Spring or at least one weekend of it finally struck Alberta with record breaking temperatures on Sunday of almost 25 o C, warmest since 1969 and remember the previous weekend it had snowed.

Coming out of a very busy 10 days, I welcomed Sunday afternoon to start some yard clean up with the various implements from the garage. It is a debate as to how compatible two female dogs and my grass and flowerbeds are going to be with digging and chewing such as is evident on this caragana stump. Think I have to be resigned to wet & muddy dogs and patchy lawns.

Raked all the lawns and then started on the space next to the old fence I want to replace with chain link. Got some estimates last fall and whether I go with chain link or wood now is one of the best times to clear the space next to the fence. My elderly neighbour is very undecided as to what she wants to do with the fence, and has said that it was “ old man C “ who first built it in 1954 and it is on my property. Her grown kids have said just go ahead and do it (one remembers climbing over the fence and getting caught in his snow pants as a toddler). Although ideally would love to split costs may very likely end up footing the whole bill.

 So pruned two bushes one of which was a tall rambling prickly rose bush…. great fun putting into garden bags. Then came the space between the fence and the garage with overgrown weeds and quack grass, long steel pipes, cement blocks, and various lengths of boards. Chucked the latter out the end towards the alley and my other Italian neighbour was driving by surprised and curious as to what I was up to. The dogs of course just thought this new space was just for them and as is their escape route I had to make sure blocked off. What else did I find but a yellowed newspaper article on “ using the garden to the last with recipes for picked beets, spiced crabapples, dilled carrots and no cook peach jam.