Winning the "war on weeds.."

Yes I know..one never "wins" a war but I thought given the year that is in it with politicians yapping endlessly about winning wars  I may as well use the coinage too.  Today was a client work free day, not by design but rather by lack of demand for my services.  So I decided to continue my endless watering and digging out of my front yard (former lawn) and get the last of the Bermuda grass out.  I hand water so the soil was bone dry in parts and rock hard despite endless applications of compost in the past year.  I watered for hours on end and then began digging through the yard methodically coaxing the long rhizomes out from under established plants.  An exercise in patience and quite meditative if you will.

My neighbours walk by and are very amused at how energetically I attack the garden.  Shovels wielded with vim and vigour.  It harkens back to my years on the family farm where you were expected to "keep the back down" and "make a face on yer work"...rural Irish expressions that possibly  get lost in the telling.

The end result is a clean front yard with the perennials flowers and shrubs perking up as a result of the watering and getting ready to put on growth for a Spring flower display.  In between I have planted my winter crops..a few brocolli here and some lettuce there.  No rhyme nor reason to the design but whimsy, whimsy whimsy.  The veggies really complement the colour and texture in a flower bed and at the end of the season I allow some veggies to go to seed to add a bit of drama to the landscape.  Carrots and cilantro produce really lovely flower and seed heads.

I planted the island near the street in agaves, sedums and various succulents rescued from gardens down through the year.

Now time to drink some Irish tea and watch a few political shows I tivo daily to keep me apprised of the state of things.

John