Cleaning up The Hump...
Cat on Tea Pot
Yesterday I had 'the hump' with my garden - it was the sunniest of blue-skies winters day, and perversely I was feeling moochy and lazy. This will not do! I've picked myself up, dusted myself off, and I have a timely plan. I'm going to clean up The Hump!
Thursday 21st July
Ha! The Hump! It's a garden which runs along the top of the old sand dune, on the edge of my house lawn. A bit of a rough, tough, scruff area, The Hump will love to have my gardening company for a few days. It's a leafy green place, a patchwork of textures, with Pittosporums, Olearias, green Cordylines, Genistas - and gnomes!
Lots of Periwinkle
There's an impassable path (naturally), and lots of Vinca (periwinkle), which looks lovely growing in a rough, tough scruff area. There's a large tea pot, and swathes of species Agapanthus. It's a gentle, green semi-wilderness. Awwww - I've gone all dewy-eyed thinking about it. Three good days should do it, I reckon. Let's see if I'm right.
Much Later...
I've made a good, positive start. I've trimmed self-seeded Pittosporums (there are too many), dug out grasses, and partially manicured some Cabbage trees. One of the paths is now clear of run-away Periwinkle. The Genista (variety Little Imp) has produced lots of little shrublets, and I've left them growing. I hope this will not be regretted. Mister Google tells me it's a hybrid, drought tolerant, frost tolerant, fast growing, and tough. Sounds perfect for The Hump. But a hybrid which sets seeds? I hope I'm allowing something nice to happen.
Shrubs and Flowers in the Hump
What isn't so nice is a sniffy nose and runny eyes, which I attribute to an allergy to Viburnum Rhytidophyllum. This has happened to me before. Hmm... Eyes still feel watery. So I'm taking an antihistamine and going to bed super-early.
Friday 22nd July
It's frosty, but We ARE going to the dog park. I've just let the dogs out, and all three have been rolling with delight on the frosty Frisbee Lawn. I see this as a sign. We love the frost!
Spot the Path
I'm still cross with that blasted Viburnum, growing right by the path. Today I'll give it the widest berth, while I float around in the Periwinkle Ocean clearing more paths. My two guardian gnomes will keep watch from their lighthouse (a huge pine tree stump) to make sure I don't 'flounder' near the Viburnum Rocks. Or should that be 'founder'? Or both?
Much Later...
After entertaining some lovely visitors I cleared another part of the path network, barrowed out two loads of mess, and burnt it all. Now I have to make a serious decision - the path through the side of the Shrubbery is impassable, and something will have to move.
Souvenir de Madame Leonie Viennot :- This rose has its own page, with photographs. But beware - she's rather a noisy show-off!
It leads underneath a rose archway which supports bits of Souvenir de Madame Leonie Viennot. I think that this time a plant will have to make the ultimate sacrifice. It's usually the other way around, and I shift the path.
Saturday 23rd July
A big day, during which I sorted out that path (a Phormium had to come out), continued trimming the periwinkle right up to the garden bench, then around and past the Agapanthus. I fixed up some log path edges, too.
Ha! Spot the Path Now!
All the greenery in this lower part of the garden was speckled with blobs of grey, looking like some dreadful fungus had moved in. But no - someone (Non-Gardening Partner) has been in here, emptying the ash bucket from the wood burner over everything. It will all wash off in the rain, apparently. What rain?
Fluff-Fluff, Tiddles, and the Gnomes
+5 
+5I spent the last hour weeding, 'helped' (not) by Fluff-Fluff. He kept getting in the way of my diggers and scrapers, lolling in the soil right underneath my hands. Then Tiddles the tabby came to check out my moving hands, so that was that really. Not easy to avoid four pouncing front paws.