Somewhere...
Oh dear. There is a path in here - somewhere, in here... Have just been struggling to get through the shadier end of the Hump Garden. Some of the loveliest trees, like the Cercis, have put on unprecedented growth. What comes first - a tree or a path? The path might come first chronologically, but it moves when the tree grows too big.
Spot the Path? No chance!
Shrubs and roses (e.g. a cheery red Flower Carpet spreader) can move too, even though it's just after mid-summer - they can sulk away in a bucket of water, for a wee while. And huge shimmering Anemanthele grasses which fill up too much space can be trimmed or dug out.
Anemanthele Grasses
Seems easy and logical in theory, but it's a daunting prospect for a gardener who was just planning to have a dreamy, meandering, mindless day trimming old Lychnis plants. A much more serious and thoughtful (and strenuous) dig and shift session is needed. Have to take several deep breaths - and find my spade. Blast!
Happy in the Hump Garden
Later, mid-afternoon, and a slight change of plan. Decided to clear all the mess out of the Hump Garden before making any decisions on path versus no-path.
One of the good paths
Full of opportunists...
A lot of the growth is from self sowers - foxgloves, Lychnis (of course), and Campion (of course) - so the area gets crammed full of opportunists. Had a great first session. The second - not so good, got far too hot far too quickly.
Suckers...
All the prunus stumps are suckering like mad, and there's a tenacious network of creeping clover. Poor Sir Peter Beaven (a struggling rose) needs shifting, as does a variegated Miscanthus grass. Later, when the wee red flowers are over, the variegated Scrophularia needs to be lifted and divided, and creepy grass removed from its root systems.
One more session...
I did one final session (just an hour, very pleasant temperature) at the end of the day. Two more barrowfuls of mess removed and carted off. I also scooped up more of the downed Wisteria from the upper house patio, which now has lighter shade. Reward - one huge, sweet strawberry in the pot on the steps. Yum!
One of my new rescued roses
But, for the record, the path issue isn't sorted. At all. Hmm...