Mundane...
Climbing Kitten - Black Fred
Some days a deeply spiritual gardener (me, for example) just has to tackle the mundane and the physical. Drag heavy things around, fill the barrow over and over again... Nothing dreamy about grunty gardening!
Today I've been weeding the driveway near the house. At such times I wish I was a 'poisoner' rather than a 'puller'. But I stick to my standards. Working here near the house encouraged the Fred kittens to be braver, to venture out into a new part of the garden, and try some climbing.
As I scraped away they zoomed up the driveway trees - not too high - and played chasing in the low sprawling conifers. I carted away six barrowfuls of mess. And I did tidy up the edges of the gardens when the driveway became just too tedious (some of the older Lychnis plants are ready to come out, for example). Actually, when one sets one's mind to weeding by hand, and starts, it never seems to be quite as difficult as one thinks.
Question : The Potato Vine. Do I just let it roam free along the fence, covering everything? The fence isn't exactly a visual feature, and I don't care so much about the low conifers. Maybe I just welcome it into my garden, along with all the other thugs - Clematis montana, the Golden Hop, Alkanet...
Potato Vine
Poor Clair Matin (a rose) can't see clearly at all for a mass of Solanum foliage, and a standard white Iceberg is also threatened. Time for the spade, and some well-watered potting mix? These lovelies can obviously join my other recycled roses in The Hump.
So I haven't answered my question at all, hee hee...
Monday 14th January
Today it's been delightfully raining - quite hard at times, So I've done no gardening, but the dogs and I have been roaming around the garden. And I've seen tomorrow's gardening task - oh boy, oh joy. Another big-muscles mundane day. I need to 'tackle' the Hen-House Garden. The large Phormium by the path has flattened itself, helped by rain, wind, and the weight of its heavy flowering stalks.
Monsieur Tillier
Also I notice - eek! - that the Oak trees have grown even huger, and the whole area is now uber-shady. OK, this has been its destiny for some years now, but some bedraggled roses (rugosas, particularly Agnes, and Monsieur Tillier) need moving out. Summer shade-loving, easy-care shrubs need to move in. It's just not suitable for anything flowery. The Phormium needs a severe chop, and the path might need re-routing. Aargh!
Climbing Kitten - Red Fred