Stones, Stone Fruits and Suckers

This week saw us commence what seemed at the outset, a small turfing job for a former pupil of mine.  I could write a book about the lessons this has taught me.  Here goes.

When her husband took us to the back garden to show us the shady area needing a new lawn I noticed, but did not 'take in' the many 'weeds' that grew, eighteen to twenty inches high, around the base of what was obviously an old apple tree in need of drastic renovation and another large tree that I did not recognise, but guessed from the shrivelled fruit remaining on the topmost boughs might be a sloe.  We wrote my pupil a detailed quotation, submitted it and began the job promptly.

When we came to remove the top layer of grass and moss prior to laying down topsoil and turf the following week, we realised that these were not 'weeds' at all, they were the suckers of the other tree which I discover from consulting The complete handbook of fruit growing (1976) is a Myrobolan, a variety of plum or gauge which is used as rootstock for cultivated varieties of plum.  Deep down I should have known this.  Myrobalans grow along one perimeter of our allotment and also by the railings in the park.  They produce small, cherry-like red and yellow fruit, early in the season.  U, our neighbour, picked some once and gave us a jar of jam. 

Bother, oh bother.  Myrobalans put out suckers from their roots, which spring up into miniature trees.  We cut them out.  This was a long tiring job.  Some we managed to pull off entire from their parent roots, others we had to cut out with the secatuers or even the loppers.

Later, we got into conversation with the neighbour who was leaning conversationally over his garage, trimming ivy.  We realised after mutual introductions, he is the brother-in-law of another neighbour in our avenue (the one who fixed the double-glazing in U's conservatory).  He told us that the old ladies who lived in the house previously had had a greenhouse built under the apple tree.  Hence the pieces of hardcore that we kept unearthing and putting in a pile at the end of the garden next to the old shed.

Stones and stone fruits.  What was intended for rootstock shoots a thicket of prolific suckers.  What was once a greenhouse base in a crazy place is turned into lumps of crazy paving concrete.  We have done the best we can.  On Monday we cover it all with turf.