I never thought my fir tree would get this tall and wide...in my lifetime.

I have a large ring of colored stone under the tree, but it's grown wider
than the ring.

So the needles have killed the lawn.

No way I'm cutting or pruning this tree back. Wife would prune
me...painfully.

So....is there a variety of grass that will survive even if the needles
fall.

I've always sucked the needles up with the mover, but can't get them all.

It's not a big area, so I guess resodding isn't a killer.
But hate to have to do it each spring.




--


-----------------------------------------------------
If you find yourself in a fair fight, you didn't plan your mission properly.
-----------------------------------------------------

Bill H. in Chicagoland
webcams at http://76.16.160.118:8080
weather at http://hhweather.webhop.org

FireBrick said:

I never thought my fir tree would get this tall and wide...in my lifetime.

Is it a fir? Or, is it a Picea pungens?


I have a large ring of colored stone under the tree, but it's grown wider
than the ring.

Did you not expect the tree to grow? =)


So the needles have killed the lawn.

Is it losing an unusual amount of needles, compared to its history?


No way I'm cutting or pruning this tree back. Wife would prune
me...painfully.

As well, she should. =)


So....is there a variety of grass that will survive even if the needles
fall.

Why not just mulch the tree out to the dripline? That's really best for the
tree, anyway.


I've always sucked the needles up with the mover, but can't get them all.

Are you sure the tree doesn't have some sort of pest?


It's not a big area,

It's bigger than a "large ring of colored stone"!

so I guess resodding isn't a killer.

I thought the tree was the killer? This is all so confusing.

But hate to have to do it each spring.

And, most likely you will.

The lower branches of P. pungens drag the ground. Why would you want to try
and grow grass there? =) You hacked off the lower branches, didn't you.

--

Eggs

Could crop circles be the work of a cereal killer?

unfortunately, I can't 'mulch' the tree out to the fall line.
and the other days high winds blew the needles much father than the drip
line. Much farther indeed.
It's a very dense tree and the needles and twigs build up. When the wind
blows, they tend to cover a lot of ground.

So I'll ask again...."Is there a variety of grass seed/sod that is resistant
to fir tree needles.
The tree is 30' plus, and we did have to have the bottom professionally
trimmed so that we and our neighbors could walk.

So...again, besides stone, mulch, that would not be appropriate, is there a
variety of real grass that will survive.

Please and thank you




"Eggs Zachtly" wrote in message
...
FireBrick said:

I never thought my fir tree would get this tall and wide...in my
lifetime.

Is it a fir? Or, is it a Picea pungens?


I have a large ring of colored stone under the tree, but it's grown
wider
than the ring.

Did you not expect the tree to grow? =)


So the needles have killed the lawn.

Is it losing an unusual amount of needles, compared to its history?


No way I'm cutting or pruning this tree back. Wife would prune
me...painfully.

As well, she should. =)


So....is there a variety of grass that will survive even if the needles
fall.

Why not just mulch the tree out to the dripline? That's really best for
the
tree, anyway.


I've always sucked the needles up with the mover, but can't get them all.

Are you sure the tree doesn't have some sort of pest?


It's not a big area,

It's bigger than a "large ring of colored stone"!

so I guess resodding isn't a killer.

I thought the tree was the killer? This is all so confusing.

But hate to have to do it each spring.

And, most likely you will.

The lower branches of P. pungens drag the ground. Why would you want to
try
and grow grass there? =) You hacked off the lower branches, didn't you.

--

Eggs

Could crop circles be the work of a cereal killer?

FireBrick wrote:
unfortunately, I can't 'mulch' the tree out to the fall line.
and the other days high winds blew the needles much father than the drip
line. Much farther indeed.
It's a very dense tree and the needles and twigs build up. When the wind
blows, they tend to cover a lot of ground.

So I'll ask again...."Is there a variety of grass seed/sod that is resistant
to fir tree needles.
The tree is 30' plus, and we did have to have the bottom professionally
trimmed so that we and our neighbors could walk.

So...again, besides stone, mulch, that would not be appropriate, is there a
variety of real grass that will survive.

Please and thank you



What part of the world are you in? Why can't you mulch the tree? Is
there a reason why the tree is dropping so many needles and debris?
It would be very hard, if not impossible to get grass to grow under such
a tree. Mulch or rock is a great groundcover. Why not utilize it?
If I knew what part of the world you were in, I could maybe suggest a
few shade and acid tolerant groundcovers to consider.

