“I can manage that myself,” I told the arborist when he offered to trim this pittosporum six months ago. Then birds nested in it. Before I knew it, it was heading for the power lines again. It was an effort to trim from the top of a wobbly ladder, with my arms at full stretch holding heavy hedge clippers. Some bits I couldn’t reach, so it looked as if it had a lopsided mohawk. I shoved the clippings under a camellia.

Today, I had another go. I planned to head straight through with loppers, getting the large branches as I went. I climbed down from the ladder to inspect my efforts. What a mess! Stark cut branches stuck up at the top and a pile of branches was half way up the ladder. And I was hot, sweaty and scratched. I rang the arborist.