poplar road

I love Richard because he always has the solution to a problem. At one frustrating point he left without a word and returned from the shop with a bright orange wedge of steel and a heavy mallet. And eye protection. I couldn’t really photograph it as I had to avoid flying chips of slate and granite, but he chipped and hammered away at any odd protruding spots until every rock fit into place as snugly as possible, and then he hammered the shards into the earth around or beneath to secure it even more. I can’t take any credit for this bed, really, as I couldn’t lift more than two of the rocks that made it!

I still have a lot of gaps to fill and smaller rock to set into place, but it’s complete enough to fill, as soon as I can get a truckload of earth. Up close it looks quite large and rough, but from a distance the rocks are only a third above the ground, even with my other beds, and inside it will hold fresh soil a foot deep, to be topped with a mulch of fine gravel. I’m hoping to get a few more sunny weekends or evenings this month so I can finish by transplanting all the lilies, irises, and other plants that need to be moved out of other beds, and still get some work on those beds done too. There’s a cold wind today – another frost on its way I bet – and a lot to do to put my autumn garden to rest for winter. But as a birthday treat I curled up with a book most of the day, my work on the new flowerbed finished, for now.