September Week 4 - More

This has been the speediest month I've ever gardened through. But boy! Have I been good! I score myself 10 out of 10 for perseverance, good spring maintenance, general hard work - and vision. Mustn't forget the vision...

Saturday 26th September

I've spent all morning in my glass-house potting up succulents and pelargoniums. I've pricked out the first seedlings - some blue cornflowers. Yippee - the beginning of my flowering annual colour! Good for me - these things needed to be done. Fluff-Fluff the cat has been an absolute nuisance.He sits on my potting bench and flops onto my seed pottles. He just loves the feel of warm potting mix - my seedlings have to be tough to survive his bulky attentions.

Then I weeded. So Fluff-Fluff lolled in the dirt where my hands were. Ever weeded around a large fluffy floppy cat? He got soil all over his tummy and I had to keep pushing him away.

Beautiful Camellia :

Check out the images of this beautiful Camellia and see if you know what it's called...

Now I've gone apres gardening and on a serious hunt for the names of my prettiest Camellias. I've found a Fairy Blush and an Easter Morn in a local nursery online plant catalogue whose images are a perfect match. I tried to slow down my grasshopper mind and test the names - no reaction what-so-ever.

‘Write down names of new plants.’

-Moosey Words of Wisdom.

Blast. I am a hopeless chronicler. I write pages of nonsense and miss out the important details. I must, must, must remember to always write down names of new plants. Trust the aging Moosey memory? Please don't!

Hopeless! I have journals spanning - twelve years? I repeat things and write huge, detailed lists. And still I don't know what the names of my Camellias are.

Sunday 27th September

My morning started with a wander over to my new Agapanthus plantings. Ha! Just as I suspected - they needed splitting up a bit and spreading out more. So I did just that, and wheeled in more compost and horse manure to build up the soil. Then I planted three flaxes around the big gum tree near the stables mural. It all looks so much tidier.

I've had another happy day. I'm tired, and I love being a gardener.

Monday 28th September

Ha! I've had a brilliant idea for the planting of some of my second-hand Lavender bushes. Just by the Koru Garden a little path leads to the water race, and the garden area over the path is in need of a make-over. Patches of variegated Irises (well, that's what I used to call them) grow there, intertwined with weeds and grass. I'm going to dig everything up and plant the Lavenders along the path edge, and then replant the weed-free irises. I will even try and dig out the gorse bush - aargh! - which is gaily flowering at the moment. Shame!

Rain, Rain...

But I will do all this tomorrow, when it will not be raining. Not that I mind the rain - the garden was getting dry, and my recently transplanted shrubs are really enjoying it.

Tuesday 29th September

Hmm... I worked for a few hours near the Koru sculpture, but only planted three of the new Lavenders. I've dug out the irises and cut them into proper pieces - they're in buckets of water.

The Cotinus has a few dead branches - very odd. But there isn't quite as much room for Lavenders as I'd imagined, though I can squash a few more on the sunny side of the Copper Beech tree. The invasive Euphorbia which a friend (or was she a friend? Hmm...) gave me is flowering, and the red Monarda perennial clumps I planted late last summer have bulked out beautifully.

No Gnome

The garden gnome whose auction I'm watching has gone up to $55! This is a ridiculous price, so I'm sorry to say he won't be joining the Moosey clan. He can go and pee in someone else's pond. Perhaps I have inadvertently started a trend?

Wednesday 30th September

Hee hee... I didn't go walking today - it was too drizzly. Instead I've been digging out more Agapanthus clumps. I've come home with one car-load - as soon as I'm rested and refreshed I'm going outside to plant them.

I was destined to have these plants - they were free for the digging. They certainly make up for the disappointment of not winning the auction for the rude $55 garden gnome.

So, September...

So, September, you've been and almost gone. My goodness you've been colourful. And I've hardly had a lazy gardening day all month. I've planted all sorts of new things, fixed existing garden design problems, and generally had the most wonderful month (including the best birthday ever).

As I said before, I give myself 10 out of 10 for effort. And ingenuity! And keeping a great balance between being organised and being random...

Later, Apres-Gardening...

Aargh! Should have quit while I was ahead. I've gone apres-gardening and have just wandered around to take some last-day-of-September photographs. Hmm... I've seen huge patches of weeds, and I know exactly where I'll be gardening first thing tomorrow and what I'll be doing. Blast!