What are you doing?

[pacanis]

So Fred, is your credit card account all better now?

I'm about to make Margaritas. Let the weekend begin.

Beats me. Too fed up to call back after 4;00 and see.

Must have gone over your limit buying the grill and bacon fixin's.

Is your CC company US-based? Ours is and we haven't had any problems since we opened it in 1987. Quite a track records these days.

Beats me. Too fed up to call back after 4:00 and see. You

 

[PrincessFiona60]

I hope it's better Pac, Shrek had a problem with his debit card. Someone had swiped it and used it online. Took two days to get it fixed. The company that was defrauded told Shrek it would take 3 days to get it credited back to him, he said, "It took you 3 seconds to remove it from my account, by the time I get off the phone it better be back." It was back...Ogre Power!!!

 

[Addie]

Good morning everyone. It is 6:30 a.m. I have to go to a party that I don't want to go to. There will be a lot of drinking that I don't like being around. Fortunately my kids are like me. They don't drink. I don't know about the grandkids though. I hate family parties. My kids have reached the stage where they do too. They would rather have a quiet dinner party with close friends. But now it is the generation that is in their late 20s and early 30s. They still like to party hearty. Someone please come and rescue me. I know, I can feign elderly aches and pains, but I promised I would attend. After all, it is for my grandson. He has worked hard for this accomplishment. And I only see them at Christmas.

 

[pacanis]

Have fun at the party (as much as you can).

I just picked up the tire from my zero turn. I guess I'll finish mowing the lawn before this storm moves in. No dew on the grass this morning.

 

[Addie]

Have fun at the party (as much as you can).

I just picked up the tire from my zero turn. I guess I'll finish mowing the lawn before this storm moves in. No dew on the grass this morning.

Thanks Pac. I may just stay in the house away from everyone. Party pooper that I am.

Pac, do you collect your grass trimmings for compost or let them refeed the grass?

 

[pacanis]

I lays where it falls... or falls where it lays, whichever, lol.
I just noticed I really don't have grass anymore. My yard has been taken over by some kind of spindly thing. Looks like another reseed is in order.
I have no topsoil, so it's very hard for me to grow nice lawn-type grass.

 

[Addie]

I lays where it falls... or falls where it lays, whichever, lol.
I just noticed I really don't have grass anymore. My yard has been taken over by some kind of spindly thing. Looks like another reseed is in order.
I have no topsoil, so it's very hard for me to grow nice lawn-type grass.

Sounds like you have thatch. The only way to get rid of that is to take a wide spring rake and scratch your whole lawn and loosen it all up. Then you have to put it in piles and bag it for the compost pile. Otherwise, it will just become packed down again. Been there, done it. Not a fun job. But so worth the energy.

 

[taxlady]

Addie, you got me curious about lawn thatch. Our condo association has our lawns aerated every year to help prevent excess thatch. It seems to work. I Googled lawn thatch and found this interesting bit of info:

Aeration, raking and lawn care

The best way to get rid of thatch is regular aeration and good lawn care practices. Aeration should be done every year or two, depending on the severity of the thatch, the condition of the lawn and how much foot traffic there is on the grass. Aeration can be done in spring or fall.
Raking also is an option for removing thatch. You can use a regular garden rake to pull out the dead grass and thatch. This is hard, time-consuming work and recommended only for small sections. For larger areas, power or mechanical rakes are available for rent or purchase. And, while these are efficient and quick, you need to be careful not to damage the grass that is healthy or tear up the soil.
Regular aeration reduces or eliminates the need for raking thatch. Make sure to set the mechanical rake's controls properly. Once the thatch is removed, the lawn may not look good. Overseeding to fill in bare or thin spots in the lawn may be needed.
To prevent thatch buildup, use a high quality, slow release nitrogen fertilizer, such as a Greenview Fairway Formula Fertilizer, and mow to keep the grass about 3 inches tall.



Prevent Thatch in Lawns - GreenView

 

[GotGarlic]

Better yet, get rid of the grass and let it become a meadow that doesn't need anything to maintain it. Bees are starving for food and grass does nothing for them.

 

[taxlady]

Better yet, get rid of the grass and let it become a meadow that doesn't need anything to maintain it. Bees are starving for food and grass does nothing for them.

A gal after my own heart.

The lawn here at my condo association is pretty diverse. There is some Kentucky blue grass, which was planted/seeded. There's also dandelions, clover, some other green "weeds", and in the past few years, creeping Charlie and violets*. The only "lawn care" it gets is the annual aeration, mowing, and raking of leaves in fall. It looks fine.

* I may have had something to do with the creeping Charlie and violets. When they started tearing down the woods across the street to build condos, I went over there and dug up some violets, creeping Charlie, and strawberries. Unfortunately the wild strawberries didn't take. I planted them in my own yard, honest. It wasn't until 2 years ago that I started spreading the creeping Charlie and violets to shaded areas that were hardly growing anything.

