Where is the summer? I sometimes work at my desk with a hot water bottle on my lap – in June! Better to wrap up and work outside. The front of the house is painted and planted, and the back is tidied up. The decking responded well to a pressure wash, and briefly all is neat – though at this time of the year, it doesn’t take much to get out of hand in the garden and overwhelm us all. Am looking forward to a bit of disorder, as it all looks a little neat and suburban.
The hens have come out of broody purdah – I didn’t set any eggs, the thought of a flock of youngsters digging up my newly-planted borders, put me off. Am turning into a poultry whimp – and after a few days of seeming not to recognize the garden, are back on form. Come to think of it, the garden probably has changed over the past few weeks.
Chelsea was a bit of a disappointment. It would be interesting to see how the designers would fare, if, like all of us, there was a strict budget. Also, with disease restrictions, I feel all plants should be UK grown. There were a few designers responding to real life, but mostly it was pie in the sky. Come on RHS! (Wrote a couple of pieces for the Telegraph, see Articles).