A Catch Up From Paddock Garden

Halloween is coming - but meanwhile here's the recent kerfuffle from our land. Plenty of pictures but none of them loaded here yet, if you want to see more have a peek at my instagram account, lisa_southard_writer, or just be patient :-)

Blurry sun rising through mist, over equally blurred in mist tree tops

Friday 1st October 2021
Adventures on the land are big this week - contractor Thomas is digging up earth looking for the water pipe connection, scraping out turf to lay stones and make parking spaces - the change is quick and unnerving in a good way. It makes a strong contrast with our hours of wrenching wire from hedges, and the achy work of making little trenches for planting spring bulbs. The soil is not clay which surprises us - it’s stoney but rich and fine. We take lots of pictures. Dog is smitten with Thomas and attempts to follow him everywhere, completely overlooking her fear of heavy machinery and large vehicles.

Thursday 7th October 2021
Work done with hands, which also means backs and legs and arms, or so the aches tell me. Not much written evidence, we are whipping out phone cameras, making a visual archive. It is thrilling to be in the dirt, making things happen. Bulbs go in, plug plants go in, tiny things that will grow and fill space with colour, texture, movement - the big picture arriving pixel by pixel.

Monday 18th October 2021
Arms feel like they’ve been pulled off and roughly poked back in. Legs feel strong, if a little seized up. Wish I was writing more, glad of the visual archiving, a current theme. Can’t stop, busy doing! Researching in spare moments: pond design, land insurance, farm agents, land water management, business plans, planting plans. The good weather spell has broken into rain- while the sun held we pushed to get things dug and set down, we could wheel heavy stuff without sinkage. Hardstanding is down for both gateways, weed suppressant membrane and gravel grids are down for the lower car parking area. Topsoil from the dugout area has been set down as an earth mound which I am planting up, and we have dug seating into it. Predominantly the planting is warm colours, pinks, purples, some white and yellow for contrast, evergreen, variegated, and bronze foliage, to be edged at the base in white then blue, giving an island vibe. We are calling it treasure island.
Bright pink daisy flower

Comments

Elephant's Child said…
I am very familiar with those aches. Which are GOOD aches. Aches which come from productive work are much more better than the ones that just arrive. Sadly I know them too.
Keep going, and please share more here in the fullness of time.
25 October 2021 at 21:46
Lisa Southard said…
They are the good aches! Plenty of good bruises too. I apologise for the lack of updates, genuinely foresaw myself writing here more frequently and then ended up being too tired and busy and all of it the good kind but hopefully will pick up the word count as winter creeps in. I want to share all of it - well, won't inflict the bruising on you, that's unfair. Thank you for your much appreciated cheer, may the unnecessary aches step away xx
28 October 2021 at 16:13
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