Who cares what the date is!
Friday 13th was just another great gardening day for me. Didn't realise the date until after dinner time, so no chance to be remotely superstitious. Great gardening days don't care which number they've been assigned.
Had chamber music in the morning - my friends and I jumped on the Bach Bus, played through three sonatas. My brain-to-fingers connection was a little rusty - which of those black notes was E-flat? Soon settled into the groove. Bach is the best. Playing Bach always makes me feel brainy...
Bi-coloured Dahlia
Called into the organic butcher on the way home and bought a groovy lamb salami and some nitrate-free bacon. As one does.
Five hours gardening...
Started gardening at mid-day and worked through until 5pm. Cleaned up and dead-headed dahlias in the curved garden by the house - that took ages. Then trundled off to the Hump Garden, via the Crabapple tree. Oh yes? Couldn't get through the gap.
Applied that most worthy rule : See something that needs doing? Then jolly well sit down then and there and do it. So I trimmed the Anemanthele grasses and weeded the gardens on each side.
Finally arrived at my Hump Garden destination, trimmed the main Lupin area, then ducked into the interior for more serious weeding. Mid-afternoon Non-Gardening Partner and the dogs tried to find me, couldn't. Mature gardener last seen burrowing through the Hump Garden.
Spiky Pink Dahlias
Dragged myself through the undergrowth to the Prunus Pink Perfection (suckering madly from its base) and the second large Miscanthus zebrinus. As an experiment (if you believe that) I'd chosen not to trim this grass down last winter. Not a good idea. The dead stalks have just created a bulkier, floppier big grass which is swamping the nearby dahlias.
Dead-heading dahlias works. The bees and I do get more flowers to enjoy.
Memo to self : Dead-heading dahlias works. The bees and I do get more flowers to enjoy. But only if the dahlias are appropriate (the spiky ones are hopeless for bees). Such little details might be boring (really?) but they are a big part of my gardening growth, and not to be forgotten.