If gardens could talk, mine would be hurling F bombs and accusing me of woeful neglect. But after calming down and getting reacquainted, I think both the garden and I agree it could have been a lot worse.
The garden bears evidence of a very rough summer. Mainstays like large Agave attenuata have been pulled due to sunburn. A large leucospermum perished, as did the last Leucadendron ‘Ebony’ I swear I’ll ever buy. (The proteaceae are touchy and not easy plants to establish with a gardener in absentia.) There’s been lots of shuffling, chucking out, repotting, but not as much weeding as I remember last fall. The heat and drought seemed to be too much even for the African Veldt Grass, though with my hand back on the hose the weeds are resurging.
A fine walkable mulch has been temporarily added to all the newly opened up space, and there’s a lot of it. In addition to plant losses, large gaps have been left by big-framed reseeders like Sonchus palmensis and Geranium maderense. Marty cleared their bloomed-out skeletons when he visited in August.
After bidding the Oregon garden goodnight for the winter, I have to admit it’s been pure pleasure to have so much to do in this one. I’m in my element sorting it out, making tricky Solomonic decisions, and watching it all take new form, shape and direction.
A new experimental direction will be shrubbier, in the spirit of Nicole de Vesian’s French garden and Jo Wakelin’s New Zealand garden. (One of the Wonder Garden crew saw Wakelin’s garden last year, a dream trip.). The large Agave attenuatas have been replaced with Grevillea ‘King’s Rainbow,’ and Eucalyptus ‘Moon Lagoon’ has been planted near the east fence. Grevillea lanigera ‘Coastal Gem’ will fill in at the base of Yucca rostrata, which is up and trunking. Shopping local, low-growing Santolina ‘Grey Tuft’ looks promising, and five were brought home along with six-packs of compact Calocephalus ‘Silver Stone.’
So I resume what I’ve been doing the past six years, rebuilding the garden around what has survived. And there’s a lot of beautiful survivors.
And some things managed to emerge unscathed, like the planting of bromeliads against the shaded CMU wall.
We’ve been in Los Angeles almost two weeks, and this transition has been busier than usual due to a lot of house upkeep — new roof, new HVAC, refinishing floors. Billie was groomed yesterday, removing the last vestiges of salt water from summer beach trips causing her to literally chew her ass off. (On Oregon beaches dogs are welcome, not so on LA beaches.) Squirrels are all over the neighbor’s fruiting avocado tree and drop a few for Billie — thankfully she’s been avoiding eating them so far. And amidst all the chaos I do what I always do, rebuild my little world one plant at a time. Rain expected this weekend — more soon, AGO
