Mower @ MindSay

For the avid do-it-yourself landscaper, the right tools are important. After all, if one wishes to save money on the expenses associated with having a well cared for yard, it is best to make sure that he or she has all of the tools necessary to create an attractive landscape. By understanding some of the most common tools used for basic landscaping needs, you can ensure that you have everything you need to keep your lawn in the best possible shape, bringing delight and distinction to your grounds, be they large or small.

Shovels, rakes, trowels, and hand cultivators. These are the most basic of tools when it comes to landscaping. Every home should be supplied with these basic implements. They make just about every landscaping endeavor possible. Shovels to remove sod and turn soil, as well as dig the holes necessary for fixtures like trees and hardscapes, Rakes are essential to smooth out planting beds and prepare ground for things like sod without packing the dirt. Trowels and hand cultivators allow you to perform minute work that requires more attention to detail. All of these tools are necessary to the proper functioning and care of a landscape.

Pruners and shears. These tools are used to improve the appearance of woody plants and trees. They keep plants from encroaching in other areas, and they also promote the overall health of the plants. They help maintain a neat appearance, and if you have topiary concerns, they are indispensable in maintaining a set shape. There are hand pruners, tools that help with the smaller branches and are easier to use, loppers for getting thicker branches that are to large for pruners, and even pruning saws that can help you with the toughest of branches. Hedge shears provide a way for hedges to be trimmed more conscientiously than with electric or gas-run trimmers (although these are widely available and can make maintaining hedges much easier).

Lawnmower. This is perhaps one of the most common and most obvious of landscaping tools. It is meant to keep the grass at a reasonable level, and to keep the lawn neat and healthy. Related to lawnmowers in the trimming department are things like weed wackers, which are very useful in keeping edges that can’t be cut by a mower nice and neat. Additionally, the use of some special machinery, designed to eliminate thick brush is useful to have on hand, even it is only in the form of a machine rented once a year.

Other tools of interest. Of course, there are specialty tools that may be needed depending upon on the features of your landscape. If you have a water fixture, it is important to make sure that you have the proper pumps and filters, and that you have little skimmers that can allow you to remove larger pieces of debris from the water. Automatic sprinklers can make watering the lawn and your other plants much easier, and you should have a garden hose for special watering needs. Regular household tools such as hammer and nails, levels, and drills can be helpful if you have built landscape features like patios, decks, pergolas, and trellises. They can also be useful in building things like containers and creating raised beds.

Wheelbarrow. A wheelbarrow will always be of infinite use for the avid landscaper and improver. Wheelbarrows are very useful for moving debris as well as bringing needed implements to their proper places. They haul dirt and bring in plants. They make it possible to for one person to carry a load that otherwise she or he would not be able to handle. For the serious landscaper, a wheelbarrow is indeed necessary.

When you have all of the tools necessary to take care of your landscape, then you are well rewarded for your hard work. Acquiring the more common tools can also save you money in the long run, as they can be used over and over again. Additionally, many of the more common landscape tools are fairly small in size and easy to store in a garage or a shed. As long as they are kept neatly arranged in place, they are easy to get to when needed, and not hard to find. Proper maintenance of you tools is important: keep them from becoming rusty, and make sure your lawnmower and other gas or electric implements are well oiled and always have plenty of gas. Proper care of your tools ensures that you will be able to properly care for your landscape.

Tiffany lampshades

My neighbor (one of them) down the road to the west was out grading his lane and mowing the side of his lane.  Nothing unusual about that right?  Wrong!  He was wearing his County Sheriff's badge on the outside of his workshirt and had a red light (those flashing kind that vol. folks use in rural areas for their pick up trucks and cars) down by his feet!

 

I burst out laughing my ass off and about sideswipped the guard rail right before I got to the top of his lane where he was waiting for me to go by so he could turn around!  What made this so funny was the fact the tractor he was using to grade his lane and mow the side of his lane is such an antique thing that there was NO WAY in this wide universe he was going to catch me or anyone else with his tractor if he was going to try it!  But he just had to have that red light ready to put on top of the tractor engine cover! 

 

What was he going to do, slap that red light up top, slap that tractor in high (maybe 10 mph) and go after Thumpers brother for munching on his grass clippings!

 

My Gods we have a true blue Redneck for our County Sheriff and he is one of my neighbor's to boot!  Goddess help me!

 

 

Yay.  I dropped my A1C's from a 6.8 to a 5.8.  Add that to my back to normal blood pressure I am setting good right?  Wrong!  I am borderline on my Cholestrol.  Fuck!  So I have another 6 months to maintain my bloodpressure and my A1C's and get my Cholestrol down before they will take me off my meds.  On the up note, I don't have to check my sugars 3 times daily!  I only have to check 2 times a week.  I can handle that and will do it!

 

Now I couldn't find my pedomitor so I didn't start the over all walking program yesterday and after what I mowed yesterday my poor knees couldn't take any more activety on the eleptical machine.  But here are the pictures of what I mowed yesterday and of the new dog:D

 

The picture of the drain tube is there to show you I went from the side closet to you down the hill because I worked on the opposite side of the yard and around the house on Monday.  The rest of the pictures show the rest of the yard I worked on.  Oh and a picture of my Troy Built 21" deck self propelled push mower.  This will help me get my cholestrol and body back this summer!  Walking down and up these hills really works the core muscles!

 

The big brown spot on the one picture is my old garden that got the initial tilling yesterday afternoon via my daddy.  He extended the garden for me by a foot or two and next year I'll extended it again.  I am goign to ask my uncle have one of the hired men who bring back the discs from plowing down set aside fields to put in my rows for my corn on the other side of the house you can't see.  I am about done with the yard work besides the mowing all summer long.  Finish up my soon to be herb garden in the next week or two (have to block up a window) and rack a small hill off that has wood peices on it from cutting down a dead tree and I am set with a clean yard this year. 

 Well it has been a while. Of course I started hub bub before I got busy. What's new. Thank you to all those that realized what I was getting at with my clarification post and to jakerad for coming and clarifying also. Only one person was to thick to get what I was getting at, but that is okay.  There has to be someone who is "stupider" then me:D

 

Anyways my Dirty Thirty One bday came and went pretty uneventful.  Things were planned to go one way so we celebrated a bit early.  No cake and ice cream though.  that is a mom thing that gets planned and of course hubby's don't think of shit like that.  Randy got me a 8 gig Zune and the kids got me the car adaptor, soft sqishy ear phones for my dinky lil ears, and a carrying case.  I also got a lot of email cards, a few myspace comments, and one phone call:D

 

Been busy with TKD, things for the kids' school, getting things done aroudn the house, the kids' first communion (they are soooooo happy they won't have to go to Mass every sunday now-only 1 sunday a month like I do with Granny)

 

I got a couple new books that got added to my too read collection.  Randy jsut shakes his head.  Been busy rummage saleing and stocking up on kids' clothes and some for me.  I am in between sizes on my clothing.  All my clothes are getting to big for me.  I am still NOT loosing any weight but LOTS of inches.  I have been a bad diabetic forgetting my meds on some days, not taking my sugars, but my eating habits and work out habits are good to go:D  Randy doesn't really get after me but he is wonderin ig my weight loss isn't steaming from the extra tummy skin now.  I have no clue.

 

I got my lawn mower. Yay.  Now I just need to get my tiller, weed eater, and clean out the barn for my bucket calves.  We still haven't done that.  Randy says I am a procrstanator, you should see him on any projects I want done!  But he can't get out of spring cleaning:D  I have started!  And he has to help move furnature and fix various things before he hits the road again!

 

Hope all has been well with everyone.  And if I find some time I will read back posts!:D