This section of the labyrinth is dedicated to herbs that are sedative or calming, symbolized by a reclining woman statuette with a contented smile on her face. I imagine her with a sprig of grass in her mouth, occasionally opening her eyes to gaze at the clouds above. The very picture of serenity.
Populated with valerian, poppy, blue vervain, skullcap, cannibis, catmint, and belladonna. Some are more potent than others, and all need to be treated with respect.
I'll move the calm woman inside for winter cleaning and protection.
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This seemed like a good place to begin. The far corner of the herb labyrinch is dedicated to plants that will ease the discomfort of menstruation, menopause, and other female complaints. My thought is even without brewing teas or reducing tinctures, one can simply sit in the purple bench and be surrounded by sympathetic herbs. Purposefully, the bench also faces the Relaxation Station, which will be featured in a different post.
Herbs in the Bitch Corner are yarrow, pasque flower, lady's mantle, sea holly, sweet cicely, and evening primrose. I've twice planted motherwort but lost one to bunnies and the other to slugs. I shall try again this fall.
The yard art is a metal woman symbolizing our mood swings - at times she looks frenetic to me, other times she appears to be dancing with joy.
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Gloves in rainbow colors, my trusty (but rusty) stick, and a jolly new trowel from Laur. Canvas pants, boots, snips, shovels and rakes. Edward (grass clippers) and Paulie (push mower). Garden totes and wheelbarrow. Gary suggested I buy myself a good breathable rain-jacket of some sort. I should also buy and learn to use a hoe.
Ready to tackle fall clean-up.
This is an early September walk-about starting with the driveway entrance and ending with the view down the hill. I tried to capture the big picture, and plan to address each bed/section individually, with before and after photos. Not really sure how the blog will evolve, but this is certainly a good representative of the present out-of-control status. I'm also still learning how the blog itself works, so that will be another work-in-progress, and will hopefully improve as I become more familiar with the formatting. I'm looking forward to a successful year!
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As the countdown begins to full retirement, I am planning to embark on a one year journey of focusing on my gardens with little distraction. I don't mean to work in the yard 8 hours per day, but I do intend to get out there on a daily basis even if it's just for a walk-about in the rain. This past summer I've been vacillating about hanging up my keyboard or not, which tended to rather paralyze me. If I was out in the yard, I felt guilty about not working. If I was at the computer, I didn't feel like working and instead just wasted time surfing the net, making lists, and whatever else I could do to procrastinate. Looking longingly out the window at the yard becoming more and more neglected.
I finally decided and advised my remaining attorneys that I would no longer be available for freelance work after my 60th birthday (Sept 26). Linda took it well, was expecting it, but was hoping I would hang in until the end of the year. Both Shane and Tony were already on notice, but I was still doing small projects for them. Just making and voicing the decision lightened the load on my shoulders immensely. In reality, my income has been on a steady decline all year, to the point that it is rather insignificant.
I'm not going to pin an exact start date to my Magical Year, but starting up this blog is certainly one of my first steps. After the Labor Day weekend, I plan to walk around the yard and take some brutally honest photos showing the dismal state everything is in at the moment. August is typically a rather non-showy month for me, but this year things are really looking ragged. So be it. Gives me that much more room for improvement.
Fall is my favorite season, and strangely brings fresh hope to me much as spring does. I look forward to beginning this transformation, and getting the hang of how this blog works is my order of business.
