Groovin' in the grove.

This poor pine tree has been ignored for years.

The short branches form, but few give out leaves. 

As 'Father Tim' says, "It was definitely time for a trim."

So I removed a vast array of short branches, then went back with my trusty hand saw and did the long ones as far as I could reach without a ladder.  Took out the small sapling and trimmed the nearby dogwood too.  Cleaned out all the underbrush, leaves, and debris.

The tiny grove is looking much better.  Soon there will be azaleas to create a bright array of color.

 The burn pile is stacking up in the old briar patch.

 Here's the southwest corner which still needs to be burned.  Briars are creeping in everywhere.

 I was outside yesterday for 4 hours trying to burn one leaf pile.  It's simply too wet still.

The dogwood blossom, a sure sign of spring in the south.

Until then, keep stitchin' . . .

All hands on deck, full steam ahead.

Yes, 40 degrees is a good temperature to burn briar piles.

 Unfortunately, the ground was very wet from yesterday's rain.  So only 3/4 got done.

 This is the final section to be cleared, briars in the right hand corner, on the other side of the fence, and the tall grass in the southwest corner.

Despite today's cold temps and intermittent bouts of snow/rain, the peonies have buds.

Dolly's coat is no longer furry.  She was getting hot spots already, so I took the big scissors, removed the long hair, and turned her into a walking chenille rug.  She's feeling somewhat better, and a porch bath is next on the list when it warms up a bit.

This has been the coldest, dampest spring in quite some time.  Perhaps we'll have a cool summer.  Has anyone checked the Farmer's Almanac?

Until then, keep stitchin' . . .