Anticipation

January and February and even March - always dreary at the best of times in London - were especially cold and dark and drizzly. A tiny glimpse of sunshine was a cause for celebration. To stave off the winter blues, I browsed the garden catalogues - online - where it's easy to click and buy. I bought in anticipation of summer.

I bought this and that and the other. At this point, I'm not even sure what all I ordered. I went with an orange theme - what could be brighter and cheerier?

Now, my plants are starting to arrive. They come in bare root plugs which must be "potted on" in Britspeak garden jargon. Meaning, I've got to pot them up in small containers. I ran out of containers and have moved on to cheap plastic drinking cups with holes poked in the bottom. My patio tables are covered in little cups of spriglet plants waiting to be orange.

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I'm always in anticipation of the next season. Do I have beautiful tulips and daffodils? Then it's time to think about the summer bedding. Beautiful cannas, lush impatiens, crocosmia bursting with color - then I'm thinking about the right time in the autumn to spread compost and where I have holes in my bulb scheme. I'm rarely in the moment. It's a strength - for gardeners must work in four dimensions - the three dimensions of space but also time for good succession, for a garden that has interest every day of the year. But it's a weakness, too because I fail to savor now.


Tree peony


Hosta



Blue bell and tulip

T-tags: gardening, gardens, plants