I was out cutting roses this A.M. and thought about all the work and time Jay had put into the way it looks. It was quite an engineering fete in itself. He had to lay out a drainage system from the back to the front. Then he worked out the watering system that is most extensive, but is not being used. It sure would make things a lot easier if it was working!
Jay had worked in Orange County delivering Cement for projects and building on some pretty expensive homes. He had taken quite a few pictures of some of the homes with yards he particularly liked. It was from these pictures he was able to formulate what he wanted our Yard to look like. I must here state that our first deposit was made on the land across the street on the corner. We found out however that someone had already beat us to that piece of property, so we settled for the one we have, which I believe was the better choice anyway.
As usual Jay had made many friends in town and on the construction job, so he was able to have
fill dirt brought. The fella that was doing the moving of yardage from one lot to another promised Jay he would deliver good top soil to him when he had the landscape about where he was ready to finish his block work. It was not an easy task to get the rounded sides to the raised flower beds he was making. He terraced off the yard. He had to figure how to put the steps up the front as well as how high he wanted the last tier to be. There were sidewalks to be laid, and of course Jay was so thorough he wanted the yard to have a curbing around the lawn beds so they were easier to edge.
I think the fence was his biggest challenge, and unfortunately he never quite got the job finished because he couldn't decide on how to fill the spaces between his pillars. He was careful to set the fence in between the lot next to us so that all his work is setting within our property lines.
Once he was finished with the block work Greg came up and helped Jay color coat the blocks to match the house. The project turned out great. We wanted a flag pole in the round bed, so Jay again had to decided just how to go about that. We had planted a tree out there, but it did not like the soil, so we moved it to the back yard. It was a dwaft Japanese Mapel. Lovely tree and
we were happy to save it. Next we planted a Cecil Brunner Rose in the area only to find out it
was a climber and not a bush, so that too had to be moved. Finally Jay decided the flag pole should be there after all. The bareroot for the Cecil Brunner wouldn't be messed with. It has come up around the flag pole and is a constant problem, but I keep it trimmed back, and it is
nice enough, I guess.
Once Jay got the sod in and things going, he had designed the sidewalks to match the brick work he had made on the tiers. Which gave a nice appearance. We started buying up roses and planting. The first year things were great, but by the second year we were bothered by gophers and they killed about 6 of our roses. After careful planning and trap setting Jay got the little pest and buried him the hole so it would discourage another intruder. The next roses were planted in wire baskets to keep any further trouble from happening. They were a nusence until they rusted out. All in all we put about 100 roses in the yard. Not all of them have survived the time we have been here, but the yard is really beautiful when spring comes. The yard has been of benefit to a number of Wedding Receptions. Many of the neighbors have had a bouquet or two as well. They are welcome to take all they like, just cut them, don't break them off.
We set higher than most of our neighbors, so it really is a "rosey hill". I believe this lot will be a lasting memorial to the talent Jay had, and the time he put into the job. I know I will long remember the time we spent working on this project. I moved a lot of blocks. Some were put where Jay could reach them by my hands. Others we put in the wheel barrow and moved to where he was working. I helped by mixing a number of mortar batches while he laid out his lines and prepared to lay another row of block, or brick. I marveled then, as I remember now the long hours he put in after working a regular work day. He was never too tired to get a little done each night while the weather was good.
Written this 6th day of May 2009
by: Eileen Rosenberg
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