SWARMING BEES

The behavior observed in this video is know as swarming and is part of the natural reproduction cycle of honey bees. Swarming is a response to overcrowding of a bee colony. One or more queens are produced, the new queens leave the hive with hundreds of worker bees and form a massive hanging cone in a location not far from the original hive. The queen is secure in the center of her legions while "scout" bees fly out in search of a new location for a hive, like a hollow tree. A couple of years ago I observed this phenomenon in this same tree and I had seen it before on a job site, it is good to know what I am witnessing.

I believe that I shot this video as the new hive was breaking apart and moving to their new location. I went back to see if I could shoot some stills about ten minutes after the video and they were gone. The buzz is how I first noticed the bees, it took me a couple of minutes to find them in the top of the oak, they must have been upward of forty feet high my camera is only a 10x zoom so it is hard to make out the ball of bees, it was at least the size of a basketball. You can see it in the opening shot the clearest.

On a trip through the Amazon jungle several years ago I had and encounter with wasps which our fearless, super studly, multi-lingual, Spanish guide said were the thing he feared most in the Amazon. This is after I had witnessed him wrestle a cayman and climb a tree to knock a deadly viper to the ground so we could view it. We were on a day hike and were suddenly attacked by a small swarm of these 2" behemoths, we began to run away but I was last in the group and some hefty, old Italian couple were to slow she and I got stung several times. I ended up seeing a Dr. in Rio, but that is another story.

The Age of Aquarius

Terry Mounsey from Aquarius Underground shares his thoughts on irrigation and watering.

He had three guys working on this job and they finished in about four days. The electrician hooked up the 220 line and we were ready to water. The pump and lines will be blown out for winter and the suction line removed from the lake. The automatic timer allows the watering cycles to be adjusted as needed. Installing the control box on the outside of the home allows the irrigation technician access without bothering the home owner.

Irrigation Day

Great Blue Heron flying low on Devils Lake

Irrigation is especially important for absentee owners, people with large or spread out properties, those with new plantings, new yards and people who want to maintain the highest standards for their property and investment. If you are lucky enough to own a piece of dirt and you want to keep it beautiful you can not always rely on mother nature. If we get an inch of rain a week in NE IN that is adequate to maintain most everything that is green. Ideally if that rain were gentle and the ground soaked it up slowly, say 1/2 inch in the early morning on one day and another 1/2 inch three days later you would only have to be concerned about watering your container gardens.


But with the dog days of August and the unpredictability of spring and fall rains an irrigation system with a rain sensor will give you peace of mind and maximize the performance of all your plant material. The rain sensor turns off your irrigation system when nature turns on hers. Of course having water available with the flick of a remote also means you have a insurance policy in times of draught which occurs historically about every six years in my neck of the woods.



Installation of irrigation often involves boring underground, trenching or pulling pipe, lots of hand digging and the removal of glacial till found in the soils around the lakes in Steuben county. Working closely with a limited number of irrigation installers means I am able to control the timing, scheduling and fine tuning of many of the systems our customers have installed. Communication with the installers results are the plants we just put in or the yard we have installed has water immediately available.




There is a lot of controversy regarding the use of water for lawns and gardens. June/July Reader's Digest features an article, Greener Grass which puts forth some sobering statistics regarding our water consumption. The use of potable water, cisterns, rain barrels and rain gardens is gaining popularity although I do not see this as a 100% solution I think many of these systems could augment underground irrigation. I sure wish I could have captured the excessive rain we have experienced this May.

Planting a Forest on Clear Lake

Eighty year old Patty Griest has planted over 3000 native Indiana trees on the ten acres of land she purchased north of her Clear Lake home, she is building a forest and prairie for future generations to enjoy. She even collects seedlings from her yard and sprouts a variety of trees from seeds in cold frames, I took home a healthy 2' tall buckeye she grew from the nut. She has small fenced nursery where the trees are moved up from the cold frames until they are large enough to be placed in their final locations.

She does not stop at reforestation, she is an accomplished potter, world traveler and yoga enthusiast spending much of her time at the lake tending various gardens. She is a slight women who walks purposefully weather she is toting a shovel or riding on her John Deere to mow around the 20 odd species of saplings that stand tall and neat in the field.