[Top-posting fixed]

FireBrick said:


"Eggs Zachtly" wrote in message
...
FireBrick said:

I never thought my fir tree would get this tall and wide...in my
lifetime.

Is it a fir? Or, is it a Picea pungens?


I have a large ring of colored stone under the tree, but it's grown
wider
than the ring.

Did you not expect the tree to grow? =)


So the needles have killed the lawn.

Is it losing an unusual amount of needles, compared to its history?


No way I'm cutting or pruning this tree back. Wife would prune
me...painfully.

As well, she should. =)


So....is there a variety of grass that will survive even if the needles
fall.

Why not just mulch the tree out to the dripline? That's really best for
the
tree, anyway.


I've always sucked the needles up with the mover, but can't get them all.

Are you sure the tree doesn't have some sort of pest?


It's not a big area,

It's bigger than a "large ring of colored stone"!

so I guess resodding isn't a killer.

I thought the tree was the killer? This is all so confusing.

But hate to have to do it each spring.

And, most likely you will.

The lower branches of P. pungens drag the ground. Why would you want to
try
and grow grass there? =) You hacked off the lower branches, didn't you.

unfortunately, I can't 'mulch' the tree out to the fall line.

Why is that? It's best for the tree, the soil, and the sod that won't grow
there.

and the other days high winds blew the needles much father than the drip
line. Much farther indeed.
It's a very dense tree and the needles and twigs build up. When the wind
blows, they tend to cover a lot of ground.

So I'll ask again...."Is there a variety of grass seed/sod that is resistant
to fir tree needles.

And, I'll ask again.... "is it a Abies or a Picea"?

The tree is 30' plus, and we did have to have the bottom professionally
trimmed so that we and our neighbors could walk.

Then the "professionals" should be removed from the workforce. They
probably "top" trees, too.

Do you think that if the tree were allowed to grow as it /should/ (branched
to the ground), that the winds would be able to spread the debris from
underneath it? I'll give you a hint: Not nearly as much as it does since
you had the *cough* professionals **** it up. It was /your/ choice to ****
the tree up, now you've got to deal with the consequences. Like Newton
said, "For every action, there's an equal and opposite reaction.".


So...again, besides stone, mulch, that would not be appropriate,

Geez, you're a dense SOB. How the **** would it "not be appropriate"? It's
*most* appropriate. You're wanting to have two different plants compete for
air, water, and nutrients. Which do *you* think would win that battle, a
30' tree (with highly acidic debris), or 3" grass (which doesn't tolerate
highly acidic soils, well)?

is there a variety of real grass that will survive.

No. Now bugger off.

--

Eggs

A fine is a tax for doing wrong. A tax is a fine for doing well.

Because of the placement of the tree, it was necessary to remove many of the
bottom branches so that people could walk on the public sidewalk.
And the sidewalk to the front of the house.
Unfortunate, but that was the way it had to go.
We live in the Chicago area.

Now ground covers are an option as you mentioned.
If we ran the decorative gravel all the way, we would have no grass at all
and the gravel would extend to the public sidewalk.
As my street is close to the public school, even small sized decorative
gravel would end up being kicked and strewn about.

I inherited this, and I'm looking for the most practical, and attractive way
to correct it.

As to why the tree shed needles, not sure other than inside branches always
seem to be outgrown, break and the twigs fall off with their needles.
I always say fir trees like this in the area. the smaller, older branches
near the trunk eventual give way to the fuller and growing branches at the
ends of each limb.

Thank you for you polite suggestions. I agree that 'ground covers' are
probably the best alternative.

I will place the other rude troll on the block list.



wrote in message news:GVl2j.197182$Xa3.129745@attbi_s22...
FireBrick wrote:
unfortunately, I can't 'mulch' the tree out to the fall line.
and the other days high winds blew the needles much father than the drip
line. Much farther indeed.
It's a very dense tree and the needles and twigs build up. When the wind
blows, they tend to cover a lot of ground.

So I'll ask again...."Is there a variety of grass seed/sod that is
resistant to fir tree needles.
The tree is 30' plus, and we did have to have the bottom professionally
trimmed so that we and our neighbors could walk.

