Rich Pasto

no quick fix. They are a two year plant. They sprout and make a rosette the first year. second year they bloom.

corn glutein meal can be applied to prevent germination in the spring and fall.

a flame weeder will make short work of the seed puffs and flowers.

pull all you can by hand

start planting other plants you want in there. grasses, clover whatever. aerate and gently fertilize that area in the fall with compost.

to clarify: Im not looking to build a RMH inside the fireplace. I am wondering if there is the fireplace box, so to speak, and then empty space behind that brick veneer. I would simply dry stack bricks or concrete into that space, and reinstall the veneer. Thermal mass.

Hello everyone,

Finally getting cold on the colorado front range. Ive found myself unemployed again and the idle hands are the work of the devil, according to my wife. This is when I start new projects that make such a mess. A few years ago now I built a RMH in the garage. So much fun. Coinciding with that build, Ive wanted to make the fireplace into a masonry heater...but I dont think Ill ever have the budget to do that properly.

Ive attached a pic of the fireplace. Im assuming that behind that brick veneer is basically stud framing and empty space around the fireplace box? Has anyone ever added mass alongside a fireplace like this, or does anyone know how construction goes around a residential fireplace? For mass possibilities, I have a large supply of 10-20 lb concrete chunks, a mountain of fine grain sandstone block (drywall block) and access to the drop pieces from the granite counter top place in town. As always concrete is cheap. Thanks for any insight, happy halloween

coffee grounds are an extremely potent source of nitrogen. Often too potent. Mix those grounds with some dried leaves or dry brown a few weeks before using them. It will produce real compost.

Hawks.

build at least on T shaped perch on your property. 6-8 feet tall. two if you have room. Hawks love a place to perch and look for prey. People I know have used this for controlling rats, rabbits, mice and voles.With very good results in colorado.

big plus of indoor venting not often mentioned is that now replacement air is being drawn in. good filters are out there, DIY versions too. humidity dependent on locale. Colorado we welcome it.

ask a veterinarian. as noted, DE works by shredding the chitin exoskeleton of arthropods. Its small and sharp. in mafia and prison movies people are often bumped off by grinding glass into a fine powder and adding small amounts to someone's food. the resulting internal bleeding is unstoppable. ask a vet for the dogs sake.

dude if you are cutting a driveway an operator can do it without going more than a few feet off the road. Ive cut many roads through the woods from New york to hawaii without a 'large area of effect'.

the lowest impact method is to fell the trees but leave a high enough stump to wrap a chain or rigging around. Then pull that sucker out with a D6 dozer.

the shoulder of your driveway will recover quickly if you grade it out and seed it. maybe some nice clover, wildflowers and yarrows

easy as pie. use raised beds with a solid barrier at the bottom. I would make mine 2 feet tall, but even one foot tall is enough for most plants.

the bigger hazard, compared to intake through eating veggies, is disturbing lead contaminated soils making lead dust airborne which you can breathe in and can be absorbed through the skin.
http://www.gardensalive.com/article.asp?ai=995 ---> has tips on mitigating the hazard

please excuse the question, but reading the description of the land, Im wondering why you feel there is lead contamination, lacking actual tests?

the barrel needs to discharge heat rapidly to create the differential needed to drive the exhaust draft. if the temp inside the barrel/bell is close to the temp coming up the stack, the heater will stall.