Finally the new raised veg beds are nearing completion but the remaining work is probably some of the hardest. The timber for the outside edges on the paths is still to be delivered at some point but in the meantime yesterday was another exciting delivery day.
After much deliberation and indecision, I decided to use slate chips rather than trying wood chip first as a short-term solution. Although it’s more expensive in the early stages it will definitely last a lot longer and hopefully look nicer as well.
I may have ordered too much though despite careful consideration but I’m sure I can find a use elsewhere in the garden for any leftovers. So here you have it – 4 tonnes of the finest slate chippings from Honister Slate Mine in the Lake District.
The delivery was a minor nightmare though mostly because the driver decided to reverse all the way down the track. This meant he couldn’t negotiate the corner at the end of the field without wiping out a row of willow trees so the delivery couldn’t get to the courtyard as originally planned.
In the end it all worked out okay though. We managed to offload all 4 pallets but the last one was the most fun – the dumpy bag had a split so the contents were shovelled off the side of the lorry into a spare bag I had lying about.
At least it’s still fairly close to the raised beds so all I need to do now is shift all 4 tonnes by hand with a spade and a barrow!
