February Chills.To The Bone!

I have been collecting leaves since the New Year. The collecting has to go on no matter what the weather. Good job I worked outside all my life as a Scaffolder.Not much is worse than those winter icy metal tubes.When it is frosty they stick to your hands. SoWinter leaf collecting is fairly tame in comparison. LeafMould will not make itself so we have to press on. To get the leaves breaking down quicker we have to chop them up.Leaf vacuums with shredders are ok but so slow.So dreary sucking up leaves and a dead loss if they are wet and when are they anything but wet. Especially this cold rainy winter!So grass shears tend to be the chosen tool. Hard work but much faster.Empty the leaves into large trugs and chop away. It is very boring mind!The results keep one going though.Anybody who uses LeafMould will tell you it is marvellous stuff when well produced, smells fabulous! Of course there are other winter tasks to do in February. We have many Roses and they all need pruning about now. Another cold unforgiving job but must be done if good blooms are to be had. Other things to keep on top of are the composted bark and well rotted manure piles. The garden compost bins are full and will get spread on the gardens soon.

Red Hibiscus love a dressing of leaf mould to!