After all the work we had done at the beginning of the year, our garden is finally starting to take shape again. The weeds have got the upper hand again but hopefully I’ll have more time soon to keep on top of things as in two weeks time I retire!! After 41 years nursing, it’ll certainly be a big change but having made the decision I can’t wait!! I see lots of sewing, gardening, walking…

…anyway, back to the garden. It’s been a very dry summer here in Yorkshire, we were the first area to have a hosepipe ban, so all those new plants I’ve bought are having to be watered by watering can. I’m actually amazed I haven’t lost many, and most of those have been ones I dug up in the winter and had to leave out for months whilst I prepared the garden.

The plant who seems to be wilting the most is actually one of the standard roses but having had to dig down to be able to hammer in a stout steel stake to support it, I can see why. Even 8″ down it’s as dry as a bone and being clay it’s like concrete. I’m currently trying to give it a watering can full each evening until it starts to look a little happier. It certainly looks happier with the new stake, it’s now standing tall and proud!

I had a long overdue clear-out in the pond over the weekend. I used a fishing net to pull out lots of duckweed, debris and pond weed. Sadly I didn’t see any newts this time, I’m not sure if it’s a time of year thing or if the pond had become too stagnant with rotting leaves. I left the stuff I pulled out next to the pond for a day to let any wildlife crawl back in but I didn’t see anything. I’ve ordered a few pond plants so hopefully they will help it become more enticing to wildlife again. The plants around the pond have gone a little mad, the original hostas are HUGE and I think once the autumn is here I might have a little move round.

I know the pond weed still looks bad, but it’s MUCH better than it was!

August tend to be a bit of a green month in England, many of the classic English garden flowers like roses, paeonies, geraniums, have either finished flowering or be past their best, I’ve dead-headed the roses hoping for a final flush at the end of the month as I’m having a retirement / birthday garden party. One plant that is looking glorious is the creamy white hydrangea, it’s the hydrangea paniculata vanilla frieze variety, I think it’s gorgeous and the blooms will hopefully last for weeks now. I’ve just bought another one from Otley market which is slightly pinkier.

So it’s starting to fill out and look like a garden again. Hopefully next year I’ll be a bit more on top of it. Here’s the view from the upstairs window.