tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8574540292918761182.post1215432624768762592..comments2024-03-28T01:13:28.497-07:00Comments on Late to the Garden Party: Trees make the differenceKris Petersonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07097260283693156795noreply@blogger.comBlogger16125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8574540292918761182.post-53056560752050867822019-07-28T12:35:00.506-07:002019-07-28T12:35:00.506-07:00The Callery pear isn't invasive here but it...The Callery pear isn't invasive here but it's a very messy tree; however, I'm not taking out any more mature trees only to risk someone calling a foul if/when the replacement tree interferes with their view. As to the AC situation, I AM melting, Lisa! Our temperature highs have been running in the low-to-mid 90s most of last week. Today is a bit cooler (thus far), although also more humid.Kris Petersonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07097260283693156795noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8574540292918761182.post-49687219104784990682019-07-28T09:11:42.514-07:002019-07-28T09:11:42.514-07:00Your tree collection is great. I love the bark on ...Your tree collection is great. I love the bark on the Strawberry tree. So many of these trees are foreign to me except the Callery Pear. Callery Pear is an invasive species here. They pop up everywhere. In that first photo of your garden I didn't notice porta potty etc. My eyes were on the plants. Everything looks so lush. I feel sorry for you not having ac. I would melt without ac. Lisa at Greenbowhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07743973292900758183noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8574540292918761182.post-33413050203610407332019-07-27T18:56:21.088-07:002019-07-27T18:56:21.088-07:00Actually, I understand that she DID make an issue ...Actually, I understand that she DID make an issue of the neighbor's pines but, as they were there in 1989 when the ordinance was enacted, she wasn't in a position to press for their removal. There were originally 4 pine trees but the pine bark beetles have taken out two. The trees' owners routinely have their trees thinned each year. I know the complaining neighbor also pushed regular tree trimming on our neighbors across the street, even "offering" to supervise their annual trimming exercise. I routinely have our trees pruned too, although not always the same trees every year.Kris Petersonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07097260283693156795noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8574540292918761182.post-70649717861532765492019-07-27T17:01:17.980-07:002019-07-27T17:01:17.980-07:00Your Arbutus 'Marina' are really beautiful...Your Arbutus 'Marina' are really beautiful! Always enjoy seeing them. I bought one but didn't really have a place for it so ended up planting it on the HOA property where a Melaleuca quinquenervia had been removed. It's doing well--lucky we hit a rainy winter so it could establish. <br /><br />Surprised the tree-hating neighbor did not complain about that neighbor's pine tree. Guess it wasn't in her way? <br /><br />Hoover Boohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03083294821646284424noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8574540292918761182.post-31015176394912189592019-07-27T12:33:03.416-07:002019-07-27T12:33:03.416-07:00I understood the removal of the 60-foot Eucalyptus...I understood the removal of the 60-foot Eucalyptus would satisfy the neighbor but, as it turned out, that was just her opening salvo. Her own property had a single tree, just 5 feet tall, and no real landscaping of any kind even though she'd lived there over 40 years. When she pushed the issue again AFTER we removed a second tree, it was the height of our drought and I was ready to go to battle on the ordinance on environmental grounds. That must have come through on some level in our last exchange as she elected to move. I wasn't the only neighbor who was pleased...Kris Petersonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07097260283693156795noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8574540292918761182.post-20388087527320385402019-07-27T12:22:32.445-07:002019-07-27T12:22:32.445-07:00One of the temptations associated with the prospec...One of the temptations associated with the prospect of terracing the back slope in some fashion is the idea of tucking in another tree (or 2) down there.Kris Petersonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07097260283693156795noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8574540292918761182.post-39017026138692463312019-07-27T11:57:30.592-07:002019-07-27T11:57:30.592-07:00I'm glad that you stood firm after removing th...I'm glad that you stood firm after removing those first couple of trees. I'm surprised that, in this day and age, the city would even entertain the notion of forcing people to remove trees from their property to improve on the view had by other houses.