Some structure needed...
My Glass-House
Over the next weeks I need some structure in my daily gardening life. A large digging-a-new-garden plan would be nice - but all I can think of is felling some of the pine trees (not a suitable task for a lady gardener) and spending money at the rose nursery. Now that I can definitely manage!
Monday 8th August
But I don't quite understand how all these gaps in the garden, oh so suitable for roses, were not apparent last summer. Hmm... Something to do with deciduous trees and shade, perhaps?
Hee hee. By constant repetition I have trained my friends to grab any concrete retro garden gnomes they see (goodness me no, no, I don't mean theft). But I've always suspected that my general garden twittering (not tweeting) flows gently over their heads. Aha! Not so! One friend, confronted with a going-cheap wooden Adirondack chair, has pounced, and is bring it over late this afternoon. Nice work!
No Excuses...
It's 8:15am, I'm already dressed in my gardening clothes, the gardening Ipod is charged - Rachmaninov! My gardening composer-hero... And it's beautifully sunny outside, with no frost. I have a trailer-load of compost to spread and specific gardens to target - the Stumpy (AKA Willow Tree) garden and the Dog-Path Garden. In other words, I have no excuses not to be out there. Methinks I deserve another piece of peanut butter toast...
A Sunny Winter's Day
Late Lunchtime...
What a glorious summer's winter day! I've finished the garden between Willow Bridge and the Plank. I've fixed another bit of the stone wall, built up the level of the garden with compost, and dug out clumps of offending Shasta daisies. They've been stashed underneath the Leyland hedge, out far enough to get the sun. So will they flower? Go on, you daisies, be tough, you can flower this summer...
Rusty the Dog
Revised Rose Policy
Good news for my wallet. Today I have a new, revised rose policy, having put another three strugglers into pots of potting mix. Why not look after the ones I've got, and get to know them properly? And why have all these roses been left languishing underneath Phormiums and behind other large sun-hogging shrubs? Poor things.
Tuesday 9th August
This morning - gardening or swimming? The ground is frosty - swimming, I think, where I can do some serious garden planning about roses. To buy or not to buy? That is certainly the question... It's just that the new ones from the nursery have lots of fat stalks and look rather promising. The few I have rescued and put in pots are spindly, and look unhealthy.
The Spiral Courtyard in Winter
Much, Much Later...
Much deep thinking while finishing off the day's bonfire. According the well-filtered news bulletins I hear, parts of London are misbehaving. How can people care so little? It really worries me, as I rake up the dry rubbish and tip a few more large flax fans on my fire. I hope Son of Moosey and family are OK.
So what have I done? I've spread compost onto the Dog-Path Garden, swept the spiral brick courtyard, and started raking rubbish out of the Hen-House Gardens. Memo to self - I love the Autumn Joy sedums in here, which I have just tidied up. And the lavender is growing well. And there's definitely more light and room for the rugosa roses since I cut down some scruffy Hebes. Nice. I love rugosas.
A Sun-On-Tummies Day For Cats
Sometimes I think I live a compete fairytale in a parallel gentle world, tending my garden, talking to my dog and my cats. Well, no cats today - they all appeared while I was walking around calling Lilli-Puss, who is two-days missing - again! After some perfunctory leg-rubs one by one they melted back into the garden. It's been a sun-on-tummies day for cats. I'm not worried about Lilli - random cat! She does do this quite often.
Fluff-Fluff the Cat Suns His Tummy
Little Rewards...
Little rewards - going apres-gardening, I have allowed myself to wear my very special hiking socks, the ones that are super warm and hug my feet. Oh, bliss! And I have some 'new' recycled wool, which means new stripe colours in my crocheted woolly blanket. How exciting! Life is good when such little, insignificant things can be so pleasing...
Wednesday 10th August
I've talked to the London Moosey Son on the phone, and he and family are OK, though their suburb's main street has been trashed, particularly the supermarket and post office. Imagine a world where rioters loot potting sheds and garden stores, running down the street with some prize Begonias... No, sorry, I shouldn't even try to joke about it. It's just horrible when people turn feral.
New Adirondack, Old Bench
Today I am going to finish spreading my compost, and then Non-Gardening Partner has promised to collect me another full one. I'm trying to finish along the water race, and hopefully enjoy the fact that I'm doing such a good deed for these tired old gardens.
Lilli-Puss :- Lilli definitely rhymes with silly....
But some days (like today) I feel heavy and world-guilty that the things I worry about are so inconsequential. For example, where is silly Lilli-Puss? Well, she's turned up back in the Stables this morning, large as life, happy and healthy.
And has that rhododendron in the Wattle Woods completely died? I hope the problem was lack of water and not some feral fungus.
There will be no disorder
In the Wattle Woods border