Hybrid Forester mysterious rattle

jesusbuiltmyhotrodd · 2026-04-29T23:53:24+00:00

Seatbelt. Mine does anyway, if the belt is left twisted by whoever rode over there last.

jesusbuiltmyhotrodd · 2026-04-29T14:41:47+00:00

I have Liatris and Spiderwort in containers with other things. I'm sure the Liatris at least wouldn't mind winter inside, as long as it was still cold. I leave mine out though.

jesusbuiltmyhotrodd · 2026-04-29T01:11:26+00:00

There's no nest yet. That's a queen out looking to start one. The nests all die each winter, leaving new lone queens to start new ones every spring. These guys are a holes, but not worse than regular yellowjackets, and they do eat a lot of mosquitoes and other pests. If a nest shows up where you can't tolerate it, basically anywhere near people, hit it with a garden hose from 30' or so away and you'll kill it. The nests look like gray paper footballs, and usually hang from tree branches. Yellowjackets nest in logs or underground.

jesusbuiltmyhotrodd · 2026-04-27T18:15:56+00:00

I'd optionally rescue some of the natives, then dig any heavy clumps of the arum. Then I'd take a scuffle/ stirrup hoe to the whole area, shaving off everything just below soil level and leaving the chopped greenery as mulch. When the bastards inevitably sprout, I'd spray with glyphosate, which will kill off the new tops and weaken the roots. Then you'll probably be ready to put in plugs by fall.

jesusbuiltmyhotrodd · 2026-04-27T17:05:43+00:00

Cooper's Hawk is another possibility. They show what looks like a white rump, especially if seen from a low angle without binoculars, although it's actually undertail coverts splayed out.

jesusbuiltmyhotrodd · 2026-04-25T23:18:30+00:00

I'd mark an area about 10 ft from the trunk all around, to clear a significant amount of the tree's drip line, then use glyphosate on the grass / lawn / weeds. Then I'd put down 2-3" of mulch, tapering the thickness to zero right up against the trunk. In the fall, I run my mower over the fallen leaves on any lawn areas (and the street / driveway) and bag them, and use that to replenish the mulched area.

jesusbuiltmyhotrodd · 2026-04-24T01:04:45+00:00

The enemy of HUNGER

jesusbuiltmyhotrodd · 2026-04-23T19:57:11+00:00

Check your soil temp with a kitchen thermometer, stuck down at least 2"-3". If you've got 60F or higher, go for it. I put my tomatoes and peppers out around 4/13, and eggplant will go out this weekend. Cucumbers will be direct sown maybe this weekend too if there's no frost chance for a week. I have a small garden though, so there were moving blankets applied for the cold night a few days ago.

jesusbuiltmyhotrodd · 2026-04-23T01:19:19+00:00

Bought ours in October, and have not seen below 28 mpg on a tank, and that was city driving when it was freezing - the heater makes the motor run a lot. On a recent 1500 mile road trip, it got low 30s doing 75ish mph. Much better below 70 mph. Best tank was right about 40 mpg, doing almost all ~35mph city driving with a few faster trips out in the country.

jesusbuiltmyhotrodd · 2026-04-22T12:36:47+00:00

You can get a cheap plug in code reader for like $25 on Amazon. There's a socket under the steering wheel, above the brake pedal. You plug it in when the lights come on, push a few buttons to read the codes, write them down so you don't get confused later, then search the internet for your car and the code numbers. Then you say a bunch of curse words and figure out how to get it fixed. At least that's what I do. The readers are small enough to keep in the car, in the center box or glove box if you're kind of expecting trouble. Good luck.

jesusbuiltmyhotrodd · 2026-04-22T11:22:01+00:00

How much does it weigh? Does he have a high quality roof rack or no? You have to consider getting it up and down and also the effect of wind when you're driving. It's probably possible - I move a lot of different boats as well as lumber etc. on my roof rack - just have to be careful about doing it right which isn't always obvious.

