Ivy, nettles and old mans beard

Another weekend spent clearing the churchyard bank of the mass of overgrown brambles, nettles, ivy and old mans beard. We also removed a couple of sycamore trees whose roots were causing the bank to collapse. There is still more to do. It does look a little severe but needed to be done. The bank will soon green up again and if managed better in the future will provide plenty of wildlife habitat without getting out of control.

We also cleared an area of land that belongs to the' house to rent'. For years it had been used as a vegetable garden, but over the past couple of years has had minimal attention. Full of weeds, old sinks and window frames it took a while to clear. The bordering hedge was also cut and yet more ivy removed. In the next few weeks we will grass the area. A shame as the soil is beautiful from years of improving but we are following the advice of the Estate agent.

The hedge surrounding the house was also cut back and yes...more ivy pulled out. Overgrown and neglected bushes were cleared and the grass cut. With more building work still to be done to the house it will be a while before we can reinstate the garden but at least now we can see 'whats what'.

This morning I ache, I have prickles in my hands and legs, my arms are scratched, I tingle from nettle stings and there is an enormous amount of cuttings to clear away but we are one more step closer to finishing the house.