Episode #15... Home Improvement - June 20th, 2004 at 05:33 PM
[align:center]
Episode #15... Home Improvement
A word of warning to anyone who has considered building their own Hummingbird House...
[i]Such structures can have a strange addictive power over you! It all starts out with enjoying your morning coffee as the sun rises and the birds sing. Suddenly, you'll find yourself taking "short" breaks to enjoy the flowers and the Hummingbirds in your Living Room...
That is where the trouble begins, because it's really hard to go back to work afterward...
Sometimes you end up spending hours in there, especially when other forest critters join you. A few days ago, a young doe wandered in as I sat there, but when she noticed me sitting there, she decided to wander back out... but she spent 15 minutes grazing on the lawn a few feet away![/i]
To make matters worse, you'll start to notice little imperfections that need fixing, places for new plants, and new additions you'd like to make....
The log bench on the west side was only functional if you wanted to sit completely upright, [i]and it wasn't very comfortable....[/i] I did a little digging under the bench supports to allow the seat to lean at a slight angle, then I found the [i]perfect[/i] log to use as a back rest. It took a bit of pondering to figure out how to appropriately support the 800 pound back rest, but I finally decided to cut a notch [i](to stabilize the log)[/i] into an old stump that I found nearby , moved it into place and somehow managed to raise the 12 foot log into position and get everything set at just the right angles.....
With the new changes, four people can now lean back and comfortably enjoy the views!
I liked the entry area, but it lacked [i]something....[/i] I added a couple more burls, plants, and pieces of wood.
[i]On the left side, I used a contorted piece of root as a trellis for one of my Passion Flowers and I planted Cardinal Flowers in the front, on each side.[/i]
It still wasn't [i]quite right,[/i] so I decided that a small flagstone floor would be a nice addition.
I dug down a few inches, added a sand base and set an assortment of flat rocks in place. Because of the irregular shapes of the rocks, each stone required removing or adding sand beneath it until the rock was seated and solidly in place.
To give the structure a more "homey" feeling, I created a couple Cedar planters for Fuchsias.....
At the rear of the Hummer House, I originally had a Cedar log which was roughly cut to create a bench. It was functional, but certainly not comfortable...
I removed the log and turned it into fence posts, [i]which in essence removed the back perimeter of the house and left a rotting stump in it's place.[/i]
With a pick, shovel and saw I removed much of the rotted wood and created an elevated seating area which allows me to sit 30 inches higher than before and gave a new view of the entire room...
[i]Once I added some hand crafted furniture and a little stone work, this area became a much nicer place to sit![/i]
What's next????? A water feature perhaps? Wind chimes?
If I keep this obsession up, I'll probably be living in my Hummingbird House by the end of the summer, but I doubt that you'll hear any complaining if I do!
[/align]
Episode #15... Home Improvement
A word of warning to anyone who has considered building their own Hummingbird House...
[i]Such structures can have a strange addictive power over you! It all starts out with enjoying your morning coffee as the sun rises and the birds sing. Suddenly, you'll find yourself taking "short" breaks to enjoy the flowers and the Hummingbirds in your Living Room...
That is where the trouble begins, because it's really hard to go back to work afterward...
Sometimes you end up spending hours in there, especially when other forest critters join you. A few days ago, a young doe wandered in as I sat there, but when she noticed me sitting there, she decided to wander back out... but she spent 15 minutes grazing on the lawn a few feet away![/i]
To make matters worse, you'll start to notice little imperfections that need fixing, places for new plants, and new additions you'd like to make....
The log bench on the west side was only functional if you wanted to sit completely upright, [i]and it wasn't very comfortable....[/i] I did a little digging under the bench supports to allow the seat to lean at a slight angle, then I found the [i]perfect[/i] log to use as a back rest. It took a bit of pondering to figure out how to appropriately support the 800 pound back rest, but I finally decided to cut a notch [i](to stabilize the log)[/i] into an old stump that I found nearby , moved it into place and somehow managed to raise the 12 foot log into position and get everything set at just the right angles.....
With the new changes, four people can now lean back and comfortably enjoy the views!
I liked the entry area, but it lacked [i]something....[/i] I added a couple more burls, plants, and pieces of wood.
[i]On the left side, I used a contorted piece of root as a trellis for one of my Passion Flowers and I planted Cardinal Flowers in the front, on each side.[/i]
It still wasn't [i]quite right,[/i] so I decided that a small flagstone floor would be a nice addition.
I dug down a few inches, added a sand base and set an assortment of flat rocks in place. Because of the irregular shapes of the rocks, each stone required removing or adding sand beneath it until the rock was seated and solidly in place.
To give the structure a more "homey" feeling, I created a couple Cedar planters for Fuchsias.....
At the rear of the Hummer House, I originally had a Cedar log which was roughly cut to create a bench. It was functional, but certainly not comfortable...
I removed the log and turned it into fence posts, [i]which in essence removed the back perimeter of the house and left a rotting stump in it's place.[/i]
With a pick, shovel and saw I removed much of the rotted wood and created an elevated seating area which allows me to sit 30 inches higher than before and gave a new view of the entire room...
[i]Once I added some hand crafted furniture and a little stone work, this area became a much nicer place to sit![/i]
What's next????? A water feature perhaps? Wind chimes?
If I keep this obsession up, I'll probably be living in my Hummingbird House by the end of the summer, but I doubt that you'll hear any complaining if I do!
[/align]
I love the pots made out of trees, and the benches!
