I decided to clear out some of the brambles out back of my property, as well as re-use the wood of the fallen black locust. this particular area is usually populated by pokeweed, jewelweed, catbrier and goldenrod. I intend to open the space up a bit, by adding walkways that will eventually meander to the woods out back. I’ve opened it up in another way by seeding and planting several species of milkweed, purple coneflower, cardinal flower, and butterfly weed. The diversification of the native plants is not the only goal, mind you – being somewhat practical minded and wanting to live off the land to some degree I have carved out a little plot for herbs and berries (chives, mint, lavender, parsley, blackberries, raspberries and blueberries) -not enough to live on in any significant way but sufficient to add color and flavor to meals during the growing season.
This area resides “under the wires” and it pays to be proactive, which means I will clear the new trees that have encroached upon this land over the last 4 to 5 years. Leaving it up to the likes of NSTAR may prove to be heartbreaking, as so many cape cod residents have experienced in the wake of last year’s storms. Precision cutting is not something exhibited by the utility crews, and unless you want part of your property to look like a bomb hit, you need to go out there yourself.
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