Wind and rain

The wind is back, but it's not too bad this time. And we've been having rain showers off and on. But it's not cold. They always say that we need some cold weather each winter to control the population of pests like insects and rodents. Winter is still young, however, and January and February are typically the coldest months. We shall see.

Overcast, wet, and windy. Taken with the Pixel 6.

The landscape contractor who does our hedges dropped by late yesterday afternoon to say that his crew would be here this morning to start work. We talked about a few other things, too. We will delay taking down the tall Himalayan cedar and instead remove a dying cherry and a completely dead tree that's leaning into our yard on the north side. He also said he could split the birch logs from the trees that he took down in 2021. That will be a big help. I've tried doing it myself, but I'm not strong enough, so they've just been sitting out in the yard. I will be able burn the logs in the wood stove once they're split.

He also offered us more firewood -- he's taken a tree down for someone else and has to get rid of the wood. I think he said it was a tilleul (linden tree) and that we'd have to wait a year or two for it to season before we burn it, but that's ok. And lastly, he said he could till up our garden plot this spring. We had a lot of trouble tilling last year because the ground was so dry. The landscaper probably has a more powerful tiller than we do.