It’s never going to happen, that long-standing fantasy of floating elegantly through the garden, impeccably attired, nifty drink in one hand and, with the other, bending over occasionally to fluff up the flowers.
Still, no regrets. Vigorous work, undertaken judiciously, keeps the blood circulating and the body strong. And the results from that work are more than worth it. My kitchen is currently filled with the scent of roses. The heavily laden pea vines are yielding a wondrous harvest, enough to keep me in mint-flavoured peas through the winter. I’ve been crunching through garden salads for two months now.
On the evening before writing this, I ate a plateful of snow peas, dipped in a mayonnaise and mustard blend. The day before that I dined on two big artichokes.
Though they might lack elegance, earth-stained hands are instruments of health and beauty.
Helping hands. On a visit to help in the garden late last month, my son came to appreciate a few of the more demanding aspects of maintaining this garden. He was astonished at the mass of tree roots he dug out of the one small patch left to be de-rooted prior to the necessary soil-plumping before planting.
As he did that strenuous work, I mixed lime, compost and fertilizer into an already de-rooted area nearby. That area is now planted with Brussels sprouts.
Watching my son dig out those last roots along the edge of a vegetable plot closest to the neighbours’ towering forest made me realize it was probably time to reduce the width of that plot and give up on the half closest to the trees. That will be a project for winter, turning a portion of the plot into an extra-wide pathway “paved” with weed-suppressing cardboard, newspaper and shavings.
Using a supply I had on hand of cardboard, saved newspapers and bags of wood shavings, we covered recently weeded paths in the back garden. Chris also managed to move a load of delivered compost to tarp-lined spots I’d prepared near the compost enclosures. What a huge help that was.
Valuable also is having another person’s observations and opinions on possible streamlining and improvements in the garden. Chris noted how the view from the kitchen sink window into the back garden had become obliterated by the thick, vigorous overgrowth of a Cynthia rhododendron. His suggestion: Why not thin out the branches as you did with the strawberry tree?
That tree (Arbutus unedo) grows directly opposite my office window at the front of the house. It once was congested too, blocking the view into the front garden and onto the street. — before I thinned it out enough to leave a pleasing pattern of bare branches that leaves a clear view while retaining a thick, flat-topped canopy of leaves (and late-season flowers) like a giant, ornamental umbrella.
Cynthia could fairly easily be transformed with a similar treatment, one that would end the closed-off feel of the view from the kitchen and allow a look into the lower part of the back garden.
It’s easy, with gardens, to become so accustomed to familiar scenes around us that we don’t notice when plants and plantings have evolved into problems. It often takes a detached, outside viewpoint to see the potential for improvement.
Abkhazi Garden open. The Land Conservancy, now celebrating 20 years of community support for Abkhazi Garden, is hoping that people from the Greater Victoria area, on the Island and across British Columbia will come to visit. The garden, at 1964 Fairfield Rd., is open seven days a week from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., with the last entrance at 4 p.m. Admission is by donation. The Teahouse is also open, from 11 to 4 daily except Mondays. Reservations are recommended (778-265-6466). There is plenty of outdoor seating. Details on the teahouse can be seen at abkhaziteahouse.com.
There are ongoing plant sales of Abkhazi Garden plants at the Gate Greeters kiosk. A favourite plant for sale is the Abkhazi Princess tree peony, a hybrid bred and propagated by botanist Joe Harvey, a long time volunteer at the garden. All proceeds from plant sales are used to maintain and protect this heritage garden. Plant sales by cash and cheque only.
