We choose our plants for a few key reasons:
- Birds / Wildlife
- Attractiveness
- Privacy
- Food
- Shade
Part of our job is to put new things in, and part is to take things out. This week is dedicated to taking things out. In some ways, this is harder than planting.
In the case of the Cecil Brunner roses, we inherited those from Shelly’s Mother who had them for years. The pretty flowers and sentimental value they carry are offset by the maintenance.
These roses grow so incredibly fast that it is difficult to stay on top of the pruning. They do provide some privacy, but this comes at the expense of irritating the neighbors (and ourselves) with long canes of rosebush with concertina wire stems. These aren’t fun to handle.
My least favorite part of pruning these plants is when the tips of the thorns break off in your fingers and elsewhere causing extended discomfort. Long story short, those bushes are gone now… well gone except for the disposal, which is coming along well with the new chipper.
The branches are still trying to bleed us out before we can get rid of them completely.
What comes next for this space is going to be a row of nice laurel with smooth bark and broad, year-round leaves for birds to play and nest in. It’ll still require pruning, but it won’t be nearly as unpleasant.
Delivery is expected tomorrow along with an enormous load of dirt for the garden.
Today, we had Evergreen Tree Service out for some major changes as well. First on their list, was that large, shade-casting hawthorne tree. It was hard to see it go, but I think the garden will thank us for the extra hours of sunlight every day.
In addition to the hawthorne, we had the professionals prune the 75-foot-tall fir tree next to the house. There were a number of very long limbs that were reaching out way over us. This slimmer profile should help prevent damage from large tree parts in the case of a major snowstorm.
Evergreen also took out a large maple tree limb in the front yard and a menacing limb from a dying birch tree in the back that was hanging over our new garden by the shed. It was an expensive day, but it certainly opened things up for the garden and took care of a couple of hazards.