August 28, 2010

Folks-
I've been away travelling for two months. Over the past 48 hours I've done a few things that might not meet with your approval:
1. That a-hole with the mini-motorcycle was riding over the artificial turf last night when I drove by. I chased him out of the park, cursing him lustily as I did. Probably not a smart thing to do but I was pissed at his arrogant indifference. He knows who I am and what my car looks like now so I hope there are no reprisals. And I hope, since two people have chased him from the park now, that he might get the message.
2. I read an email about broken sprinklers and water running down the street so I thought I'd see what I could do. I went to 10th Avenue and began repairing broken heads. But after about five minutes the light bulb went off in my head and I realized: "Why am I making these things work when the landscape is set up for now summer water?" The plants on both sides--10th and 11th Avenues--are drouthy species that should not be watered in the dry season. So I stopped repairing heads and set to work turning off the water to these areas. If this is OK then it should end the water running down the street.
3. I cut down the volunteer Grevillea robusta tree on the 10th Avenue side. It was already five feet high and would soon have overtopped the red oak. I'd like to get rid of more volunteers on that side but hesitated to do so without your sanction.
4. I checked the sprinklers in the lawn. They work perfectly, which is one reason why the lawn is so healthy.
5. I checked the pear trees in the lawn and they do, indeed, have fireblight. This needs to be dealt with.
6. I noted that one part of the butterfly garden adjoining the lawn is filled with a weed, Cyperus esculentus, that only grows in swampy areas! This seems to prove that there is a busted sprinkler line below. Someone needs to do some major excavation work there to ferret out the leak and fix it. That much water might suggest that the leak is on a line that has constant water in it. I discovered that, when I turned on the sprinklers on the 11th Avenue side no water came out anywhere. That could be because the new mulch is holding the sprinkler heads down, or it could be that the major leak is a line that brings water to the 11th Avenue side.
7. I added a few pictures to the blog, photos of the park before renovation and during the renovation. I have more on my computer but won't have time to add them for awhile. www.bellavistapark.blogspot.com.

Jerry Heverly, 2510 Eleventh Avenue