Back Garden

Once Mum and Dad moved into their new Home in Cherryfield, Dublin, Dad and Mum decided to set out the back garden with a rockery and various other design features. I dont think there was much of a garden in Mums old home just a back yard. There was a garden in Watergate in Kilkenny where dad was raised and I think he fancied having a rockery in his new garden. Anyhow Dad decided the layout of the back garden and even when he had no car he made up a wooden box for the back of his bike and he used to bring home rocks and stones from the Featherbeds. The Featherbed Mountains were about 10 miles from Dublin and quite a cycle uphill. Quite how he and Mum got all the stones home I don't know, Mum only had a basket on the front of her bike. I suppose it was mainly downhill back to Dublin. Eventually Dad bought his first car, a Morris Minor and they could bring home bigger rocks. Apparently Dad supervised and Mum lugged the rocks around the garden under Dads grand design. The basic layout from the late 1950's is still there today. The rockery grew over the years in height and it has been altered a little here and there. About ten years ago I had to dig up part of the rockery to build a Conservatory and removing some of the rocks was very difficult some were much bigger under the ground rather like Icebergs.
Dad also built a Sundial which is still there today. Also Dad planted many trees and shrubs which over the years got rather out of hand and at one stage there was over one hundred trees and shrubs, many which had to be removed and I can remember digging many of them out a few years ago and the task was back breaking. Dad was also found of 'crazy paving' and more recently I have been extending the footpaths and some of the old rocks have a new use as part of the crazy paving. I also copied Dad by setting of to collect more stones from 'here and there'. Cant say where I got the new stones of course!
Photo of the garden circa 1956-59