Almost finished?
Winnie and Her Ball
Easy to miscalculate the amount of work needed in order to finish something. I honestly thought I was close to finishing raking up the Pond Paddock leaves. I wasn't.
I also thought I'd trimmed at least half of the Aconites in the Apple Tree Garden. I hadn't. And what about all the Macleaya stalks? I'd forgotten completely to chop them down.
Friday 21st June
Have just spent over three hours trying to complete these tasks. Surely I am now almost finished? Depends how one defines 'almost'. Humph.
Dog company...
Winnie the dog stayed for a while, but I kept forgetting to throw her tennis ball, so she got bored with me and went back into the house.
Tame Blackbird
Not alone...
But I was not alone - my tame dark-brown blackbird kept me company. He (or she) is a fearless garden friend, not scared by the swooshing of my leaf rake, or the clumping of my boots as I plod past. An industrious, calm bird who is happy to be really close to me. Nice!
Spread more leaf mould onto the garden. Filled seven more bags with leaves. Kept going until my bottom got too cold and wet (had to sit down in the wet grass to clear a path).
Saturday 22nd June
Today is the third day that I'm working in the Apple Tree Garden and the Pond Paddock. I really, really, really want to finish this clean-up. Is this possible? Surely? It's only a tiddly area. And the sun is shining! Yeay!
Four and a half hours later...
Well done, me. I've barrowed out six loads of wet stuff and dumped it underneath the hedge. I've axed out the roots of the Phormium. I've trimmed all the Aconites and pruned more Hydrangeas. I've shifted one of the Nicky Crisp Camellias to the front of the Apple Tree Garden, and replanted some - Naked Ladies? - rescued from underneath the big Miscanthus grass.
Minimus in the Garden
I've spread bags of leaf mould around everything. My tame blackbird has again been following me everywhere, checking out what I've been unearthing. Beautiful bird! And Minimus my cottage cat has been out and about, too.
Pond Cottage
At the end of the day I even got my bonfire going. Trimmed the Phormiums by the cottage, gathered up dry Cordyline leaves and gum bark, and got it crackling rather well.