Spring Arrives at Shadowlands!

I'm so pleased for you Ptaro and for your family that everything is well there And that you will be able to leave Tokyo-- sadly the news is still not good coming out of Japan--

Ptaro its heartwarming to read that all is well at Shadowlands and that you and your family are moving in tomorrow, I can well imagine the relief you must have felt upon arriving to discover this, to move is stressfull enough, even more so when one has a young family so I hope all goes well with it..
With the tragedy of all that is going on in Japan its lovely to see the new life appearing in your garden, waiting to welcome you and your family, I wish you well and hope you stay safe in your new home....

so pleased to hear the good news ~ im sure you will appreciate your beautiful house and garden even more now
those new plants and their lovely healthy leaves remind me of spring and hope!

all the very best for your move

What fantastic news you have given us :) I can sense your relief in your post...and your excitement...at all the signs of vigorous life all around Shadowlands.

I noticed your wood store standing proud too :) Good job!

Will you now be staying permanently at Shadowlands or is this only for the milder months? I know you will have lots of projects to get on with...enjoy discovering your property once again and settling into your new homestead.

Your paths, edged with the fallen trees are looking very nice too. Good to get an update and to know you and your family will be breathing nice, fresh, country air away from the big city of Tokyo.

I am so glad to here from you ptarotuos. I was wondering how you had managed during the terrible conditions in Japan. Staying in Shadowlands will be a welcome change for you and your family.
Best wishes
Linda

Very pleased to heasr that all ius well, Ptaro. I hope that your move goes smoothly and look forward to hearing how Shadowlands develops.

What wonderful news Ptaro, there is hope ahead for you all now and those beautiful bulbs will be poking through and bringing colour to your lives, all the best for the move, so glad you can keep in touch.

Waste deep in boxes still, but on Monday we have a professional tree pruner in to deal with all the specimen evergreens (conifers, cedars, pines, etc). The Japanese have a very distinctive pruning style, and take it very seriously. I'll be watching throughout and taking notes. I guess it take a confident hand, lopping off branches from someone's 50-year old pride and joy. The tsu-tsu-gi (azaleas) in various states will have to go another year uncle my uncle can get here from Australia to deal with them (he's a specialist in the art of Satsuki, bonsaing azaleas, and understands their growth needs better than most). Oh, and a neighbour turned up with two gooseberry bushes he just dug up from his garden (so they obviously thrive here). That makes 5 bushes now. Back to the boxes. ptarotuos

You've got some nice neighbours...passing on the gooseberry bushes to you. It will be interesting for you to observe/take notes on the pruning techniques, Japanese style.

Pleased to hear you are now at Shadowlands with the family and able to continue with your development of the property.

I did wonder if you would have internet access in the mountain area at Shadowlands....seems that you have :)

Happy unpacking, Ptarotuos.

Hi Ptaro, glad you have arrived safe and sound. Even though you are surrounded by boxes at least you are there. Hope the tree pruning goes well, sounds facinating, please will you take some photos for us? Look forward to your next up-date.

Thank you for all your comments relating to Shadowlands. We have now arrived in the UK for a scheduled sabbatical research leave, which means I'll have to wait another year to see the Sakura in full bloom, and the Dogwoods. In the few days that we had at Shadowlands before we took the long flight to the UK on Friday, we managed to get some people in to thin the woods at the back, and so when we return in a year, it should not be too overgrown. Having observed the process closely (sorry, couldn't get any decent snaps), my love of vines (mostly the 'yama' - wild moutain wisteria) has diminished greatly. This plant seriously damages trees if left unchecked in its wild state. At least three spruce trees had been engulfed, and their crowns and leaders snapped and pulled down like a flies in a spider's web. However, generally the tree thinning went well, and a lot more light now penetrates the canopy and gets to the many different types of azaleas that were revealed underneath. With a bit of hard prunning, these somewhat leggy specimens should start to take better shape. But that's in a years' time. rgds, ptarotuos

You've had a long flight to return to the UK and it is nice that you got up to Shadowlands to tame a bit more of your property, Ptarotuos. A year is a long time to be away from Shadowlands...you will really notice the growth of your plantings when you return.

I hope the vines will behave and not continue to invade your trees...it's a bit like the ivy I have in my back garden. It grows so profusely it chokes everything else out! The azaleas that are now getting light and air will be very attractive and add great splashes of colour :)

Enjoy becoming acclimatized back in the UK...I hope you will have some garden (or even some pots) to potter in during your year back in the UK.

Spring is bursting out all over so I'm sure you'll find it is a pleasant time to be in England :)

i hope you have a good time in england but im sure you will miss your beautiful garden in japan. i shall look forward to seeing your photos next year!

very interested to hear about the azaleas and how to cut them properly.

Glad you got the trees sorted Ptaro. enjoy your sabbatical, think you have deserved it after all that has happened.

What a lovely blog full of hope that life is an endless circle. Life, death and life again springing forth. Enjoy your sabbatical year in the UK and maybe you will meet some Goy members at an event near you in the coming months. Our prayers continue for the people of Japan. They have been worderfully resilient in the face of the calamity which struck so unexpectedly.