I knew it would happen, yet still I doubted…that week in Spring where the garden seems to really take off. It so happened that it was the week we were away in Fiji – we’ve returned and the garden seems to have so much going on all of a sudden!
Over the Autumn and Winter months since moving back to Brindabella we’ve pottered about in our new/old garden, re-establishing some bits that were once there and had withered in our absence, planting out new bits and planning what is still yet to come. So much of gardening is planning, thinking, pondering and looking ahead to the Seasons not yet here. Now the Spring warmth (and rain!) has arrived everything seems to be singing with new growth. I thank my lucky stars daily for our beautiful climate and our delicious soils, especially since living in other parts of Australia – we’re so blessed here in ‘God’s country’. The lavender along the path from the car port to the back porch is off and away, the daphne, azaleas and pieris have got at least a third of their size bigger, the violas in the wishing well are positively thriving…
Our gorgeous horse chestnut tree is in full bloom, along with it’s little sister of a pink variety out the lounge room window, showering the ground in a carpet of pink petals. I love, love, love that we have these well established old dames in our garden.
Part of having a semi-established older garden though means thinning some parts out. Towering trees planted a mere metre apart years and years ago were now overcrowded (and too close to the power line). Twenty minutes with a tractor sorted that out, keeping the lovely deciduous trees and getting rid of the more ho-hum varieties I was neither here nor there about. Now we have a big open space looking out towards the chook pen, but of course soon enough we’ll fill it up with something else! This weekend Matt wants to get some soil to fill in the holes left by the removed trees, and thoughts are turning to finally establishing a proper veggie patch, over there near the chookies…
Until then though I’ve just been growing bits and pieces wherever I please – the red onions and leeks are about ready, and my pot of strawberries has started producing! I’ll be pouring the water on these thirsty berries to hopefully get a bumper Summer crop that Eleanor can start tasting! I can’t tell you how much that thrills me – growing deliciousness for my delicious little girl to taste and help her grow.
My dream of having big bountiful hydrangeas bushes is in it’s very early infancy – but look! Blooms! Getting there, getting there…
As we’ve re-fenced the garden from it’s original state when we first moved here in 2010, we have a funny little ‘path to nowhere’, with a funny little arbour which probably once upon a time made some sense, but now is sort of in no-man’s land. Over Winter we were just discussing pulling it out, and it’s seemingly dead thing ‘growing’ all over it…we’ve returned from Fiji to this sight though…hmmm…
Along with the exponential growth comes the neglect too…literally all of my herbs have gone to seed, despite my best efforts (or well laid plans, rather) to keep regularly trimming. Oh well. I do quite love the sage’s flower heads though and would quite happily have it in my garden all the time just like that!
What’s going gang busters in your garden at the moment?
Got any exponential Spring growth?
Hate black mulch as much as I do? Blergh.
Anne@Grit and Giggles says
Spring certainly has hit. We struggle along with our vege garden here. Even when things grow, they could do better. Cherry tomatoes are the flavour of the day though and they have done really well. Our passionfruit finally came into its own, with a bowl of them on the kitchen bench and more in the fridge as proof. My gardinias have buds and one has a flower, yay! My little frangipani cutting experiment from last year is paying off too, leaves are coming on nicely on my small trees. A vege garden near the chook pen sounds like a great idea, with plenty of space to grow food. What beautiful things you have happening in you garden.
Sharon says
I saw whack a rustic seat in that arbour and put a sweet little garden bed around the back end of it with fragrant and colourful flowers.
Andreea says
Such a beautiful garden you have there. In fact, the whole place where you live is really awesome. Heaven on Earth 🙂