Recent Garden News

 Being modest, as usual...
Head Gardener

The Recent Garden News page displays the fifteen most recent additions to Mooseys Country Garden. This should help visitors keep up with what's going on in my garden.

Gardens are always growing and changing - there's always something new to see. And, as I love writing about my garden almost as much as being in it, there'll always be some new Moosey ramblings to read, or new pictures to look at. Perhaps the garden activities of my summer will warm up a northern hemisphere gardener's winter days. I know how much I enjoy my mid-winter garden visits to summery places.

Two weeks can be a long time in the life of a garden. There's inevitably some repetition, so please be understanding if I'm saying the same things over and over again. I hope you'll enjoy seeing what I've been working on recently...

Hello again June...Hello again June......
Hello again, June garden. I'm back, after a couple of days away from you, sorry about that. What would you like me to do first today? Water you? We've had a ridiculously dry May. Will put the hoses on right now.
Hello June...Hello June......
Hello June. Can I suggest you've got a bit confused with the calendar? Or even the hemisphere? Your very first day - temperature nineteen degrees Celsius - is much too warm for the first day of winter. Dare I say unseasonal?
Ready for winter?Ready for winter?...
Yeay! The weekend! Not that it make any difference. And almost the last day of May. Winter in New Zealand officially begins on June 1 for meteorological purposes. Eek! That's in two days time. I don't feel that I am ready for winter.
Some is better than none...Some is better than none......
Have had an enjoyable 'some is better than none' gardening week. It's cold until at least mid-morning, so my winter gardening hours are a little restricted, but only for reasons of comfort.
The stone path is fixed...The stone path is fixed......
Something I've been meaning to do for ages - reorganize the stone path which leads from the back door steps. Shrubs (particularly Daphne) have grown over the existing path, making walking on it very difficult. And wobbly!
Another new strategy...Another new strategy......
I have a new strategy for Non-Gardening Partner. Early this morning I wrote him a paper list of jobs and placed it on the kitchen table. I have higher hopes for the written word than the spoken one. NGP doesn't really listen properly to me - I wonder why that is?
Better than good...Better than good......
Today I have to be good. No, I have to be better than good. For the last few days I've floated around in a sea of excuses. Too cold to garden, not quite enough time, too tired, too many autumn leaves, and so on.
Inherently slow...Inherently slow......
Thoughts : The autumn mess I need to clean up is inherently slow to handle. It takes me ages to bag up the leaves - they are not well-behaved, they love to escape. Picking up fallen gum tree debris is a painstaking job - gum bark doesn't fit neatly into a wheel-barrow...
Thursdays and Fridays...Thursdays and Fridays......
Oh joyous day! Thursday! Love, love, love my Thursdays. I love my Fridays, too. Full of gardening fun, scary lists, musical treats, a visit to my new organic butcher...
Slowly...Slowly......
I am allowed to start my day slowly. I am allowed to potter inside all morning, reading, writing, checking my photographs, enjoying the log-burner, while waiting for the day outside to warm up.
Gardening robots?Gardening robots?...
Oh crikey. I need some gardening robots! I want to do lots of things, all at once. Finish clearing the path behind the cottage and take to the bonfire. Work in the water race while the water flow is turned off. Plant the two Blushing Pink Iceberg roses...
Goodbye Speckles...Goodbye Speckles......
Today I am working behind Pond Cottage. There's a small path I want to clear. And I want to concentrate on Speckles my stray cat, to see if a) I can miraculously sense his presence or b) find his body. Speckles is seriously missing, presumed dead. Am very sorry.
Planting the new roses...Planting the new roses......
Yeay for me and yeay for another Thursday, my stay-at-home in the garden day, the day when I should have loads of gardening energy, plans, ideas, and so on. So what to do first? No need to ask - I have new roses to plant. But where to plant them? Somewhere sunny, open, full of fresh air...
Not easy!Not easy!...
Oh joy! Well, not exactly. Firstly, Non-Gardening Partner has kindly shared his Canadian Head Cold with me. Not so pleasant. Secondly I have been beavering away removing more Iris confusa chengdu. This is NOT EASY. Whoever said that this plant was 'easily controlled' is welcome to visit my garden and assist...
Feeling slow...Feeling slow......
Usually I wake up on a Thursday morning full of energy and rave on about how I love Thursdays. I am still loving this one, but I'm feeling a little slow. So is Speckles my stray cat, who slept the night in his cat basket, but is moving very slowly on the verandah this morning. He is extremely hissy, even more than usual. Hope he is OK.