Sunil Gosh, it’s been quite some time since I last wrote. Unfortunately, a combination of illness, weather, being busy at work, being away and a general lack of daylight has stopped me getting out in the garden, even just to have an amble round. This last weekend though, the sun did manage to shine and I took the opportunity to see how the garden was getting on getting to sleep.
So it’s still very green, but definitely beginning to turn. Many plants have completely finished for the year but some – like my favourite fuchsia – are still flowering. The plants in the greenhouse seem to be getting along fine too.
With no real work or outside maintenance to do, I feel as though I can put my feet up for a bit, relax and just let the garden get on with it. The tidy and fussy part of me wants to start raking leaves, cut down the dead plants and redo the lawn edging, but that can all wait. While it’s sunny, I’ll sit back and enjoy it and when it’s wet and miserable, I’ll turn to the catalogues.
There’s not much else but to let the garden and the gardener drift off to sleep for the winter.
10 comments
Sunnil, I do hope you are better now.x And like you, nothing much to be done now – expect for a lot of new bulbs to be put in this month. I have a rose still budding up and even a devestating frost last night didn’t touch it! Enjoy the catalogues.
Hi Mrs Mac. I’m better now and also back from holiday, thanks. I’m starting little bits of tidying in the garden, mainly leaves for leaf mould. It’s too cold for much else – apart from expanding the borders (always take the opportunity to expand the borders).
Don’t relax too much, there are catalogues to study.
I also want to get back into my RHS Garden Plants books that were a wonderful present I got last year. I want to swot up on my plant names so I can identify begonias and bergenias and feel all horticultured.
Have so much work to do yet before I can start thinking about opening catalogues.
I go through phases. Sometimes, I feel overwhelmed by the number of jobs that need doing and other times I wonder what all the fuss is about and can sit back. The former occurs much more frequently than the latter unfortunately.
I too have gone a bit dormant – although have you not had a bulb planting frenzy? Try having a sycamore overhanging your garden and that will keep you outside! It looks like your garden still has some nice structural elements in it at the moment. It does feel like we are coming to that time of year when the gardening ceases for a few months which leaves a bit of a hiatus in life…also what will we blog about over the winter?
Hi Claire, I’ve not had a huge bulb planting frenzy. I had flashbacks to last year when 1000 snowdrops went in. This year I’ve managed a few handfuls of daffodils and tulips. With the leaves dropped (but not yet collected), the garden feels larger and more open, the structure of the trees and shrubs is much more pronounced. I can also see where the original borders were (before the plants flopper over the lawn). There’s still plenty of change happening and so lots to write about too.
Sunil, I’m sorry to hear you’ve been unwell but those catalogues can be a tonic!
Tomorrow is Thanksgiving Day here in America. I am thankful for many things, including the fact I just brought in two gorgeous roses (Louisville Lady and Leading Lady) for the kitchen counter. I will enjoy looking at them while cooking the turkey and all our traditional trimmings. Cheers!
Hi Lynn, thank you – the David Austin catalogue of Roses is particularly strong medicine! I’m expecting a bare root Rose “Strawberry Hill” to come soon to replace the one that died last winter and it’s a gamble as to whether the replacement Banksia Rose will survive the winter too – particularly if it’s a harsh one (like we’ve had for the last two years). Hope you had a lovely and tasty Thanksgiving.