As with The Broadwalk, the weeds have started to show themselves, invigorated by the sun and the rain we have had in Oxford over the last week. Today's area for weeding was The Casson Building also known as The Goldfish Bowl.
Whilst Ady and Graham fork through the borders, weeding and edging, Ali and Joe create some more birch basket masterpieces to support the Euphorbia schillingii that likes to flop about when not supported.
On Monday, Ali and Graham started to plant out a number of plants that had been languishing in the coldframes for years. Once homes had been found for them in various places around the college gardens, Graham then spent Tuesday weeding all the empty frames, sweeping out all the debris and moving the small amount of plants left into one frame. 
Over in the orchard the top layer of Tarmac was laid to finish the path that runs from the Ruskin Building. All that remains is for the new Yew hedge to be planted once the young plants arrive in the next few weeks. 
Today, Wednesday, the team focused their attention on The Broadwalk. In amongst the beautiful Hellebores, weeds have started to appear at an alarming rate, so armed with trowels and border forks, they carefully worked their way along the border removing them before they start to set seed. 
Lesser Celandine, Ranunculus ficaria, is a native perennial wild flower, a member of the Buttercup family. Its yellow flowers appear from February to May, but unfortunately it have become a problem in two of our borders, becoming rather invasive. 
As the perennials start to push their way through the soil in the herbaceous border, it is that time of the year again to make the baskets that will support them through their summer display. 
The Privet hedge that divides the orchard has been slowly dying due to Honey Fungus. Unfortunately, Privet is very susceptible to this fungus, so the decision has been made to dig it out and replace with the more resistant Yew, Taxus baccata . The tarmac path is also being widened so it seemed appropriate to remove the hedge at the same time.
The top of the hedge is cut off using a chain saw and chipped immediately. The tractor with the grap attachment is then brought in to rip out all the Privet root balls.
Once the hedge roots have been ripped out, the area is then forked through removing all the remaining debris. All the chipped material, root balls and debris is taken away to be burned and, over the coming weeks, we will dig in organic matter in preparation for our new Yew hedge.
Having completed the fencing in the outside site garden a few weeks ago, some of the team returned to add organic matter i.e. leaf mould, to the border. As there is no rear access, the leaf mould had to be thrown over the wall, in a controlled manner.
From a loaded trailer, Ali, Graham, Simon and Tracy formed a human chain to transfer the leaf mould, filling up trugs and pouring the contents over the wall.
Tracy and Ali dug the border using the single digging method, the digging of trenches to a spade depth known as a 'spit'. 
It's arrived, 100 meters of leaky, porous pipe for the herbaceous border. The old pipe was removed last autumn having several larger holes in it than it should have following numerous attacks from forks and water expansion when frozen during previous winters. 
Graham, Simon, Joe and Ali work together to unroll and lay it amongst the new perennial shoots, shrubs, snowdrops and the emerging tulips. Once in place the pipe is clipped to the soil using u- shaped wire pieces, however 100 meters of pipe was not enough to cover both borders and another 50 is required to finish the job. This leaky pipe irrigation system will allow the border to be watered during dry spells allowing water to reach the roots where it is needed.
After three full days The Secret Garden's restoration is almost complete. This once misshapen rose now has a new framework and wires to support it.
The borders have been weeded, forked over and realigned, shrubs pruned and leaves collected. Ivy has been cut back, removed from walls and patio stones rediscovered.
Ady returns to put the finishing touches to the garden this morning, mowing the lawn and removing the last of the weeds. 
Graham, Ady, Joe and Ali spent the day working in, what the gardeners call, The Secret Garden. Hidden at the top of some old steps, locked behind an old wrought iron gate, the garden is unseen by visitors and is now in need of some serious attention.
During my first winter working in the gardens of Worcester College, I was lucky enough to witness our Strelitzia reginae 'Bird Of Paradise' flowering in the warmth of the heated greenhouse where it spends the winter months. Well, that was four years ago and every winter since, it has been brought in from the cold and kept warm, but no flower has been seen, until now.