On a sad note Patty just lost her beloved dog Doogie to a fox who stole the animal right out of her backyard while her other dog indubitably witnessed the horror. Our condolences to Patty and a reminder for those with small pets who live in rural areas, be watchful and wary.

The Sod Farm Grows

There has been a sod farm in Steuben County as long a I have been here (1978) and I do not know how long before that. The previous owner was Donna Moody who took over operations after she and her husband divorced she ran it well with her partner Cindy for many years. Now Cindy and Donna are living la Vida lo ca in Key West where Donna manages her grandchildren and Cindy manages a small hotel, I like to visit with them when I am in Key West. The new owner expanded his operation from Roanoke (near Ft. Wayne) to this location in Fremont.


In addition to sod they carry all fashion of landscape supplies and are currently expanding into plants, very convenient for us. Tim and his staff are genuinely nice people, Deb Waite who used to work for Donna and Cindy, handles the sod cutter and forklifts like she was born to ride. Tim is our on the scene man for Encore Lighting supplying on site engineering and support as well as being an Encore distributor. He keeps up on all the licensing, management and new advances in pesticides and herbicides making life easier for our four licensed applicators. There is a new product (chemical) he is using in the fields which kills all plants in sod except the blue grass, pretty wild huh? Only growers are licensed for the product thus far.

After May 15th we will begin planting annuals. That is supposed to be the safe date to avoid frost. My favorite annuals for a hanging baskets are Dragon Wing Begonias available in red and pink, they perform fabulous in shade, will tolerate some sun, require little to no dead heading and bloom profusely all summer long. These beauties can run a little dry from time to time and still bounce back. They grow so well a mid summers haircut is needed to reduce the weight of the baskets. For beds Victoria Blue Salvia is my true love the delicate individual flowers combine to form clumping spires of blue that wave on sturdy stems above the green gray foliage. When the bloom fades the silver pods remain attractive adding more color and texture to the plant. They will tolerate light shade and bloom well into November, often outlasting every plant in my garden. I guess if I have a signature plant "Vickie" is it.

We finally poured concrete for our stone bins, the aggregate company was supposed to bring us out a float but they forgot so we have a rough finish but hey we are landscapers not flat workers.
Our concrete pals recommended watering it daily for the first week to help the concrete cure and increase strength.

The house in Michigan is ready for plants this week as Bill and Ryan are on the final walk. We set grade and did some prep work last Thursday and Monday morning the plants arrive. The plant arrangement is seldom exactly like the blueprint I draw, often it is close and sometimes a very different arrangement shows up in the final product. Being on site for the prep work helps me get a feeling for where the plants need to be and where they will perform best. Devils Lake I am certain requires some latitude with
plant arrangement, that is one of the best parts of my job.

For the Birds, Odds & Ends

The underside of these emerging Blue Angel hosta leaves stopped me cold as I prepared to divide it with a sharp spade









Four of my jobs were running this week making it extra hectic. The job in Michigan awaited pavers so Bill and Ryan spent four days there prepping for the walks. Friday they helped install a couple of 4" caliper, 22' October Glory maples on Clear Lake.



Theresa is my right arm on the green side of things. She runs the plant installations, builds the best rock walls of all employees, supervises maintenance and is an absolute pleasure to have at work these last ten years. She says she loves her job and I believe her. This week her crew bounced back and forth between two landscape installations. The circle patio and rock walls on Lake James were ready for plants and a job I was working with the client was ready to go. Theresa rebuilt this rock wall and we planted 50 liriope above it. A small self contained fountain will be installed soon. Our client is a designer and she is shopping for the perfect urn in Chicago next week. To help defray cost Ryan ( client) decided to help with tear out and install the mulch.


It must have been a week for the birds as I came upon the giant rooster driving 127 South out of MI, I just had to have a photo. The hawk crossed my path at Bledsoe's golf course when it literally fell out of the sky in a death defying dive with another red tail. They split apart at the last second and I followed this one to where it roosted. Their call is even more penetrating when they are in battle mode.

Installing the green goods around our circle patio was just what the doctor ordered, in another month or so their will be great blooms to photograph. This client Doren is a professional photographer and plans to take a few pictures, I hope he shares. I will post some finished photo's after the flowers get to blooming and the grass comes in.

