Yew hedge removal and scrub bashing at Biddulph Grange Garden on 12th March 2017

Seven of us spent today at Biddulph Grange Garden.  We don't visit often and it was our first trip there since 22 May 2016.  We all passed the initiative test of navigating country lanes to skirt the centre of Congleton (closed due to road resurfacing) (!!) and assembled at 10:05 to meet Paul Walton, Garden Manager.

A ten-minute walk took us past the house and up Wellingtonia Avenue to the worksite at the top end.  Today's job was to dig out a section of (diseased) yew hedge (planted by Paul in 1997!) and clear scrub from the adjacent border.

Neil got the bonfire going and during the day we discovered that yew burns as well if not better than rhody!  We had beautiful spring weather and rather than take our breaks in the mess room below the house got our chairs, kneelers and bin bags out and sat on the grass.  By the time we finished at 3pm we had dug up 25 metres of hedge, a lot of scrub and burned all the cuttings... plus the broken new handle that Adrian had fitted to one of our spades.  That had lasted one workday - I guess you shouldn't expect much for £3.50!

Daniel