Boxwoods

A friend suggested I check on Craigs list for plants, see if I can find a great deal. I did see an add for boxwood. It said I would need to dig them up. I had Riley come with me as Trevor has been sick and lacks energy at the moment.

We are running late as I needed to swing by Ace and by new shovels. All my shovels had broken and I was down to none. The house is up in the hills with a beautiful lawn edged by boxwood. The wife considers the boxwood stinky weeds and wants them gone.
The husband said sure. Surprisingly, I am their first customer. Probably because until this weekend the weather has been too crappy to do any gardening for anyone around here.

Riley and I pull up in the jeep, which I have taken the precaution of lining with plastic. We pull out our shovel. The husband looks at us and asks if we would like some help. He has a tractor with a shovel bucket. I say sure I would appreciate it. He asks how many and I say as many as $30 will get me. Pretty soon we have the whole north row of the driveway dug up and loaded into his tractor trailer. He has even volunteered to deliver them to my house. Twice as many as I had anticipated and delivery too. With the proper tools you can really get a lot done and have fun doing it.

The only thing I can figure is he really wanted those boxwood gone and this way he didn't have to worry about the disposal of them after he pulled them up. The tractor arrived and and I had both Trevor and Riley help unload. The husband was tossing these massive root balls around where I directed along the driveway. The boys helped using the wheel barrow. I was so grateful. There was no way I could have accomplished this many bushes and gotten them home without the husband's help with his tractor and trailer. I gave him $40 for his plants and felt guilty it wasn't more.

Once he left I got to work digging holes in the ground. We hit weed barrier and then clay within inches of the surface. Each hole was torturous. First Trevor bailed then Riley as the work was intense and difficult. Riley helped with the suggestion of watering the area thoroughly to loosen up the ground. By the end of the day only four plants were in the ground.

I slept in until 10:00 am today from exhaustion. I had the boys water the plants as soon as I got up to keep the roots moist. I need to have compost delivered. I have decided if I can cover the roots in good dirt perhaps they will stay happier. I definitely need to amend the soil and these plants are big. I would never have been able to afford them from a nursery. I just wish I could have been more prepared with the ground ready, but with Craig's list you have to move swiftly.

The husband was going to pull the plants out either way. I was just their motivator to get the plants removed immediately. He did make $40 rather than having to pay for a dumping fee. Still He was a great find with his tractor, which he told me he rents by the hour for $50 with a 4 hour minimum. I told him I would call when we were ready. I still have to dispose of the blackberries.

Today's project will be to get that lower campfire pit going.