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lilsprout

It's raining whirlybirds!!

lilsprout
9 years ago

Ughh these are the days of spring I very much dislike. What a mess EVERYWHERE! And the trees are still loaded with them, so much,I believe the gutters will be overflowing. My beds are just covered. I sure don't remember this many last year. Do you have to deal with this mess to?

So let's get out the ladders get out the blowers and keep your eyes peeled for those little buggers to take root!

I should go into business with a giant vacuum truck and go around and suck them off the trees before the fall! I bet I could make a fortune!!! ;)

Would you pay someone to vacuum your trees??

Comments (46)

  • aachenelf z5 Mpls
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I realize I'll probably be crucified for saying this, but one of happiest days of my life was when the 100 year old elm tree on my Blvd. was chopped down because of Dutch Elm disease. I hated that tree in the spring when the seeds would rain down like snow for weeks and weeks. Every single one of those seeds would germinate too if you didn't pick them up. It took me all summer just to get rid of that seasons crop of seedlings. Then spring would come again and repeat, repeat, repeat.

    I was also jumping for joy the other day when I realized a neighbors Cottonwood tree had died. That sucker must be 80 feet tall and again, in the spring, the cotton fluff would fill the air for at least a couple of weeks. It clogged the screens, blew into the house every time you opened the door and germinated wherever it landed.

    I generally like trees, but these messy ones drive me nuts.

    Kevin

  • tepelus
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    We're having a bumper crop here as well. A couple of years ago when I lived in Ohio, the property held about thirteen silver maples and that year almost every one of those trees was full of helicopters. And they all feel into the gutters and my flowerbeds were so full I was pulling them out by the handfuls. I hate those things. I'm still pulling sugar and boxelder maple seedlings from last year's crop of seeds, now I have the silver maples to contend with.

    Karen

  • lilsprout
    Original Author
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Lol TR!!

    You are quite the little devil.....

  • aachenelf z5 Mpls
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    So, I'm curious and have often thought of this question:

    Back in the day, when virtually every street in every city in the Midwest and beyond was lined with Elm trees, did people REALLY think they were so wonderful - you know because of how messy they are? I can't even imagine what it would be like with a whole street full of these trees!

    Generally speaking, when you read about these long-gone days, it's always how wonderful everything was, how majestic these trees were, what a terrible thing Dutch Elm disease did to our cities. I find it hard to believe everyone loved these trees so much.

    Kevin

  • TexasRanger10
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I don't know how it works exactly, but the fact that its a tree makes it almost sacred. I think because of how long it takes to get big? Is that it? So yes, those moth eaten redundant elms were loved. Elm disease was considered a tragedy. I also remember them getting some kind of reddish stinky slime stuff in the trunks when injured or in knot holes -- ee-e-w, but kids love that kind of gross stuff. Well, we did anyway.

    The 100 ft monolithic hugenormous Pin Oak that was planted as teen-aged tree about 5 ft from our driveway on the very edge of the neighbors now totally shaded and grassless "lawn" is considered by most people a Sacred Cow. Its an Oak after all. Its downright oppressive from my point of view but hey, who am I to belly ache about the proper place to plant a tree or appropriate size choices? Its a TREE so who cares where its growing because to say anything marks one as a tree hater. Personally, I see several areas of grey when it comes to trees but to many people this issue is strictly black and white meaning tree=sacred. I learned a long time ago not to speak of such things to 99% of people.

  • terrene
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I have a big Silver maple like that, it's growing about 15 feet off the southwest corner of the house, which is bad enough because the dang roots have invaded the septic system, and have heaved the walkway as they head straight for the downspouts. They also suck every bit of moisture out the ground in the surrounding area which makes it difficult to grow the grass and nearby garden.

    On top of the root problem it rains maple wings down in the gutters and walkway on that corner every year. One year it was so bad, that the samaras were filling the gutters all the way around the house!

    This year it seeded rather lightly, and I'm thankful for small favors.

  • a2zmom_Z6_NJ
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I have two Norways and one silver maple in my backyard. All three are crap trees imo but they are huge (probably 70 feet) so I can't afford to take them out.

