perfectly positioned in the yard. The front evergreen they cut down they
might not have liked it so close to the garage, but it too, was well over
15
feet from the house or building. And just past the field across from them
is an abandoned fish hatchery and then I-40 where it splits off at I-81.
Not like their view is blocked of seeing the mountains.

sorry about the rant. But as it's not my tree, doesn't mean I can't feel
for
the loss of them. To have a tree of that size would be impossible to
plant
and see a fraction of the growth before I died. Such a loss and waste of
a
wonderful Southern tree.

madgardener slipping back into the bushes again..........