Marty

And I'll be interested to see if you still think the same when I have opened the view up even more...

Later this afternoon I moved inside the garden to remove the ivy from that side of the wall, and also to make a start on cutting back the boundary hedge. I took this photo showing that corner of the garden when it was almost totally dark, so apologies for the not great quality: There's still a bit of ivy to clear off the inside of the wall, but I'm not going to remove any more from the far end of it until I have got advice as to how to best stabilise the stones. I've made a very small start on tidying the hedge itself. It looks as though down through the years several attempts have been made to block the hedge with chicken wire, plastic screen-like wire, and even (now completely rusted) chain link fence. None of these seem to have been erected on fence posts; more just pushed against the hedge and tied back with bits of wire. I hope to remove them all, as they otherwise will prevent me from cutting the hedge as low as I'd like to. But I can see them being difficult to remove, as brambles, ivy, and the hedge itself, have grown through them in lots of places - and the bottom few inches of them are buried under the accumulation of years and years of rotting leaves...

I will, Albert. I promise. And thanks for your concern.

Here's part of a screenshot from Google Maps Street "Street View" that was taken in August 2009 of the back of my property: You can see the ivy at the far end of the wall. It was already overtopping the wall at that time, so it's had more than another eleven years to wreak its havoc. You may remember me sharing a photo last April or thereabouts showing ivy overtopping the wall to the left of the gate. Thankfully that hadn't had as many years to damage the wall. You'll maybe also notice that the public road hadn't been lowered at that stage, and so there is no ramp up to the gate...

It was a dry, mild day here, as well. Although the sun hid for the whole day long. The Met Office is currently warning of a possibility that we could be in for another cold snap starting from Sunday, with the possibility of heavy snowfalls next week. They can't be sure though. We're too close to the Atlantic, so Irish weather (particularly on the western side) can be notoriously changeable and hence unpredictable...

Thanks for the kind words, Parker. I'm hoping to get source some bare rooted fruit trees and bushes in the next couple of days. I must get those into the ground before spring arrives, to give them a chance to settle in before the main growth starts. So if I can't source any (a possibility, due to many garden centres and nurseries being closed due to Covid-19 restrictions) I'll either have to spend a lot more on container grown ones, or just wait another year.

True... I'd be more inclined to listen to the predictions from the Met Office, though... Thanks for commenting, Gary.

Cheers, Val! We've got a couple more months to go here in Ireland, as well. But, strangely, St Bridget's Day (February 1st) is traditionally considered to be the first day of spring in Ireland. Not sure if there's been climate change since Bridget was alive, but we can often get the worst of the winter weather after February 1st nowadays...

So, I started today by clearing the worst of the ivy that was growing on end of outside of the end of the stone wall. I'm a bit concerned that the ivy has damaged part of the wall. This photograph will .likely show you what I am talking about: Although they are not in any immediate danger of falling, there are some large stones that have shifted slightly, probably as a result of ivy stems growing between them. The stems thicken as they age, and thus move the stones. It looks as though some stones have actually already fallen in the past. I'm thinking that I may have to get a "professional" in to make the end of the wall safe. I wouldn't want the local kids climbing on the wall and hurting themselves from the loose stones moving. I'll make a few enquiries tomorrow.

I'll be manning a helpline (from home, using a special App on my smartphone) for two hours starting in about ten minutes time. After that, I'll do my best to post a photograph showing my garden progress (or lack thereof) today.

Drew will probably now just get upset that you didn't title him "His Imperial Texyness" (with the capital H)

The dull two-faced month is finally behind us... Will spring soon be here?

Good day to you as well, bro. Warmer here as well. But no sign of sun. And I spy plaid. @dughlas! Hurry up and file your claim!

Looks to me like it's time somebody took a trip Up The Wooden Hill To Bedfordshire...

G'day? Are you an Aussie now? G'day, Marty! Nope! I'm still Oirish. Albeit with a flat northern English accent.

But predictable.

When she was giving you a bath, I assume?

G'day, young Drew!

Thanks, Val. I'm making progress. Slowly. But, as they say: "Slowly, slowly, wins the race."

Perhaps a case of...

It's about 12:25 am here, and I've just had a half hour's soak in the bath. A quick shower is always good, but I do find the occasional soak in the bath to be much more relaxing and refreshing. I'm going to make my usual mug of cocoa and then think about heading to bed. Not sure if this will be my last post on here for tonight but, just in case it is, I'll leave you with the following which came into my head as I was having the bath. I was still only ten years old when this was a hit back in 1958, so it's possible that young Albert may be the only other person here who remembers it...

Greetings, B!

You can find "My Reading History" by clicking on the Stories tab on the bar at the top of any page on GA, and then clicking on the blue My Stories button on the new page (near the top right). "My Reading History" should be at the bottom of the drop-down menu. However, you apparently have to opt-in to use it. @Myr has posted a blog entry about it:

Greetings, old Marty! You say the nicest things!

I managed to remove all of the ivy on the top of the wall at the end of my garden this afternoon. Here's what it looked like just as it was coming on dark: You may notice some puddles on the road. There was very light rain as I was working, and my top coat was quite damp when I had finished. I was dry underneath, however. And fortunately the ladder meant that I was above the ivy, so I didn't get drenched by the branches as they were being removed.