    My red Japanese maple in my front yard I love even though I pull about a billion seedlings out of beds every year.

  • davids10 z7a nv.
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    different kind of elm-the american elm is indeed a magnificent tree-most elms today are siberian-trashy disreputable things. as for silver maples its impossible to say a good thing.

  • davids10 z7a nv.
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    and they make wonderful compost-very high in nitrogen. last year in the spirit of lemons and lemonade i filled 3 new 3ft pots 3/4 of tthe way with mixed elm and maple leaves topped with potting soil planted the pots and forgot it. this spring the pots were filled with great compost

  • prairiemoon2 z6b MA
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    We have two large Maples in the yard that produce tons of seedlings every year. That's not the problem, it's the 60 year old Silver Maple in the neighbor's yard that is planted 10ft away from our fence on the South side. And the three more planted between 5 and 10ft away from our West lot line and the 6 spruce planted 5 feet away from the North lot line and the large ugly Sycamore with the huge brown leaves that fall even during the growing season.

    I love trees, but I'd love to have a couple of some of my favorites in the neighborhood instead of these. But, it works out okay, just the same. I don't find the seedlings drive us too crazy. We mow over them in one bed full of vinca and they disappear. And really there is barely a square foot of garden that doesn't get attention during the growing season, so while I'm there, I just pull them.

    At least the silver Maple leaves are small and break down easily. And we do have a lot of privacy. Tons of leaves for compost in the fall and our neighbor who has all the Silver Maples, gives me his leaves too. At least they are away from the house and we haven't had the problems you've had Terrene.

    We do have a Japanese Maple and here they are before they fell! :-)

  • oldfixer
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    No, I wouldn't vacuum a tree.

  • shadeyplace
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    My nemesis is the tulip poplar petals. That and ash
    It is as bad as fall. Constantly blowing something that has fallen. Never a tidy garden. Also an aesculus which reseeds all over and drops hundreds of chestnuts in the fall so as you cannot walk without falling.

  • mnwsgal
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I read that maple seeds can be eaten raw or boiled like peas. Some years I pick up buckets full of them for my beds. They have just started falling here, not many so far. Would it be foolish to hope this is an off year?

  • terrene
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    as for silver maples its impossible to say a good thing.

    Well, they grow fast, and they are fantastic wildlife trees! The flowers attract insects and birds in the early Spring. Lots of critters eat the samaras - I've observed squirrels, chipmunks, and blue jays - just this morning I watched a squirrely poking through the grass and eating the maple wings.

    Also, Acer saccharinum is prone to breaking, which is something of a liability as a landscape tree, but the jaggedy crotches and dead wood opens up cavities for squirrels and birds to nest.

    Btw, one of my favorite trees in the whole neighborhood is a huge old Silver maple at the farm down the street. It is at least 100 years old and has around a 7 foot diameter - with a nicely formed canopy that has suffered little breakage over the years.

  • lilsprout
    Original Author
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    " I watched a squirrely poking through the grass and eating the maple wings."

    Can I please borrow him for a couple weeks?

  • Michaela (Zone 5b - Iowa)
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I am glad someone else started this chat. I am so miserable! We have 3 of these trees and they just flood our property. Our patio and patio furniture is covered in them. I have them sprouting all over my garden because I was slow getting my new garden that I tilled mulched this spring. I have spent about an hour a day for the last week pulling the babies up. UGH. What a nightmare. :o(

  • babera
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Oh . . . finally a lace for me to rant about these nasty buggers. I don't have them, my neighbor does. The trees have NEVER been trimmed. Their crooked branches drape across our driveway. I swear there is no season they don't drop something. . . dried seed pods now. If something isn't dropping the birds are pooping from above. . . I paid $285.00 last summer to have some of them removed, barely dented the problem. I'm sure everyone must think I have OCD, I am blowing my driveway more than I vacuum my house.

    With all the snow we had last year the gazillion bunches that were there from previous years finally dropped, but alas. . . .there are plenty there again already.

    The funny thing is. . . said neighbors have cottonwoods on the other side of their yard from their other neighbors yard. . . my neighbor is constantly threatening call the city and complain when the cotton flies. . . SERIOUSLY ! ! I hate the cotton too but at least it's only once a year. . . hers give me grief 365 24/7. . .

