Hedging My Bets

Tuesday wasn't a particularly good day as July days go. It was cloudy all day with some light drizzle starting mid afternoon and continuing into the evening. Mustn't complain about the rain though as both the plot and garden need a good watering.

A good number of years ago I was given some laurel seedlings by a good friend at work on the grounds I could give them a good home. They were planted at the plot to try to give some shelter from prevailing winds. This windbreak has got a little out of control and was in need of some serious pruning.

The laurel hedge and kiwi have become entangled. There should be a path between the two leading up to our cherry tree. Severe pruning began this afternoon to rediscover the path and bring a semblance of order back to both the kiwi and laurel.

I made some good progress hacking through the growth before the drizzle brought a premature end to the job. I must admit I wasn't too disappointed as my arms did ache a little bit after all the pruning. I've pruned round all the sides but still have to level off the top and do a little bit of tidying up.

I've now got an impressive pile of laurel clipping to deal with. It’s nearly all softwood but I might find enough amongst this lot for some shortish pea sticks. 

We're still trying to decide whether or not to make some elderflower cordial. Some of the flowers we will need to use can be seen to the left of the photograph so we will have to make our minds up quickly.

Original post from A Gardener's Weather Diary http://ossettweather.blogspot.co.uk/ author M Garrett