Red And Black Day

I have been off today. It was a day of cleaning up the Alley that runs behind the garden.The neighbours two doors away had decimated the hedge but left the shredded branches and leaves along the path (except for their own bit if alley).
I collected the woody bits and big stemmed branches and moved them into the sanctuary behind the Wall. This strip is a buffer zone between the building site and the alley way alongside the houses.
Birds fly around and sing in the enclosed sanctuary, as the fencing keeps all people out.
I swept up leaves and rotting leaves from previous falls, and added them to my black compost bin. It needs mixing up tomorrow with my garden waste from the renovation, then watering and left.
It is Gardening alchemy to turn rubbish into new black compost, black gold. It will be used to raise up the right hand border, keep moisture in, and add lots of nutrients for the Vegetables, Rose bushes, and Herbs I want to grow there.
Fran brought me the fabulous Red Dogwood pictured above before I put it into the ground, between two Carex grasses and a Rose bush. The left hand border is slowly filling with plants.
The first spring bulbs have begun to appear from the soil. Cat noticed all of them as I could not see them. I look that often I begin not to see whats there!
Added tonight to the left hand border were four stainless steel solar lights. It has a white ghostly glow now in the darkness.
The Alpine Strawberries have started to germinate in the pots, ready to grow on a bit before being transplanted into individual pots. I put in ten pots the ten match sticks covered in seeds.I wander how many will actually germinate. They are destined if they survive to grow along the edge of the left border. To grow over the stone slabs that hold the soil in the raised bed.
I will photograph the left border tomorrow in good light. I planted the Dogwood in the fading light. The birds were not as active today. I saw my robin, a blackbird, two unknown brown birds,a coal tit, and a lot of blue tits. I hung a new bell shaped seed feeder on the fruit canes and they were landing on it within five minutes.
The peanuts near the house were mouldy (no more from Wilkos now) so thats why they were not touched. Another gift from the Birds came on monday. A bird bath with two little birds peeking over the edge.
There is now a variety of food sources, on the bird table, on the fence, and on the ground for the new ground feeding birds I saw today. There are three bowls of water, one was half empty today.A bird has been bathing, singing loudly, and splashing half of the water out.I hope to see the birds using the en suite garden facilities soon!
I love the bright colour of the Dogwood stems, I heard it needs cutting back in April to three or four buds length to keep it young and growing the fine red stems. Cornus have a variety of flowers and fruits, as well as bright Autumn leaves before the Red stems are revealed.
In the Winter garden colours are needed to have something to look at whilst Spring bulbs develop under the topsoil.
A few more photos to follow to illustrate this post :)