Stone Work at Hoover, Alabama Catholic School

I was very careful in my placement of stone and that I held the trowel properly, mostly as a means of avoiding getting the back of my hand smacked with a nun's ruler.

Brown Stone Mail Box

Bluff Park, Alabama.

Winter Watering Can Help Your Landscape Plants Thrive

Tonight, the low temperature will hover in the upper teens. On the surface, that doesn't seem to pose a detrimental threat to most of our plants we have growing in the Central Alabama, USDA zone 7B. Concerns, however, arise from the fact that this approaching cold front is not preceded by a rain event. A couple of weeks ago our area had temps in the low teens to upper single digits, but, as typically is the case, there was a significant rainfall that occurred just before the front moved in. I'm of the opinion that our plants may have been in better shape heading into that colder weather than we are for this one simply because we haven't had rainfall in our area for a week or more. In short, plants that have had the benefit of rainfall or watering will hold up better against the cold than plants that are dry. The roots, stems and leaves of dry plants are more likely to suffer from the dessication that bitter cold can create than those that are hydrated. It's worth the time and effort....ummm, and the discomfort, to be sure your plants are not dry going into a extreme cold event. Believe me, I know, as I was hand watering this evening in freezing weather with 40 mph wind gusts. Certainly, most plants in our area won't perish with temps only dipping into the high teens, but there are some specific categories of plants that would benefit: 1. Plantings that have been in the ground less than a year. 2. Plants with a zone hardiness rating at or below what your zone is for your specific area. 3. Herbaceous plants such as pansies, evergreen ferns, etc.

Hodge Podge Stone Bench

Have you got a few cinder blocks or old bricks out back behind the shed? Been collecting some stones from the side of the road? Willing to do a little wheeling and dealing with your local nurseryman for the small pile of 10 or 15 pieces of flagstone? Maybe pick up 3 or 4 bags of mortar mix after you next stop at Home Depot or Lowe's? Hey, you've just put together a neat little sidewalk bench!

plants in photo: (left) ivy in container, (right) rosemary

Outdoor Fireplace Using Veneer Cast Stone

This recent project found me near Irondale, Alabama. The homeowners decided they wanted an outdoor fireplace for their backyard. They had already installed the masonry insert, themselves (and did a great job) when they called me. My part of the project was to install the stone over the insert. The “stone” was actually manufactured veneer cast stone (best I can tell,,,a light weight concrete aggregate poured into molds and dyed). I'll have to admit, the product can be easy to work with (not always the case when dealing with angles that aren't 90 degrees) and it looks pretty much like actual stone unless you do a close inspection or notice that there are some repeated pieces. I think I'm still partial to real stone, but for a first time using this, I'll have to say it turned out better than I imagined. Other notable aspects of the fireplace is the television mount on the chimney (the homeowner is going to move the mount a couple of inches; after that is done, a tan stucco will be applied around the mount. Also some sort of iron art or perhaps a wreath will be used to hide the mount when the television isn't mounted). The hearth is a big ol' piece of limestone (snapped, not cut!) and the mantle was milled by my good friend, Herb, using local cedar.

Not only humans can find creative ways to stay warm!

These two furry critters reside at a favorite local nursery and they managed to discover that the hot house there uses a double layer of plastic. It looks tight, but these two possums didn't seem to mind it or the activity taking place twenty or thirty feet below. Not only did they benefit from the radiant heat generated from the green house covering, but they also enhanced the warmness with some cute and cuddly snuggling.

PHOTO: Two possums staying warm during chilly Alabama weather (they could be racoons, it was hard to tell from that distance)

Extreme landscaping in Homewood, Alabama

Extreme, in the sense that the job was to tame the slope and gain access to a flat area at the top of the slope. In short, the area was de-weeded, hand graded, and a combination of softscape and hardscape incorporated into the design.