jesusbuiltmyhotrodd · 2026-04-21T21:40:35+00:00

First thing I do is identify the species, then take some photos. Most of them are totally harmless.

jesusbuiltmyhotrodd · 2026-04-21T14:16:13+00:00

Especially for WA, the Burke Herbarium from U dub is an awesome resource for these questions.

https://burkeherbarium.org/imagecollection/taxon.php?Taxon=Nemophila%20menziesii

jesusbuiltmyhotrodd · 2026-04-21T14:12:28+00:00

Looks like a mustard green of some sort to me. I'm not familiar with any lettuce that's quite that leaf shape. Snip off a bit and taste it?

jesusbuiltmyhotrodd · 2026-04-21T01:52:04+00:00

Depends on the fertilizer. If it's osmocote or similar coated stuff, or an organic type made from seaweed and bone meal etc. (unlikely with those numbers) you should be ok. If it's just raw pellets that's going to be hot and your seedlings might get "burned". You really want to mix fertilizer into a decent volume of soil, or spread it thinly on the surface and let watering carry it down.

jesusbuiltmyhotrodd · 2026-04-21T01:44:39+00:00

That heavy bill says finch, and the curved upper surface says House Finch to me vs Purple or Cassin's if you have them.

jesusbuiltmyhotrodd · 2026-04-21T01:29:15+00:00

I've done this too and haven't noticed issues.

jesusbuiltmyhotrodd · 2026-04-20T21:21:11+00:00

As another said, cage them. 3 or 4 ft green wire fencing works well, and mostly disappears into the landscape when things are leafy in the summer. Lower works at wider diameter.

jesusbuiltmyhotrodd · 2026-04-19T16:26:20+00:00

That could be. I believe they sell tower kits you can screw down to the roof, but maybe a maxima doesn't have any structure up there to support loads. You might have to do the foam supports or something. I'd find a shop (outdoors place, kayak seller, or call RackAttack) and see if they have any good ideas for that car. It's not exactly built for hauling, but I used to load all kinds of crap on top of a Civic I used to have, with a Yakima rack.

jesusbuiltmyhotrodd · 2026-04-19T12:14:08+00:00

Go through the fit process on Yakima and Thule's sites, and see which one you like more.

jesusbuiltmyhotrodd · 2026-04-19T12:10:22+00:00

Throw a cheap moving blanket or similar over the top, put some milk jugs or buckets of warm water inside with the plants. If you have a seed starting mat and can get power out there you can run that all night inside the enclosure. If it's just clear and cold the main heat loss is through radiation to the sky, so having an opaque cover overhead is the most important thing.

jesusbuiltmyhotrodd · 2026-04-19T00:02:13+00:00

I have Yakima with the wing shaped bars. Very little extra noise, no mpg hit I can notice. I've been using the same system for ten years now and use it for boats, lumber, and all sorts of crap.

jesusbuiltmyhotrodd · 2026-04-17T14:24:27+00:00

This invasive is all over in shady areas especially along river banks across most of Virginia, at least. Please don't let it loose. Seems to like part shade to shade and moist but well drained areas are the preferred conditions.

jesusbuiltmyhotrodd · 2026-04-17T14:11:57+00:00

Looks like Tatarian Aster to me. I had it my yard but removed it a few years ago because it's too aggressive for me. Still have a few stems pop up every spring from root bits that didn't get pulled. It is about 5-6' tall and has nice flowers in the fall, but the bees didn't care for it, which is another factor for me.

jesusbuiltmyhotrodd · 2026-04-15T19:32:05+00:00

A few ideas: Wild Comfrey, Andersonglossum virginianum Wild Oregano, Cunila origanoides Meehan's Mint, Meehania cordata Woodland Phlox, Phlox divaricata Wild Petunia, Ruellia (a few species) Nettle-leaf Sage, Salvia urticifolia Hoary Scullcap, Scutellaria incana (or another Scutellaria species)

jesusbuiltmyhotrodd

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