    I'd pay for a vac truck to come suck those babies off. . . you bet I would. . .

  • TexasRanger10
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Its not a Silver Maple however, as long as we get to do this I think all pain in the butt trees are fair game. At the top of the photo is the still developing trunk of the monolithic space needle, gigantic, wa-a-ay too big for the yard, 100 ft litter-bug Pin Oak they planted next to our driveway. Its like having the Empire State Building oppressively growing up in a small section of what was once a lawn but is now shaded dead lawn (look closely). Every winter we get to periodically climb on the roof and rake off leaves or else we get leaks. The driveway becomes the collection site along with the courtyard and rest of our property as the leaves fall slowly all winter long until spring.

    In the back next door are the infamous line of volunteer hackberry trees whose main goal is to populate the entire planet.

    This post was edited by TexasRanger10 on Fri, Jun 6, 14 at 16:02

  • Campanula UK Z8
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    My poor son lives in a (hippy) housing co-op chock full of tree-huggers, genuflecting under the robinias, silver maples and sycamores.....all of which have suckered and seeded to their hearts content until the entire co-op grounds became cave-like and dim. I am afraid to say we had a 4 year campaign of tree murder by stealth (sneaky drilling and even ringbarking - the other co-op people were not remotely observant (stoned!) about details and no-one could see anything anyway. As more light increased, we seeded and propagated ourselves (a kind of furtive bribery), growing a whole slew of shrubs and perennials. 6 years later, the sycamores and robinia are gone, leaving one enormous silver maple in the parking area..... while fruit trees and almonds, lilacs and rowans have taken their place.....which cuts to the root of the problem - trying to grow forest trees in urban gardens is generally disastrous for everyone.....although I do love towering lime allees and yep, I still miss elms - one of the iconic shapes of our countryside.

  • diggerdee zone 6 CT
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Well, I guess I am the lone dissenting voice here. I grew up in the city, but we had quite a few maple trees on our street. As kids, we used to LOVE when the seedlings would whirl down from the sky. We used to open the ends and stick them on our noses and had little sayings, etc. And I'm not talking just as LITTLE kids, but as teens as well.

    Granted, as an adult, I might not enjoy the whirlybirds so much, but I sure do miss them, from what I remember. I have all oaks, and not only are they as dull as doorknobs in the fall (miss those fiery maples!) but they rain down those long stringy things and acorns. Give me whirlybirds any day! At least you don't slip on those!

    Dee

  • TexasRanger10
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    You totally made my day campanula.

    The guy next door asked me one day about the Pin Oak, what I thought of it, that is. Since I'd been bagging up oak leaves for the umptenth time that winter, in a weakened moment I told him the truth and added that I thought it made the house look insignificant due to a serious problem concerning scale of size of tree vs size of house vs size of lot. I also mentioned the massive leaf problem & added that the spouse, who is the nicer of the the two of us, hated it as much as me because he was tired of clearing the driveway & roof and sweeping oak leaves out of his studio every time he opened the door. I guess he was shocked because he then said he was going to start praying for me since I didn't love trees which are God's creation. I was so outraged I said "God would have never planted it there, you did". That sort of ended the conversation.

  • prairiemoon2 z6b MA
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Dee, you've reminded me of the trees I fell in love with as a kid. We didn't grow up in the country, we lived in the city, not even the suburbs until I was almost in high school. We had huge trees all along the streets. A house my parents bought had a huge Beech tree in the yard and nothing else. Not only did the neighbors not complain, but they loved that tree.

    I can remember happily sticking the whirlybirds on our noses too. lol And walking to school in the fall, with brightly colored maple leaves raining down on me. And the leaves were perfect. No winter moth holes in them. The teachers would ask us to bring leaves to school to make projects with and they were just perfect. Later when I was old enough for my first job, I went to work with one of my parents and day after day, we drove down one particular city avenue that had Maples on both sides of the street that met in the middle and formed a canopy over the street, with the light flickering down through. All different times of the year, they were gorgeous. The yards in the city were so small, you rarely saw anyone use them for anything, especially a garden. The trees were what offered privacy and greenery all the way up to the third floor of all the three deckers. The sidewalks often were raised around the roots of the trees, because they were not given enough room to grow right. I don't remember anyone complaining or thinking the trees should go because of the sidewalks.

