This week we were in Portobello clearing overgrown vegetation from an access ramp that leads to a bridge connecting Portobello Town with Portobello Park and Golf Course.
The area around the ramp had been become pretty overgrown with mainly Ivy and Rosa Rugosa (Beach Rose – also known to some people for their seed hips which children like to call itchy bombs) being the main offenders, growing all over the hand rails and encroaching on to the path.
Clearing back the Ivy and beach Rose was a long and slow process, mainly because these species like to grow in thick or dense clumps and partly because of the amount on thorns the Beach Rose has all over its stems. The Ivy had in places wound itself all around the metal railings and over the years formed a thick root system in, around, up, over, through and all around the railings.
For these reasons it took the full three days to complete the job, we cleared all the railings and cut the vegetation back about a meter from the path. We took our time and worked methodically to achieve something that looked easy and like it would only take half a day to the naked eye but once the work started it became clear that this was a much bigger and tougher job than it first appeared.
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Rosa Rugosa Pic Copyright hedgesdirect.co.uk)