Meg vs. The Yard: Bush Trimming

Wednesday:  Trim bushes in the front yard. Start cutting up the giant branch I hacked down on a whim.


These fellows were getting a bit too big for their britches, er, planters.

 So I went to work with my trusty new loppers. I have no clue as to how I am supposed to trim a hedge, but if they survive my gardening, we'll know they were meant to stay. Mostly I wanted to get them at least 6 inches away from the house and low enough that our house number was visible again.

Ta-da!

 I did a little weeding around the bottom as well, but didn't have the time or energy to deal with those rowdy rose bushes just yet.

On to the tree! I can't stand this tree by the garage. I dubbed it the poo-berry tree. It drops pollen and little berries all over the roof and driveway, and it is pulling up the fence. I would like to get the whole thing removed, but I'll have to talk to the neighbor first, since it sits right on the line between our properties. John was kind of protective of the tree (he is oddly fond of all the plants in the yard--takes after his dad, the lover of all living things), until the tree dropped its poo-berries on the car and damaged the paint. Then John announced that I could cut down whatever branches I like. The next day I went out with a pole saw and went at the giant branch hanging over our driveway until it was vanquished. Then I realized it would take me approximately 17 years to cut that branch up with a handsaw, and it has sat in the driveway like this for a few weeks.

By the time I finished the bushes, our green waste bin looked like this:

But I wanted to keep with my goal, so I started hacking off the smaller branches on top, and did as much as I could reasonably do. My mom bought us a chainsaw while she was here recently, so I'll recruit the Mr. to help me cut it up the rest of the way so we can dispose of it/burn it later.

And there was a bonus for finishing today's goal! I had let all but one of my beautiful Valentine's Day tulips go the way of all the earth.

Now I have something to grace my dining room table!

I ended up taking the afternoon off because of a freak accident involving my foot and a surprisingly sharp Matchbox car. We watched Curious George and ate cheesy puffs, then had hot dogs and corn for dinner. In the evening I had a stomachache and dozed off on the couch, and my wonderful hubby cleaned the whole kitchen for me (it was pretty bad, given my afternoon vacation added to the general neglect). Even with a foot injury, a pretty good day!