I’m on vacation starting this week, and vacation for me means gardening. I have a long list of projects I want to do at some point. Today I focused on rejuvenating our massive lilac hedge. I’m about halfway done, and expecting sore elbows and wrists tonight from all the sawing and cutting.
I’ve also started preparing another perennial bed. The slope previously known as the slope of weeds has been such a success that I must have more. So I’m creating a bed in front of the house (section 1) right along the side of the house.
Step one is to remove the turf. The soil, as in most of the garden, is heavy clay. It is unshovelable – you need to cut it instead. Each chunk of turf has to be cut loose on all four sides, and sometimes from underneath as well. My work therefore progresses in neat rows, each just a bit narrower than the spade (about 17-18 cm.)
When I plant bushes, I also measure the planting hole in terms of spades. A standard planting hole is nine square spades, i.e. a square hole with its sides measuring three spade-widths.