What have you done today in the Garden?

Rest and heal

 

Thanks @Daniel W ...yes I will, I have learnt my lesson.
When the sun shines it's so very hard not to be out there doing something though.

 

That bit when the bruises get colourful is usually the best! Everyone can see, and you get more sympathy. It's a sign that you're mending well and will be back out there - all ready to start work again soon
My own best bit was after I fell flat on my face a while back - blood everywhere, and Zigs thought I'd broken my nose. It started to feel a bit better when the bruise came out. We'll have to stay off the lemonade I suppose

 

Bruises and bumps and falls is a common theme this season. I spent the day just resting and icing my knee. It rained all day which gave me a good excuse to catch up on paper work.

 

I actually did break my nose in a fall many ,many moons ago. I had forgotten about it ,as I didn't seek any treatment, until the nurse did a Covid nasal test on me and she noticed it!!
Nobody can / will see my bruises ...only hubs.

I do find icing eases the discomfort but doesn't do much for any swelling really. Elevating is best but not too sure how to go about elevating my new sore parts !! I'm also sporting a ' template' of a metal watering can across my lower back too...who needs a tattoo!!

Hope your knee is feeling a lot more comfortable now Pac. Take it gently now.x

 

We're promised another week of this fine weather, which will do our lawn a power of good. I'm beginning to see the benefit of the half-price lawn food I bought from Homebase in Altrincham, when they were closing down. B&Q are taking over the building and will be opening shortly. So anytime I want to "pay through the nose for something," it will be nearer than the one near the Trafford Centre.

Our garden always looks better relatively early in the morning when the sun is behind my left shoulder from this position.




The lawn looks a bit "lumpy" when the sun is ahead of me. These two acer palmatums will be fully out by the end of the week. The one nearest the camera may need a bit of tidying once the leaves have set.




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I've some shopping and chores to do, but this afternoon I may strip out the dead canes from the bamboo at the end of the garden. I don't use them to support new plants as they are too visible, I use those green metal ones with ridges on them, as the ties when used, don't slide down them.
My replacement fairy lights will be here this week. 300 multi-coloured for £12.99 post free from eBay. I've also ordered a pack of 50 x 25mm cup hooks Some of these I'll use to replace bits of garden wire I've been using, wrapped round pergola beams to support the lights and cup hooks always come in handy, if you want to tie anything to a concrete post.

 

Cool rainy day today so won't be doing anything after work today. Did sow spinach seed yesterday.

 

All I've done this morning is deadheading the rose bushes, watering my seedlings and taking all the empty bags of mulch out to the trash and got the trash can out to the side of the road for early morning pick up tomorrow.

 

Watered the polyanthus and the blueberries, put broken egg shells in the pots of lillies to stop the slugs and snails, also put petroleum jelly around the rim of the pots to stop them climbing in the pots.

 

Another pig of a "hands and knees job" completed.

This is our bamboo forest at the bottom of the garden.
It started life as a clump half-way down the main border. When it got to about six feet high, with a diameter similar to that of a dustbin lid (for those who know what that is) I dug it up. It had to come out as one big lump and then I chopped it up with a spade into small segments.
I planted individual clumps about six inches apart from each other up against the back fence.




Today I got into it and removed a lot of dead canes, as I do every year. The dead leaves don't decay, you have to blow them out from between the canes with a garden vac.

Then I tightened the three lateral wires, that stop the lot from falling over. You can't see them from a distance
It has never attempted to creep forward more than three or four inches in decades.

It's looking a bit thin, but it always bushes out as we move into the summer.
It will look like this by July.





I did the same with this black bamboo, between a hedgehog house and the pagoda. It's always had wires round it to keep it contained. I had to temporarily remove those to be able to spread it out a bit to get the dead stuff out, then replace the wires.

 

You wear me out just reading your posts @Doghouse Riley !!!!

 

Amen !! I have been tripping a lot lately and thankfully JUST catching my balance. But it's because even though I tell myself "slow down", I get so involved with stuff I forget and I run around like I'm still a teenager.

 

But of course. He is a young man. Didn't you see his picture in the "Are u brave enough to post a picture of yourself" thread ?

 

DHR has a great way to keep in shape and maintaining his garden and golf on a regular basis is teaching his body and mind that routine is important to developing muscles memory. Like a runner must run daily to keep muscle memory and body in good condition to sustain muscle memory. By routine and conditioning DHR has developed a strong\muscle memory and good physical conditioning, endurance thru routine daily activity.

How muscle memory works. When a movement is repeated over time, the brain creates a long-term muscle memory for that task, eventually allowing it to be performed with little to no conscious effort. This process decreases the need for attention and creates maximum efficiency within the motor and memory systems.

I once did a lot endurance horse racing. Learned muscle memory years ago even the horses were strong from daily training . We all have muscle memory and it’s a matter of repetition to build what our muscles need to stay strong.

Even when a bit sore after routine gardening after developing muscle memory for working around the garden and pastures. The pain memory is short and recovery is faster. This is what professional athletes have developed. It’s nothing new for athletes, however gardeners and other physically demanding jobs can also develop muscle memory.

I can honestly brag that at 77 years old I can lift 160 pounds easily. Simply from gardening and hauling heavy tree limbs using leverage , lots of gardening and lifting heavy feed bags @ 80#’s a piece. Even with both hips and one knee replacement. In fact my hip joints are stronger and help out a lot better as the brain is also trained to my new shinny joints. Muscle memory is real and there is no age limit. My oldest horse at 31 years old beat all the other much younger horses in his class for endurance trail racing in the mountains at the Riley horse camp competition at Mt. Hood ,Oregon. Age is all relative and it can be an asset factor not a loss factor. Remember to know your limitations and respect it . Muscle memory is an important factor in healing from injuries and self confidence.

Note serious injury is not included in the explanations for muscle memory. Always take care and rest or see a doctor if serious injury is involved. Been there done that..