Respect

 Yesterday was the 11th November, Armistice day, which is a National holiday here in France.  So, the Head Gardener decreed that, to respect this day, we would not do anything noisy, so no favorite pastimes like mowing or chainsawing.

So I began pruning (with secateurs and lopers) the plum tree in the front garden.  This tree has perhaps fruited well only every 3 or 4 years and its role in the garden design is under question ...

... and the chainsaw awaits.

Then, in the afternoon, having got into the swing of things, I started on the field maple in the courtyard.

This is quite a vigorous tree and I 'scalped' it about 3 years ago.  As you can see I've removed a lot of the lower growth and will be reducing what's left by about a half.  A lot of debris to get rid of.

The things you do when the sun shines!