What have you done today in the Garden?

Thanks for that.

A few people in our road (out of about 100 of the same basic house, all built to the same design in 1965) had the tiles on their roofs jet washed. It was a total disaster, the company had to clean up the mess that ended up on the walls and windows of the houses next door.The moss was back within two years.
None have had it done since. The only houses with new roofs, are those which have had big extensions, So moss has never been a problem.

Our roofs have rough finish concrete tiles, which do attract moss. But in hot sun in the summer, it dries out and most of it gets washed off, but gutters do need an occasional cleaning out. The blackbirds do ours, daily!
I'm a firm believer in staying off a roof as far as possible .I have been on ours a few times, once to re-cement the ridge tiles and a couple of times to change the TV aerial, (not recently, between my forties and fifties) but I wore a pair of old squash shoes, so there was no danger of slipping and the tiles were thick enough not to break when I walked on them.

If moss on roof tiles is a worry, a weak solution of Jeyes Fluid sprayed on it will kill it off over a few months.

 

Riley I hear ya.. our cement tile roof always needs cleaning after a couple of years . I always have the power washing done by a company. Also interviewed them with the appropriate protocols for power washing concrete roof tiles. They do a great job. They bring me little pine tree seedlings that they have rescued from the gutters. We live in the middle of a rain forest where we get 200” of rain on average per year.

I’m just burned out on doing it myself. The constant vibration from the pressure washer has cause serious problems with my hands/shoulders and had to have surgery. It usually took me a week or more to clean everything outside.

I painted the roof concrete tiles with a nice finish to preserve them also lessons the ruff finish to a smoother finish. It’s a elastomeric waterproof smooth coating comes in clear or various colors or custom colors made for concrete. The moss and lichens will cause the concrete tiles to disintegrate into sand slowly if not cleared. I put a new roof on the entire house 3 years ago and used same tiles and also replaced few tiles which are getting harder to locate. In between cleanings I can take a tough wire bristle broom and clean the dried moss clumps off in summers. It’s tricky and careful not to break any tiles while walking on them and a slippery job.

 

Sjoerd, the hillside cedar path is only one of many marks on this old property. I will try to post about my journey a little later

marlingardener and Logan, evolution is certainly the real name of gardening. Lots to keep me busy and out of trouble here.

Pacnorwest, although I live on the edge of the Olympic Peninsula this lot is glacial till so I am not blessed with the moss I had in my other home even though it’s an additional inch of rain per month. The path makes getting to my water faucet less of a danger with rocks and uneven surfaces. A walk instead of a mountainous free hike off the trails. There are more rocks on the property I will attempt to use later. I’ve been able to move a surprising number with leverage and a hand dolly .

 

Jewell great to hear you’re using leverage letting the rock weight and handy helping garden lift to do the work instead of wearing out backs. its good to be mindful and planing ahead, taking care to find ways to maneuver around chores that can cause injury.
Walking is a great way to explore nature around where your home is you too have a lot of rainfall . The Olympic Peninsula is a dramatic and beautiful setting for hiking, boating, fishing, beach combing and a great view.

 

@Pacnorwest,
Yes, I agree about all the wonderful things to see and do here. Last weekend it was the Westport Crab Fest with a group. Here is the view from the back yard and deck. Have lived and worked in the southern part of the Puget Sound area for 45 years. To me it’s the most beautiful part of the world, but I love moss, rain and ferns. Am joining a regional RV Women’s group for camping this weekend. Looking forward to it. My son is snowboarding Mt. Hood the following weekend. Snow’s so plentiful (another foot the last couple days) ski mountains have announced they will be open until May.

 

Beautiful pic. How lucky you are to have such a fantastic view. That pic could be blown up and hung on a wall.
The snow is very high this season in the mountains this year, snow melt is way above average. It should take us out of the drought . Forests fires will not be the usual lots of moisture deep thruout the forests floor.
Camping trips will be great for summer fun and lots of hiking. So many great areas to camp.
If you get a chance to take a trip to crater Lake .

 

Pacnorwest, Yes, I feel blessed with the view although it has been hiding of late.

Todays chore was to get the 2nd raised bed leveled by the basement door and filled. Job accomplished. I also decided I needed to take photos so I know where I stuck plants. I think I killed one hosta divide by planting bulbs in the same space. Oops

 

Nice raised bed. That is a good design no ground critters can come underneath to get in and eat roots. It’s the perfect spot for a garden bed I have a whole lot of issues with moles, voles and gophers. do you have any deer? Hostas are a fav of mine unfortunately deer have snacked on my plants on many occasions. Bloodmeal products tend to keep them away.
Way to soggy here and cold in the 40’s and windy. The hail today didn’t seem to bother the magnolia and cherry tree buds.

 

Sowed some wildflower seeds in a border then covered it with fleece to stop the cats using it as a toilet.

 

I planted a row of cucumber and two of yellow squash. I planted 4 celebrity tomatoes and 4 eggplants. The kitchen garden is almost full, with18 San Marzano tomatoes already in and with 3 rows of green beans. I also dug holes for 10 pepper plants, mainly sweet this year. I use so little hot pepper that they build up in the freezer.

 

Well planted a blueberry bush yesterday did a little weeding. Then MI Gardener was doing live youtube vid promoting their new dormant plant arrivals so ending up getting a killarney raspberry for $6.99 USD and 10ct Honeoye Strawberry for $7.99 USD. Notice this leaving for work the tulips are close to blooming.

 

Not a lot done today.
Gave the main patio a coat of "Wet n' Forget," as it was a little bit green, cleared within a few hours.
Fed the lawn. I then tidied the shed and garage.
I've got too much stuff!

Opened the top roof vent in the tea-house as it reached 70f+ today. It's just two halves of a recycled dishwasher cutlery basket connected by a block of wood. I just have to lift up the front side of "the lid" and wedge it underneath the frame, (photo from 2010 when I changed the roofing felt)
It's a bit of a pain as it can get very hot in there during the day from this time of the year, but can still be very cold at night, so my jukeboxes have to stay covered up with their heaters on timers.



It's gonna rain tomorrow so I don't expect to play golf or do any gardening.

 

Nothing today it's raining.

 

Here it should be raining but isn't yet. I won't risk starting any path/patio re-pointing because if I do, it'll start to rain.

 

Just a little weeding to keep my nails dirty.