Oh, it's so nice to be back amongst you all. Thank you for the many quack grass suggestions. And for the confirmation about how tenacious it is. I was particularly impressed by the description of it punching its way through black plastic to attempt to set up shop on cement! That's been my experience with the planters' paper--the stolons poke right through and set up shop on top. Soil, who needs
soil to grow???
I've battled that stuff for many, many years. I'm 53, been gardening since I was ten years old and seem to have a knack for setting up shop in any place that has quack grass. As I've gotten older, it's begun to occur to me that perhaps I won't be able to keep up this hand-to-hand, exhilarating level of combat in my dotage, hence my search for alternatives.
So, I'm going to continue my search and destroy policy. But, it occurs to me that I can begin to ponder the tenacious nature of my "enemy" as I do so and try to incorporate more of that quality into my own life.
I've decided to plant white clover mixed with some buckwheat and maybe a bit of rye grass. Thanks for the information about legumes. I'm so lazy and inefficient I've only managed to get it together to actually get my soil tested once in my life. I'm incredibly impressed with anyone who can even begin to estimate the percentage of humus (or anything else) in their garden, by the way.
I feel a right eedjit to have not thought of a weed wacker. I actually had one but hated it as the string just got tangled up. But my neighbour has recently turned me on to hedge trimmers. She uses an electric hedge trimmer in lieu of a weed whacker and says it works great. In fact, she loaned me hers. Du-uh, maybe I could *use* it! It's doing no one any good sitting on my kitchen floor. I'm not
good with power devices. I have a lovely little tiller sitting unused in my shed because I can't figure out how to start it.
Oh, about that wood stove. I wouldn't fool around with it. Whoever mentioned fumes is talking about things like carbon monoxide, that odorless, tasteless, colourless killer of sleeping families. We heat with wood, by the way. It's true you can check for smoke, but I'd want to borrow some sort of meter or something for carbon monoxide. Even then, you won't know if the cracks get worse, the draw
on your chimney changes--gee, it just sounds pretty dangerous to me.
I'm not one to get all mobilized about things, by the way. I do know tons of people who heat with unvented kerosene heaters. I know people who still can green beans in a water bath canner, too, and grew up with old timers who stuck their stove pipe through the nearest window. But I also know some of them died and that carbon monoxide can cause a low-grade chronic flu-like condition prior to
killing its victims. Sometimes the old ways have been replaced for a reason. Good luck with it, anyway. In our area you can pick up a used, uncracked wood stove fairly cheaply. I wish that for you.
Sherry
I had a problem with my wacker. Whenever I had to put on string
I had to disassemble the whole head. Not just the string container.
I eliminated that problem with a device made for eedjits. It is a
simple head using precut strings that for mine were about 18
inches long. Replacement takes less than a minute. I got the
pro??????something head at a true value variety store. I suggest
you scout your local garden stores and such for a similar device. It
replaces the original head and ends that string problem. You could
ask for string cutter/weed wacker replacement heads. If I can find
it again I will post the manufacturers name.
> I feel a right eedjit to have not thought of a weed wacker. I actually had one but hated it as the string just got tangled up. But my neighbour has recently turned me on to hedge trimmers. She uses an electric hedge trimmer in lieu of a weed whacker and says it works great. In fact, she loaned
me hers. Du-uh, maybe I could *use* it! It's doing no one any good sitting on my kitchen floor. I'm not
> good with power devices. I have a lovely little tiller sitting unused in my shed because I can't figure out how to start it.
In think a properly applied refractory cement should be able to
seal the cracks air tight. Maybe you could even test cold by
putting a small fan or hair dryer inside the stove pointed at the
cracked area and hold a lit candle or something near the outside of
the used to be crack. If it gets blown out don't trust it without
checking with a meter for carbon monoxide. I am sure there are
reasonably priced detectors on the market anywhere there is a big
interest in wood stoves. The detectors would warn you of any
harmful levels of carbon monoxide.
> Oh, about that wood stove. I wouldn't fool around with it. Whoever mentioned fumes is talking about things like carbon monoxide, that odorless, tasteless, colourless killer of sleeping families. We heat with wood, by the way. It's true you can check for smoke, but I'd want to borrow some sort
of meter or something for carbon monoxide. Even then, you won't know if the cracks get worse, the draw
> on your chimney changes--gee, it just sounds pretty dangerous to me.
> I'm not one to get all mobilized about things, by the way. I do know tons of people who heat with unvented kerosene heaters. I know people who still can green beans in a water bath canner, too, and grew up with old timers who stuck their stove pipe through the nearest window. But I also know
some of them died and that carbon monoxide can cause a low-grade chronic flu-like condition prior to
