Bare Bones

In January and February the garden is reduced to its bare bones, every tree and shrub is exposed so its shape may be pruned and corrected. Today we worked our way around the apple trees removing damaged or diseased growth and also pruning out water shoots, these are the whippy growths that emerge after the last pruning and must be sawn off to stop them re-emerging. Whilst we were removing last years growth from the clematis by the gate I noticed a beautiful nest, it was a work of art enclosed over with moss and must have been a perfect baby bird nursery. Giles tells me that it was home to a family of long tailed tits. This made me think of my foray into my own garden at the weekend when I turned the compost heap and mulched, half way through one side of the bin I inadvertently destroyed a mouse nest. With much regret as it was a beautifully cosy little hide away, I shall now have thoughts of a poor little creature cast out into the cold and having to make its way through the hazards of next doors garden! I hope it moves back in as I shall not be disturbing things again for quite some time.

"To fly high you must come out of the nest and dream high"
Farah Mustafa

Snowdrops In The Sun

The weather continues to bless us and our cook outs have continued dry and comfortable. Where is the snow? Every single day that we have camped out in the woods has been dry, surely that is a first for January and February. Not much to report other than I saw the fox again yesterday, I'd just started sawing down an elder near a large hole when out it popped, as near to me as it could have been! Nice to glimpse it again but I wish I was quicker with my camera. Our clearing labours in the woods have now finished and we will be turning our attention to tree planting and returning to the garden, there is still much to do before the greenery starts growing again and catches us up, then we must put large projects aside and begin mowing, seeding and care-taking once more.
"An early morning walk is a blessing for the whole day"
Joel Osteen

I wish this photo was in better focus, but at least you can get an impression of how magnificent the snowdrops are now.

Fox In The Woods

We are still in the woods and making good progress, so much so that we think Thursday will be our last lunch al fresco. The big plan this year is to open the main drive from Ripon gate, so Giles has been trimming the overhanging yew branches and we have been making wildlife habitats with the resulting foliage and branches. One of these days it would be great if some entomologist came along and looked at the ones we have made in previous years to tell us what is lurking inside. Yew wood is almost impossible to cut even when it is dead, so by the end of the day we were left in no doubt why they used to make English long bows with them. Highlight of the day however was first thing as we tramped down to start work, within minutes Shandy had flushed two magnificent foxes from their den (somebody is definitely feeling better), and we watched with pleasure and interest as they sloped away for some peace and quiet. I have never seen one so close up which only serves to remind me how lucky I am to work in the countryside now, put it this way, I don't miss the Asda warehouse!

"Nay, traveller! rest. This lonely yew tree stands far from all human dwelling"
William Wordsworth

January Cookout

Well it's that time of year again, bonfires and cook-outs occupy our time now. We must be some of the only people in Britain who actually enjoy January! It doesn't make for brilliant photography but as you can see the snowdrops are very beautiful and we have a lot of fun. So just a quick peek at what we are up to, more in February.
"Lone flower, hemmed in with snows and white as they but hardier far, once more I see thee bend thy forehead, as if fearful to offend, like an unbidden guest."
William Wordsworth

A Dusting Of Snow

As you can see we had a dusting of snow to greet us this morning, just enough to look picturesque without stopping us from working. How I wish I could see Norton Conyers in really deep drifts, alas it will not be possible unless I'm prepared to stay overnight and await a thaw!
We continue to work on the tunnel and alternate between digging and then taking a break by checking trees in the woods. This entails peering down the long plastic tubes to see if the sapling is still alive. Imagine my surprise today when I saw two beady black eyes staring back! A nuthatch had become stuck down at the bottom of the tube and luckily we were in time to rescue the poor little fellow. He flew away with what I thought was a rather joyous chirp. I felt good for the rest of the day. Today is also the first day that Shandy has been skipping around almost back to normal, she will be chasing rabbits again in no time.

"January brings the snow, makes our feet and fingers glow"
Sara Coleridge

The Tunnel

Often on the worst days weather wise we can do little actual gardening, and so must turn our attention to other estate jobs. Long over due was sorting out the tunnel, as you can see it has been used as a dumping ground for unwanted metal, old crockery and dubious medicine bottles. It used to be the main route for the servants to come and go from the main house to the gardens and stables, the idea being that they would remain unseen by the gentry! Unfortunately with our modern traffic trundling overhead it is now in need of some repair to make it safe, so we emptied it of rubbish and then began to tackle the build up of leaves and soil that has built up over the years. Two tonnes later and we are still a long way from the end, but then I expect there will be plenty of bad weather to come when we will be pleased of a job under cover. Incidentally teenage son received a head torch for Christmas which I've duly pinched and put to good use, very handy for rescuing frogs I've found!
Shandy update; All bandages are now off and although she still has to rest a lot of the time she is managing quite well and is putting her weight on the bad paw occasionally, her poor little limb is a bit withered and doesn't have much fur but will mend quickly now if Giles keeps up the daily massage! Our current name for her is sparrow leg!
"There is a light at the end of every tunnel. Some tunnels just happen to be longer than others".
Ada Adams

Into The Woods

This time of year finds us in the woods at Norton Conyers, it is the best time to care for the trees as you are not hindered by the evil nettles and gigantic balsam that smothers everything during the warmer months. I like to think of it as shepherding the trees, they are well overdue for some TLC after a year of neglect. We start by checking each plastic tube to see if it contains a living specimen, if not we remove the stake and guard to be used again if possible. Next we turn our attention to the more mature trees, if they have burst open the guard we remove it, this then give us the opportunity to check the growth and remove any weak side shoots or cut out the weakest leader if the main trunk has split in two. This helps to grow strong and straight trees that will not sucumb to the wind before their time. We were lucky with the weather yesterday as it was beautiful and despite being January and it made me glad to be back at work despite having a brilliant Christmas. I must be one of the few people who can look forward to returning to the daily grind, how lucky I am!
A quick update on poor old Shandy, she has had the pot taken off her leg but when she attempted to stand on it she fell over! So it is now bandaged and Giles has strict instructions not to let her walk on it until it has strenthened, consequently she is more miserable than before. Hopefully she will continue to mend and will soon be back chasing rabbits.
"Sometimes our fate resembles a fruit tree in winter. Who would think that those branches would turn green again and blossom, but we hope it, we know it"
J.W.Von Goethe