Moosey News : June 2006

Dear Subscriber,

This month's newsletter is a tale of two hemispheres. You can decide whether to join me on my quick trip to summery England, or warm your winter-cold gardening hands by the New Zealand log burner. You'll need your wet weather gear, whichever option you choose...

This month's features :

1. Autumn Flop
2. A Real English Park
3. Winsford Walled Garden
4. My Short Summer Holiday
5. Traveling Without Animals

Regulars :

6. Plant of the Month : Alchemilla Mollis
7. Animal of the Month : Mugsy the Cat
8. Garden Quote : Courage in the Little Things
9. Garden Gallery : Chateau de la Hulpe
10. Forum Focus : New Friends, Far Flung Places
11. Gardening Advice : Much Mulch!
12. Searching for Moosey : Red Cordylines
13. Coming up this month : Winter Gardenng

This month's features

1. Autumn Flop

The Moosey Garden should know the rules by now - it's supposed to put lots of energy into some decent autumn leaf colours. Hmm - not this year...

2. A Real English Park

Wide-eyed and wrapped up (in my best New Zealand wet weather gear) I let myself loose in a real London park - Regent's Park - to experience some northern hemisphere summer greenery. I am alone and palely loitering...

3. Winsford Walled Garden

North Devon gets a 'flying visit' - well, actually by train and bus - and I spend a wonderful day (again in my best New Zealand wet weather gear) at Winsford Walled Garden.

4. My Short Summer Holiday

London, Windsor, and Devon were just the beginning! With Eurostar and internet bookings it was so easy to get the train to Brussels from London, to meet my dear gardening friend for the first time...

5. Traveling Without Animals

I miss my dog Rusty! And the six Moosey cats. But help is at hand for a traveling gardener who is missing her animals...

Regulars

6. Plant of the Month : Alchemilla Mollis

The English definitely 'do' this little perennial so much better than I do. Wonder if it's anything to do with their wet weather?

7. Animal of the Month : Mugsy the Cat

What a lucky little survivor - Mugsy (a disabled cat) was missing, presumed seriously missing, for nearly two weeks. And just when I'd almost stopped searching, she popped up half a kilometer down the road. Welcome home, you lucky cat!

8. Garden Quote : Courage in the Little Things

Confidence and courage are needed for the little things in life as well as the big. It takes courage to do new things - either in the garden, or in general life. And the scariest things can be quite small and insignificant. Don't ever forget to be proud of little achievements!

9. Garden Gallery : le Chateau de la Hulpe

I visited this beautiful Brussels park with my gardening friend Liza. We've all been enjoying her photographs in the forum. Here is one of my images - the parterre, filled with soft orange and cream pansies.

10. Forum Focus : New Friends, Far Flung Places

South Africa, Kuala Lumpa, Europe, England, New Zealand - we are all sharing and talking up our respective gardens. Some of us are even showing off a little - that's allowed, of course!

11. Gardening Advice : Mulch Much!

Mulching is such good gardening practice. It can suppress weeds, conserve moisture, and look great. There are mulches for every garden's style and location - In my big country garden I use mainly pea-straw. Much mulching is a good thing - it's the natural way!

12. Searching for Moosey : Red Cordylines

Red Cordylines

'red cordyline' - Aargh! London is full of red cordylines - hanging outside pubs, planted in tiny front gardens, centre pieces in public park bedding schemes. I've been keeping a count of sightings of this classic New Zealand icon in my journal...

Old English Rose

'old english rose' - Ha! Sounds like the head gardener, her complexion weathered by hours of honest garden toil. But seriously, it's a bit early to enjoy the English roses in England, and the last stragglers are flowering bravely back in New Zealand. I'll settle for one of my favourite David Austins, appropriately named 'English Elegance', in answer to this search.

'how do you weed?' - Another loud aargh! It's time to write THE definitive article on weeding - Moosey style, that is.

13. Coming up this month : Winter Gardening

Short days back in New Zealand, southerly storms directly from the Antarctic, frosts, winter rain, a bored Rusty dog stuck in the house... But there's still plenty of gardening to enjoy, and it's the perfect month to give the glasshouse a good clean out.

Cheers,