So...again, besides stone, mulch, that would not be appropriate, is there
a variety of real grass that will survive.

Please and thank you



What part of the world are you in? Why can't you mulch the tree? Is there
a reason why the tree is dropping so many needles and debris?
It would be very hard, if not impossible to get grass to grow under such a
tree. Mulch or rock is a great groundcover. Why not utilize it?
If I knew what part of the world you were in, I could maybe suggest a few
shade and acid tolerant groundcovers to consider.

wrote in message news:GVl2j.197182$Xa3.129745@attbi_s22...
FireBrick wrote:
unfortunately, I can't 'mulch' the tree out to the fall line.
and the other days high winds blew the needles much father than the drip
line. Much farther indeed.
It's a very dense tree and the needles and twigs build up. When the wind
blows, they tend to cover a lot of ground.

So I'll ask again...."Is there a variety of grass seed/sod that is
resistant to fir tree needles.
The tree is 30' plus, and we did have to have the bottom professionally
trimmed so that we and our neighbors could walk.

So...again, besides stone, mulch, that would not be appropriate, is there
a variety of real grass that will survive.

Please and thank you


What part of the world are you in? Why can't you mulch the tree? Is there
a reason why the tree is dropping so many needles and debris?
It would be very hard, if not impossible to get grass to grow under such a
tree. Mulch or rock is a great groundcover. Why not utilize it?
If I knew what part of the world you were in, I could maybe suggest a few
shade and acid tolerant groundcovers to consider.


FireBrick wrote:
Because of the placement of the tree, it was necessary to remove many of the
bottom branches so that people could walk on the public sidewalk.
And the sidewalk to the front of the house.
Unfortunate, but that was the way it had to go.
We live in the Chicago area.

Now ground covers are an option as you mentioned.
If we ran the decorative gravel all the way, we would have no grass at all
and the gravel would extend to the public sidewalk.
As my street is close to the public school, even small sized decorative
gravel would end up being kicked and strewn about.

I inherited this, and I'm looking for the most practical, and attractive way
to correct it.

As to why the tree shed needles, not sure other than inside branches always
seem to be outgrown, break and the twigs fall off with their needles.
I always say fir trees like this in the area. the smaller, older branches
near the trunk eventual give way to the fuller and growing branches at the
ends of each limb.

Thank you for you polite suggestions. I agree that 'ground covers' are
probably the best alternative.

I will place the other rude troll on the block list.




First, to toppost is rude. Second, In this case I would have the tree
removed and replaced with a more appropriate tree for the location.

why?

wrote in message news:MPX2j.217381$Fc.191908@attbi_s21...
First, to toppost is rude.

I'm not sure what 'toppost' means. I thought it meant using a date far in
advance, which I did not do.
Nor do I use foul language and act or reply rudely to others.

And the tree will remain. I don't remove trees just because they are
inconvenient.
I 'try' to find appropriate alternatives to problems.



wrote in message news:MPX2j.217381$Fc.191908@attbi_s21...

wrote in message
news:GVl2j.197182$Xa3.129745@attbi_s22...
FireBrick wrote:
unfortunately, I can't 'mulch' the tree out to the fall line.
and the other days high winds blew the needles much father than the
drip line. Much farther indeed.
It's a very dense tree and the needles and twigs build up. When the
wind blows, they tend to cover a lot of ground.

So I'll ask again...."Is there a variety of grass seed/sod that is
resistant to fir tree needles.
The tree is 30' plus, and we did have to have the bottom professionally
trimmed so that we and our neighbors could walk.

So...again, besides stone, mulch, that would not be appropriate, is
there a variety of real grass that will survive.

Please and thank you


What part of the world are you in? Why can't you mulch the tree? Is
there a reason why the tree is dropping so many needles and debris?
It would be very hard, if not impossible to get grass to grow under such
a tree. Mulch or rock is a great groundcover. Why not utilize it?
If I knew what part of the world you were in, I could maybe suggest a
few shade and acid tolerant groundcovers to consider.


FireBrick wrote:
Because of the placement of the tree, it was necessary to remove many of
the bottom branches so that people could walk on the public sidewalk.
And the sidewalk to the front of the house.
Unfortunate, but that was the way it had to go.
We live in the Chicago area.

Now ground covers are an option as you mentioned.
If we ran the decorative gravel all the way, we would have no grass at
all and the gravel would extend to the public sidewalk.
As my street is close to the public school, even small sized decorative
gravel would end up being kicked and strewn about.

