Spending time in the garden...

Today I wanted to give the potting bench a bit of a tidy as I had a whole load of odds and sods in flower pots which I didn't want to throw away but which I didn't have a home for.  A fair few of these were succulents and I had picked up a trough when I nipped into Lemba yesterday and I decided that they would nice put together in there.  They are slow growing so will be happy to live together like that for a fair while yet.  It is currently on the decking in Wendy and Bill corner until I can decide exactly where it is to reside.

John was out with the Mods/Dogs today (Men of Droushia Society/Droushia Old Gits Society) having a spot of lunch and a catch up with Rob and Mark at Finikas in the village - Das couldn't make it as he is playing for a birthday party this afternoon.

I wanted to tackle the old Trumpet Vine - Campsis Radicans which is in the front garden.  We never get to see it flower - this is partly because it sends out massively long shoots and the flowers appear on the end.  It is climbing up the end of Bramall Lane and arches over Chivers bed.  John built that bed for him on the day he died which is now almost exactly a year ago.  He never got to use it and we never see any of the other cats go in there so we decided it should come down as it is a sad reminder of that fateful day and maybe be moved elsewhere and the bush given a massive cut.

As I embarked on the task Charlie shot up onto the top and settled himself down in the bed and fell asleeep and then later on blow me if Boo wasn't in there catching some evening sun.  The bed will stay for a while longer at least but the bush is being reduced severely and then we might just get a couple of flowers - failing that it will be dug out completely and replaced.  It is one of the last surviving original plants that was in the garden when we bought it.

So here it is after the radical cut.  We may even take it down further!!!!  It has a couple of weeks to put on some green otherwise it goes and I am trying to find out something that would make a nice replacement.  Something with colour that isn't messy and can withstand all the weather conditions that get thrown at it.  The cats are a bit confused but it has actually opened up the garden now that it has been cut back.

I did a few other bits of tidying and John is busy constructing something to provide us with extra shade out the back - he returned from Polis the other day armed with wood and chains and a determined look on his face!!!  Apparently we may need to venture to Jumbos at some point if the shade material is to be provided by the cream stuff they sell for balconies or he is considering using the green material they sell at the DIY stores except not in green but in cream or brown.  Anyway whatever happens I am sure it will turn out just fine and considerably cheaper than buying something.  

He had a good time with the Bobster and Mark and said the food was great and they had a few hours to set the world to rights.  I had the remainder of the pork from last night as John didn't want any tea and we then both settled down to watch some of the football that was being televised.

We have decided to go for a walk tomorrow around Inea as we are trying to find a new eatery which I found advertised on the internet.