    I think we already had this conversation on another tree thread and I believe the same lines were drawn. [g] I'm sure I've let my opinion on the subject be known clearly already, but I just wanted to let you know I understood what you were talking about. :-)

  • TexasRanger10
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    A Beech tree next door would be nice. I mean, who would complain about a Beech tree? Not that they grow here but then neither do Fir trees.

    There are some very nice Maple varieties, other than Silver Maple, around here. No one complains about those and they have gorgeous fall color without continuous self amputation of big limbs and risk of death if a person is standing in the wrong place at the wrong time. A woman was killed here by a big limb falling from one a during an ice storm a couple years ago. There is a large one by the park where I walk that regularly drops big branches, I won't walk under it.

    Live Oak--no problem they are fantastically gorgeous and desirable trees.

    There are some fabulous Weeping Willows up the street, the first trees to signal spring, we all love them.

    Magnolias, another favorite around here.

    Crepe Myrtle, what would summer be without them and yes, they should be left to grow as trees not clipped annually. The bark is amazing.

    Purple Smoke Tree. Seriously gorgeous, theres quite a few around here.

    I personally like the Lacebark Elms even if others don't.

    There are some jaw dropping specimens of many varieties of trees planted in yards I see on the walk around the park that have been growing for decades around here along with many understory trees that we would hate to loose as well.

    My childhood was also filled with trees that we loved as kids. I imagine most peoples childhoods were.

    Still, I think its nice to find a place to let off a bit of steam with other people about this stuff even if some do find it repetitious. The yearly seed or leaf litter battle, now thats whats repetitious.

    Can we get cranky about Tree of Heaven? That there is one disgusting and stinking tree.

    This post was edited by TexasRanger10 on Sat, Jun 7, 14 at 1:55

  • terrene
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Texas Ranger, you hit on the 2nd messiest tree in my yard - the BIG Pin Oak that is hanging over the deck and skylights. This tree is possibly the tallest tree in the neighborhood. It has been dropping a lot of flowers (and some caterpillar frass) on the deck and I've been sweeping that stuff off the past few weeks. And I even paid the tree guy to climb it in March and remove a big limb that was overhanging the house!

    At least the Oak doesn't seed heavily every year, unlike the ultra-fertile Silver maple. I guess there's going to be acorns dropping this fall - ping...ping as they hit the skylights. And then, it holds its leaves forever, giving me shade in October and November when I don't need it!!

    Campanula, I think heavy shade from overhanging trees is lovely and romantic, IF you live in a dry, hot climate. The climate here is generally wet, and it's just oppressive to have trees engulfing the house. Structures need air circulation! Also we only need shade a few months out of the year. And the constant litter in the gutters can be a big problem when we get a heavy rainstorm - more than once I've been known to run outside and getting soaked trying to remove debris from a blocked gutter.

  • TexasRanger10
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    terrene, I have to ask since I cannot imagine any tree being messier than a Pin Oak. If its your 2nd messiest, whats #1?

    Total agreement on the overhang comment. Going up there to clear leaves during ice is even worse, it happened twice last winter & I still haven't fixed the inside damage to the ceiling.

  • prairiemoon2 z6b MA
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Good to hear that there are some trees you do like, TexasRanger. ;-)

    I've already pointed out that I would prefer other trees in my neighborhood, but what can I do about it? If everyone in the neighborhood would just do as I say, what would I tell them to do? Cut down all the silver maples in the neighborhood? And the other Maples that drop a lot of whirlybirds? Maybe I could convince one of my neighbors to cut down his sycamore. In all seriousness there would barely be a tree left. One neighbor used to have a Willow, but it was the only tree to come down during one hurricane years back. There's one other Japanese Maple in the neighborhood, a few spruces, a couple of pines and one neighbor has a line of Hemlock growing in a solid wall along one side of their backyard. That's about all that would be left. I'll have to drive around my neighborhood and see if there's a tree I am forgetting about. It's not like you can go out and replace a full grown tree. You have to wait 20 years for another to grow large enough for shade. And it's really expensive to take down a tree too.

