A Week's Work

This last week has enabled us to get a fair number of early spring chores undertaken. Winter came very early last November, so there were some things that might have been done then that weren't.

Bill has judiciously finished cleaning up all of the back garden areas, and trucked many loads of debris to the refuse pile behind the deer fence.

My introduction to work in the spring is usually an undertaking of pruning. The various Hydrangeas, always need a cut back, and this year the roses were in dire need of a renewal prune.

There was not a lot of winter damage per se.

The biggest job was cutting back the "thicket" of shrub roses along the driveway. They had pretty much gone their own way for a few years. We now have a series of "sticks", which I hope will regrow reasonably well.

The roses there are tough guys like 'Jens Munk'

'Dart's Dash', 'Blanc Double de Coubert'

a couple of Grootendorsts, the prickliest of all the roses, it seems.

the hybrid perpetual 'Jacques Cartier'

This is 'Agnes'.....

There were a couple of Magnolias that came under severe prunings, as well. I don't have a pic of the "before". This is our yellow Magnolia 'Butterflies', a huge piece was taken off the base.

Our pitiful excuse for grapes also had a trim, but they also need some extensive "training". All this clean-up serves as a good reacquainting procedure. One get to see the emergence of new growth, such as the "noses" of the Foxtail lilies. The rhubarb is barely out of the ground.

There are a few spring blooming heathers on the go.