There is always 2 sides to a pancake

While we were in escrow on this house we had a survey done and much to our surprise discovered that there was another oak tree on our property. I was in love!! The second is on the right side of what was a gravel driveway and I envisioned someday having a circular driveway going around this second tree. After consulting an arborist, we took his advise and poured the driveway between the drip lines of the 2 trees, giving plenty of room for rain to reach the roots.

I think it's Dr Phil that says, "There are always 2 sides to a pancake". The same is true of the oak trees! As much as I love them I NEVER envisioned what a mess all the acorns would make all over the driveway. They are constantly falling and when I am in the yard watering my new flowerbeds I am reminded of the movie Castaway where Tom Hanks hears something behind him and eventually discovers coconuts falling behind him.

 

I've heard that for an acorn to grow from bud to completed acorn take 2 years! Maybe we'll get a break next year:)

In Pursuit of Shade

Being a home buyer on a budget I have often found that when we are house hunting we generally have to compromise something on our list of wants when we purchase a home. With this one it is certainly the garage. That said, look what we DID get!

 

 

Shade!

 

 

The last house we bought 16 years ago was brand new. Although we loved the house and I was able to have a beautiful yard, I was never able to keep trees growing long enough to get the shade I really wanted in order to grow shade tolerant plants. Like hostas! Not to mention the beating sun on our July and August days here in NC. 

 

This is a white oak in our front yard. I will share some of the history of the tree in a later post but for now I am thankful to have this tree on our property and hope that we can be good caretakers of such a beautiful piece of history.