A day’s work … in My things ……

… and half sitting down!

Bramble & Blackthorn.

We have plenty of both on the Meadow part of our garden, both have an over abundance of thorns, the bramble has short curved thorns and the Blackthorn are strait, both have no respect of leather garden gloves; as my skin would agree! [No photographs – so no need to look away]

I thought the fencing man was coming tomorrow, now I think he could be coming, so yesterday I set about the Bramble and Blackthorn that has grown in abandon in the area of the fallen fence. Tackling the bramble starts with severing it at ground level, then I grab several thorn laden shoots and pull, this is dun adjusting your hold until it hurts less ….

At some time during the pull I have to stop, where bramble shoots touch the ground they rote on that very point, then you have pull out of the rotes from the earth, or snip them through. Then I pull once again, as it come away it also brings a quarter of a mile of out of the trees and bushes growing on the steep side of the valley.

Once I have the bramble free I take it to a clear area adjacent to out picnic table – with built in sets, this is gone through several times until I have a enough to sit down and set about the stuff with my secateurs. I like to cut it into short lengths, as longer lengths brake out of the rubbish bags, and that was the pattern of work, cutting through the bramble and removing; then sitting in front of a rubbish bag and trying not to drop your secateurs in the bag with all thorns! There wasn’t that much Blackthorn there, it’s a very stiff bush and as your pulling or ‘talking’ to the bramble; you tend to back onto the Blackthorn – and do you notice.

After lunch Sweetheart came up and worked with me, four hands are quicker and we were dun by tea time, we both felt a stiffness in our secateurs hands, I suppose we are not used to extended gardening; but by the time we had finished all the brambles & blackthorn cuttings were reduced to four sacks. All that pruning dun and no one arrived today, then we had a phone call to inform us there are coming tomorrow; so things are fine I think – or hope!

Dusk and sunset last Sunday ….