Another Helicopter Report

Not knowing anything about those things, I had thought that that one time would do it for the spraying from the air next door, but the next day, at 6:30 on Sunday evening, the raucous machine took another shot at the job, and then a third time early Monday morning.

During the Sunday dumpings I took a little trek through the narrow, separating strip of woods to take a closer look -- and I was astounded.

After they had clearcut those 12 or so adjoining acres this past spring, they had left behind a field with nothing in it but stubble. But it's been an unusually wet summer, and now the field was packed with a uniform, solid growth of all sorts of weeds taller than me, and my thoughts borrowed Roy Scheider's great line from the movie "Jaws."

They're going to need a bigger boat!

I assume that under all that luxuriant growth the rows of 10-inch high pine seedlings are already planted, though now they must be cowering. A neighbor had some of his land cleared at the same time by the same man, and they planted the pines in February. But his land is going to be sprayed later, by hand.

Spraying by helicopter must be expensive, and I wonder how efficient it is. I don't see how it can be, but what do I know?

Anyway, I like experiments, and I'm treating this as one, set up especially for me. I hope I can keep a close eye on it, but, as with blogging, other things tend to divert me and before I know it--

Meanwhile I'm not going to be shocked and astonished if this bombing from the air with invisible poison droplets turns out as comprehensively as they planned. Technology can do some amazing things these days.