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Sunday, June 23, 2013

Sky yogi

I had to prove to my NZ Gardener readers that I really did clamber about the tree-tops like a gibbon, brachiating with aplomb, so this morning, I monkeyed it up the birch and swung to and fro.



6 comments:

Joe W said...

Impressive stuff.

Virginia Woolf had a troubled mind
She was never at ease
But you're my children; you'll be fine
We're gonna live in the trees

Armchair Critic said...

Look at all those rules you are disregarding. You need, as a minimum, a fluorescent vest and a safety harness to prevent falls. You should also have steel cap boots, gloves, glasses, a helmet and knee and elbow protectors before you even attempt something as dangerous as climbing a tree.

robertguyton said...

I don't see many people in trees these days, Joe, more's the pity. There are things to be seen up there and from up there. The funniest scene I ever did see from such a lofty perch was a helmed and fully armoured knight, lance in hand, chasing a young egg-thief - true story. The lad escaped, but only just (could have said, 'joust' :-)

robertguyton said...

Armchair Critic - rest assured I did have all of those necessary things in place but photoshopped them out in order to appear devil-may-care. In fact, I was restricted to the lower branches of the birch by the intensity of my wife's squeals. Otoh, it wa surprisingly windy up there and the rain that fell earlier had made the branches a little slippery. I was intending to suspend myself upside-down from near the top but decided to be cautious. It's not a tree I usually climb. Birch is as slippery as eucalyptus. Alders are good to climb.

Armchair Critic said...

I pruned my apple trees. It's not something I'd done before, previously I let them do as they pleased. So I did a fair bit of reading to work out how to do it.
When it came to the practical application of the loppers and pruning saw I was accompanied by two piopio and a daughter; the five year old. She noted that pruning made the trees very good for climbing. So I threw out all the theory and pruned the trees to make them good for climbing.
The only safety measure is a foot of manure mulch at the bottom of the trees. It's tempting to suggest she would only fall into it once, but I suspect that's untrue- clothes and hair can always be washed.

robertguyton said...

If she falls, it will be with a dung rather than a thud then.
What a thoughtful dad!
If you sent me a photo of ypour apple tree, I could offer a professional opinion as to how much fruit you'll get next year. Mind you, now that your daughter can climb it, perhaps you'll get none.