Today was the day to finish the warning track beside the fence in the corporation yard. Trash cans will be stored on the track and can be moved to repair and preserve the fence. I cleared the wood pile from that track and applied Roundup to what remained, my standard procedure. The edging system comes in a roll, and getting it to lay flat is a challenge. From that getting a clean straight edge in the ground is a challenge. The track is ten feet long from the sidewalk to the outer fence. I am not entirely satisfied with slight bows in the edging and will try to remedy them with fill on either side. I am also learning how to cut and lay weed block, a double layer in this case.
I applied a thin layer of dust over the weed block. I retrieved two bags from the front porch and needed most of one for the ten foot long track. One bag is heavily cemented together and may need breaking up. The dust and gravel went down easily and evenly. The gravel I had was not quite enough to cover. I will need to bring up more gravel from Oakland to complete the job next week. I want to see what effect a significant rain will have on the track.
I went back to trim the second rock rose on the front slope. I was enjoying a bit of easy work and letting the sun warm my back when I suddenly realized that I was not trimming the second rockrose on the slope, but doing a second pruning on the rockrose that I had cut back by a third yesterday. MJ has read that rockroses do not react well to severe pruning. I am engaged in a great experiment to determine whether any such rockrose so planted and so pruned will long endure. I immediately took the hose and gave it plenty of water to overcome the shock. Next week I will prune the second rockrose.
MJ pruned the rockrose around Saint Francis today, and already it is not looking well. She has done mighty work clearing the second raised bed in the vegetable garden and clearing in front of the retaining wall beside the summer house. We spent time clearing weeds from around the intentional plantings on the front slope; MJ will apply Roundup to the rest. I trimmed the dead growth off one purple lantana. The two lantana transplants at the far end of the slope are pining for the fjords.
MJ and I drove out at midday. Linda Stansberry was sitting at a table in the yard in front of the little house. Could not have been a more beautiful day to enjoy large sunshine and surprising warmth.
A Year at the Snake 