I inherited this, and I'm looking for the most practical, and attractive
way to correct it.

As to why the tree shed needles, not sure other than inside branches
always seem to be outgrown, break and the twigs fall off with their
needles.
I always say fir trees like this in the area. the smaller, older
branches near the trunk eventual give way to the fuller and growing
branches at the ends of each limb.

Thank you for you polite suggestions. I agree that 'ground covers' are
probably the best alternative.

I will place the other rude troll on the block list.




First, to toppost is rude. Second, In this case I would have the tree
removed and replaced with a more appropriate tree for the location.

FireBrick said:
[Top-posting fixed /again/ ]



wrote in message news:MPX2j.217381$Fc.191908@attbi_s21...

wrote in message
news:GVl2j.197182$Xa3.129745@attbi_s22...

[...]


First, to toppost is rude. Second, In this case I would have the tree
removed and replaced with a more appropriate tree for the location.

I'm not sure what 'toppost' means. I thought it meant using a date far in
advance, which I did not do.

It means putting the your reply in front of what you're replying to.

Nor do I use foul language and act or reply rudely to others.

No, you're just dense about taking proper advice.


And the tree will remain. I don't remove trees just because they are
inconvenient.

It's not because it's 'inconvenient', dumbass. It's an inappropriate
species for the location.

I 'try' to find appropriate alternatives to problems.

No, you ask and ask until someone gives you the answer you want to hear.
You were given the most 'appropriate alternatives' ( mulch to the
dripline, or remove the tree and plant a more appropriate species for the
location).

You're quite the clueless twit, aren't you.
--

Eggs

A: Top-posters.
Q: What is the most annoying thing in newsgroups?

On Sun, 25 Nov 2007 15:22:20 -0600, "FireBrick"
wrote:

unfortunately, I can't 'mulch' the tree out to the fall line.
and the other days high winds blew the needles much father than the drip
line. Much farther indeed.
It's a very dense tree and the needles and twigs build up. When the wind
blows, they tend to cover a lot of ground.

So I'll ask again...."Is there a variety of grass seed/sod that is resistant
to fir tree needles.
The tree is 30' plus, and we did have to have the bottom professionally
trimmed so that we and our neighbors could walk.

So...again, besides stone, mulch, that would not be appropriate, is there a
variety of real grass that will survive.

Please and thank you

no expert here but fwiw
and given the your criteria

you have to constantly keep the needles off the ground
aerate the soil
lay or plant grass
feed often

if the shade underneath is very dense, chances are nothing much will
actually do well.

if roots are close to the surface, not much will grow

hope it helps

Bosco wrote:
On Sun, 25 Nov 2007 15:22:20 -0600, "FireBrick"
wrote:

unfortunately, I can't 'mulch' the tree out to the fall line.
and the other days high winds blew the needles much father than the drip
line. Much farther indeed.
It's a very dense tree and the needles and twigs build up. When the wind
blows, they tend to cover a lot of ground.

So I'll ask again...."Is there a variety of grass seed/sod that is resistant
to fir tree needles.
The tree is 30' plus, and we did have to have the bottom professionally
trimmed so that we and our neighbors could walk.

So...again, besides stone, mulch, that would not be appropriate, is there a
variety of real grass that will survive.

Please and thank you

no expert here but fwiw
and given the your criteria

you have to constantly keep the needles off the ground
aerate the soil
lay or plant grass
feed often

if the shade underneath is very dense, chances are nothing much will
actually do well.

if roots are close to the surface, not much will grow

hope it helps



Don't forget about the acid in the soil. These things won't help. And
you hurt the tree if you lower the acidity in the soil inside the drip
line. Remove the tree and replace it with a more suitable tree for that
spot or just live with what you have. Sheesh. End of thread for me.

On Tue, 27 Nov 2007 16:44:28 GMT, wrote:


wrote in message news:GVl2j.197182$Xa3.129745@attbi_s22...
FireBrick wrote:
unfortunately, I can't 'mulch' the tree out to the fall line.
and the other days high winds blew the needles much father than the drip
line. Much farther indeed.
It's a very dense tree and the needles and twigs build up. When the wind
blows, they tend to cover a lot of ground.

