Happy New Year for 2023

Happy New Year for 2023. Please be a good year! Last year I gave up on the rose I'd planted (years ago) for world peace. It looked dead, so I chopped all the canes down. Today, a tiny ray of sunshine - one short new stem with one flower. Yeay! When escaping into the garden one must never give up hope.

 Golden Tribute, planted for 9-11.
My Rose for World Peace

Thinking back, there were some pretty dodgy world issues - 'dodgy' doesn't come close to describing them and the impact they had (and are still having). I limited my listening to the news, escaped into my garden, and tried to be a good person in my own little world.

 In the Hump Garden.
Red Hollyhocks

In the Hump Garden...

Have been gardening rather robustly in the Hump Garden, in the area where I planted a batch of rescued roses a couple of months ago. Many have survived, and though they haven't yet flowered, they're putting out strong new shoots. The two standards look dead, though, and - oops - there is some Oxalis by their bases, though the leaves are purple. Have decided not to take a chance (I know there's an ornamental purple leaf Oxalis).

So the plan is to return, quickly shift the path, load all the mess and wheel it out, then ever so carefully dig out the offenders. That will be great for my second gardening session of the year.

Two hours later...

All done. Shifted a red flax which was hidden under the big spreading rugosa Corylus. Dug out the dead roses, shifted a new entrant to fit with the new curve of the path, shifted all the miniature Agapanthus clumps out into the open. Sun! Yippee, they all shouted, dear little things.

So should I go apres-gardening, or do one more session? Asked bits of my body. Ouch! said my fingers. No way! said my knees. Wash me! Now! said my hair. My mind made an appealing apres-gardening list : jigsaw, library book, and new piano pieces (Bach's A Major violin sonata and Debussy's violin sonata).

 My ID for this recycled rehomed rose.
Double Delight Roses

And that was that!