Just a girl with a hammer
Blog URL:
http://justagirlwithahammer.com
My 1938 pre-war ranch was a foreclosure I bought in 2009. It had been vacant for four years and neglected for at least ten. There was half a garage door, a non-functional sink in the bathroom, a mildewing basement, the original furnace (which no longer functioned), a new roof but no gutters, and a cracked kitchen floor.
I'm fixing almost everything myself but my real passion is gardening.
We're in technicolor
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- Published on Monday, 01 April 2013
Authors: Heather
My apologies to those of you still buried under snow. It was pretty glorious in Portland this weekend, with the weather hitting 75 degrees. Greg mowed the lawn, I got a little sunburned, I complained over and over about being hot. It's officially spring.This is that time when the garden starts going nuts. Things are a little...
Trying again
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- Published on Friday, 29 March 2013
Authors: Heather
I swear this is the last time. If weather or animals take out this birdbath again, I'm giving up.This is the $5 birdbath that lost its top after a cat or a raccoon knocked it over and broke it. It had already been broken and glued together once before.
I bought a saucer from Lowe's and glued it to the base with Liquid Nails. I swear...
The best of times and the worst of times
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- Published on Wednesday, 27 March 2013
Authors: Heather
Last fall, back when I was having the house tested for mold, the guy pointed out that my toilet was rocking and he detected water under the floor in that area. The toilet was rocking when I moved into the house, so Bill and I replaced the wax ring, which was such a gross project that I never wrote about it here. The toilet was still...Bad lines, bad code, bad blogger.
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- Published on Monday, 25 March 2013
Authors: Heather
So the other weekend I decided to smother more lawn, resulting in this mess:After work one day I decided to smooth out my lines by removing some of the surrounding sod, this time with my edger and pick axe. I decided to free hand it, instead of using a hose to guide me to a straight line or a smooth parabola. And it started...
Close but no Chionochloa
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- Published on Friday, 22 March 2013
Authors: Heather
After trying to steal some red tussock grass (Chionochloa rubra) from Cistus a few weekends back, I've been feverishly trying to locate someone who carries it. I've been annoying every nursery in town and scouring the Internet for online carriers. No one has it.Last weekend I had to head down to the Bay Area for a work meeting, so...
Poof! Gone.
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- Published on Monday, 18 March 2013
Authors: Heather
We are now stumpless. Randy from Chip Away came out on Wednesday and got rid of the mystery stump on the right and what I think is an English yew on the left. I can't recommend him enough if you need a stump removed.Boom!
And the apple stump that kept suckering back to life?
He had to grind two feet down to get everything but he...
Garden bloggers' bloom day March 2013
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- Published on Friday, 15 March 2013
Authors: Heather
I've been ignoring the weather report lately, just assuming that it's going to rain. Then when the rain stops it's like a miracle. What's going on out there? Why is so bright and warm looking? Oh my gosh, it's the sun!Crocus vernus 'Remembrance' and C. chrysanthus 'Romance'
Daphne odora 'Aureomarginata'
Euphorbia 'Blackbird'
Pieris...
The plants now control me and my weekends
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- Published on Thursday, 14 March 2013
Authors: Heather
It all started so innocently with a plan for a daphne purchase. I'd read on Growing Steady about Sean Hogan's plant talk at the Yard, Garden and Patio show, where he mentioned a daphne that flowers for 12 months.Oh my god, I could smell daphne all year long! That's my version of the American dream.
So two weekends ago I headed out...
What was I thinking?
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- Published on Tuesday, 12 March 2013
Authors: Heather
BeforeMy front yard looks so DUMB right now.
After
I'm trying to slowly smother the lawn under my dogwood, in increasing small sections, hoping not to stress out a very old tree. I'd probably be better off using a deep layer of wood chips but I thought that would look weird. So instead I used two smallish cardboard boxes and some...
Bursting with failure
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- Published on Monday, 11 March 2013
Authors: Heather
When I moved into my house all the doors had padlocks on them, which was . . . disconcerting. Padlocks on the bedroom doors and a padlock on the door leading to the basement were the creepiest. And all of the doors has long scratches covering them.If you know me at all you can guess that my mind went to absolutely terrible places...
