Missing the Vine

In order to make the house more secure and to give us additional privacy, we decided to build a proper wall where this gate is. Last year I was grateful to Lizzie and Josh for putting up the green screen as a visual deterrent, but truthfully, an athletic young fellow could hop over this gate quicker than you could say, well, "Josh".

Formerly a steel pole went across the top of the gate. It supported the long, heavy vine, which in summer is lusciously leafy. It grows so fast, you practically have to fight your way back in after a quick nip to the boulangerie. However, in winter, as you can see from the previous picture, it doesn't provide any cover. More reason for the new wall.

Mr Kelly knew we were keen to preserve the vine. To that end, Henny noticed a few days ago that it was pruned right back to the woody trunk in preparation for removing the steel. But yesterday, sadly, the vine was almost gone. I'm sure it became too problematic to manoeuvre once the steel was out. Here you see the beginning of the new frontage, which will also support the roof. The steel pole was bang in the way.

I'm sorry for the vine. It was given a very radical haircut, but the root system and the half that hangs over the garage are still in place. I hope it will come back and we can re-train the tendrils over the new wall. Any comments from my green-thumbed friends?