The taking down of the Virginia Creeper in 2022

 In 2022 we had many renovations done in the garden.  And the heat pump installed. Some of the garden renovations are shown on the composite of the Synopsis of the Journal entries for 2022 included below.  The taking down of the Virginia creeper was not mentioned on the composite... just too many things done in 2022.  As I am starting to do up yet more gardening pages I am doing this post so I can link it to the page about the Driveway Strip garden room https://www.mmmee.com/listDWS 

The text is an excerpt from my daily garden journal.

August 11, 2022: 

 Pat was complaining about the magnolia and the tree/shrubs on the other side of the driveway, including the virginia creeper. He has to get up on the ladder once a year and bring it down so that it does not get up on to the wires. Poor Pat! So after talking to him about taking it out or keeping it; I think I compromised at bringing it down to manageable height. I started this chore at 3:00 and came in at 5:00. I have a lot of it pulled down. There was a squirrel's nest or two under there. It has a lot of dried out vines. The ivy is very healthy. When I got to the top of the vines I see that the ivy has grown into cracks in the post. So, it is a good thing we are taking it down, I guess. I am now contemplating cleaning out the area around the post, entirely. I do not know if round up kills ivy, creeper or St.John's wort. 

August 12, 2022:

 I have the piles of debris along the driveway with the virginia creeper stuff. So, it is quite cleaned up.  I worked at taking down more of the virginia creeper from about 3:00 to 3:40... came in for iced cappiccino and a cookie. Was back out till about 5:45. I have about 3/4 of the thing taken down. Pat and I do not know just yet how much of the creeper we are going to take down. Ground level would be good for me. The lower I go on clipping down the stems the thicker the stems become, so I do not know how much of this I can do with the long handled pruner. It has been a very good tool, but I think this bashing and crashing the creeper is taking its toll on it. This year has been full of this 'taking trees and shrubs down and cleaning up over-grown things', and renovation everywhere. 

August 16, 2022:

Was 18 degrees when I went out to the garden to continue taking down the creeper. I have it down to a knarly bunch of stems that look like a stump. I think I will leave it at that. Need to get the St. John's wort mowed down. Then I should be able to find someone to hall away the debris. The Davey Tree arborist comes tomorrow morning. Pat thinks I should ask them to take this debris... Would be nice if they could. 

August 17, 2022:

Saw Ben from Davey Tree this morning about 10:00 ish. We got all the things listed that I want done: copies of everything in the gardening folder.

August 20, 2022:

 At about 9:00 Ben came by with his silver pick up truck and his tools. He has a good big hedge pruner, rake, shovel, broom and a tarp. Also has a pressure washer and other things I don't know about. He used the tarp to load debris onto, folded it and lifted the stuff into the truck box. He clipped the St.John's wort; on the Saanich property and up to the agave. I said I would do the rest, as there are plants in there that I do not want clipped down. It must have taken him a couple hours. The truck box was full and covered with the tied down tarp. I got his private phone number and his wife's cell. He uses his cell number for Davey Tree stuff, and the ipad they gave him. He uses his private phone with Davey so he does not need to be answering several different phones. $150. paid. 2 more months and he will be able to form his own company. I don't think Davey Tree minds him doing this side work, as long as he is not doing tree stuff that Davey would be able to charge for. 

On August 18, 2023 I dug out some of the ivy at the base of the stump of the virginia creeper.  The creeper has gone wild, with great big leaves that are lying on top of the St.John's wort along the ground. I pulled down the pieces that have grown up the post to about a 6 foot height.  When I get the time I will move the creeper vines and cut back everything beneath them, and put them back along the ground again.   The St. John's wort also has been growing like crazy.