This landlady absolutely refuses to address the tree issue here. I borrow the neighbor's tree lopper and do what I can each year, but there are trees scraping across the roof. I guess she will take care of it when the insurance company refuses to renew her windstorm insurance unless they're cut. I borrowed the lopper and trimmed the tree out front, as well as the one next door that hangs over my driveway. I might actually go on that property and trim it some more, because it blocks my view of the corner, and I like to be able to see what's going on, particularly if someone is skulking around. I couldn't see details of the vehicle that parked in that driveway last week, because that tree was blocking my view. I still don't know who it was, but it wasn't anyone who had business being there at 2:30 in the morning. I lopped the pecan tree that hangs over my house, deck and backyard, but only from the balcony. I'll do the yard portion of that, as well as the trees from the yard behind this one, that also hang over the yard and the shed, later, when the weather isn't quite as hot, and I'm feeling more energetic. I'm going to borrow a ladder and try to see if I can lop the tree branch that's hanging over the front of this house, but again, not until the heat lets up a little, and I'm feeling better. I know every house and yard require maintenance, but not having to deal with all of these overgrown trees would be nice. I would really like it if the owner would pay for a professional to come trim them back severely, but that's not her style. She doesn't pay a professional to do anything, and if she did send someone, they'd probably end up cutting the tree so it would fall on my car. Ultimately, she will pay the price, since it's her roof and siding that's being damaged. The lopper I use isn't a telescoping one, but it's similar to the style pictured, with the long pole and rope you pull to tighten the blade and actually do the chopping.
I was hoping that I'd be able to do more of the lopping today, before the heat of the day set in, but my forearms are still aching too much to even consider it. I like the satisfaction of knowing that it's done, and that I'm the one who did it. The heavy trash guys have already picked up the limbs I cut the other day. I mentioned before that I would like to create paths from the driveway gate to the shed and also to the back porch. It occurred to me that I could probably use tarps to kill the weeds/grass in those areas before I decide what I would use to create the walkways. I decided I'll probably use plastic drop cloths instead, since they're cheaper. I picked up a few yesterday at Dollar Tree, and I'll do a small scale experiment and see how it goes.
I actually ended up doing some more lopping yesterday, in the backyard. Again, my forearms are now hurting like heck, so I had to take a muscle relaxer. I'm about halfway through the project. For some reason, it seems the trees have grown more than they typically do, perhaps thanks to the torrential rain we had last month. I'm going to need to use a step ladder and actual ladder for the next parts, and I'm going to let my arms rest up for at least a few days before I tackle those sections.
I have some trees that are kind of growing into my foundation that should be taken care of, but I really need to do some hedge trimming, because these hedges grow like crazy..and I have one that is almost up to the level of the window. I do trim them when I think of it, but they still tend to grow alot, and we have had so much rain this Spring, that they are really growing like wildfire. I am charging a trimmer than I might be able to use.
Thankfully, I don't have hedges. I know my mom is always complaining about the hedges there, they're not something she likes, but although she did finally pay someone to remove some of them, she left others in place. I'd definitely keep any by the windows trimmed, for safety/security's sake. I'm glad to know mine aren't the only trees/plants growing like crazy from this rain. My jasmine has had quite a few buds, and I just saw at least one blossom on it. My pink mandevilla has 2 buds right now, and I just glanced out and noticed a bud on the white one . I still have to lop the tree branches that are resting on the roof of the shed, but I'm going to have to drag a stepladder out there for that, and I'm waiting for my arms to recover first. I really hope I can get that one limb off the roof/front of the house, because it's hanging right by my bedroom window, but there's no way I can get the other trees done. Those will have to be tackled by one or more professionals with a chainsaw one of these days.