Another heat wave. But thankfully, it’s the middle of February which means we are now on a sweet trajectory to Autumn and Winter.
Yesterday’s massive storm means the lawn mower stays in the shed, and my plans have changed again; another of life’s patterns experiencing a little hiccup.
Today, I’m harvesting a salad for lunch! Living out of my vegetable garden has been an ad hoc adventure and, as a result, today’s salad greens are all a bit rough around the edges – and a bit old. There are enough softer leaves to make something worth the effort once they are drowned in olive oil and balsamic.
I watch the gardening shows – Gardening Australia and Gardener’s World (UK), as well as Monty Don’s travel documentaries – and wish I could be organised enough to grow from seed. I’ve tried.
At the end of Summer, the sorrel’s looking a bit sad. The plan is to move it into a big tub. The parsley self-seeded. It used to grow in the big tub.
I love the resurgence of the sweet potato vine.
The garden needs a lot of work, so I guess that will be my focus for the Autumn months.
I can understand why some people invest upfront on landscape planning and interior design. It saves a lot of time. On the other hand, my approach of trying a bit of this, then a bit of that, means I get a good mental workout; a bit of problem solving here, a burst of creative energy there. All very beneficial, but still … to have it all done at once and then get on with something else, that’s very enticing.
So much nicer today. My little patch of turf has been edged and mowed. The old lettuces have joined the grass clippings in the green bin. There are now three garden beds waiting for whatever happens next.
I’ve been giving ‘next’ a ponder, and I’ve decided to return to a style of garden I enjoyed when I only had three beds and I’d just squash in a variety of plants. (More recently, I’ve been filling six beds with the same type of plant, like on the gardening shows.)
I want the garden to look lush and green and abundant again, so that harvesting lunch is a visually rewarding experience.
And that’s my aim; to create a moment of enjoyment and wonder that can replace the convenience of popping a frozen meal in the microwave.
I just need to come to terms with seed raising so that I can fill beds and tubs with a wide variety of plants that I wouldn’t find in the supermarket. I’ve already got a lot of seed packets in the cupboard that are just waiting for their time in the sun ….
Cherrie Zell 