Piddling in the yard

Yard cleanup continues. I have been cutting up the longer stalks so I can fit more into the trash can, but now am thinking if I am going to that much trouble, maybe I should just let the pieces mulch, then compost in place. Once I have finished downsizing the garden, I may just do that.

While cleaning up, I came across this thing. I suspect it is a spice bush I planted in 2017 (I think - there doesn't seem to be a blog entry about it). I thought I had moved it to the south side of the shed, but whatever I did transplant did not survive. If this is a spice bush, I am very glad to see it.

There are more crocus (crocii?) than usual this spring. Even though we had a mild winter, maybe it wasn't beneficial to the local rabbit population. The daffodils are blooming as are the pink hyacinth. And then there are fungi.

I reassembled and repositioned the tuteurs for 'Betty Corning'. Last year's experiment of trying to direct these clematis vines to the nearby redbuds was a fail because the Betty's don't get tall enough. Maybe this year I will prune back some of the vines, to try to control the rampant growth. In case I forget, I anchored the tuteurs to the downspouts.

The neighbor who lived behind me kept two compost bins behind his shed. When he moved, he took one with and bequeathed the other - and the compost in it - to me. The compost has been sitting in old recycle bins in the garage... until yesterday, when I spread half of it on the front lawn. My spreader is old and decrepit, and it seemed to get hung up on the pieces of egg shell, but I managed to make one pass over the lawn. The walk across the lumpy lawn and the pushing of the spreader reminded me of why I purchased a riding mower a couple of years ago. My ankles and arms were sore after that.

I hope you all are playing it safe, staying home, washing hands, etc. Keep calm and garden on.