Finishing What I Start

My English Garden is finished!  It took days longer than I anticipated, which makes the feeling of satisfaction at its completion so much sweeter.  I started this garden in the fall of 2010, laying it out and planting 36 David Austin roses.  Until now, the garden has never been totally finished ... now it has edging, and no weeds and a good layer of mulch ... finished!

I got out early yesterday morning, to take advantage of what was promising to be a beautiful, sunny, warm day.  The weatherguy's prediction was right on target ... it was gorgeous weather for working outside!

Look at that sky!  (part of my personal preparation for the work day was a thorough application of sunblock ... I sunburn really easily.)

In this photo, you can see that my truck is full of mulch, two cubic yards.  If you're counting, this is load #3 for the property so far this year.)

My process went the same as it did on previous days ... pull weeds, prune roses, lay landscape fabric, spread mulch.  Here are a couple of photos to remind you of where I left off last week:

Weeds, weeds, weeds!

Getting there.

After an long day's work yesterday, here is the After!

The new mulch will blend in with the rest after it's been rained on a time or two.

Most of the roses are so small, because this is all that was left alive on them after our unusually cold winter.

See that bench?  I moved it to this spot from another place on the property.  (Got it years ago, cheap, on Craig's List.)  I designed this garden to have a bench there, so I have a place to sit and enjoy the roses, and this one fits there perfectly.

Two yards of mulch fills the back of my truck.  After finishing the mulching in this garden yesterday afternoon, I had used about two-thirds of this latest load.

I absolutely adore my truck!

Shoveling mulch, pushing the wheelbarrow, bending and lifting and scooping and spreading mulch on the garden beds ... done correctly, this is great exercise.  This morning, my shoulders and upper arms are sore, and my thighs and butt are killing me.  (It's an extra added benefit to be sore in all the spots that need some improvement.)

After I spread the last wheelbarrow full of mulch, and I put my tools away, I took a few minutes to sit and appreciate my accomplishment, then I went off to take care of other things.  This morning, I will be back outside again ... working in the miniature garden that I built last year along the fence behind the greenhouse.  Maybe I can get the rest of the mulch out of my truck before it rains in the afternoon.  Wish me luck.

See you outside!