This week has been jam-packed with pruning of all kinds. On Monday, I began pruning back the Evergreen Oleaster tree (Elaeagnus ebbingei) in the Cook’s garden, so that I could easily reach (an thus eradicate) the weedy alpine strawberries below. One thing led to another, and before I knew it, I looked at my watch and it was 4:30pm, and I’d not only pruned that, but also the Judas Tree (Cercis siliquastrum), a Purple Hazel (Corylus maxima ‘Purpurea’), five roses (Rosa rugosa), and two blackcurrants. Gardening is addictive, and I’m not sure why. All I know is that on some days I see so many jobs to be done that I end up fluttering back and forth between them at speed on some sort of ‘gardening high’.
The frenzy continued the next day, when we all learnt how to prune apple trees in the orchard. I worked with Matt on a small ‘Greensleeves’ apple tree grown on an M9 rootstock, which was challenging but so enjoyable. Every cut had to be carefully considered with a foresight of how it would affect it’s fruiting, and ultimately its shape. By the end of the day my confidence had increased, and I was able to make those big cuts, without wincing too much.
Matt, Claire and I spent a day with Andy (our head gardener) this week, so that we could all learn together a unit for our diploma on Plant Nomenclature, Identification and Taxonomy. We spent the day researching and sharing knowledge with one another, and had learnt a great deal by the end of the day. The next step is to identify sixty different species of plant around the gardens. So I think a great deal of revision is in order!
No comments:
Post a Comment