See a gap...
My Agapanthus planting continues. Now just three heavy monster clumps are sitting in the trailer, waiting. Where to plant? Aha! See a gap, plant an Agapanthus, hee hee. But don't plant a rose. Roses can do a dreadful girlie sulk. 'Not speaking to you! Don't like this garden'.
One Clump of Agapanthus
Agapanthus wouldn't know how to sulk. They make beautiful foliage plants even if placed in the shade. But gardener, beware! Don't just sprinkle them about. And definitely, absolutely none - ZERO!!!! - are allowed anywhere near the house gardens. In other words, think! Sensible locations will now be listed below :
- In Henworld.
- In the Welcome Garden, the level section.
- In the Hump.
Much Later...
Yippee! A friend came to help me in my morning gardening session. But she sniffed at the idea of planting Agapanthus (this is a fairly common reaction - Agapanthus require a certain robustness of soul and a devil-may-care gardening attitude). I set her to work in the back of the Stumpy (AKA Willow Tree) Garden instead, clearing up fallen crab-apples and leaves.
Confused Rhododendron
Sulking Roses
I dug out some sulking roses (they're now in pots) and trimmed other things like Dahlias and Scrophularia. Then with the saw I removed a rogue over-head-high Prunus (a horribly thorny one) and a green-leafy-boring unknown which was crowding out the big rhododendrons. Believe it or not, but one of these shrubs is confused and is trying to flower. Five months early!
Now the dogs are going to see Charlotte the vet for their inoculations. We looooooove Charlotte the vet! And we are all going to be weighed on the vet's scales. And if any of us (Escher!) is too fat/heavy, then look out! Dogs will be 'shaping up for life' as well as the people in this house. Two of these people (me and Non-Gardening Partner) are doing really, really well on our - whisper the word, please - diets.
Later...
+10+10Breaking news! Big brown Escher and black and white Winnie are joining my euphemistically named weight-reduction programme as of now. Both are well over their healthy dog-limits. 'Rather too chunky', to quote the vet. They shouldn't find this too hard. Winnie has to stop cleaning up the cats' bowls, though...
Friday 27th May
After my morning's social whirl (the dog park, coffee, another coffee, sushi), I raced home, changed, and zoomed outside into the garden. The idea was to divide and plant all the remaining Agapanthus clumps, then continue clearing the Stumpy Garden, then end the day with a jolly good bonfire. Well, just one clump took me three hours to slice up into pieces and plant.
Chook in Agapanthus
Henworld...
They're in Henworld (yes, this is the name of one of my garden areas) with the resident metal chooks happily poking and pecking at the greenery. I lit the bonfire, which sulked and smouldered for ages before bursting into merry flames. And now I am inside, clean and - oops - really hungry. So sad. I'm not even allowed a fruity cider as a reward! Shaping Up For Life is a serious business.
Saturday 28th May
Wow! I have yet another trailer full of Agapanthus, plus some flower carpet roses. So many things to plant, and alas today so little time - I have a music rehearsal this afternoon, and it gets dark quite early. Huge thank-yous to Non-Gardening Partner who has yet again let me organise him into weekend digging. Wow. Amazing value, so much greenery.
Right. Thoughts. The smaller-leafed plants (maybe they are white-flowering, not sure) are going into the Wattle Woods, to join some small-leafed friends near the little curved footbridge.
Sunday 29th May
Oh dear. It's gloomy, damp, and cold outside. An interesting early-morning spectacle - the Shape Up For Life six weeks weigh-in. A shivering kitchen nymph, holding her breath, eyes shut, stepping in slow motion onto the scales - phew! Success! Gardening clothes, quickly!
A friendly chap.
Mid-Afternoon...
Another Agapanthus clump divided and Henworld's mass planting is now finished. Some photographs taken, and a stock-take - twelve large clumps, plus maybe thirty smaller pieces in total. That's a lot of Agapanthus! But I've got a lot of country garden, right? More of the bigger-leafed plants are destined for the Hump, to be a mass planting. Their neighbours are gum and pine trees, plus a nearby Leyland Cypress hedge. Agapanthus have to be tough as old boots to grow near such thuggish trees. And winter gardeners need to be equally tough to keep on doing the same thing all day. And all day tomorrow, and so on.
Dusk...
Outside the bonfire is gurgling and smoking. Inside the wood-burner is gurgling and flaming. What a day! Brilliant, productive, blue-skies winter-wonderful.