Progress in the orchard

There is one disadvantage to weeding so close to dark: you don’t notice when you unearth an ant’s nest until the angry beasties climb into your clothes and up your arms.

Just a small ant’s nest. But they were keen to wreak havoc on their foe.

But the rest of this work has been relatively incident free.

So here is the second part of my landscaping and planting project. I have done eight metres (about 25 feet) of the bank. All weeded, destoned, graded and planted up.05 planted up

I even had to make a mini wall in front of the little apple tree at the top of the bank. I have no idea how deep the tree roots reach, but I wanted to make sure they have some soil to play with after my excavations.

The work is similar to what I have already started. But with the added complications of sciatica (its hilarious to see someone lying prone to weed) and a steeper bank.

06 wateredBut I’m very pleased with the progress.  If I can get someone else to wield the strimmer for me, I can clear another few metres and get some more plants out of their pots in the potting shed and into this ground.

We had the most blissful storm earlier in the week; over 30mm of rain.

I had thought that would mean the soil is nice and easy to work (hence the late night session so soon after the rain).   But I was stunned to see that just a few centimetres down, the soil is bone dry.

A lesson in deep watering techniques if ever there was one.

I need to mulch this soil well as soon as I can.  Chipping will have to wait until I build up stocks; but grass mulch will do for now.   And in almost fifty feet of bank I found just one solitary worm.  So that will need work.

If I feed this soil with mulch and a bit of attention the worms will return. And then I will have the delight of moles messing up my design with their tunnels.

But for now (listing at a slight angle and reaching for the painkillers) it’s time to push away the wheelbarrow, gather up the tools and empty plant pots and walk away.

Job almost, but not quite done.

 

 

09 done