Even in the smallest moments

Bark mulch covered area, bamboo markers, faint line of ground lime

Using ground lime to mark the edge of an Aronia hedge

No matter how much administration there is in the world, I try to find some time to garden

Today was filled with filling in a tax return, the UK deadline looming only days away. I managed to get out into the forest garden for about 10 minutes, marking out a hedge with ground lime. Oh, sweet blesséd relief. Even 10 minutes away from the desk and the frantic tap-tapping, list checking and administrating was so worth it.

The Shrubbery (did I mention I have no head for creative names?) has had a layer of bark mulch diligently strewn upon its surface and I have started marking up the position of the shrubs. It’s a bit of a tricky situation, a big ash at the bottom of the south-facing slope, so some dry shade to watch out for. I’ll be planting Symphytum ibericum (Iberian dwarf comfrey) as a ground cover.

Bark mulched area with bamboo markers

Marking out plant positions in The Shrubbery with bits of bamboo

Higher up, there’ll be some red and whitecurrants Ribes rubrum (‘Versailles’ and ‘Jonkheer Van Tets’), a couple of Chaenomeles japonica, a Zanthoxylum schinifolium and a Cephalotaxus Harringtonia. With a couple of lime trees and white mulberry as coppiced leaf crops at the top, there isn’t much space for anything elase

I have been using QCAD for my planning but it is obvious that the map is not the territory. The Ordnance Survey map is a few metres out, so I use it more as a guide and less as an instruction. Out in the field, I’m using bits of bamboo and a bucket of ground lime to mark out the circumference of the plants. Together with windbreaks, rabbit fencing, soil preparation and mulching, correct spacing is up there in the Top 5 List of Things To Consider.