Touching on Tea-Pots...
The garden feels different. There's something in the air that isn't wind, for once - tickles of early autumn, maybe? The light seems softer (of course, the sun's angles are changing). And my newly acquired cat tea-pots (won in an online auction) are simply gorgeous. Start a collection, maybe?
Cat Tea-Pots in the Garden
But there's more. I've also bought some old-school plates and serving bowls, and a beautiful Royal Doulton tea-pot decorated with a green cottage on it for five dollars. Naturally it is going in my green cottage. These retro treasures give me great joy, since they are my first such (and they are cheap). My friend tells me it was the done thing to be presented with fine English bone china when one turned twenty-one. All those years ago, hmm... I was too busy being rebelliously alternative for such niceties.
Royal Doulton Teapot
Tea-Pots and Tattoos...
But it's never to late to start collecting things. Or get, for example, cat paw-prints tattooed on one's ageing gardening arms, hee hee. Perhaps I should stop rescuing sad teddy bears and start a collection of posh old tea-pots. Actually, what I'd like is to get a complete dinner set of Royal Doulton in the pattern 'Sampler'. This may be my silliest idea ever. It may be at the 'high end' of crockery collecting - I haven't a clue.
But back to the garden. Everything looks very settled. My garden is peaceful and contented. The gum trees are shedding leaves daily, so this afternoon Moosey Tag-Team went into action. Non-Gardening Partner used his leaf-blower to clear the driveway, while I raked up the front house lawn. I also did some useful trimming behind the pond. Then we both carted all the leaves to the bonfire. Gurgle, gurgle, it went - an efficient, well-behaved burn-up.
Ballerina Roses
More and more roses are re-blooming, all around the garden. I love the generosity of many of my roses (Crepuscule, you in particular) while despairing of others. Climbing Masquerade has one or two solitary scruffy flowers, and leaf-wise has gone completely bald. This is not a good look for a rose so prominently placed on the house pergola. Hmm...
Sunday 9th February
A new garden plan! I have a new garden plan! It seems ages since I had one of these. Today I'm not doing garden maintenance, or leaf-raking - I'm remodelling Pond Cottage's Garden. Initially, the things required are as follows:
- Spade
- Wheelbarrow
- Topsoil
I'm realigning the path which leads to the cottage. So simple - it needs to lead to the cottage verandah and door, not avoid them until very last minute. The new route will be the one I already take while shuffling over to the cottage in the dark without a torch - trying not to wobble into the pond, or crash into the Silver Birch tree, or trip over the waiting Minimus, faithful cottage cat...
Minimus the Cottage Cat
At the moment a row of delightful miniature blue Agapanthus edges the cottage's garden. They are just finishing flowering. And so tough - I can scoop them up with a shovel, replace and replant them, and they won't even notice. It might even be nice to shift in a couple of the old-fashioned roses which are tucked away out of sight behind the Shrubbery.
Rose Hips :- Some rugosa roses have beautifully fat, red hips - giving wonderful colour to the winter garden.
Stop! It is not sensible to shift roses in mid (or late) summer. A far better idea is to buy some new ones. Ooh goodie... Some rugosas would be nice, since they have such beautiful leaves, lovely natural looking blooms - and rose hips. Now there's an idea...
Later...
Well, well, well. First of all we (that's New Zealand) have just won a test match (that's five days of playing cricket) against India. Yippee for us! Secondly, I've done about seven hours gardening. I've got a load of topsoil and four rugosa roses - two Henri Martins and two Blanc de Couberts.
Path to Pond Cottage
I have realigned the cottage path, widened the garden by the water, and started to shift the Agapanthus. The ground is terribly stony, so I'm rethinking the roses. Large pots, perhaps? Or they all go in the border by the cottage verandah and I plant something else in the gap by the water? Anyway, it's been an absolutely jam-packed day and I am glowing with pride. I am sparklingly pink and clean, and my hair is shining with natural gold and silver streaks (sounds much more exciting than salt and pepper). Time for a cup of tea - but which pot to choose?