Crop Circles

With the spring thaw this year, I discovered crop circles in the back yard!

But rather than blaming aliens or the paranormal, I blamed my own sloth.

Late last fall, we raked our mass of leaves into one mountain and one smaller molehill. It was dark by the time we finished, so we said we'd move it to the curb the next day for pickup. Then it rained, rained and rained some more. Weeks went by. Critters moved into the pile, which seemed to shrink under the accumulated weight of the rain. It snowed. And finally, one day in late November, we scraped the rotting mess up to the street to be sucked up by the giant leaf vacuum.

This spring, as the grass began to come back to life, the outline of the leaf pile still remained yellow and dead. In the past couple weeks, some life is returning, but it's mostly dandelions.

Next fall, I pledge to promptly remove all leaf piles, no matter how dark it is!

The Jungle Next Door

I have found the advantage of the vacant house next door: it makes my own lawn look downright manicured.

But how long will the grass get before someone takes action?

With foreclosures growing, we're up to three on our block. In the winter, it wasn't such a big deal. The houses looked kind of peaceful with their undisturbed blanket of snow. I often shoveled the sidewalk next door because it was a quick job - what's another 10 minutes when I've been outside an hour? - and to help the numerous walkers around here. Nope, not being selfish at all with my walk to the train.

Now that spring has sprouted a jungle next door, though, there's a very clear line where my lawn - and my labor - ends and the property next door begins. Until Sunday, my dandelion population helped bridge the difference (the fallow land across the street sends a swarm of dandelion seeds my way), but especially since my second mow of the year, it's painfully obvious.

For now, I'll let live and be thankful that the one next door looks just overgrown and lush. But the second a tiger comes after me... I'm calling the city.

Wind

Stupid wind destroyed my tulips less than two weeks after they bloomed.
Though there are still petals all over the place.

Luckily, the seedlings I planted last weekend are starting to take hold in the new soil and mulch.