    The next time I move, what kind of trees grow in the neighborhood will be a much weightier consideration, but that won't be any time soon. In the meantime, I'd rather accept the trees I have and appreciate their positive attributes and try to minimize any annoyance with the best solutions I can think of.

  • TexasRanger10
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    PM, I plan to minimize my latest roof leak annoyance caused by Pin Oak leaves with new sheetrock, mud and tape so maybe when I'm done with that I can start working on myself in the dept of acceptance and seeing positive attributes. I think everyone who posted a complaint about seeds and flying whirlygigs should beg pardon and do the same.

    Not all shade is appreciated by the way.

    This post was edited by TexasRanger10 on Sat, Jun 7, 14 at 4:32

  • prairiemoon2 z6b MA
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    "PM, I plan to minimize my latest roof leak annoyance caused by Pin Oak leaves with new sheetrock, mud and tape so maybe when I'm done with that I can start working on myself in the dept of acceptance and seeing positive attributes. I think everyone who posted a complaint about seeds and flying whirlygigs should beg pardon and do the same.

    Not all shade is appreciated by the way. "

    GP1, I'm sorry that my point of view seems to annoy you so much. It wasn't meant as a personal affront to anyone, I was just sharing what works for me.

    My mistake, I forgot who I was talking to and what kind of response to expect. I know you did say all you wanted to do was talk gardening when you came back, so why start making things personal again?

    This post was edited by prairiemoon2 on Sat, Jun 7, 14 at 4:43

  • shadeyplace
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    "A beech tree would be nice, I mean who could complain about a beech tree">>>I can. They create deep shade, keep a lot of their leaves all winter, and discard hard little things tough to walk on, and their leaves NEVER mulch out. They also block view of the lake and we are not allowed to trim, cut anything close to lake property. so in the summer, people stand on the deck and say "Is that water down there?"

  • Campanula UK Z8
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    PrairieM - we have been through this once - remember Great Plains - I am suggesting that it is YOU who is making it personal - we don't love all plants and we don't feel the need to apologise for not doing so but this is the second time in the last year that you have taken issues with posters because they have expressed their opinions which you disagree with and then presumably you and go and whine to the mods. Remember Wieslaw? - I do and I miss his photos, knowledge and comments but yep, another one you 'scared' off with this passive-aggressive attitude. I went for a bit too but decided I was not going to be chased off a forum by one particular poster. Course, we could all go elsewhere and leave you here in the land of the bland. I personally particpate in several forums and have no intention of keeping my plant opinions to myself. Now if I had dissed you, your children or partner, you might have a point but no, I don't believe I have ever made it as personal as you are doing right now.

  • prairiemoon2 z6b MA
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    And here we go again…..the tag team.

    Maybe you should go back and read the thread again. If you could actually do that without your long standing bias.

    It was not me that was taking issue with anyone on this thread. I was talking to Dee about our mutual enjoyment of trees and was also complaining about my own trees and how I approach the problem, when GP1 took issue with my posts. But I don't expect you to see that Campanula.

    It's never been your opinions about your plants that has ever been an issue. It's this type of personal inflammatory post that has added to whatever conflict is going on that you feel you have to jump into.

  • shadeyplace
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    In a small gated community around here it was voted to remove all pin oaks...they were large and shaded the entire neighborhood. some objected but the tree cutters won. they now have very few pin oaks and easier to walk but the entire neighborhood looks totally different>>not as nice. I think they replaced them with yellowwoods. which will be wonderful in ten years. (or so). I live in the woods so I have to deal with all kinds of trees and little sun. No way could cut down these huge trees unless I won the lottery.

  • Campanula UK Z8
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    You feel you have to jump into- again.

  • shadeyplace
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Yes, I wish my husband would let me use the chainsaw.

  • TexasRanger10
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    There's always webmaster. What you do is turn in anyone you don't like and they get banned after 3 warnings. GP1, may she R.I.P., had the chain saw taken to her. So did Weislaw. I miss him too. A lot. I like posters who aren't afraid to express their opinions, even when they're feisty.

