The Yard And Stone

 

Reclaiming part of the yard, and a memorial stone from invasive plant overgrowth

The lilacs in the yard were very hardy plants some of them were more like trees.  The bulk of the lilacs in recent years suffered from one of two things.  Many of them suffered from damage caused by winters storms and severe winds.  Many of them simply snapped so only a lower section stood straight and the remaining top slumped over, sometimes even touching the ground.  Many others were getting chocked off by bittersweet vines.  Some of the vines were small while others were dozens of feet (several meters) high making an entwined mess connected to other lilacs and other vines. I've come to the decision that I will cut down at least most of it.  They will likely start to grow back again on there own anyway if I change my mind.

There were several peanut shells scattered on the ground.  Guessing it was left behind by squirrels or mice.

One of my cats, Smokey, is buried out back. There is a concrete stone there flush to the ground to mark the area.  It was given to me as a gift.  There was small bush a bit behind this.  The bush grew taller over the years and thorny vines climbed their way up.  Last year the vines climbed further onto the high branches and started hanging downward to the extent that you could no longer walk over the stone.Taking advantage of good weather, the thorns were cut back.

The stone has grass and debris covering parts of it.  A good cleaning will be another day's project.

A family member was kind enough to haul away all the trimmings. I so appreciate what he did.

I'm done outside for now, at least until the next mild day