Milton Bradley, See the Turkey

This turkey ran in front of me and into the brush, what perfect color and blending.

Last Thursday I took five of the crew and the Big John Deere and we began the installation near Addison, MI. Step one, tear out. My method probably does not differ much from other owners of a small landscape design/build firm. Basically I take the phone call, meet the customer, design and draw the job, quote the job, sell the job, order the materials for the job and get the crew started explaining what I want to my various foremen/women and installers. I generally paint out beds, flag walls and give any special instructions. When it comes to setting the plant material I usually do that personally as I tend to tweak and shift seeing the design morph as inspiration strikes me. I let my seasoned crews perform most of the installations which is a difficult thing for me since I still enjoy watching my designs come to life and working in the field.
The busted up concrete in the photo was a add on before we even started the job. Since I had designed a paver walk on the service door side of the garage our client decided it would look better to remove the existing concrete entrance walk and replace it with a paver walk to match the new one. When I designed the job I thought the same thing but it was not in the budget. I am happy our client made the decision, I am sure they will find it an elegant match to the refurbished, dark stained porch as well as providing design unity.

Saving the existing turf from the damage of tractor tires is paramount in many of our installations. We accomplish this with the use of drive on boards, 1/2" sheets of plywood, cut in half and laid as tracks for our equipment. One of my favorite employees used to refer to this as a Milton Bradley Day, playing the board games. His name was Rob and I often miss him , he was a good friend. We worked together renovating houses in the winter and landscaping in the summers. Rob worked for us for seven years and died from cancer at age 51, February 14, 2007.

Bill is in charge of this installation, he and Ryan will be on the job from start to finish. The board movers are Wes and Darrick. Gary is using a chain saw to ready a huge viburnum for the tractor to pull out. The dwarf Alberta spruce swinging on the end of the chain came out in a hurry, the soil here is dark and rich and the plants came out fairly easy.

Boulder Retaining Walls & Purple Martins

Happiness is installing the last boulder!!




If you are following along you might recall the circular paver patio we just completed on the lake side of Doren and Lois's house on Lake James. The next section of hardscape to complete was the boulder retaining wall on the road side. As soon as I saw the space I knew exactly what it was going to look like, what it had to look like; but it was a challenge. We had to create two grades in a small space the existing fence meant the retaining walls would be reversed to each other. Not everyone got it at first even Bill and Ryan who were building it needed a gentle nudge from me. The smaller rocks are from Uncle Floyd and home grown, they are glacial boulders. The bigger, mossy rocks you might recognize from the super slab patio we did last year, the are called Arkansas two man boulders.


The hole is ready for the columnar oak we will be planting next week. The final phase to wrap this project up is installation of the green goods. There will be some upright evergreens, knock out roses, lots of perennials and I am leaning toward butterfly bushes or blue fothergilia .



The neighbors have a traditional purple martin house and several jug style houses at the lake shore. Purple martins are known for eating thousands of mosquito's each day. Their purple wings glow iridescent when they soar in the sunlight. They have a melodic song and are rather territorial. Brings back good memories for me as my dad fancied martins and kept a couple of houses.

Peace Burning Bush, Holy Smokes

In 1990 we landscaped Peace Lutheran Church in Fremont, IN they had just finished a large addition. On the east side of the church there is a large, contemporary, aluminum cross which is raised off the building and back lit with neon. The brown cross is also the home of a sparrow nest. Apparently the nesting activity disrupted one of the wire connections causing a short and a spark. The spark dropped down from the cross to the leaves which were built up behind the existing yews. The result, burning bushes and melting siding. This was the Easter Sunday greeting for those attending church. Another good reason to clean leaf debris from around shrubs.
No direct heavenly contact was reported but there was much speculation.

Deadbuds & The Grower

Visiting nurseries, talking to growers and plant selection is one of the more enjoyable duties I perform. Jim and I have known each other for many years he recently changed jobs and this was my first visit to his new location. The company he works for is The Plant Center in Fort Wayne, IN and just last year I started using The Plant Center as one of my greengoods vendors. He ordered in some material for me I was there to inspect it, we got to chatting about ornamental trees and found we shared the same views on redbuds and dogwoods.

