We spent Thanksgiving week working on the thicket that surrounds the spring. Its density is a force with which to be reckoned. In some places it’s impossible to see more than two feet in thanks to massive amounts of grapevine, honeysuckle and poison ivy. The overgrowth has done damage and we find ourselves taking out more trees than we would like. Some dead, some dying, some alive but unsalvageable. We’re losing our  “Secret Garden” – which makes me a little sad, but I’m starting to look at it as less scorched earth and more clean slate. Learning what can/should grow in this area will be fun. Also, being able to easily spot critters is a good thing (snakes and thick grapevine have unnervingly similar movements…).

We can also see our neighbor next door now. We like her, so this is a good thing. You can see that we’re starting to drain the spring to get an idea of its condition and prepare a game plan for cleaning and repairing it.

The images below aren’t really before & afters because the after part is still a long way off – but this should give you a good idea of our progress.