Honeysuckle Hacked

When Dad entered a care home, in 2003, and our family home of almost eighty years was put up for sale, Bigbrother took cuttings from the honeysuckle that had graced the front of the bungalow for as long as I can remember. Each of us siblings now has the honeysuckle growing somewhere in our garden.  I planted mine next to the back gate and attempted to train it over onto the kitchen roof.  It flourished. https://bentonbag.blogspot.com/2020/05/cats-ladders.html

The stormy wind has been blowing the honeysuckle about terribly, so this morning I decided it was time to give it the cutting back I promised when I put the arch up in May (see Cats & Ladders).

First I cut the vines that had wound around the rainwater down-comer.  Then I climbed up a step ladder and dragged them up and around the top of the arch.  The honeysuckle vines are twisted around the East side of the top of the arch, because they will grow West towards the sunlight and cover it all (we hope).

I took the loppers and apologetically, and with a heavy heart, cut back as much of the branches and foliage hanging over the yard as I could bear.  Then a bit more.

This freed the broken, leaning, fence post which I pulled out and put in the garage for future reference.  It may come to be part of a raised bed, or firewood. Completely collapsing the fence meant I could push a lot more foliage back behind and through the arch.

Fester keeps telling me it will survive and thrive, but I’m still worried.

I ripped off and planted some more cuttings.  It’s to be hoped they do better than those I took in May as only one of them looks even half alive.

Thunderthighs came out and put all the chopped off bits in the garden recycling bin for me.

But at least it means I can now reverse the car up to the garage without forcing it through the foliage with all those worrying scratching sounds.

At some point Will Fixit might put up a rustic arch for when the metal one gives up the ghost, and now I can show him where and how high it needs to be.