 

[pacanis]

I'm sure I have thatch, I haven't aerated or plugged the soil in a while, but that picture did not show what I have growing now. Besides the crabgrass, I have these spindly looking blades of grass that were probably 3x as long as the real grass and had blades coming off them. I'm sure it's some kind of grass, but not the kind you want in your yard. I can only do so much, as my yard is pretty big.

 

[GotGarlic]

A gal after my own heart.

The lawn here at my condo association is pretty diverse. There is some Kentucky blue grass, which was planted/seeded. There's also dandelions, clover, some other green "weeds", and in the past few years, creeping Charlie and violets*. The only "lawn care" it gets is the annual aeration, mowing, and raking of leaves in fall. It looks fine.

* I may have had something to do with the creeping Charlie and violets. When they started tearing down the woods across the street to build condos, I went over there and dug up some violets, creeping Charlie, and strawberries. Unfortunately the wild strawberries didn't take. I planted them in my own yard, honest. It wasn't until 2 years ago that I started spreading the creeping Charlie and violets to shaded areas that were hardly growing anything.

I won't tell

 

[Addie]

I'm sure I have thatch, I haven't aerated or plugged the soil in a while, but that picture did not show what I have growing now. Besides the crabgrass, I have these spindly looking blades of grass that were probably 3x as long as the real grass and had blades coming off them. I'm sure it's some kind of grass, but not the kind you want in your yard. I can only do so much, as my yard is pretty big.

Sounds like saw grass. Aside from your crab grass.

The property here is quite large. This was a school converted to housing for the elderly. So there was a lot of yard for recess. All that except for the parking lot for about 20 cars has been converted to grass. The management company has a maintenance department with a professional landscaper. There isn't one dandelion in the grass. Not a blade of crab grass. They come twice a week and mow all the grass and treat it with weed killer. It is the kind of lawn that makes you want to take off your shoes and walk on it. Not recommended due to the weed killer. We see the landscaper maybe once a month. The day lilies need attention and until the landscaper shows up, no one is looking after them. All the property is watered twice a day. Early morning and late in the day around 6 p.m. The lawns here are the envy of any home owner who has a lawn.

About ten years ago I lived in an apartment that had a large back yard. It really needed attention. And since I love to garden, I took it upon myself to dig in and get it in prime condition. I had the landlord buy me a lawnmower. That was all I needed. I attacked the lawn first. I removed all the thatch with a rake. I was fortunate that spring and summer. We had fantastic weather that allowed me to be out in the yard almost every day. By fall, all the neighbors came to see the yard. I had continuous blooming flowers all summer long. When one flower stopped blooming, it was time for another to open up. And the grass was in perfect shape. It was a lot of work, but I loved doing it.

 

[Addie]

Katie, USPS tracking is absolutely absurd. It's never right. Could be early, could be late, but at least you know when the mailman shows up which it is. Today UPS didn't show up until 5:00. A couple says ago it was 10:00 AM. I know I've said it before, but I love that the mail runs like clockwork, even if they don't know what's in the truck

Pac, I love my UPS man, Jack. I know he shows up here at 5 p.m. sharp if anyone here is expecting a package. If one of the residents doesn't answer their door, he comes to my apartment and asks me to make sure they get it. Most of the time it is medicine. He knows that my daughter lives only 30 seconds from where I am and my son lives two blocks away. If any of us are not home, he always goes to one of the other and leaves the package with them. We really get service above and beyond. Our mailman comes at 11 a.m. sharp every day.

 

[pacanis]

I'm on a UPS training route now. Never the same driver or the same time.

 

[Addie]

Right now I am getting dressed so I can be ready when my son comes to get me. But I am in trouble. I took my morning meds and my BP meds have kicked in and I can feel my BP dropping too fast. Not a good thing. This is a lousy feeling. My pulse rate is only 56. Time to get up and start moving around.

 

[Dawgluver]

I'm looking over the 2 huge shopping bags full of almost-ripe apples I picked up after an overladen branch broke off our apple tree. Guess it's time to get out the peeler/corer/slicer and get to work. I'm thinking CP applesauce with maple syrup for some of them.

 

[taxlady]

I'm looking over the 2 huge shopping bags full of almost-ripe apples I picked up after an overladen branch broke off our apple tree. Guess it's time to get out the peeler/corer/slicer and get to work. I'm thinking CP applesauce with maple syrup for some of them.

Don't the under-ripe ones have more pectin? If so, now would be the time to make some apple jelly and maybe even some mint jelly (just bruise some mint and swirl it through the hot apple jelly). Remember, there's lots of pectin in the skins.

 

[Dawgluver]

Don't the under-ripe ones have more pectin? If so, now would be the time to make some apple jelly and maybe even some mint jelly (just bruise some mint and swirl it through the hot apple jelly). Remember, there's lots of pectin in the skins.

Now there's an idea, Taxy! I grow mint too.

 

[taxlady]

Now there's an idea, Taxy! I grow mint too.

I remembered that you grow mint.

I don't bother putting food colouring in mint jelly, so it turns out slightly pink.