What To Do With A Fallen Hemlock?

At the very back of our lot, we have this fallen giant. It died shortly after we finished building, and we thought the cause was "Global Warming" - the 90's were hotter and drier in this area that the previous decade had been. After some research, and many conversations with local tree people, I have come to the conclusion that the sewer lines that were dug across the back of this lot (when the area was subdivided) were more likely to be the cause of its premature death, as that digging damaged its roots. Now that it has become a Nurse Log, I'm trying to find ways to work it into my landscape plan - if you live in my yard, you work!
It is growing neat mushrooms, and the squirrels love to use it as a highway to the wild, but I've come up with a different job for that giant (it was 45 ft.+). That log is going to hold up the back of my lasagna garden. There's lot of sticks , leaves, worn-out soil, shredded paper (tax time) and compost to build the layers, and then I can plant some sun loving perennials and shrubs to hide that neighbour's shed and deter those hungry deer. I'll post a picture of the finished bed, before it's planted. Right now, while it is in process, it looks disgusting.

I Think It Might Be Spring!!

What a difference a year makes! I cannot believe the temperatures out there 9, or 10 degrees in the daytime.This is far too warm for January/February. The sedums are poking up their green sprouts, and the roses have tiny purple leaves on the tips of their branches. Now I must do something drastic about those deer!

Last August, my roses were just looking their best ( I had planted 3 new bushes in the Spring ), when those pesky deer found their little corner, and chomped off all the blooms and most of the leaves as well. I know that they're hungry - after all that doe was raising 2 fawns, but there's lots of other stuff that is just as tasty! I've never been able to understand why they don't eat all those lovely lawns on this cul-de-sac. The neighbours spend hours cutting, and watering them, and the deer just avoid them. Is it the stuff they spray on the grass? Or the variety of grass types used? Perhaps those pesky deer know something about REAL food.
Hmmm....