He showed me a recent acquisition a single stem Kousa dogwood generally you see them only as multi-stemmed, this piqued my interest as I am always looking for different small trees narrow lake lots. The Kousa is both mine and Jim's choice for a hardy dogwood in Steuben county. The tree he is standing next to is a Trinity Pear which he is very keen on for its strong branching and round habit, 30' spread.

The colorful rows of shrubs are sure harbingers of spring. Designed and displayed to catch your eye and make you buy.

Sandhill Cranes, What's blooming, Circular Paver Patio

Sandhill cranes made their first appearance in these parts about 10 years ago and they are a delight. A cacophony of wild vocalizations from screech's to clucks to a near cooing, which is what this pair were doing upon my approach. They even do a pretty fair imitation of a tree frog. They are big birds, when I first saw one in our field I thought it was a deer or perhaps the neighbors emu had escaped. Chasing the cranes I spotted a tree mirrored in a low wet spot in the field.

These daffodils were waving at me and I picked up a really sweet scent, I followed my nose to the patio peach that had these glorious pink blooms. There is always something blooming as I walk from my home up to the office. The Juddi viburnums will open next week with their rush of fragrance so spicy sweet it fogs the air.I have two crews working for me most of the time, at this time of year one crew of three is doing spring clean up, my other crew has been installing a circular paver patio at a residence on Lake James. The work has progressed well and we are done with the hardscape on the lakeside and have begun the hardscape on the roadside. Local glacial boulders have been used to form a natural looking retaining wall. The fire ring will keep things cozy on cool summer nights. Bill complained that this design required a tremendous amount of cutting, but think it was well worth the effort . In about a week we will install the soils, plants, trees, flowers and mulch.

The boulder fire rock is a recent addition from one of our suppliers. I think it is pretty cool with the exception of the lava rock. A simple idea the gas rock is definitely a low maintenance fire feature that would add casual elegance to any surrounding. What a fun way to roast some marshmallows.

Where Dirt Comes From or Cruising US 12

Good news, we will be able to follow the transformation of the Devils Lake house as they signed a contract today. I have already been to the site three times and today I stopped at a couple of spots along the way while making the hour drive home. The first thing that caught my eye again was this vintage Bug sitting at a gravel pit/4wheeler track. The 1969 ground up restoration of this California car was sweet from a distance but I would have expected a cherry paint job for the $7900 price tag, but it still made my heart sing. I had the same rims and nerf bars on my 1961 Bug, my first car.


The next stop was a old fashioned drive in restaurant with car hops, curb service and window trays. Normally I do not eat much red meat but on occasion a good coney dog paired with a root beer float is my indulgence. The dog at this stand outside Jonesville did not disappoint, especially tasty was the way the onions were finely minced on top of the chili sauce, yum, yum. The little white building with the lavender trim is definitely a non franchised operation.


It is hard not to notice the mountains of mulch that are piled up at the Sun Gro plant on the east side of Quincy, MI. This is where they make dirt, more properly soil for the green industry. Everything from heavier potting soil to the ultra lite and elite soils used by growers. Semi trailers line up as tow truck operators dart in and out, heavy with pallets of various types of bagged soil. Dust is in the air, loaders are moving piles of sand and decomposing wood shavings steam in the buckets as they go about the business of composting.







Virgin Mary Line Up


The first time I spied the cement figures I knew I would stop when time allowed. I pulled over and immediately started shooting pictures, what great subjects and so still.

The mermaid was a one of a kind but if the rows of religious imagery are any barometer I would say anything featuring Jesus or Mary was a best seller. There were the usual Buddas , assorted animals including a near life size pony, trumpeting elephants, frogs, turtles and birds.








The best part of this roadside diversion at Handy Landscape Supply was the two well kept little greenhouses where grower Linda tended a variety of houseplants with mixed textures, color and form. This cactus was loaded with delightful pink blooms. She had some swell succulents and a couple of unusual house plants, I especially liked the rabbits foot fern (white furry stems) and the string beads. The stellar, blue, grape like clusters of the wisteria filled the air with a smell as sweet as perfume.