Generosity...
Blue Tree Daisies
Wow. I am now the proud owner of two huge Lily bulbs, Cardiocrinum giganteum, Giant Himalayan Lily. My plantsman friend has popped back out of the woodwork. Thanks to his generosity over the years, I have many rather groovy, slightly odd-ball plants and trees growing well in my garden. And just a few are plants that he's lost in a recent fire - like the blue flowering Tasmanian tree daisy.
We wandered around my garden with cups of tea, and looked for other things I might be able to replace for him. I proudly showed him his Bamboos, Arundos, Psoralea pinnata, Spiraeas, Deciduous Azaleas, Maples, Japanese Irises, Pieris. Didn't mention the Skunk Cabbage that Non-Gardening Partner ran over in the driveway. Or the Beschorneria yuccoides which flowered and then sulked its way into an early demise.
I have a row of his Camellias, raised from seed, all pink and pretty, growing well behind the Stables. And a lucky Kalmia, rescued in the nick of time from the wrong location. Oops.
Some of the Plant Gifts
Plant generosity is an amazing thing, and I must remember that what goes around comes around. It's so easy in conversation to offer pots of this and that to friends, then forget to follow through. Prunella grandiflora and Lily of the Valley are two such that I've promised to one of my singing friends. I'll do it!
Bamboo
Even more generous...
Bonfiring generosity is another wonderful thing, even more generous - it takes a lot of effort just to get smoky clothes and hair. Yesterday's bonfire was short and sweet - well, maybe not so sweet - and I got a bit lonely. Aha! Not so today, because my friend came to help. She adores burning, but lives in the city where such activities are banned. Her car arrived with boot crammed full of prunings from her garden.
I did a lot of path and garden clearing behind the cottage, and attacked the Viburnum tinus with browning leaves. My Google research tells me this is either a fungus or thrips. OK, OK. I probably need to diagnose and spray accordingly, rather than simply chop the offending branches off. They are on the shady side of the shrub-tree...
And one can never, ever under-estimate the generosity of a cat. This morning, just before dawn, Minimus lands heavily from the window onto my bed. I am snoozing, warm and comfy, in this bed. A heavy landing followed by a muffled miaow? Aargh! Her mouth must be full of something. Lights on. Eek! A huge rat sits, slightly dazed, on my carpet, while Minimus washes her bottom. Open the door oh so slowly, grab the broom...
Dogs Playing
My dogs have not been so generous. Another snarling and scrapping fight in the house. Who starts it? Who continues it? Who teases the other into this unacceptable behaviour? The answer is in the middle - that third invisible dog, the one with the pack instinct, the one that totally blocks out all human influence. Grr...
Best Friends
Today I am going to be generous to the garden behind the Shrubbery. I am going to weed it properly. Then I will drench it with rotted horse manure. And give thanks that I have loads of spare energy, and am feeling thoughtful and alert. It's such a relief to have a break from the autumn burning, anyway!
And there's more...
Aha! An unexpected plant gift from my bonfiring companion - a hydrangea, labelled rather lusciously 'Blueberries and Cream'. Yum...
Clematis Flowering Now
And a huge surprise by the pergola. A clematis, gifted to me by my plantsman friend. Well, he must have brushed past it and shamed it into action. It's decided to flower for the very first time. In autumn.