<br /><br />Even without science to back it up, I think it's obvious to most people the cooling effect that trees have. All you have to do is stroll from full sun to the shade of a mature tree to realize that it truly is a night and day difference. The air under a tree feels altogether different...not just cooler, but almost lighter & airier, if that makes any sense.Margarethttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15949946977793864054noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8574540292918761182.post-68054398681119625532019-07-27T09:24:30.290-07:002019-07-27T09:24:30.290-07:00I really never had a grasp of how many trees you h...I really never had a grasp of how many trees you have on your property til you posted this survey. They are surely nice to have if you have the room- I've done alot more removal than planting. My neighbors on 2 sides have plenty ! kshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10847026541797857854noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8574540292918761182.post-73874746663355579372019-07-26T21:05:44.263-07:002019-07-26T21:05:44.263-07:00There have been several discussions about a LA Fli...There have been several discussions about a LA Fling, Beth, but I'm afraid attendees would spend more time on buses stalled in traffic than in gardens.Kris Petersonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07097260283693156795noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8574540292918761182.post-33710999136226043222019-07-26T20:11:39.231-07:002019-07-26T20:11:39.231-07:00Loveliness--all of it! We need to have a Fling in ...Loveliness--all of it! We need to have a Fling in L.A., so we can see your garden! Great post about the value of trees. It's too bad some of your neighbors have been difficult on this topic.Beth at PlantPostingshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10473637655960119672noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8574540292918761182.post-31433394505545278352019-07-26T19:32:50.152-07:002019-07-26T19:32:50.152-07:00I'd love to have some really BIG trees here, E...I'd love to have some really BIG trees here, Eliza. Our city ordinance grandfathered in trees in place in 1989, although thinning could be required. Newer trees can be topped well below 20 feet if they interfere with someone's "principal view." It's a foolish and short-sighted ordinance, especially as temperatures on our side of the peninsula routinely top those of the other side (which benefits from ocean breezes to a greater extent) by 10 degrees.Kris Petersonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07097260283693156795noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8574540292918761182.post-74301864447730243802019-07-26T19:25:33.970-07:002019-07-26T19:25:33.970-07:00We haven't gotten down below 70F during the la...We haven't gotten down below 70F during the last couple of nights, Shirley, but hopefully both the daytime and nighttime temperatures will come back down again soon. Our nighttime temperatures don't reliably fall down into the 60s during the peak summer months anymore - during extended heatwaves, it's not unusually to have temperatures of 90F at midnight and later.Kris Petersonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07097260283693156795noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8574540292918761182.post-3384669954397615112019-07-26T19:21:55.014-07:002019-07-26T19:21:55.014-07:00We purchased a single room AC unit, which we'v...We purchased a single room AC unit, which we've set up in the master bedroom, which manages to keep the temperature down around 80F (26C) there but the rest of our usable space, particularly the temporary kitchen tacked on to the back of the house, can be unpleasant to say the least. My office feels like a sauna - and being of Finnish descent I know what those feel like (and never developed a taste for the experience).Kris Petersonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07097260283693156795noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8574540292918761182.post-30938022886161454642019-07-26T16:44:11.627-07:002019-07-26T16:44:11.627-07:00I admire your red-barked strawberry trees and Arbu...I admire your red-barked strawberry trees and Arbutus. So lovely!<br />In the 29 years we've lived here, we've planted a lot trees; most have doubled in size and much of the region has been reforested (after most of the dairy farms went out of business). What a difference it has made with all those natural air conditioners working. We run about 10 degrees cooler than the nearest cities, about 15 miles away. Interestingly, we have less damaging thunderstorms now than we did in the 90s. Trees are so important for a healthy planet.Eliza Watershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06879335295393594236noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8574540292918761182.post-75753133601856157832019-07-26T14:32:15.611-07:002019-07-26T14:32:15.611-07:00You've managed a good many cooling trees consi...You've managed a good many cooling trees considering all the restrictions. At least the nights there cool down enough without air conditioning. We've been having record lows and not one day of our typical triple digits so far this summer. We are surrounded by native oaks which are very helpful when it is hot.Shirleyhttps://rockoakdeer.blogspot.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8574540292918761182.post-20386227740216135212019-07-26T14:17:06.521-07:002019-07-26T14:17:06.521-07:00No air con? Now you've put my struggles into p...No air con? Now you've put my struggles into perspective. <br />It is heating up here too now and I couldn't agree more about trees. Plenty of our English native plants do well with a bit of shade and this English gardener certainly retreats to it at this time of year. The Arbutus makes a handsome tree. <br />rusty duckhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08621508743376610941noreply@blogger.com