Exciting August...

I love, love, love my garden this month. I must have forgotten how exciting August is - all those spring things just weeks away from showing themselves. Pink Camellias, Daphne and Hellebores are flowering - and the first yellow daffodils.

 Winter roses.
Pale Pink Hellebores

Friday 15th August

I have a list. Here goes.

  1. Weed one more orchard rose archway.
  2. Weed in rhubarb patch.
  3. Two more wheelbarrowfuls of rose prunings please.
  4. Spread all horse manure - lucky garden!

First I am going to the gym to work on the Moosey muscles. Then I'll pick some Daphne and some daffodils for the house. And how's this for a sensible afternoon plan - instead of Olympic TV watching I will relax in the glass-house repotting succulents and pelargoniums. I might even sow some seeds for spring flowers.

Phew - that's lots of super-organised gardening stuff. Strawberries and creamy yoghurt as a reward if I get it all done.

 Spring daffodils.
Spring is Nearly Here!

Saturday 16th August

It's me again! I'm ready for an Olympic Gardening weekend. Flushed with yesterday's success (I did everything - EVERYTHING - except the glass-house pottering) I have plans for another day of golden triumphs - plus a few silvers (and bronzes are OK, too).

The sun is shining. Bless the sun! And how good was I yesterday? I made myself keep going, out of respect for the Olympic athletes. They can't stop just because their hands are getting sore or they've scratched their legs on a rose. But first of all, Non-Gardening Partner (bless him) is taking me to get some path mulch and look at some garden sheds. I will be back - much, much later...

 The very nicest of early spring shrubs.
Daphne Shrub in Flower

Much, Much Later...

Since it is the weekend, I decided to clear out the small garden by the car lay-by (with the help of NGP's chain-saw) - mainly Pittosporums and a Feijoa tree which I didn't want by the fence. I pruned the Ballerina roses, and found that my little castle sculpture has one of its turrets broken off.

'If they grow, they grow!'
-Moosey Words of Wisdom.

Now my two Easleas Golden Ramblers, beautiful bullies of the rose rambling world, are planted there-in, on the fence. If they grow, they grow - famous last words, since they are so rampant...

The house gardens look beautiful - they all have freshly sliced edges, and the house lawns have been mowed. I mulched part of the Shrubbery's network of paths, and laid yet more stones along the edge of the path behind the glass-house. Here is tomorrow's weeding spot.

 A fresh, clean, green spring look...
House Gardens and Shrubbery

All of that took me four hours plus. The sun shone, and my radio crackled with Olympic reports and rugby commentaries. Wow - what a brilliant, balmy day (not to be confused with 'barmy', a word which only applies to the Head Gardener).

Lack of Cat Company

I only have one complaint - the complete and utter lack of cat company. Fluff-Fluff was sulking (he's on a cat-diet), Percy was totally AWOL, and I had stern words with Histeria the tabby - explaining that, as she was once a bona fide wild cat, I didn't expect her to spend all of a sunny day snoozing inside in a cat-basket.

Sunday 17th August

Oops. On behalf of all good gardening cats I apologise to Percy, who was shut in the Moosey office all day yesterday. Hmm... So that's why he didn't appear.

Some good overnight sports news - finally, New Zealand has won some Olympic medals. And there's more - we also won the rugby. My sports radio will be a patriotic joy to listen to today, as I do the following:

1. Glass-House Potting.
Pelargoniums and succulents will be freshly potted.
2. Glass-House Seed-Sowing.
It's not too early to get properly organised.
3. Hen-House cleaning.
My own personal Moosey chook-manure.
4. Orchard Weeding.
Just two rose archways to go.
5. Path Mulching.
The Shrubbery paths need finishing.

There! A list item for each of the five Olympic medals New Zealand won yesterday. That can be my personal tribute. And my very own personal reward can be a boysenberry ice-cream. Seems rather insignificant - would prefer a million dollars from the government, or whatever the going rate is...

 Pots and pots ready for spring.
Sedums in the Glass-House

Five hours later...

I've only done four of my list items, but I've done them really really well. I finished weeding both orchard rose archways. I did all my glass-house pottering, even managing a PB (personal best time) slicing basal shoots off some sprouting Lupins and potting them up. Never before (if they grow) have new Lupin plants been created so swiftly!

And I burnt all my rubbish afterwards, so I reckon I deserve that ice-cream. And a new rustic garden shed, and a white flowering Daphne, and handrails on Willow Bridge, and... NGP will also be ice-cream-rewarded for replacing a rotten pergola post, helping me with my fire, and promising to fix the back of the hen house. We are a winning pairs team.