    Wouldn't it be nice if undesirable trees were that easy to get rid of?

    Hey shadyplace -- I guess that's why you are called 'shadyplace'? I cannot believe your story about the vote, wow! I'm impressed. I live in the inner city close to downtown. I only have to walk a block or so to see the destruction and urban blight created by junk trees left neglected. There is a big difference in a street lined by stately desirable trees and trees left to run amok. Or I can just look next door.

  • prairiemoon2 z6b MA
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Campanula, I’ve had time to consider and I’m not willing to let stand what you had to say this morning. Before this morning, I had put old conflicts in the past. I have really had very little to contribute to the Perennials forum for quite awhile because my interests at the moment are in other directions and I have barely posted here because I’m pretty talked out about perennials. I did notice that GP1 was back with a new screen name and I had no problem with it. I felt that it was really too bad that she got into a problem with the moderators herself and left the forum. I disagree with GP1 more often than I agree with her, but she clearly wants to talk about gardening, so I was happy --for her -- that she was able to do that. You can believe that or not, your choice.

    I’ve responded to your posts on this and other forums in what I considered a friendly and positive way despite what I’ve perceived on occasion as a ‘cold shoulder’. Why not, I wasn’t holding anything against you. So this morning I posted to this ‘whirlybird’ thread. If you notice Dee’s post, she said she was the lone ‘dissenting voice’ and that is the reason I posted. I was responding to what Dee said, because I was on the same wavelength as she was and didn’t want her to feel she was the only one who looked at it that way. So what was wrong with that? Don’t you and GP1 have enough responses on the thread that agree with you? I have to agree with you too? And why didn’t GP1 just say, she disagreed with me, or pointed out some problem she had with what I said, instead of getting rude and sarcastic? If there is something about the way I post that is provocative, then I don’t know what it is, because that is not my intention and I don’t see it.

    This is the same kind of interaction that caused problems for me in the past. I express my opinion on a thread, that is not in agreement with what GP1 has said, she takes it as some personal criticism that I see it differently, she gets defensive and then starts making sarcastic and rude remarks directed at me. And I’m not the only one she’s done that to in the past. Then after she makes rude remarks, she goes back and edits them or deletes them, so no one can see what she has actually said that caused a problem.

    And I was directing my comments on the thread to Dee…..but I still get a response from GP1?

    And I’m really sorry that your perception is that I ‘scared off’ Wiselaw. That is not how I remember it at all. I tried to extract myself from that argument repeatedly, but he wouldn’t let it go and when I finally did extract myself, he went on to argue with others on the forum and ignored requests from the moderators to stop. That was his choice. And you paint him as a saint who never argued or made a rude remark to anyone. He admitted himself that he had gotten kicked off many other forums besides this one but for some reason you still see me as to blame.

    IF -- you had dissed me? What do you think you just did?

    So, this is me making it personal. I’m not rude, I’m not sarcastic, and I’m not disrespectful, I just disagree with your interpretation of ancient history and current events. And this is the last time I'm going to defend myself from your accusations. Let it go, Campanula. You're not always right and you're not any more perfect than anyone else.

  • TexasRanger10
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    babera----"If something isn't dropping the birds are pooping from above". Laff! That was funny.

    You ought to hear my husband on this subject, he takes every dropping as a personal affront. We used to have a Mulberry tree when we bought the house, the birds nearly painted the house purple with droppings.

    I don't know how in the wide world did I missed that but I burst out laughing when I scrolled back up and caught it. Too bad, this thread was fun until it got all serious. Sure, we all have trees we like but this particular thread's open invitation to rant was about the mess caused by the pain in the butt varieties without fear of being labeled a tree hater. Heck even diggerdee had a negative comment on oak litter and dull leaves.

    "Good to hear there are some trees you do like TexasRanger"

    Not that I took that directed remark or the scene about going around the neighborhood chopping out trees I don't like personal or anything but-----

    I found that opening remark icky and admittedly my response was what you might call, uh, er, defensive. Its certainly not the first remark of that sort I have received from some of the nicer-than-me people who post here. The guy next door already gave me the "I'm praying for you" speech concerning the Pin Oak so I am reaffirmed that I was dead right when I said its best to keep ones mouth shut on the subject of undesirable trees.

