Garden: Cutting the Wild Flower Meadow

With a return to cold and wet weather forecast for the weekend and after a spell of very warm dry weather, Ralph the Ride-on had his first run out of the season yesterday.  Ralph does the early and late season cuts and then his bigger, younger and slightly more valuable brother (Harry the Husq) will take over for the mid-season trimming.

The grass was very lush and it all became just too much for the elderly Ralph who chucked one of his tyres off the rim on his first turn and then threw in the towel totally at the really long stuff.  The task was completed with the petrol strimmer, not I have to add by me.  I did gather up as much of the clippings as possible for general mulching (please don't tell the consultant as I'm not supposed to do anything too energetic), and boy did I ache after a few hours of that, having already wheeled the barrow up and down the plot to give all the fruit trees and new shrubs a good dose of mixed fumier de cheval (horse muck) and cheap and nasty terreau.

Wild area last autumn

Yesterday was also the annual cut of the wild section which has just been allowed to grew whatever grasses and wildflowers happen along.  It was full of wildlife last year, with more insects and spiders than I've ever seen, always a cloud of butterflies above and often a slinking cat in the long grass.

Early spring before the grasses get going

and a change to purple for early summer.

Last year we had a single mown path up one side, this year we'll have one diagonally so we can really get into the heart the action!