Meanwhile..............

Lady Christl

................the potatoes are chitting away happily in the tool shed window!   This year, I have strayed from Arran Pilots and gone for this new variety.  This straying from a lifelong tradition is due solely to Steve's influence.  If I had more more room, I'd grow more varieties.  I hope these taste as good as Steve's did last year!

Monday is the new Saturday!

For very nice reasons (which we won't detail on this blog!) Monday will become Chris's new day in the garden at PTC!   It's a big change in horticultural tradition round here - as for 8 years; Saturdays were pretty much sacrosanct! Last week it was Friday and he brought his friend Nick.  Between them, they lowered the soil level ready for Chris builder to lay the new flag stones thereby extending the terrace.  They also dug out the soil from beneath the new stepping stones.  

With ever an eye for detail, it was Chris who noticed that the gales had blown over the Wollemi Pine over and immediately rescued it by staking it.  At first it looked as if the top had been broken out but luckily, it remained in one piece.  He also found the very first bloom on the Lonicera Fragrantissima - I told you he has an amazing eye for detail!

Novice stone dressing & carving

Saturday was dark, dull and dismal but at least it remained dry allowing Chris Builder to lay loads of flag stone and for me to try my hand at a bit of stone dressing!  Some of the quoins around the arch had to be cut to size leaving rather new looking  faces.  It was out with a selection of hammers and chisels to see how they could best be 'aged.'  It didn't take long to realise that a bit of tasteful graffiti could be attempted by way of inscribing our initials, the date and even a pear!  The more I did, the more my confidence grew.  The first attempts were  a bit disappointing as I wasn't able to carve out letters with clean edges.  I kept chipping the letter edges.  Then I remembered that I had a small 'V' shaped wood carving chisel and decided to try that.  A bit of a big ask - using a woodworking chisel on stone but, it stood up to the task quite well.  I left an unchipped rectangle to try and make it stand out a little more.  At least it's a permanent record of another garden project!

Wall Work in Wintry Weather!

In absolutely F-R-E-E-Z-I-N-G  conditions, work on the wall continued.  As it was such a clear sunny day, the photo disguises the glacial temperature and the chilling winds!

Chris finished the brickwork and laid all the really pretty roll top ridge tiles giving the wall its own little roof which will serve to keep out the weather as well as adding the finishing touch.  He also (rather sneakily!) removed the wooden form revealing his arch in all its glory.  I was allowed to do a little pointing, brush down the nearly dry mortar and also chip out the squodgy bits of dry mortar ready for re-pointing.  My duties also including breaking the tiles in half ready for laying beneath the ridge tiles, passing up shovels full of mortar and stacking bricks ready for laying.  Well, I am only the apprentice after all!  With all the extra layers of clothing (7 in places!) including my rather fetching overalls, it was about all I was capable of doing.  We're now waiting for the arrival of Al's (other!) dragon which we hope will sit on the end pier.

Beating the mud

All this desperately wet weather has meant a very worn and muddy area in front of the gate to the Hen Pen  and also to their pole house.  Time for action.  Having thought we could reduce the soil level in the hen pen and cover with a deeper layer of wood chop, Chris came up with a much better idea!  Stepping stones from the gate to the house for hens from concrete slabs reclaimed from the back of the garage. Neither of us are lovers of concrete slabs but we figured that they're good enough for chickens.  The girls of course, relished all this activity and made nuisances of themselves rushing in for worms every time the soil or wood chip was disturbed.  Outside the gate, we did steal 3 York flag stones to replace the muddy worn patch outside the Henclosure.  If only we could have just a few days without rain!

Blame it on the RHS!

January's RHS journal contained a very interesting article on pollarding and coppicing non-native trees which was read with particular interest.  Followers of this blog may know the page entitled Rabbits Outfoxed which tells of our Tulip Tree and how it defeated death-by-rabbits 5 years ago.  The trouble is now, it is in danger of over shadowing too many of its neighbours.  Whilst one has a reasonable idea as to which of our native trees lend themselves to these practices, non-natives were  rather an unknown quantity prior to the RHS article.

Well, according to the article, Liriodendrons particularly, lend themselves to pollarding very well indeed.  Ours certainly responded well to being coppiced by rabbits so we decided to take the plunge and pollard our own Liriodendron Tuilipifera in order to contain its size.   Chris only agreed to be so radical if he was allowed to leave some twiggy growth at the top of each leader to draw up the sap. We went for the traditional browsing height of animals and reduced it's height by about 2/3rds down to about 10 feet.  Hopefully the leaders will acquire lovely gnarly knuckles from which leafy new growth will shoot in spring.  If not - blame it on the RHS!  Actually, the pruning does emphasise its wine glass shape and softens an other wise severe haircut!

Before..........

....and after

Back to work

The Pear Arch

Following a sneaky break in the tropics for a week's sunshine and missing most of the snow, it was straight back to work as building assistant for both Chris's this Saturday.  Work was made all the harder following heavy Burn's Night celebrations (too many not so wee drams!) and reconditioning to a massive contrast in temperatures.  No whispering palms or fruit bats in this garden! Nevertheless, Chris has completed the arch with its elegant quoins and the other Chris and I erected 5 panels of trellis.  This means that we can reshape the border and replant the climbers and shrubs when the weather allows.

Keystones now incorporated

Trellis construction & muddy lens cap!

Despite the temperatures, it was nice to see that some snow remained for a our return and it was a rush to take a few photos before it all disappeared!

Entrusting a certain builder with one's camera resulted in the lens cap being dropped in the mud!  

For more photos see
https://picasaweb.google.com/100788191989823327785/WallTrellisProgress2712013

Beating the weather!

A dusting of snow

Snow washed away enabling work to continue

Check out those quoins!!

Despite snow, sleet, sunshine, rain, mud and now, heavy frosts; demon builder: Chris has pressed on regardless and undaunted.  The weather was so bad, he even came shopping.............. to the reclamation yard at Norton for more materials!  As soon as he suggested it might be a little too inclement for work to continue, an invitation to lunch was issued and, immediately the weather brightened! By then, the rain had washed away most of the snow and although the temperatures plummeted to well below zero, he has just carried on.  Today, the sun came out and conditions were just a little more conducive despite the frozen ground!  Chris often arrives in the dark and then departs after dark working under artificial lights - again!  Occasionally, he can be persuaded to stop long enough for reviving bowls of homemade soup but as soon as the steaming bowl of soup has disappeared, he rushes back out to work again.

Yesterday we had both Chris's.  Chris (The Younger) was busy putting in the oak posts  (after Chris The Elder had sculpted their tops into elegant detail!) in readiness for replacing the trellis panels and then laying out and positioning the stepping stones before completing two more fingers depicting Edinburgh and HMS Victory for Al's sign post!  It was time to do some serious thawing out by the end of the day!

From the very outset, there has been much banter and ribbing over a certain lack of plans!  For once, I drew out a plan of the 'granary/barn-like' ventilation gaps in the wall and GUESS who went a tad astray!!!!!!!!!!!! Disbelief!!   A few minutes later, needless to say, all was rectified.  A section of oak from Al's old barn has skilfully been given a new lease of life as the lintel and Chris has cut it very cunningly enabling the best side of the oak to be viewed from both sides of the wall.  A piece of slate, donated by the other Chris, has been cut to perfection with the ends returning around the bricks and is now the window sill.  Building an arch in a curve was never going to be easy as bricklaying has to happen in 2 different planes and is requiring much thought and care.  

Our Busy Builder at work