I spent almost all day in my gardens yesterday and it felt really good. My to-do list was (and still is) long, and, I abandoned it almost right away to deal with the things that were really bugging me – like the peony bed – and the hostas on the hill that were being taken over by grass.
And, all day long, I was surprised at the volunteers I had! I don’t mean volunteers in terms of people stopping by to help dig holes or bust up some sod. I mean volunteers in terms of plants that are growing in the garden that I didn’t plant!
I got rid of some volunteers – thistle and buckthorn – both of which seem to pop up at the bottom of the sunny hill every year. But I left most of them. There were pansies in the big shade garden (left over from a pot of pansies I had there last summer). Lilly of the Valley showed up on the Hosta Hill – not entirely surprising since they originated in the Azalea garden just across the path. And, there were primroses in the Native garden – a complete surprise since I don’t have primroses anywhere. My neighbor, Audrey, has primroses, but they are a long way from my Native garden.
A neighbor stopped by while I was moving the lavender from the fragrant garden to the sunny hill. (I’m really pleased with how it turned out and will post about it later in the week.) She pointed to a plant on the hill and asked, “Aren’t you going to pull that weed?” “No,” I replied. “I know it looks like a weed, but it’s a sunflower – planted by the wind, birds, or squirrels – and I always leave them.” “Oh!” she said. “I love sunflowers! I’m glad I didn’t pull it for you.” I’m glad, too, because of all the volunteers in the garden, the sunflower is my favorite.
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