So I'll ask again...."Is there a variety of grass seed/sod that is
resistant to fir tree needles.
The tree is 30' plus, and we did have to have the bottom professionally
trimmed so that we and our neighbors could walk.

So...again, besides stone, mulch, that would not be appropriate, is there
a variety of real grass that will survive.

Please and thank you


What part of the world are you in? Why can't you mulch the tree? Is there
a reason why the tree is dropping so many needles and debris?
It would be very hard, if not impossible to get grass to grow under such a
tree. Mulch or rock is a great groundcover. Why not utilize it?
If I knew what part of the world you were in, I could maybe suggest a few
shade and acid tolerant groundcovers to consider.


FireBrick wrote:
Because of the placement of the tree, it was necessary to remove many of the
bottom branches so that people could walk on the public sidewalk.
And the sidewalk to the front of the house.
Unfortunate, but that was the way it had to go.
We live in the Chicago area.

Now ground covers are an option as you mentioned.
If we ran the decorative gravel all the way, we would have no grass at all
and the gravel would extend to the public sidewalk.
As my street is close to the public school, even small sized decorative
gravel would end up being kicked and strewn about.

I inherited this, and I'm looking for the most practical, and attractive way
to correct it.

As to why the tree shed needles, not sure other than inside branches always
seem to be outgrown, break and the twigs fall off with their needles.
I always say fir trees like this in the area. the smaller, older branches
near the trunk eventual give way to the fuller and growing branches at the
ends of each limb.

Thank you for you polite suggestions. I agree that 'ground covers' are
probably the best alternative.

I will place the other rude troll on the block list.




First, to toppost is rude. Second, In this case I would have the tree
removed and replaced with a more appropriate tree for the location.

Yeah, much better to have to scroll down through a long post to read
some etiquette lesson.

GWB said:

On Tue, 27 Nov 2007 16:44:28 GMT, wrote:


[...]


First, to toppost is rude. Second, In this case I would have the tree
removed and replaced with a more appropriate tree for the location.

Yeah, much better to have to scroll down through a long post to read
some etiquette lesson.

No. Much better to post replies inline, snipping content not relevant to
your reply. /All/ bottom-posted is just as bad as all top-posted.

--

Eggs

-Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day. Teach a man to fish and he
will sit in a boat all day drinking beer.

On Nov 27, 7:03 am, "FireBrick" wrote:
Because of the placement of the tree, it was necessary to remove many of the
bottom branches so that people could walk on the public sidewalk.
And the sidewalk to the front of the house.
Unfortunate, but that was the way it had to go.
We live in the Chicago area.

Now ground covers are an option as you mentioned.
If we ran the decorative gravel all the way, we would have no grass at all
and the gravel would extend to the public sidewalk.
As my street is close to the public school, even small sized decorative
gravel would end up being kicked and strewn about.

I inherited this, and I'm looking for the most practical, and attractive way
to correct it.

As to why the tree shed needles, not sure other than inside branches always
seem to be outgrown, break and the twigs fall off with their needles.
I always say fir trees like this in the area. the smaller, older branches
near the trunk eventual give way to the fuller and growing branches at the
ends of each limb.

Thank you for you polite suggestions. I agree that 'ground covers' are
probably the best alternative.

I will place the other rude troll on the block list.



wrote in messagenews:GVl2j.197182$Xa3.129745@attbi_s22...
FireBrick wrote:
unfortunately, I can't 'mulch' the tree out to the fall line.
and the other days high winds blew the needles much father than the drip
line. Much farther indeed.
It's a very dense tree and the needles and twigs build up. When the wind
blows, they tend to cover a lot of ground.

So I'll ask again...."Is there a variety of grass seed/sod that is
resistant to fir tree needles.
The tree is 30' plus, and we did have to have the bottom professionally
trimmed so that we and our neighbors could walk.

So...again, besides stone, mulch, that would not be appropriate, is there
a variety of real grass that will survive.

Please and thank you

What part of the world are you in? Why can't you mulch the tree? Is there
a reason why the tree is dropping so many needles and debris?
It would be very hard, if not impossible to get grass to grow under such a
tree. Mulch or rock is a great groundcover. Why not utilize it?
If I knew what part of the world you were in, I could maybe suggest a few
shade and acid tolerant groundcovers to consider.- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

I'm thinking grass, no, but some kind of ground cover, yes.