Saturday 16 February 2008

Getting to the root of it all, and digging for victory

For the last couple of days I feel like my shovel has been permanently welded to my hands!

The last week has seen the most glorious weather. Although the mornings have been cold and frosty, as soon as the sun is up the temperature soars. The sky is bluest blue without a cloud to be seen. OH and I have been working outside in t-shirts and it feels so much like summer that we have to keep reminding ourselves it is February. We are still lighting the fires in the evening as the temperature drops when the sun goes down.

OH has been painting the outside of the house. Our house is made of stone, but the front wall is covered in grey crepi which looks really dreary. We are painting it a colour called Ton Pierre, which is a lovely cream colour. I started it last year and got to a level above the front door right across the front of the house. OH is doing the higher stuff as he is much better with heights than me.

I have taken advantage of the good weather to sort out the flower beds. When we first moved here I planted some flowers that look like really tall rudbeckias. Like orange petalled daisies with brown centres and 5 feet tall. They are perennials and flower for ages. Little did I realise how far they would spread! The roots have spread over a metre from where I planted them! I am having to dig up all the platns around them and remove the roots that have infested them.
While they are nice flowers, I put them in the wrong place, and they flop over you when you walk down the garden path. They would great in the back of a border as the flowers are only on the very top and there is nothing bar a few leaves for the remaining 4 foot! So, they have got to go. I am sure that I can use some of them elsewhere in the garden, but as I have so far removed 3 wheelbarrow loads of roots from the top flower bed and have the same size area again to clear, I am sure I will be donating some to my neighbours!

Some new friends that we met on New Years Eve called round the other day and said that they had a load of horse manure ready if I wanted some. I jumped at the offer. They said that they would bring some round at the weekend, but he turned up yesterday with a trailer load! I actually think that this trailer is a TARDIS as no matter how many barrow loads I shovel out, it doesn't seem to be getting any emptier. I just keep telling myself that the garden is really going to appreciate it! Misty is loving the trailer, she is climbing over it and under it, flicking lits bits of horse poo out of it! She is such a joy and races me up and down the garden when I barrow the next load down. She normally loves to ride in the barrow when it is full of logs, she's not too keen on riding on the poo though!

12 comments:

A Mother's Place is in the Wrong said...

Lovely, Debra, your week sounds as if it has been joyful. I'm green with envy again - and longing to visit my friends in France. Roll on the end of March! Margot xx

softinthehead said...

Also very envious of the fantastic weather. Here we are still up to our elbows in snow. We need piccies of the house...sounds lovely!! I think our house must have that crepi (crappy) stuff too in a battleship grey.

Wooly Works said...

You're totally talking my kind of talk!! Getting rid of perfectly healthy flowers and manure. I can kill most living plants within minutes and I have more manure than I know what to do with. How I would love to give a load, or 50 loads, of it to someone--anyone!

How I envy you the warm weather. We had horizontal snow earlier this week and 50 mph winds. We won't see consistently warm weather until the end of March. Even though it will be sunny nearly every day, the temperatures will stay below freezing nearly all day. France sounds wonderful to me!! Can I come and kill you flowers for you?

Breezy said...

Those orange flowers looked so loveley last year. Actually all your flowers did. You can guess then who'd be happy to take some roots off your hands shame she's not about. Can't wait to see your house all one colour. Let us know if our little bulbs at the side of the house the pink, purple and white ones (can't remember what they are now!) show their faces. I've been buying 29p packets of seeds from Aldi marigolds, nastursuims and night scented stocks. Couldn't resist some runner beans, carrots and parsley too!

Maggie May said...

Although our weather has been sunny & pleasant looking, we have frost at night & it goes really cold! Lovely to get out on the garden though.

Had to smile at woolyworks comment! That amount of manure would completely cover my garden!

Debra in France said...

Hi Mothers Place, it has been a glorious week, weather today is a good 'drying' day, warm and windy! Where do your French friends live?

Hi SITH, when we have weather like this it is hard to remember that there are parts of the world still in snow! I can't believe that we have not had snow yet. It usually comes at the end of Jan - so is either very late or not coming at all. Last year we had temperatures of 27 degrees C in April and we were all anticipating a roasting summer - it never arrived!

Hi Wooly, I am generally good with plants and only kill them when I am fed up with them! This manure stuff weigh a ton! I have to say, I am glad we don't get the severe weather you have, I am definitely a warm weather person. You are welcome to come over, but if you don't mind I;ll keep you away from the plants!!!

Hi Breezy, Good job I have made a pile of roots for you then. They would look lovely all along your front fence. Good on you buying loads of seeds, wouldn't mind a few night scented stocks myself. I can't wait for the house to be painted either.

Hi Maggie May, I know, that amount of manure would have covered our last garden totally. If we ever move from this house I go for a smaller garden again. We have an acre, which is alot of garden!

A Mother's Place is in the Wrong said...

Hi Debra - one has bought in Cordes-sur-Ciel, near Gaillac and Toulouse and another is renting in Mirepoix (temporarily). Hoping to visit at the beginning of April. M xx

aims said...

No-one does anything in their gardens here until after May 24. Even then you can't be guaranteed that it won't be covered with snow at any time.

Breezy said...

I'll treat you to some stocks Debra. I'll be in touch nearer coming home to see what other bits and pieces from Blighty you fancy

Living the Dream said...

Hi Debra, the weather certainly is fantastic isn't it? We have been having a good clear up in the garden getting rid of all the wood, you know what it's like, picking up, chopping, sawing, stacking..... We could do with a log splitter though. Richard is busy doing "building" stuff while I am clearing and cutting back the hydrangeas etc. Talk again soon

menopausaloldbag (MOB) said...

At the moment we have a mole in our garden. We are becoming obsessed with how to get rid of the annoying little sucker. My husband managed to get rid of it last year but it's come back. So, when we evict the little varmint we might just get around to landscapng our garden this year. Keep digging away, it's great for the figure!

Debra in France said...

Hi Mothers place, The weather down in Toulouse will be wonderful at that time of year. Have a great time :-)

Thanks Breezy, Maybe a bit of Cheddar?!

Hi Hazel, The log splitter is one of the best things we have ever bought. It makes it all so easy. I can really recommend it.

Hi MOB, luckily we don't have any moles appearing in our garden. But there are a couple of gardens that I look after for other people that look like a lunar landscape with mole hills - good hunting!