Dear Tiger...
Almost three years ago one of my much loved cats, Tiger the Tortoiseshell, was buried in the Hump Garden, with spiky pink dahlias to one side of her, pink roses to the other, Miscanthus behind her, and pretty polyanthus flowers on top.
RIP Tiger the Cat
Today, I am going to keep her company. The dahlias will be cut down, the roses pruned, the huge Miscanthus grass trimmed. Her guardian metal pukeko (who has lost his radiant blue colour) will be straightened up (he's on a lean), and her wee polyanthus patch uncovered. Darling Tiger.
Hello Tiger
The plan...
And then the plan is to work around her in a spiral, continuing to prune, weed, dig out and shift anything that need shifting. Chat to her, too. But first I'm off to the library, because it's a very misty morning, and mist is damp. Damp is a great excuse to put off gardening. And I love getting new library books.
Four hours later...
My gardening has gone very well. I've dug out and potted two roses for relocation, thrown another two onto the barrow to be burnt, weeded, trimmed two large grasses, and seriously pruned two large pink roses (Clair Matin and NZ Gardener). Quite a few of the smaller Flower Carpet roses got the edging shears treatment.
Pruned!
Tiger's pukeko gave me quite a bit of trouble - he kept on falling over. Now he's got a stone resting on his feet. Talked to Tiger's cat-spirit a lot. Did she like having garden company? Oh yes.
A lovely, thoughtful day...
So now I'm inside, clean, and about to go through my new library books. I've had a lovely, thoughtful day. It's important to be able to look back with a smile, remembering the cats and dogs that have been such great company in my garden over the years.