Wednesday, May 05, 2010

Taming an Ivy Bank - Part Two

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Thursday’s weather forecast was - breezy with temp in the low 60’s. That sounded like a heat wave after the freezing wind. The gusts seemed as strong as the other days but at least it was a little warmer.

I trimmed the ivy that had overgrown the heather (Erica x darleyensis 'Silberschmelze').
I carefully unwound the ivy so I didn’t break the heather’s tender branches. It was slow going.

The ground under the greedy maple tree was dry from 2 days of wind. I continued pulling and clipping. I didn’t get as many roots as I did the on the two previous days. I sat on my little garden cart and wiggled my way along the bank.

As I was wiggling along I heard a loud CRACK. It was so loud that it made me jumped and run. I crept back under the tree and looked up. I could see a large cracked branch high in the tree. I grabbed my tools and scooted out of there. A short while later the branch came crashing down into the ivy where I was working.

My husband dragged it to the street and cut it into fireplace size. That was the end of day 3. Add another hour for a total of 4 on this cleanup so far. I’ll finish on Day 4 – without wind, I hope.


Ivy is a great plant – hardy, holds the bank well, smothers most weeds, keeps a deep green color through most of the year but it is a lot of work. I’ll be back to trim this summer and again in fall – with one eye on the big old maple.
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4 comments:

maría cecilia said...

Dear Mary, take care, please, while you are gardening, my god, good it didn´t harm you!!!!
You are working a lot my friend... that`s so good to get a wonderful bloom this spring.
Hugs to you,
Maria Cecilia

Marie said...

Thank you Maria Cecilia. I am now very wary of the winds.

donna said...

Now that's one scary blog post. Do you think the maple tree was seeking revenge because you referred to it as greedy? I hope the ivy appreciates your dedication and bravery. We've had more wind than usual around here, too.

Take care -- you're one of my favorite bloggers.

donna

Marie said...

Thank you Donna.

That big old maple tree may have been insulted by my words. I'll have to give it more respect in the future. LOL