I really blew it. I was having an outside burn on Sunday to get rid of the sins of winter. The fire had died down low & I went inside. BIG MISTAKE. One thing led to another (I can get distracted)& when I went out to check on the fire, it had taken off. It was climbing up a birch tree 6 feet, it was licking our split rail fence in another spot, and moving towards our neighbor's yard. I was yelling for my family, & dousing the fire with the hose. No one heard me. I was to scared to leave the fire and too embarrassed to run in to call the fire dept. I managed to put it out, but it has devoured one whole section of perennial garden. I slipped & fell in the mud from the hose & have hurt my hip. Not a good day. I feel like c+++. One thing I have to say though is that my husband, instead of berating me, knows I know I really blew it & is kind. He says I should have dropped the hose & come & gotten him. My son says the same thing. We are very fortunate the fire did not do permanent damage. The perennials were up about 4". They all look like boiled lettuce now. Maybe they will resprout from the roots?
Oh, CM, very glad you were not hurt...the plants can be replaced if needed but unless they burned for a long period of time the roots just may be okay. Glad there was no damage to your home too. I must say you are very brave to come admit to us what you did. Your misadventure will serve as a distinctive reminder to all our members who do burns on their property to not leave it unattended even for a few seconds. Have a large glass of your favorite adult beverage this evening and let it all out, you are going to need a good cry very soon just to release the tension built up inside.
Fire is so very scary. Glad to hear that you put it out in time before any structures were affected. Ouch to your hurt hip, take good care of yourself. And bless your hubby for taking the high road. Be good to yourself, everyone makes mistakes now and then.
It could have been so much worse, and you were brave to fight the fire all by yourself. We occasionally burn tree trimmings and corn stalks, and I have the hose at the ready, a bucket full of water with an old broom in it(to smack any floating embers), and my cell phone to call for help if needed. Cosset yourself for a day or two until your hip feels better. By then the perennials will be popping up again!
Oh how scary. Glad everything is all right. Rest that hip for a few days and enjoy the rest of spring time.
Well that's one way to learn a lesson!! Thank heavens you were able to control it and put it out without burning yourself. It takes a strong person to deal with a fire on their own. Now it's time to take a break until that hip of your recovers. Don't chastise yourself as mistakes can happen to anyone with much worse consequences.
That's a scary situation. I am glad you were able to "contain" it yourself. I hope you feel better soon. Sit in a bath of epsom's salt and soak if your hip keeps hurting. Maybe it will make it feel better. Arnica makes things feel better, too. I think I have a stress fracture in my foot and each night before I re-wrap it I put arnica jel on it and in the morning it does feel better. Being off of it helps, too.
That is scarey but glad there wasn't more damage and that you didn't get hurt any worse. The first year we moved to the house, hubby dumped some old charcoal out of the grill that had been sitting there for two days in the compost area that was made with pallets. Next evening when we got home, we could smell something burning. Luckily for us, it only burnt the pallets, but if a strong wind had been blowing, I'm certain it would have caught the wooden fence and surrounding brush/grass on fire. And with no one home, who knows how much would have burnt... including the house and neighbors pasture etc. Ever since then, charcoal ashes are flooded with water no matter how long they have been sitting in the grill. I learned my lesson for sure!
That must have been terrifying! I'm glad to hear that no one hurt by the fire, and I hope your hip heals soon. For your perennials, wait and see what happens. If the roots were not damaged they may just pop back up. Nature finds a way.
Fire terrifies me, so I can imagine how you felt as you were dousing it. You were able to put out the fire and there was a lesson learned ... you must stop punishing yourself. I do hope your hip injury mends quickly. And I am certain your plants will be fine
Ach--what a shame Cayuga. It was good that you were able to contain and control that fire all by yourself. That is super. I didn't like hearing that you injured your hip though. That really is bad luck. I hope that you can salvage something of the perennials, but if not I know that you will replace them one way or another. Perhaps some of the stewbies will send you some plants. You can also see the good side of the accident--the ash will enrich your top soil to a degree. We have a saying here: "Every down-side has an up-side". I hope that hip heals soon and without incident.
Hi everybody. Thanks for all your kinds words. Stew really is a place of good people. I am chalking it up to lessons learned. My hip still hurts and is cramping my style quite a bit, but it is improving, so that is a good sign. I just looked at the perennials. They all look pretty crispy now, but some have new shoots already. Thanks all.
Fire ... the split personality thing, friend and foe! I've experienced both side of it, comforting and scary. Have a good rest to recover you hip, it happens and glad that you were still in control. Get well quick!!!