  • wantonamara Z8 CenTex
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I guess I am a little late popping up with my 2 cents, how did i miss this. Oh yea, I was working on a deadline.I hope I am not rubbing salt in an old wound

    Trees. wanted or unwanted. BIG subject aesthetically. I live where it is hot and I love a bit of shade but I hate the mosquitos when it gets too thick. I know some people get claustrophobic when the world gets to filled with tall trees because they love a prairie. I felt that way in the neighborhoods outside of DC. No sunsets! and no breezes at street level. But my father used to say about his parents place in Montana's BIG SKY COUNTRY, "You can see farther and you can see less". He moved to the jungle of Thailand and then wet side of Hawaii. I am somewhere in between. They are a lot of work and they are bigger than us and wreck routine havoc in a well planned bed..

    ShadyPlace, I am a 61 year old chainsaw wielding ol Mama. I spend a month trimming up and cutting trees down every year. You tell your DH that you need a lesson on that darn thing and get yourself an Stihl Easy Start 16" chain saw. The easy start part is important and worth the extra money. . True I work out in the forest trimming out dreaded cedar, and my trees are not as large as many of you guys trees up north but they tend to make a mono culture that ends up an impassable thicket of frozen cellulose explosions. I do see it as a reverse game of pickup sticks in the sky when they get up to the 35' tall canopy. It is how I bring in the New Year with my own personal war with my light saber, I mean chain saw in hand. Tai chi chainsawing. Got a love it.

    I found most of this thread hysterical. the rest,…oh well. Gardening is a pain sometimes. Glueing whirligigs on our noses as children is sweet and the making of good memories. Then we grow up and have to clean the darn things up as adults climbing ladders cleaning out soggy gutters, spraying poison, ringing trees and chop chop chopping, risking our limbs, limbing large trees, paying for tree caused damage. No fun.. Not enough kids around with enough noses.

    About this LAPSE in forum decorum, flap your jaws let the schizz fly if you must, and then turn your backs and go home till the next time. LET IT GO. Eruptions just happen, we are human. Leave the moderators out. accept that some people have thorny outspoken qualities with different views and ways of expressing them than you. You might even think they are rude and irritating. The feeling might just be mutual. Yea, some people just don't like each other. What else is new. This is like a schoolyard. no knives, and don't call the teacher to manipulate authorities in anger and the need to control the playground. We are just talking plants and we are passionate about our plants. Bland IS Bad. That's my lecture. OH, practice eye rolling. Great yoga exercise. If it gets really bad, You can even back it up with some kundalini grunting for relief.

  • paul_
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    A rather amusing thread in some respects.

    Don't care what kind of tree is under discussion. Someone will extol its virtues while someone else b___es and moans about how its: messy, too big, too small, grows to fast, doesn't grow fast enough, et cetera.

    Aesthetic tastes vary.

    I do agree that silver maples can be a royal pain -- they are rampant seeders and the root systems can make it difficult to grow anything beneath them. On the flip side they are relatively fast growers and provide a goodly amount of shade. Part of my leanings against silver maples is just how common they are. So many nifty trees out there. But silver maples, in addition to being fairly fast growers are cheap -- which leads to their being purchased and planted ad nauseum.

    TR, you mention liking willows. I fully agree with you that they are lovely things. But I can just as easily introduce you to people who despise them vehemently because they too are incredibly messy and the roots can be problematic because they are water seekers that can get into water or sewer pipelines.

    Someone mentioned wanting fruit trees. Useful? Yes, if you are willing to take the time to harvest and to use fruit that may have to have a bug or two removed (unless you prefer adding pesticides to your diet). Beautiful? Definitely when in bloom and even the fruit can add some decorative color. Some even do a decent leaf color change in autumn. But you wanna talk about MESSY? Animals eating the fruit and leaving parts of it and/or their feces in your yard, on your patio, on your driveway, on your car ... Then there is the fruit that falls and rots. Then there are those fruits with large stones -- so much "fun" running those over with the lawn mower. Shall we talk about all the bugs attracted to said fruit? Am I against having fruit trees? Nope. But worth pointing out that any tree can have a downside as well as an upside.

