Wooden Puzzle

 So, with 2 trees finally fallen and a chainsaw with a freshly sharpened chain, it only leaves the question of what does one do with a heap of hefty pieces of trunk?

Ideas flew between the Under Gardener (silly!) and the Head Gardener (interesting!)  We didn't want to just abandon them along the bank and so I suggested building a 'wall' at the end of the Long Bed, then  a wall to hide the compost bins until finally Sue had the idea to create a feature at the end of the alley which could be planted up with Hostas.

(At the moment you just need a little imagination)

However it did require a bit of muscle to achieve the end result.

(It was easier to pull backwards up the slope than it was to push!)

Things that go Bump in the Night

 ...except we didn't hear any noises.

A couple of days ago we were spreading mulch when we saw that the 'leaning' tree was down!

This is how it was at the end of October ...

So it has taken about 6 weeks for it to finally decide to fall!

At the Head Gardener's insistence I rushed off to our local Agricultural business to get the chain on the chainsaw sharpened.  There's alot of wood there ... 2 big trunks to saw up.  

Unless anyone knows of a chainsaw artist?

Vive la Différence

 It's not really very far across the channel but ... in some ways the cultures are very different.  The French celebrate their family Christmas on Christmas Eve ... and they are mad for Oysters!

So much so that the arrival of oysters at the local market of a very small village in the depths of the countryside is announced on the Mayor's bulletin board.

 One must get one's priorities right!

Winter is here

 .......and it has come as a shock even though we knew it was inevitable. In keeping with all the changes in seasons this year it has happened overnight. On Monday John was working in his Tshirt in the afternoon but the last two days have started off at minus 2 and risen to the dizzy heights of 5 degrees in the afternoon with miserable rain all day.

However we are amazed and very thankful that we have been able to work in the garden so late in the year and as a consequence have even been able to do some jobs that we are normally struggling with in Spring. Fifty percent of the entire garden beds have been covered with a mulch from the local recycling centre and we hope to complete the rest during the winter. 

The most significant achievement however is the new shrubbery bed which we did not expect to start  until the Spring. Last Thursday we began moving surplus shrubs from other parts of the garden and continued over the weekend. 

By Sunday evening we had an idea of what extra plants we needed so off to the garden centre on Monday to find them. Actually we have been every day since as we continue to formulate our ideas. Not many more required....I think. We have not chosen very unusual plants just ones that will show up from a distance, particularly in the winter and ones that in our experience are not favoured by the dear, although that remains to be seen!!

When the weather improves a little we will plant the new acquisitions and then lay some geotextile to deter the weeds and then cover that with bark chippings. However the chippings may be a while arriving as we need lorry loads for the shrubbery, rose beds and paths.

When we opened the garden two years ago a couple turned up with a gift of a Catalpa (Indian Bean Tree) and low and behold like buses 30 minutes later another couple arrived with a gift of the very same tree. To be honest we had no idea where to put them but they have now found a home adjacent to the shrubbery.

Brr...... indoor jobs for the foreseeable future.