Hard work is good for you!

I have been out in the garden again this week. Unfortunately, I got dug a couple of times in the back of my hand by a rose bush when I was pruning out dead wood. I swore, but thought nothing of it until my hand suddenly "blew up" several hours later (after it had been painting, lifting et al). OH and I had our first Night Out in years - spent at A&E as I was worried I may have contracted Sporotrinchosis , which can occur after being pricked by a rose thorn. It is a particularly nasty fungal infection which can be pretty unpleasant. As it was, my knuckles were absolute agony and I obviously had an infection starting, so I'm now on anti-biotics.

Anyway, it (my hand!) had the day off yesterday, and today I've given it, ahem, "gentle" exercise, by helping my husband out front of house, where we are tidying up and putting up some post and rail fencing. It looks much better already, although there is still a lot of clearing of trash to go. Top picture shows the tidied and fenced bit - we will have to paint the fencing though.

Below is a picture of the cleared area.


I have been raking up dead leaves and twigs from the recently-felled pussy willow tree, which had gotten very overgrown and untidy. I've also been cutting all the brambles right back, and hoiking out long trails of ivy, which gets everywhere. I am delighted that I have Ramsons (wild garlic) peeping up by the gate, and I uncovered some more when clearing leaves today. I have a well-grown Honeysuckle in a tub which I am going to plant up, as well as several self-set heavily scented rambler roses which are "upstarts" from a set cutting a neighbour gave me. The perfume is heavenly and the rose has cream petals, just simple form, but it grows and flowers like heck! (It is possibly "Seagull", but I''m not certain.) I also have the 4 shrubs I bought for a fiver the 4 in Lidls recently (Deutzea, Spiraea and 2 Philadelphus) - so all white.

And this is the bit still to sort . . .