Tree removal in our front yard

Yard work is not one of my favorite things to do, as I can think of about 500 things that I would prefer to do than to perform weekly maintenance in the yard. During the last two years we've owned this house, I've been working in the back yard, not only to shape it into our vision, but to reduce weekly maintenance to zero. Back yard: Complete. Check. Front yard: A piece of work. Today, Monday, March 06, 2017, we started on the front yard by getting rid of the biggest offender: A 32-foot tall fruitless pear tree.

Photo: The show began about 1000 on Monday, March 06, 2017. At the forefront of our front yard project, the fruitless pear tree just HAD to go. The roots were intruding on the sidewalk, and were all over the front lawn, and we feared they were encroaching under the foundation of the house. Not a good thing...

Photo: Mr. Gerry Lopez uses his chain saw, and showers the photo with wood dust.

Photo: To get the higher branches, Gerry used his extendable chain saw, which made cutting higher branches a cinch. His helper, TJ, stacks brush on the driveway. I took photos, kept out of the way, and loaded cuttings into the truck, to haul away to the nearby landfill.

Photo: After the tree was cut down, Gerry went to work and did what he's famous for: Stump blasting! By the time he was finished, the only thing left of the tree was sawdust.

Photo: Gerry grinds the stump, as helper TJ uses a pickaxe to remove any remnants of roots. These guys completely obliterated the tree, including roots, and other intrusions in slightly over an hour.

Photo: Three o'clock in the afternoon... Tree... What tree? All that's left of the former tree is sawdust, and the second load of branches in the back of my truck, ready to take to the dump tomorrow.

I really didn't have much of an active role in cutting down the tree, or grinding the stump and the roots into oblivion. I took photos, and assisted TJ in pulling down the trunk, after Gerry notched it, and yelled "pull!"

Such a fun Monday morning, and such a fun way to begin the makeover of the front yard.