End of Spring means "pool maintenance" in Arizona and we have an apartment overlooking the pool. So, we had a front row seat for all the excitement. Below, is a Before photo of the overgrown palm trees around the pool. The pool was only drained after the tree trimming in order to protect the pool; to cushion the blows, I guess.
We had huge piles of palm fronds and dead bark all around the pool when the trimming started. It took three men to keep up with the clearing, while one man climbed the huge palm trees and trimmed them.
This tree surgeon was very skilled, very brave, and very fast. He trimmed all of these trees around the pool in less than one day; I never saw him take a lunch break. He climbed the tallest palm first, using those shoe side cleats and his heavy metal chain belt to scoot up the trunk, small chain saw and large hand saw swinging from his work belt on the ends of ropes. After trimming that tree, he hung a rope from the top of the tree, climbed down about 20 feet, disconnected his chain belt, and swung himself on the rope to the next closest tree. The large clump in the middle had trees that were all close enough to swing to the next tree. The Royal Palm below was the largest tree and it stands alone. It was a little scary when he disconnected the rope and tried to swing his chain up around the big bump at the top. It took 4 or 5 tries and I was figuratively wringing my hands as he did it.
After the tree crew cleaned up all the cuttings and left, the apartment maintenance crew put big hoses went into the pool to start sucking the water out. The water was brownish yellow and it took that afternoon and all day the next day to drain the pool. The little jacuzzi spa on the right, though, took only a couple hours to drain, refill, and treat. I can't wait for the opening of the pool and the chance to wear my new, very beautiful, swimsuit. Just in time for 100-105F all week long. It's time to take my very first dip since our move-in January 30!
While the pool was out of commission, we took a drive in search of Roses. We discovered the local rose growing Cooperative accidentally on a random drive soon after we arrived. So, we went back to Woolf Leyton Farms, which is one of four farms that work cooperatively to grow and sell roses in the Surprise, AZ area. They have 800 acres here in Surprise producing this two-year crop, just in this area alone. This is one of only 3 places in the Nation that grows roses for retail sales. Arizona rose farms provide half of all the roses sold in the United States, I'm told! The climate is so arid that I would not have thought it to be good for a crop like roses. But, look at these plants. Unfortunately, we couldn't get close enough for a decent "close up"; private property...
When we first drove by these fields in March, it was all green plants with no blossoms, some 1 1/2 feet tall and some about 8 inches tall - a two year crop. We are told that the harvest is done in Spring, so we assumed that we just missed it.
But now, in May, you can see the rose blossoms. Here they are, growing almost as far as I could see. That, My Friends, is a LOT of roses!
In fact, everything that CAN bloom here in the Phoenix area seems to be starting to bloom right now. The cacti are going crazy. I can understand now how some long time residents say they see fields of flowers in the desert in Spring and Summer. And, don't get me started on the pollen. This is not the "health spa" environment that it was in the 1950s. More blooming Arizona coming soon!
