SJonesWX

27 minutes ago, moneypitmike said:

My alarm goes off at 4:30--much darker now with the sun rising 24 minutes later than the solstice. 

Meanwhile, we're a couple days away from the 2:00/day rate of daytime loss.  Things become really pronounced from here on out.

i also get up around that time, and just this week have noticed a difference in the amount of daylight. at first i thought it was the gloomy cloudy rainy weather hiding the light earlier this week. but this am it was pretty dark. 

don’t do anything with the crabgrass this year. It’s holding the dirt in place. rent a slit-seeder and overseed this fall. Prior to Labor Day if you can.

when I woke up this morning, I could have sworn that I was in New England 

21 minutes ago, dendrite said:

AWhatever though. Would you rather be shot in the head or stabbed in the heart?

why can't it be both?

Just now, mostman said:

How does the install work on those? Did you just take off your old controller and swap in the Rachio? Did you also add the flow meter?

very simple install, just swap the controllers. don't know about flow sensor, but the rain sensor is just as easy to install. 

30 minutes ago, weathafella said:

Can’t wait to go on my lunch walk!

i'm glad someone enjoys this stuff, because I sure don't

just stepped outside, no idea what the temp is here in Lexington, but it is gross. hot and quite humid. no thanks.

8 hours ago, RUNNAWAYICEBERG said:

Is it a pike north pest? we don’t have dear flies nor green coc heads around here.

they like the eastern beaches. they are particularly bad on some of the beaches north of Boston. it's funny though, i have never seen them north of that area of MA. and i have never seen them on the cape. Cranes Beach in Ipswich, while a beautiful area, is famous for the little green-headed m-fers. there is no escaping them

18 hours ago, amarshall said:

Had a lot of burn patches I couldn't figure out.  Have rachio on my phone to control the irrigation and the startup guys turned off like 4 zones.  No idea why.  

rachio is the best thing since sliced bread. it's a great system (when all the zones are turned on). 

10 hours ago, RUNNAWAYICEBERG said:

How much did the irrigation system cost you?

irrigation can really vary in price from different installers. some place the heads fairly close together, some place them farther apart. why does that matter? because your irrigation system is typically priced per head. the closer the heads are, the more that are required. a friend got 3 prices when getting his installed. 2 of them were twice as costly as the 3rd one was. the 3rd one was the guy who spaced the heads pretty far apart. it was literally more than half the price than the other 2. he still gets good coverage, although it may be a little thin. but makes you wonder why those other guys put the heads so much closer. 

have you had a lot of rain? looks like red thread (fungus), but hard to tell from the pics

32 minutes ago, dryslot said:

Seeing some spotter reports of FF in Concord MA from that cell that just passed thru.

i'm sitting here in Lexington, and that cell mostly missed us to the north. it did look quite dark, but based on what i saw here, i am surprised about that Concord MA report

different people like different times of the year, and different types of weather.

some prefer summer, some prefer winter, and some enjoy all 4 seasons. 

some don't enjoy the particular type of weather that you enjoy

what an interesting concept.

1 hour ago, weatherwiz said:

The only good news about having cooler than average SST's is we don't have to have James alarm us that hurricanes will have excess fuel to thrive on as tropical systems ride into SNE late this summer. If the theme of cooler than average SST's continue into winter then we don't have to hear about how the SST's will yield stronger winter storms. 

you really think that's going to stop him?

MPM, don't do anything. give it some time to fill in. overseed in the fall.

Lava, I wouldn't be killing any grass, you have had hard enough time as it is. Fertilize, and keep it mowed.

2 hours ago, weatherwiz said:

what if some of us do this already? 

not 1 single person here, not one, wants to hear about your sex life

8 minutes ago, dendrite said:

I'm so sick of that invasive buckthorn crap. Anyone have tips on how to get rid of it? I cut it all back in the spring before it seeds and in the fall, but that crap resprouts like 4ft after it first leafs out in the spring. I assume keep cutting it back until the roots run out of energy is the only option? That and making sure it doesn't go to seed?

is that a vine that takes over everything?

3 hours ago, Damage In Tolland said:

Caterpillars 

sorry to disappoint, but nope, not a single one

58 minutes ago, dendrite said:

No red thread here, but I’ve noticed those fungal spots showing up again on just the red maple leaves. Weird.

not sure what it is, but i have a couple young oak trees whose leaves are taking a beating this year. there were holes in the leaves, then the ends turned brown. tree seems to be OK, as it has some new growth, but I am a little worried

1 hour ago, dendrite said:

Anyone getting what seems to be more red maple samaras than usual this spring? Bumper crop?

if you are talking about the propellers, yes. i cleaned up an incredible amount from my driveway yesterday. never had that many before,. not even close

1 hour ago, Typhoon Tip said:

I'm just starting to wonder if this isn't a concentrated consortium of weirdos that happen to be in an era where they can find each other using the web. 

is this your first time using the internet? i mean, that describes pretty much every forum that exists

9 minutes ago, dendrite said:

Sneaky nice afternoon. 68F for a high, some sun, and a touch of dews.

and 100% black flies 

11 hours ago, mostman said:

If I seeded right now I promise you the pattern would suddenly flip and we would torch for weeks. 

Found out today one of my irrigation zones is stuck on. I was doing a test run to water in some weed control. Looks like the bleeder screw on the valve sheered right off (somehow) and it’s stuck open. Beyond my fixing skills. 

it is very easy to change out a valve. they sell some (depending on brand) at HD or Lowes.

33 minutes ago, moneypitmike said:

 

Thanks guys. 

It's a pretty big patch of it, primarily on the strip between the sidewalk and the road (do those strips have a name??).  What's kind of crazy is that 1/2 the strip is lush grass and then it turns to this.  There's a tree that serves as the dividing line so I'm inclined to think they did something intentional.

Meanwhile, from the ornery-complainer department.....why don't they make a simple gas can any more?  Is there really such a demand for new spout designs?  The one I bought (only option as far as I could tell) totally sucks.  Dripping gas everywhere.

Welcome to the regulated world of gas cans. they are designed to prevent you from catching on fire from spilled gas. and they suck

this time of year, during the rainy season i keep mine at 2.5". mid-summer or when it is drier i keep it at 3". 4" is way too high for my tastes

9 hours ago, dendrite said:

Yeah...pretty ridiculous. I missed this yet my lawn is still full of puddles and soggy. I have algae forming in areas of the lawn with grass coming through. Shitshow.

i had the same thing going on. i stabbed a driveway marker in a few spots to see if it would help it drain out. it did not, but that was probably because it hit what i am pretty sure is ice about 6-8" down. no wonder it can't drain.