It was sleeting again first thing this morning but cleared up enough for me to get out and and do more gardening. I'm getting on with the weeding simply because I want to get that job out of the way before I have to start mowing and strimming. Romas did that job for me last year but I doubt if Linas will be so willing to help. I also want to get all the basic maintenance done and over with so that I can spend my time in the scree garden which is my favourite part of the garden. It needs tidying too and then I can complete the building of the steps up from the drive. Both Romas and Linas started the job but gave up when it didn't prove as easy as they thought it would be.
By mid-day things had warmed up enough for the frogs to be active. Their croaking sounds like many tiny motorbikes revving up in the pond. I was working nearby weeding the steps up to the terrace. I originally built those steps from large rocks which I had found around the property and over the years the spaces between the rocks had become overgrown. My plan had been to grow alpine thyme between the stones so that they would give off their scent as you walk up the steps. Unfortunately despite putting in plenty of gravel and adding good soil the underlying clay makes conditions too wet and the thyme did not survive. I then tried low growing Corsican mint but that didn't last either. Now that we know we will be selling up eventually I'm just trying to get the garden tidy with the minimum of effort and cost so I'll probably plant some of the Mind-Your-Own- Business which I've already got growing at the top of the garden. It's not scented but should provide green cover. Sitting for several hours digging out weed roots, (I was being thorough and lifting the stones to clear out everything), really makes you focus on little things .... like weed roots ! Today's mix was grass with easily seen and removed runners and yarrow. It's only a small green weed but the roots are the same colour as the soil and are the type that get fatter at the bottom. If you are not careful when you pull them out they break and will grow back from the piece left in the ground. That's where my handy screwdriver came in useful once more. Oh what an exciting life I lead !
After lunch I needed to go and buy some milk. I've been trying to cut back on my frequent trips to the supermarkets and to start using up more of the food already in the house but there was no more milk in the freezer for tea or anything. It annoyed me to be driving out for such a small thing but I took some stuff to the dump as well and collected the recycling box , (the green thing on the grass), before somebody stole it. They're quite useful boxes and I've had several stolen already. You get them free from the council but it takes a few phone calls to get a replacement. They did also hand out wheelie bins, just how did they think I was going to get that up half a mile of hill, and 2 neat caddies with lids for our kitchen waste. As as our food waste goes either to the cats or the hens I didn't need them and gave them to Kate B to keep her guinea pig feed in. When I got to the top of our drive they way was blocked by some workmen who were using it to park in. However I couldn't be too annoyed as they were repairing some of the enormous holes that had appeared in the road after the bad weather. One pair of large pot holes were at least 6" deep with just enough room for a car to drive between them so I'm glad they have been filled in.
There were a few patches of sunshine lighting up the coast and I had planned where I would stop on my way back to take photos but the clouds closed in and the day stayed boringly grey.
By mid-day things had warmed up enough for the frogs to be active. Their croaking sounds like many tiny motorbikes revving up in the pond. I was working nearby weeding the steps up to the terrace. I originally built those steps from large rocks which I had found around the property and over the years the spaces between the rocks had become overgrown. My plan had been to grow alpine thyme between the stones so that they would give off their scent as you walk up the steps. Unfortunately despite putting in plenty of gravel and adding good soil the underlying clay makes conditions too wet and the thyme did not survive. I then tried low growing Corsican mint but that didn't last either. Now that we know we will be selling up eventually I'm just trying to get the garden tidy with the minimum of effort and cost so I'll probably plant some of the Mind-Your-Own- Business which I've already got growing at the top of the garden. It's not scented but should provide green cover. Sitting for several hours digging out weed roots, (I was being thorough and lifting the stones to clear out everything), really makes you focus on little things .... like weed roots ! Today's mix was grass with easily seen and removed runners and yarrow. It's only a small green weed but the roots are the same colour as the soil and are the type that get fatter at the bottom. If you are not careful when you pull them out they break and will grow back from the piece left in the ground. That's where my handy screwdriver came in useful once more. Oh what an exciting life I lead !
After lunch I needed to go and buy some milk. I've been trying to cut back on my frequent trips to the supermarkets and to start using up more of the food already in the house but there was no more milk in the freezer for tea or anything. It annoyed me to be driving out for such a small thing but I took some stuff to the dump as well and collected the recycling box , (the green thing on the grass), before somebody stole it. They're quite useful boxes and I've had several stolen already. You get them free from the council but it takes a few phone calls to get a replacement. They did also hand out wheelie bins, just how did they think I was going to get that up half a mile of hill, and 2 neat caddies with lids for our kitchen waste. As as our food waste goes either to the cats or the hens I didn't need them and gave them to Kate B to keep her guinea pig feed in. When I got to the top of our drive they way was blocked by some workmen who were using it to park in. However I couldn't be too annoyed as they were repairing some of the enormous holes that had appeared in the road after the bad weather. One pair of large pot holes were at least 6" deep with just enough room for a car to drive between them so I'm glad they have been filled in.There were a few patches of sunshine lighting up the coast and I had planned where I would stop on my way back to take photos but the clouds closed in and the day stayed boringly grey.
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