GETTING TO THE ROOT OF THE PROBLEM...

 

This is how the Cottage looked when we bought it over 30 years ago.  The tree in question can be seen behind the van in top left of photo.

Some months ago, 

I told you that an old Sequoia redwood tree just on the edge of our property line

 was causing havoc with our driveway

 and the very foundation of the Cottage. 

 We informed the owner of the property, where the tree is growing, 

about the problems 

and his insurance company

 got in touch with us. 

 They agreed to cut the roots

 that are causing the damage 

and repair our driveway and fence.

This is a very old and huge tree

 and should never have been planted 

where it is in the first place,

 but friends my age

 have told stories about every

 school age child being sent home

 with the seed of a Sequoia redwood started in a paper cup 

to be planted in their gardens, 

and there are many, now aged and grown, sprinkled throughout the community. 

 I have grown up around redwood trees, being raised in Santa Cruz, California, 

but the California redwoods are a very different animal from the Sequoia. 

  There are many beautiful trees in nature, 

 but the one causing such problems for us

 is harsh and sharp.

 It may be a majestic tree

 but, in my opinion, 

not a very pretty, or appealing one.

 The dry, barbed needles that are 

constantly falling to the ground

 stick to our shoes, get stuck in the dog's fur, and are tracked all over the Cottage.

There are some neighbors 

that are objecting to what we are doing. 

  My question to them is 

where were they when the city hired 

someone to trim the branches 

from around the electrical wires

 and left this tree

 looking like a 

butchered piece of ugliness. 

 It would have been nice

 if they had come forward then

 and spoke their peace

 in order that a reputable company 

might have been hired 

that knew what they were doing.

The company hired to do the job showed up last Monday morning 

and in no time flat they had 

the fence taken down

 and the cement and blacktop torn up, 

along with the ivy 

that had been struggling to grow

 and finally was starting to fill in. 

 The equipment they used 

barely fit in the driveway

 but they managed 

like there was nothing to it.  

They took many loads away in their trucks

 and since all the streets 

around are so narrow 

there were a few traffic jams 

during the process.

The Captain had to go 

for a hearing test on Wednesday 

so we didn't get to see

 where this big root came from, 

but when we returned home,

 it was sitting next to the house. 

 This was the biggest culprit

 that was causing the damage 

and they had to dig a big hole

 right where the root now sits, 

going under the house in the process. 

 By the time we got home

 it was all filled back in.  

Our next door neighbor

 said it was quite a sight.

The old root's swan song.

The next morning

 the crew picked up the root 

and took it to its final resting place.

The fence has been put back up 

with all new posts and footings

 and now we have to wait

 for another company to come 

and do the blacktop. 

 We had a little rain last night

 but there were no major mudslides.

...Judy...

Have a wonderful week, stay safe, enjoy the springtime...

...and always, always

 save room for cake!

Sharing today with:

Love Your Creativity at Life and Linda