Now that the weather is cooler I decided to prune some of the branches from the Jacarandas that line our driveway. They have been in for ten years but have not grown evenly. With the recent rains and the summer’s growth a number of branches that had grown to close to the track or, with the weight of new growth, had become too low. Also a lot of long shoots had sprouted from the bases of some trees and should have been removed months ago.
With my big secateurs, pruning saw and Liquorice I set to work. Liquorice was keenly interested in my activities, poking her nose at the saw with each stroke that was made within her reach, looking up from beneath each branch waiting for it to fall.
As you would expect there were a wide variety of sizes and shapes in the prunings from spreading branches with a three-inch diameter base to the many shorter leafy pieces. I gathered them up, piling the smaller pieces on the larger ones, like a sled, placing all the woody ends one way and placing forked branches through the heaps so I could put my hand through to hold the bottom branch. That way my arm would pull against the forked branches giving greater stability to each load as I dragged it over to the shed where the mulching machine is. And yes Liquorice helped me gather the prunings for the heaps. As I dragged the smaller branches to the piles helpful Liquorice would grab hold and pull too, only she would be pulling against me! The fact that she was pulling in the wrong direction in no way lessened her enthusiasm to “help”.
Having formed my heaps and making some last minute adjustments to the woody ends I held my pruning tools in my right hand and took hold of the first consignment with my left. I lifted my end and started pulling up the grade along the track towards the shed, some 200 yards away.
I know that I lack an athletic build, am overweight and totally out of condition, but, even so, I was surprised at the amount of effort I needed to drag this load. Still I continued. I was grateful as I approached the level part of our driveway but the effort was telling on me! As a proud male of the species I was not about to let this load get the better of me, and so I did not stop, drawing on the pig-headed determination typical of my gender. Eventually I arrived in the shed and, knowing that the years had finally caught up with me, I wearily pulled my load up to the mulcher, put the pruning tools on a trolley next to where I had stopped and gratefully released my grip on the Jacarandas. I rubbed the indentations from the branches on my arm, silently apologized to my aching muscles and turned to see the load that I had ” won” over. As I turned, I was surprised to see Liquorice sit up from the thick leafy mattress on which she had secretly hitch-hiked and look at me with a huge Newfy smile on her face that seemed to say “Can I have another ride, Dad, but faster this time!”
What does one do in a situation like that, except be grateful that she was not fully-grown?
Arthur Witten
Liquorice – Mush!