Well, almost...
Well, well, well. My first day without going back to bed in a sulk. I am almost well again. And it's raining, wonderful wind-free rain, so the garden immediately looks refreshed and recharged. I've walked the dogs four times - have apologised to them for being THE most boring human ever, last week.
Have been seeing a lot of minor wind damage, with smaller tree branches littering the lawns and borders. The yellow Canary Bird rose flowers have been ripped by the wind and rain, and lots of the latest blossom has, of course, been blown off. And now I'm off for another walk in the rain with my dogs and my camera, recording the beautiful things in my garden once again. Am almost well again.
Wednesday 18th October
Oh joy! For the first morning in ages I woke up thinking 'What shall I do first in the garden?' And in response, a little list created itself. Yeay! This is a good sign. And here's that little list. It's rather gentle, an excellent list for a recovering gardener, hee hee.
- Gather fallen branches off lawns, take to bonfire.
- Shift the bags of oak leaves so the pond decking can look beautiful.
- Get mess from the Stumpy Garden, take to bonfire.
- Dig out Stumpy Garden's sad daffodils, put in a pot.
My morning started with a little bit of sentimental cat joy. I opened to cottage door to find Speckles the stray curled up in the cat basket. Aww.... Went over to the house, returned with my cup of tea and his breakfast. Smooch, smooch he went. As he should. I stroked his head and told him over and over what a beautiful cat he was. 'Enough of that sweet-talking. Where's my milk?' he replied.
Much, much later...
Finally, a proper gardening day, spent clearing mess from the Stumpy Garden, lots of barrow loads. There are some casualties of the tree felling here, but really, not a problem. Was tempted to start digging out everything that was left - seedling Pittosporums, self-sown Euphorbias, etc. Common sense prevailed - when in doubt, and particularly when recovering from a nasty virus, don't dig. Actually, just dig the daffodils out, leave the rest. Good idea.
Clean this mess up!
Pleased to find that the tree peony had some new shoots (its larger branches came down with the Oaks). Cleaned it up, also cleaned up a Yellow Wave Phormium, which will resprout. Filled the bin with Phormium pieces, dumped the rest onto the bonfire. Snap, crackle, pop they went. Managed to burn most of the trailer load of hedge trimmings.
Am getting better...
Then went to take my jazz choir rehearsal. Lost energy about ten minutes before the end - not too bad. Came home and talked to Non-Gardening Partner. Another sign that I am getting better, hee hee.
Thursday 19th October
Got home from ballet (rather wobbly) and another singing rehearsal (rather coughy, wore a mask). Went outside to continue yesterday's work. The garden is such a pretty place in which to work at the moment.
Good Things 2023
Spent two hot hours raking, carrying, barrowing, and bonfiring. Am red faced, but so happy to have the energy to spend outside. The colours in the garden are rewards for my good behaviour. Loving the pinks.
Pale Pink Rhododendron
Am apres gardening, sipping a scrumptious non-alcohol cider fortified with blackcurrant syrup. Feeling great - just wish my cough and cold would dry up.