Another reason why I have not been posting is that the garden had grown completely out of control. I had not been able to keep an eye on it because of my ramshackle door, and once the door was replaced I was too exhausted to do much.
Unfortunately the plants in the garden cottoned onto this, and entered into an anti-DB alliance, and made a bid to take over the house as well. They destroyed part of the garden fence, overgrew the conservatory, blocked the kitchen window, and tried to grow into the bathroom window. Most of the attack was spearheaded by the pyracanthia pricker bushes. They also grew into the garden path, so I could no longer reach the compost heap, or tend to the pond, never mind using the washing line to hang up laundry.
Well, it couldn't last. I spent three weekend, including bank holiday weekends, to cruelly squash and disappoint the world domination dreams of the herbaceous take-over consortium - they blocked my path to the compost heap, now they are the compost heap!
I have an axe, a saw, heavy duty clippers, and a will of iron. And if I have to turn half the garden into a compost heap, by golly I will do it!
First I cut the pyracanthia in front of the kitchen back to within an inch of its life. I told it to grow in the two foot space between the kitchen and the bathroom window, and leave it at that. Otherwise - and here I brandished my axe menacingly - I'll take you out root and branch!
Then I did the same to the pyracanthia next to it, only that one shall be dismembered until it dies. The area where it grew will be turned into a mint plantation.
The last pyracanthia I slashed was completely entwined with the quince tree, and weaving lovingly between the two was the neighbour's honeysuckle. Well, it can suckle no longer! I lopped off its branches one by one, snipped them into smallish pieces, and entombed them in a huge black compost bag, together with large quantities of over-ambitious ivy shoots that I had brutally ripped off the kitchen window and wall.
Next in line were the two buddlias, which, though beloved by butterflies and myself, were severely punished for demolishing my fence and overshadowing the conservatory. It took three days of sawing, but they are now subdued and contrite looking. Who knows whether they will survive - herbaceous wars are fought without pity on either side. When I was weak I tried to plead with them, and they ignored me - now that I am strong again I have trodden them underfoot.
The problem with a small garden like mine is where to store all that lopped off vegetation. I neatly divided it into three piles: (a) leaves and tiny twigs, (b) bigger twigs and branches, and (c) huge branches. The leaves came into the compost heap, where I added compost starter (beneficial bacteria and nutrients to set the composting process off, and lots of water (that also speeds up the digestive process). The twigs I piled against the fence, to dry - they will come in handy as kindling when the winter comes. The huge branches I leaned against the elder (tree, not person) in the back of the garden, to dry out and become brittle enough to be further reduced.
A huge amount of work, all this. When I had finished, I noticed that I had seriously dirty windows, and that the garden bench was rotten to the core - no doubt the herbaceous consortium had intended me to sit on the bench and crack my spine while it collapsed under me.
Well, tough luck, I won and I am going to keep it up until order is once more restored to my garden. Yes, MY GARDEN! Bloody plants, never follow orders.
I bought a new garden bench, and also a shade sail - you attach the latter on different points in the garden - like hacked back stumps of uppity pyracanthias - and sit underneath it in the shade it casts. An alternative to garden umbrellas, and an experiment.
Anyway. You can see how busy I am. I have also been to a garden party, started to list scarves on ebay, and started a wool replacement exercise in the house, to get on top of the moth menace. More of that in due course.
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| There were pyracanthias here, as high as the top of the house |
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| That bare fence used to be covered in ivy, which I couldn't get to because the pyracanthias were in the way |
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| Here once grew another pyracanthia |
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| Drying kindling twigs |
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| Big branches leaning against the elder |
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| Massive compostheap |
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| Compost bag |
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| Pond OK, but needs repopulating |
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| View down from bathroom window - now possible! |
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| Mangled fence, culprit one - now destroyed - buddlia |
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| Overgrown conservatory |
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| Pots of herbs, ready to be planted |
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| Large number of rubbish bags, full of stuff that can't be composted |
