I took full advantage of having No. 1 son staying overnight and asked for some help in the garden. Here is the new path across the orchard and no way could I have done this on my own inside a 6 mth! Path is cardboard box base, then good membrane and then barrowload after barrowload of chippings from the overly deep laid driveway. He took about a foot of chippings off one side so vehicles shouldn't struggle reversing out now. I need to get some lengths of wood to edge this and keep the chippings in place.
A little bit of the orchard. I have a dozen fruit trees planted now.
One of last year's plantings, this little Primula is so pretty.
Tam was also here overnight and we had a bottle of Prosecco and an Indian takeaway to celebrate her new job (she starts today as an Archivist) and having been picked (from 50 applicants) for a fabulous flat in a big Victorian house overlooking the sea, AND it has a garden with veg plots which the owner wanted utilised. Tam can't wait to oblige!
We went to the Garden Centre yesterday. I was good and mostly just got what I went for - some more bark chips to go on the bank as I clear it, a sack of sheep's wool compost I wanted to try out for plants in tubs, and a new and larger cat litter tray. Having left Big Black Sam at our old house (new occupants took on the 3 outside cats for us) there is Big Black Sam mark II around the garden here - a feral tom - and his presence stops the cats going out at night for ablutions, so the bigger tray a necessity. Oh, and I may have bought 3 double Hollyhocks. Red, maroon and yellow.
I was up early yesterday and outside gardening. There is a remnant of an earlier and very aged shrub hedge in front of part of the holly hedge, and I can do without it, so I began cutting it down yesterday. Getting the roots up should be fun as it's probably been there more than 50 years! In its place, once it's all dug over, is going to be a rambler rose (probably Vilette which is on its way now, along with some others). I will put some perennials to form a proper bed out there too. Keith is muttering "high maintenance garden" behind my back!
At some point this week I need to really gird my loins and bring up some of the oldest muck-heap. Danny would have done it but wanted to do it all the same day (and not yesterday morning) and I was too tired on Tuesday afternoon after I gave the lawn the first cut of the year. So it's down to me. I have several roses to plant in the next couple of weeks as I asked for roses for my birthday. Danny is buying me Malvern Hills, a yellow climber from David Austin. Tam has a short list of 6 to choose from.
Right, let's look forward to the heat-wave heading our way. Meanwhile, another two afternoons of the Cheltenham Festival, so afternoons will be spent watching the best Steeplechasers and Hurdlers in the business, whilst I do the hand-sewing part of the little quilt I am making for a friend.
