Trolley 515

Day started well with the people who planted the two replacement trees outside Wetherspoon's, noticed at reference 2 at the beginning of April, coming back to water them at the beginning of June. They were coming into leaf, but they were a bit late and clearly needed something. The gardener explained that trees of this sort usually need a bit of care for the first couple of years, large root ball notwithstanding. You might think that the council would do a bit of watering, but perhaps the contract with Civic Trees of reference 3 includes watering, so nothing to do with me guv.

Moved on to East Street, where one of the many trolleys accumulating outside the creationists' accommodation block had strayed onto the pavement, so I scooped it up as No.515. 

Returned it to Kiln Lane, where I came across a bed with a fine showing of convolvulus and at least one other spreading plant, then returned to East Street and carried onto to my usual turning down into Ewell Village. Quite a pull on the bicycle coming the other way. On my bicycle at least.

Oleaster growing in the hedge of the former care home at the corner looking well. Doesn't seem to have caught whatever ours caught.

Intrigued by the green balls terminating some of the upper branches of a large araucaria (aka monkey puzzle) on the way down into Ewell. They were a bit like a large green version of the brown bulges at the end of some of the branches of the Baby Blue Christmas trees in our garden, bulges which turn into new, needle covered growth. Something to keep an eye on. For Baby Blue, see, for example, reference 5.

Bourne Hall library shut, which was fair enough being a Monday. But the Ewell Library closing on Monday and the Epsom Library closing on Wednesday is too much for me to keep track of these days.

Took a break on the bench provided just before the turning into Ewell West Station. Will this become a regular feature of this particular walk? Is an hour and a half without a break too much these days?

On into Longmead Road where the grass was being mowed with mowers large and small. Didn't look like it needed doing to me, but I suppose the contractor is paid to do it so many times a year and so that is what he does. Seems a bit wasteful though.

One of the two Wellingtonia in Longmead Road (of, for example, reference 4). Some way off a scorable height, but still a good deal taller than when they were planted. I should say more than double.

Passed a coping saw blade, almost lost among the detritus on that bit of pavement. Which I may have been wrong about, but I wondered how many men under fifty would know what such a thing was without asking their telephone. Standard bit of kit when I was young, and I still have three or four spare blades in my tool box - although I can't think when I last actually used my coping saw. When I last cut some dovetails, which must be many years ago now?

Possible goldfinch in Manor Green Road. No more than a flash of yellow, so not quite enough to claim a tweet.

Just the one short stretch of genuine cloth bunting. Most people seem to settle for the plastic alternative.

Quite a lot of No.63 registration plates, maybe half a dozen of them. I wondered whether there was something deep state about the unattained No.36. Reserved for special purposes or something? Although such reservation would scarcely be necessary these days, with policemen no doubt able to ask their telephones about registration numbers of interest. 

No.36 being, as it happens, the number of the house in which I spent most of my childhood.

Home to read all about the new leisure centre in Kingston, which according to the free newspaper is making plenty of waves. £45m for a smart new one rather than repairing the roof of the old one for £5m? No doubt the decision for go for new is perfectly reasonable, but it is more or less impossible to please everyone on such a matter, and free newspapers exist to stir such pots. Democracy at work, along with the advertising needed to pay for them. In any event, more interesting than all the fat leader and jubilee tripe offered by the Guardian on the same day.

References

Reference 1: https://psmv5.blogspot.com/2022/05/trolley-514.html.

Reference 2: https://psmv5.blogspot.com/2022/04/notre-dame.html.

Reference 3: https://www.civictrees.co.uk/.

Reference 4: https://psmv4.blogspot.com/2020/06/horton-lane-clockwise.html. Some days later: noting in passing, that the brass tray towards the end of this post had an outing at our recent street party. It did come in handy eventually.

Reference 5: https://psmv4.blogspot.com/2021/01/christmas-definitely-over.html. The immature brown bulges just about visible if you click to enlarge.

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