root pruning and re-plotting

[alpineart]

these are a couple of tree's that needed removing during recent reconstruction on the rear yard and terraces , What a task and a half this has been , 2 weeks removing growing stock and finding new temporary homes for just over 300 well established ground grown bonsai and trainers/starters. The task was made a little easier with the help of a good mate and a 5 tonne digger . These 3 tree's were destined for destruction if i had to hand dig them as time was not on my side . I have re-plotted the juniper struck from a cutting 15 years ago

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, the Japanese maple {very sad case}

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and the disectum

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were planted here 20 years ago ,all needed to be removed to make way for a new drive way and terrace widening .

I have lost around 80 square metres of grow beds due to the re-design but will replace them in a different position in the reconstructed area's , this will be closer to the house for security reasons .

Cheers Alpineart

[Watto]

Great story and photos.
I'm going on a dig soon, can I borrow the "digger"? please?

[Raymond]

You dont do anything in half measures, do you Alpine...

[alpineart]

Gidday Watto, nothing like a diesel powered hydraulic pick and shovel to do the hard yards , unfortunately Arnold's a bit too busy for interstate travel

Hi Raymond , no half measures around here . All up 10 hours on the Esky' and 16 hours on a manual shovel so far to tidy it up after the heavy rains made a bloody mess . Had to do it in winter as the rock is just too hard to crack , the machine just squeals over the top and can't break it up .No jack hammer attachment on this one .

the planned driveway

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the drop off from the top rear yard is just over 3 metres

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the old terrace outlined for widening

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empty Trident grow beds

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gone

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the heavy rains hit just after this pic turning the rock and clay into a sticky soup Had a hell of a time getting the machine out , the tidy up will take another good week on the shovel as a Positrak can't be used due to the soft spongy condition of the ground after 40mm of rain .

Cheers Alpine

[grego67]

holy shari Ian what a bloody mess .I hoe you haven't wrecked my juniper you offered me , coulda dug it out of the terrace . Will have to come over and get it before you bugger it u .

Regaurds Steve

[bodhidharma]

No Retreat and no surrender Alp's..Oh, and take no prisoners! Like all of your projects, full on.

[alpineart]

Hi Steve , mate your juni' is safely tucked behind temporary corrugated barrier i installed to prevent rocks rolling off the top and messing with my growing works . I did dig a smaller needle juniper out however i haven't potted it up and its looking rather sad . When you come over i will give you a pick and shovel and take photos while you work away trying to get it out , it's only been in the ground for 20 years should make for o good days work .

Hi Bodhi full throttle and no pain , its the only way too go . Managed to lay another 8 tonnes of bricks, granite and cement in my spare time creating new grow beds and finishing off older works . Need to find some time to trim a few hundred trainers before it's too late . Tomorrow 700 bricks need laying and 6 cubic meters of top soil , and 1.5 tonnes of road base to be spread around , weather permitting . All manual labour as no machines can get into the areas required , my son is on holidays so I do have some help .

Cheers Fella's . Alpine

[alpineart]

This has been a marathon effort to tidy up after the excavator .

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another retaining wall completed and staked with larger bonsai,

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the balustrade on the second set of steps is almost complete for more display area .

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Drive way over the top requires 4 tonnes of 40mm blue metal to finish it off however a slight change of plan is required

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upper and lower terraces have been top dressed with 10 cubic meters of top soil ,

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the brickwork is well under way to the front and rear excavations. All up around 25 tonnes of materials have been spread and laid since the excavator was here , Noah has decided he doesn't want to enter the building and construction trade , this has been his introduction to an apprenticeship which has persuaded him to work smarter not harder .

Cheers Alpineart

[anthonyW]

Busy boys,very nice rockwalls shall look a treat when finished

[melbrackstone]

That's looking fantastic!!!

[alpineart]

Hi anthonyW, mate it will be nice to see the end of the hard yakka , the excavations have seen another 30 tonnes of rock required for the new retaining walls and that again in concrete . A mans work is never done around here . Karen is not impressed with the bloody mud but I have explained "No mess" "No Improvement", I have set up the clothes line and a path for her to walk along for when it stops raining and its closer to the house .

Cheers .Alpine

[alpineart]

Hi mel' I wish my wifey would think like that , I cop flack every night Karen gets home from work , Mud, mud glorious mud even Bear gets a hose down every night . He looks more like a Red Kelpie than a Black and white Border Collie , I need to put up some barriers to prevent him from playing havoc , would save a lot of cleanup time to both the dog and the yard .

Cheers Alpine

[anthonyW]

Here we go Alpine,I appreciate your work,tell your lovely wife it is all about the end result,they make the best features.

Good friend and myself built my walls,they are back breaking,but worth it.

Single skin sandstone freestanding gravity wall with clay behind it,keeping the flat side to the outside..good drainage holds up nicely and I think it compliments the bonsai's well.

Anthony and the Apprentice

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[alpineart]

Hi anthonyW, mate I love dry walls ,rock walls of any kind , certainly beats concrete blocks or bricks . It might be a little labour intensive but certainly worth all the blood , sweat and tears . Idecided to cheat a little here using a brick retainer with a granite block veneer on the face and on top , i will add some concrete reo in between the two as they are 1.5 to 2m high .

You can come down here if you like and be my apprentice , bloody hard to get good help when it comes to laying rock , I did appreciate my 13 yo Son's help all the same .

Cheers Alpineart

[anthonyW]

Sorry Alpine I ll decline if you don t mind nearly 40 mtres of rock walls and 40 mtres of timber walls and 150 mtres there about drainage trenched in by hand and bringing those bloody big rocks in one by one by myself,sought of scarred and broke me my friend never building on the side of a hill again.

I do not envy you but feel for you...remember small victories add up to a worthwhile finish...I m there in spirit Alpine Lol...good luck my friend...keep us posted...cheers from weary Tone

(Oh dear hope I have not put you off )