Probably the hardest part of my gardening year is where to start. I'm very good at planning and surveying and not too hot on the doing. So last month I decided to get stuck in and begin the process of clearing the garden.
There are some real problem areas in my garden, like the side of the playhouse where I shove things so that they are out of sight, filed under 'to deal with later' or the area just outside the back door where the bins are - dumping ground for all kinds of stuff - currently two bottles of oil, the top off the sandpit, two old pots full of soil and a Tupperware container with fish gravel in. Then there's the sheds, full of empty compost bags (well, I could use them to plant potatoes in!), old plastic containers (you never know when you'll need 25 10cm pots!), and that's before we factor in the children's bikes, toys etc.
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| The playhouse problem - that's a sandpit, a trampoline and an incinerator at the side! |
So, you can see that where to start might be a bit of problem for me. I've ever been good at tackling one area at a time. I fall into the trap time and again of trying to clean the whole lot in one go, not really completing any of it and then feeling disheartened and having a few days (weeks!) rest to get over it.
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| A closer look at the side of the playhouse,oh the shame. |
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| The messy patio, weeds, last year's swimming pool(!)and dead ferns |
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| Last year's plants, a rusty barbecue and tin buckets full of rainwater |
This time I am determined things will be different. So I started with the sheds. Not a straightforward task after we had the roof retiled last year and I didn't cover everything up beforehand. Dust over *everything*. So one whole day was spent taking everything out of the sheds, cleaning it and then putting it back - unless it was beyond help, then it went to the tip. Next came the side of the playhouse. The sandpit had to come out and be cleaned (well, it's still waiting to be cleaned...) and the whole area needed sweeping and weeding.
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| All ready for some potting work. |
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| Much better - now we just need screening from the neighbours. |
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| After removal of swimming pool and weeds. |
