Catalpa: Historic Articact - "J-ville" Oregon

Discussion in 'Woody Plants' started by M. D. Vaden, Sep 28, 2007.

  1. M. D. Vaden

    M. D. Vaden Active Member 10 Years

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    Beaverton, Oregon
    Thought of putting this in the horticulture / botany forum, but will start here.

    This is a sharing about a Catalpa that I'm helping with in Jacksonville, Oregon. And it's "artifact" - the title was misspelled.

    Happened to do some work for a curator with the Southern Oregon Historical Society, who mentioned the Catalpa at the Historic Beekman House, of Jacksonville, Oregon.

    I was told than an arborist / tree service of the area had recommended removal. So I drove by and looked and my first thought way "if I bought this house today, 100% certain I'd feel comfortable keeping that tree and maintaining it right".

    By the way, the living vine on the tree would also be considered an "artifact" - so salvaging a lot of the vine is preferred if possible without tree damage.

    Anyhow, my opinion shared, seems to have altered the course toward preserving the tree. My suggestion is to improve the soil condition some, quit using herbicides in the lawn near it for a while, and get-moving on some good moderate pruning, including removing one dead vine.

    For now, I'm posting notes, photos, videos and progress on this page...

    http://www.mdvaden.com/catalpa.shtml

    The top can use some pruning, but the lower half of the tree and soil appears to be 70% of the tree's need for attention right now.

    Tomorrow, weather permitting, pruning in the lower section begins - maybe vertical mulching (more for aeration).

    Fortunately, I found a place to borrow and increment borer - guestimation on page.

    One thing that seemed remarkable since this is a historic house, in a Historically registered landmark gold mining town, is the lack of history on the tree. No images of the tree to know when the lean occured. Nothing that says how the root got damaged.
     
    Last edited: Sep 28, 2007
  2. jimmyq

    jimmyq Well-Known Member 10 Years

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    some cool stuff there Mario, thanks for sharing. I have a soil auger that has yet to be taken to soil. I found that golf green cutter to be an interesting tool, do you have any ideas on where to get one of those?
     
  3. M. D. Vaden

    M. D. Vaden Active Member 10 Years

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    I'm not sure, but the name "Lesco" or something sticks in my head. I can find out very soon, as I plan to get one before next spring. It does a much cleaner cut in the surface for that task. Not a cheap device if I recall, but not too rediculous. I'll look online for golf course equipment. It's usually referred to as a "cup cutter", but may have another name.

    EDIT...

    I was right - Lesco. Stuck in my head since like 1985 when I last worked at a country club. That was my origin to the green trade.

    http://www.lesco.com/ProdCatalog/ProdCatalogNav.aspx?ProdGroupID=80

    That catalpa project incorporated experience and tools clear back to the 80s, up to the present.

    They even use the image of the cup cutter for "Tools" - I recommend the scalloped edge, as it cuts in quicker.

    The tool called the turf mender is for snagging plugs off a spare green, to replace dead spots on the primary greens. Its about the same cost, and I'd prefer the regular cup cutter to go deeper.

    By the way, if clay soil is dry, you will kill yourself. Soil has to be somewhat moist, and you can't go into rock.

    It will easily do sand soil, as that's what golf greens should be made of.

    Whether hand lever of foot push to pop the plug, I'll probably get the foot push like you may have seen in the video, although the lever is fine too.

    The cylinders last for eons - even up to a year at a country club if its cutting 300 days a year, 18 holes per day with bi-weekly sharpening. So $122 is not too bad.

    They are not real big, but are seriously toughly built tools - somewhat precise. This is the same tool that has to cut the exact 4.225" inch hole for the PGA golf tours.

    Once the hole is cut, the cup is pulled out of the previous hole and slipped into the new hole. Then there is a tool called a "cup setter" that rests on the cup rim, depressing it an exact depth below the soil surface so that the golf ball can't ride the rim and roll back out.

    I have a short article on setting pins on this page for the long story

    http://www.mdvaden.com/lawncare.shtml#golf
     

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