Waiting for summer

I plant bromeliads in pots and hang them on the wall.

Like most of the world the weather was unpredictable over the last year and though it seems that summer may be just about stabilised now in December, our seasons seem to be running six weeks late or going back to the seasonal calendar I grew up with.

Gardening on an Island

                                                                       

 

 

One has to adjust their approach to gardening when you live on this Island. First it is because of the non-existent topsoil, just a heavy yellow clay that bakes and cracks in the summer and becomes a sticky yellow porridge in the winter. Then there are the wallabies who, though they prefer grass, like to try their taste buds on maybe something more exotic, so there is a need for fencing. Our reliance on rain-water means that water often is used twice over, once for the washing of whatever, second for the gardens.

 

 

 

 

 

 

And then there are the Wekas, a native bird about the size of a small hen that The Department of Conservation have released here to breed and later have some of their progeny released back to the Mainland. Those birds can make their way under fences to scratch a garden into oblivion in the early dawn before the dog is awake to chase them away. There are rats and opossums too.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Various gardeners overcome these challenges to grow more than shrubs or trees in different ways. Some build big chicken-netting cages, like a bird aviary and plant inside. Some make timber walled gardens. Some put up chicken netting around their more precious plants, but most of us plant into big tubs that are high enough to keep their claws out. Tubs also mean that we have imported good soil/compost for them and watering is monitored with minimum wastage.

 

 

 

 

I have given up hoping to harvest strawberries from either the garden or in tubs, because the Wekas smell them out. Instead they sit safe in their plastic bags, high on the terrace handrail.  The potted lavender is to attract the bees their way.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

.

.

 

Island Gardeners

.

“This time I insist

I really do, please resist

introducing any tree or plant

that needs anything more

than a hole and stake”

.

But gardeners are surprisingly deaf

to listening to their common sense

- each week hidden kilos of rich potting-mix

weigh down your back-packs

- and the tree stuffed, oh so casually

into the bottom of a Woolworth’s bag

is not a Pohutakawa or Callistimon,

it’s another tender green experiment

and under your breath you’re repeating

over and over, this is the very last time,

it won’t happen again.

My Garden in Kentucky

Bobby promised he would make me a pond when I moved to USA to be with him,and he did.This is part of my pond garden,we had a well so watering my garden was no problem,my roses just loved it,our chookies,ducks and geese roamed the yard so we had no bugs in our garden

We have almost 4acres up the back yard,a lovely gentle climb uphill,I often walk the whole length,lol good exercise for me,up the top we get a beautiful view all over the valley,over the Autumn it is especially pretty,we often get deer walking around up back,which I am always thrilled seeing them up there, we leave them a Mineral salt block up there,deer love that