More mulching of Rhodos

again 15 wheelbarrows in het Azalea Area. One wheelbarrow for each rhodo.

mulching the azaleas

2 hrs of wheelbarrowing of chips into Azalea area. Did 15 wheelbarrowloads (<half of total lot).
did 1 wheelbarrow per rhodo in western corner. Definitely needs more! And repeat this each year?

First day with 75mm chipper

Picked the chipper up at Hire Pool (NZ$120 a day incl. gst) at 08:00am.
Started chipping 10:00am.
John and I did two hours at heap at the end of the lake in B4 upper right corner.
Important not to chip much >50mm! thicker wood only in pieces of max. half mtr. For this chipper it’s much better to use a limit of 50 mm. so 2 inch.
Diane popped in.
We brought some 4 or 5 trailer loads to (temporary) dump next of shearers quarters. [[ Look for a better dumping place in future! Dump like EWH?]].
After lunch we worked at heap with lots of willow-shoots in B8.
Works quite well! Jacky and 3 boys helped. Selection! Prepare heaps with sorted shoots!
Dumped chips near gate east of Azalea-track C9 upper left corner.
Next time: drop sorted wood near gate east!
This were 4 or 5 trailer loads as well.
Good quality. Apart from thin twigs that don’t get cut.

More panorama pictures

Today I finished some more panorama things.
The final result is this:

I personally liked this one too; it has a real “panorama feeling”.

And while making the panorama’s in Hugin (free software), at one point I got this strange result.

One detail really stroke my eye.

Working in the arboretum today I came into a wasp nest. But I discovered it a bit too late. Some wasps were already attacking me. Not a really pleasant experience!

Today’s working report

Started 9.00am (first make appointment with John &cie, and said goodbye to John&Paul) light mowing along the still unnamed track where I worked a few days ago.
Up to the open space / fence (Walnuts!)
This track is clear on both sides for some 10mtr. steeper parts on both sides not done. (Job still be to done for John&/ofJacky with the light weedeater – first the side of the Ridge, of course)
Cleared along the fence with the oak paddock a few mtrs. Steep! Also connected to Ridge ( → beginning of the Ridge) .
Did some rootsuckers of Populus again today.
Started some mowing along the fence through the open space. When I just wanted to go and have a break John & Jacky & boy Paua ofzo & 2 girls …. (let them write down their names next time / address as well for postcards – like WDC for WDC) popped in. With rakes!
So I stayed. Took one more cup of coffee. Directed John to the last rushes in this area and some 5 mtrs on “the other side of the fence” as well. We did a lot of raking over there. Made some heaps. Perhaps take away? Mind the sheep under one heap!
After 2 hrs. to the Ridge. Under the Nashi. I went to get a ladder (and have lunch). John&Jacky both mowing! When I came back at 3 or so, Diane popped in at exactly the same time. She heard those two mowers. Asked: who is mowing there? Couldn’t believe her eyes to see Jacky mowing. She needed John for a minute or two. I started picking Nashis with the kids.
(We had collected some kilograms of walnuts already. Do the chestnuts next time with the kids!)
John did a lot of heavy rushes mowing.
There are two (dead) trees taken out there. Don’t know the names.
I did some pruning (and removing of old parts of protection) on some trees around Nashi.
We work there again at Tuesday. I think. It’s good to give it a good clean, there. I’ll make some pictures then. Didn’t take pictures today. Stupid. It was really nice to be there with J&J&kids. Kids were most helpful as well (especially with the Nashis! Climbing tree, etc.). Oldest girl had asthma-problems last night.
Made some heaps of wood for chipping again. Small heaps only. Diane had seen the heap along the track. I think she wants it all on the burning heaps that are still everywhere. I want to get some of those burning spots eliminated! Gives real bad structure to the soil. Nothing grows half a year after burning!
So: take out as much rushes&c rubbish as possible. Chip all the wood <75mm. Take all thicker wood out for fire wood (sale). John is really into this kind of things. So we will start something like that in this next month. Hope that he continues through the winter, and continue chipping on more regular scale (every two months or so / depends a bit on the season).
We do need funds for that!
Friends of Hackfalls Arboretum – Dutch branch.
I’ll translate the Friends Leaflet in Dutch on: wv&db.wordpress

Pictures

Some pictures; the first ones out of order (they have to do with (last) saturday:
(some pictures still to come!)

Digitalis purpurea (to show John&cie; lousy picture; replace by a better one) – foxglove.
make a page of this: weeds we are fighting.

Digitalis purpurea - Foxglove

left: Juglans regia ssp. fallax (1994 077), right: Acer negundo ssp. mexicana (1982 002), in the middle: Diane on her bike, and in the background: the hill John cleaned of rushes last Saturday.

