Spring Yard Clean Up Day One

When Mother Nature hands you a 65 degree weekend in January, you'd better make the most of it.  (Apologies to my northern readers  I know, I'm out doing yard work and you're out shoveling snow!) 

These privet hedges can grow like a freak.  Ginormous!  Great for instant privacy but they are long over due for a big time hair cut.  Last year we waited too long to trim them and had nesting birds well into May.  I maybe trimmed off a foot total last summer. 

This year we attacked early.  Time to trim back.  Way back.  As in down to the bones.  Don't worry.  They love it.  They'll be more manageable and attractive because of this pruning.

"Why am I always the clean-up crew?"  Me

"Because I'm the hunter and you're the gatherer."  SM

"Who you taking a picture off?"

Piles and piles of brush to burn.  We chose this neighborhood because it didn't have a HOA.  And it's legal to burn except in drought conditions.

I'm sure the neighbors are annoyed by our bi-annual burns but we try to burn quickly and only in weather when people won't have their windows open.  Like January and November.

It was too windy to burn today.  Maybe tomorrow.

We're actually only about halfway through.  Tomorrow we'll need to finish the back and move into the front yard.

It's good to be doing some physical exercise.  And it's interesting to watch our yard become more defined by cleaning it up.  Like a blank palette. 

It'll be SO much easier expanding the garden with all this out of the way.