I plan to work my way down the front of the row of trees and bushes in the West yard, from the fire pit area towards the flower garden.  I’ve started at the linden tree at one end.  Here are the areas I will work on next.

Like the maple and spruce groves, when I was a kid, I used to be able to mow in between the trees and bushes here.

Nearest the linden and plum trees I’ve already cleared is this tree.  I don’t know what it is, but a lot of the leaves are turning yellow with black spots on them.  I’ve done a quick search, and it might be a fungal disease.  If so, I might have to do some serious work on it – but first I have to get to it through the undergrowth!

I’m going to have to somehow get to that dead tree in the middle of some false spirea and… some other bush.  I think the dead tree used to be another plum.

I like the false spirea.  Really, I do!  But my goodness, they are invasive!

This crab apple tree seems to be doing okay.  It’s got lots of bitty apples starting, no bigger than rose hips right now.  It is still going to be needing some pruning…

More self-sown false spirea at the end if this row, and you can see some of the deadwood on the crab apple tree.

Also, I think you can see some surviving lilacs.

You can’t see them in any of the other pictures, but there used to be two rows of lilacs behind all these trees and bushes.  I remember how, at the end where the linden tree is now, the two rows of lilacs formed a natural tunnel that I used to be able to crawl into.

Now, I’m not sure how many of them have survived, blocked as they are from the sun by the overgrowth.

I hope to start cleaning up these areas over the next few days, weather willing.

The Re-Farmer