Juglans, Acer negundo ssp. mexicana and Diane

041: only the Acer negundo ssp. mexicana (1982 002). Nice picture, I thought; in the foreground some rushes that still have to be cut, but most of the hill is nice and clean!

Acer negundo ssp. mexicana

- – - – - – - – - – -

Now back to the entrance of the track:

002/003: Prunus (no label) in bad condition at entrance.
Uncle Bob reports: Prunus incisa (1971 019)

Prunus in rather bad condition

004: Prunus cerasifera ‘Lindsayae’ F2 (1971 019) in bad condition; what does it need? this is a seedling from EWH.

Prunus cerasifera in bad condition

006 t/m 010: Populus alba ssp. integerrima (1971 016) (cat says: not a ssp but a var!)
(There is one in B7 as well (with same number! but planted much later: rootsucker from the first one, I believe). Bob says: planted 5 or 6 years ago! 1990 – 2000
This alba is huge. I made pictures in “vertical panorama” (without tripod).

Populus alba var integerrima

Populus alba var integerrima

Bob says: check Poplar ‘Crows nest’! (Dutchman Kraayenoord or Kraaijenoord – from nursery …..

check rootsucker at EWH.
(This remark I don’t understand, myself)

013/014: Same with some dead tree in front. Maple ….

rootsuckers van Populus?

rootsuckers from Populus

rootsuckers from Populus

rootsuckers from Populus

024/025: Populus? no label Astria 1987 083

029 t/m 031: ook weer Populus? no label

032: Populus tremuloides (1977 017)

034: leaves of Populus tremuloides (1977 017)

leaves of Populus tremuloides (1977 017)

016 t/m 021: (old, unreadable label says: Malus hybrid) I suppose 1969 102: Malus domestica ?x? Bob agrees.
Nice tree, with little apples. Needs some pruning. Hangs over the track.

Malus domestica hybrid

Malus domestica hybrid

Malus domestica hybrid

Malus domestica hybrid

Back again

That’s been a long time since my last post!
I’ll start to make pages on different trees and (possibly) other issues. The posts in the blog will be very short only.

Yesterday I made a short trip into the arboretum with the Mule. I made pictures of some interesting trees:
- Pinus oocarpa, cat: 1991 193; in G5
small tree. Doesn’t look really beautiful. But it seems to survive. I didn’t find any cones. There is only one specimen in the collection.

Kabouter in Rhodo-project

Morning: mowing in and around Rhodo-project (western entrance):

I often feel like a little boskabouter. Miniature scale landscaping. Kabouter tracks. Sometimes I feel more like a motorized kabouter. With the Husqvarna. When I can make really wide tracks I would be glad to have a small mower. Like the one at the Jachthuis at De Laan Estate. Or the one at Eastwoodhill.
When I’m using the Shindaiwo I feel like a mowing machine. Could use the Bücher mower here.
But we’re still going on.
I did:
1 hr. mowing with Husqv. outside the project.
1.5 hr. inside
1 hr. mowing with Shind. outside the project, rushes along the lake, to the west, around Alders and Liquidambar formosana var. monticola 1954 008 # 1535 (another kneeling tree; make good photo’s!)
0.5 hr. mowing with Husqv. around that spot.

Still need to mowe the front within the fence.
- – - -
In the afternoon I started mowing some thistles along the track in the paddock called Swamp, between the two “bridges”.
I took a full load on the trailer of old rushes, sedges, etc. from the Rhodo-project and outside it at the western entrance.

I brought this to the compost and garden rubbish station behind the homestead.

Mowing on the Red Track

Morning: mowing of thistles around Quercus alba and around Pinus devoniana and Pinus montezumae. So first track down from the Ridge (at the Eucalyptus alpina etc.). I’ll call this the Red Track.

Pinus montezumae loses many branches (especially the ends of the branches, with needles on it). It feels like this tree needs something.

Discussed removal of rushes with Steven. I think they are all (or at least: the most common is) Soft rush Juncus effusus. There’s not yet much on the ecology of this species on Wikipedia. Only the statement that it can be invasive. But nothing really on distribution. Check NZ. The Dutch wikipedia on “Pitrus” says nothing. But Juncus says:
- “pioniervegetatie” = Pioneer species.
- I thought it was characteristic for “betreding”.
Check!
Further reading:
-
etc.

In the afternoon I carried 1 trailer with thistles etc. from the Red track to the compost and the garden rubbish dump = 5 wheelbarrows.

Compost on Auckland Anniversary

I worked on the compost all day.

Morning:

1 wheelbarrow of “suspected material” to (garden-)rubbish tip.

5 wheelbarrow of earth from garden-rubbish tip to compost.

Sorted out the different stacks of branches around the compost.

Did some cutting on the shrubs around the compost (especially Chimonanthes praecox 1950 014 #724 (needs to get labelled btw!.

Afternoon:

5 more wheelbarrows from garden-rubbish to compost.