    Course, if you really can't deal with all the "mess" from trees, there is an easy solution. Go live in the desert.

  • wantonamara Z8 CenTex
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    OOOH YEA, FRUIT!!!! I had a huge 70' mango tree in my yard. God the files during fruit season, bee stings from squishy between the toes..How much mango chutney can I make or mango ice-cream or mango this or that. Everyone had a mango tree somewhere in their yard , it seemed. Mountain apple was even worse and the fruit only lasted a day before it was fruit fly heaven. I always wanted to chop that one down it was huge for a mountain apple and I so wanted to build furniture out of it.They were a huge ingredient of our compost pits.

    I do like a good group B*tch. It makes the sound of the birds sweeter.

  • TexasRanger10
    9 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Personally I think a good B***tch Session beats murdering the neighbors or poisoning their plants any day. Someone mentioned choosing a neighborhood only after studying the existing trees. I'm here to tell ya that a sunny backyard 20+ years ago will become shady pretty damn quick after the people who move in on both sides allow nuisance trees along your west side and the other then plants tall ones along your east side. Just when one side lets in a ray of sun, the other side kicks in. Its tantamount to two big messy, seed dropping, leaf dropping, water sucking, squallerin' road-HOGS squeezing out a person's sun.

    And I don't give a hoot n' holler if some sentimental tree lover who I wouldn't know if I bumped into them on the street and who lives in another state gets upset with that gripe or how I express myself.

    This post was edited by TexasRanger10 on Tue, Jun 10, 14 at 17:22

  • Trina Grosse
    8 years ago

    I have 4 autumn blaze with black mulch in my landscape.......need I say more? >:(


  • cakbu z9 CA
    8 years ago

    Pest trees? Can you eat my variety? I have many fruiting mulberries...soooo messy. Stepping on the ripe mulberries and tracking the purple juice all over. And they keep coming up everywhere. Then there's the poplars (cottonwoods) which have roots taking over my lawn and impossible to grow anything in the ground within 30 feet. And there's the 6 cherry plum trees planting long ago along the driveway dropping plums as we speak and the birds continuing to plant new ones. Also the amazing liquidamber. Huge tree dumping spiky balls so I had to finally give up the lawn underneath as mowing was a real hassle. Aaaand, the "wonderful" ailanthis trees along my east border...I've devoted this year to killing them, spray the suckers weekly, after having had the trees cut last fall. They are relentless.
    I have two very nice fruitless mulberry trees, good shade, no falling fruit.
    Note: I did not plant any of these. A prior homeowner is guilty.


  • sunnyborders
    8 years ago

    Thinking of Wieslaw and his great mixed herbaceous perennial gardening.

    Personally. I still hate the neighbour's and the township's silver maples.

    Another really bad one here is introduced (invasive) common buckthorn which is spread around via birds. No I don't want to get rid of the birds!

    There was a large buckthorn thicket in our neighbour's ill-kept garden. However, (luckily?) he was quite happy to have us pay to remove it. He's also been quite happy to have us pay to remove branches from his silver maple which overhang our property.

    Not sure whether our diffidence should extent first to our neighbour or to his trees. Still the neighbour's not all bad, certainly not as bad as his gang of trees.


  • Phil Brigido
    6 years ago

    I know what you mean! I have a medium sized maple tree in our front yard, but it produces whirlybirds like it's a large tree. I always like to mulch early, but the downside to that is the speckled mess that whirlybirds make on a nice flat black mulch bed. What I've done in the past is after the mulch has been laid, and the whirly birds are littered across the surface, I go back with my mulch rake, and just tap the surface of the mulch. That seems to bury 90% of them. The remaining few just break down over the next few weeks and disappear. The seeds that do sprout, I use a Worx GT weed wacker and just lop off the seedlings when the sprout. I can mow through hundreds in just a minute or two. By this time, it's mid May, and ready to plant annuals, and I don't have to worry about accidently hitting flowers with the weed wacker!

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