It doesn't get old.

Having had the craziest week on the planet, (well it seemed like it) I've finally had a couple of hours in the garden this morning and I've more planned for later, thank goodness. I've had a cuppa, I've daundered about and I've just pottered about thinking about all the half finished jobs I have. Inbetween looking at crazy flowers, like this one. Its a Cineraria (Pericallis x hybrida 'Sennetti Deep Blue') at least that's what the label said, its loud, and purple and I love it. But, what a mouthful eh? Its all the things I don't do in a garden, its not edible, its tender, potentially annual and perhaps a one season shot. But, I wanted a quick purple fix for my new breakfast bench and I'm embracing change. Why not have a blast of colour, just because you can. And let me tell you, it also helped to make sure I didn't actually get started digging the veg beds, all good. I'll get there, one day. Its progress I tell myself, not perfection. I refuse to spend my time in the garden rushing around (finishing jobs which I've started) and stressing. This is a work in progress. Aren't the dandelions looking braw? The chickens love them. So I grow them with love for them, honest.

This week, not much progress due to crazy busy week, I only got a couple of fence panels started painted. But last week I got the raspberries in (my old favourite primo cane 'Autumn Bliss' which doesn't need staked and flowers on new growth), and had a moment of genius (I'm am quite modest after all). I decided that edging the beds with wood/stones/bricks was OK, I've got plenty of them. But as this part of the garden is quite skinny, why waste the space using non-growing edging? You see, GENIUS. So I managed to ferret about (again a proper gardening term) in the garden and found a decent amount of alpine strawberries to do the job of edging the rasps fro me. All of these have come from a friends garden originally so they do remind me of her, its great having plants from friends. The wee bamboo canes to the right there temporarily to protect the strawbs from being trampled by hounds. (sort of) A couple of window boxes planted with nice plants by my bench, with some things for instant colour like the Cinerara, and sweet peas to scramble up the shed under the bunting.  This area is glorious early morning, the sun shines and I sit in Raspberry/Strawberry Alley and look at the world, thinking about the day.

All makes for an enjoyable cup of morning tea. Today's great excitement was the sweetpeas finally taking a wee curl onto the first twine that is going to support them up the shed. Far right in the photo and squint properly to see it. Well done little sweet pea. As its been cold, don't judge the poor wee mites. It will grow tall and flower soon. It will I tell you. And it will cover the entire shed and smell beautiful or that's the plan at least.

I'm in my garden every single day, come rain, shine or hail (which really was last weeks weather!). I start and end the day, in the garden, generally in my pjs. I honestly don't know how I managed so long without one. Some people ask me, as I also garden for work, and come home utterly exhausted, why the first thing I do is have a walk around see what's going on and often stay out there for a few hours more.  Every single spare second if I'm home, I'm here.

For me, its simple. It just never gets old. There's always something to do, especially as I have 24 unfinished jobs on the go at once, that's OK, I'm learning that's how I role. 

At my formal gardening work, tasks have a pressured timescale. Its enjoyable, its interesting, its inspiring, but its work and hard work at that. Its perfection, its selling inspiration, showing off what plants can do, what works where. Its advising and its striving to give your best, I guess any job should feel like that. Its brilliant, I love it, but its really time pressured. I'm expensive, it should be time pressured. But, at home, in this garden, its enough to just potter about and just be. Progress, not perfection. Everyday as I get frustrated at progress or stressed thinking about the time I need to get it all done, I need to remind myself, this is a work in progress, it will never be perfect. And that's OK. Small jobs, big jobs, it just never gets old. I'm not perfect either, so we're a good match.

My family a long while since had become accustomed to my mud clattered state. My enthusiasm for flowers, and forms, and wild things and habitats. For stomps just to see Primula scotica, which I'll sadly miss this year. But, having been away to the Scottish verison of Chelsea this year, very good, you should go next year. I can tell you, walking around display gardens, pallet gardens, plant stalls, nursery stalls. It just never gets old.

We watched 'The theory of everything' last night. (And, let me tell you this was after dark so OK to take a break from gardening, even with floodlights for the garden......) And hearing that Stephen Hawking was still working in to his seventies, made me smile. Whilst I'm no physicist (and do check with TRG on this) I get that passion and drive to do the thing you love, every single day. And know when you're right or wrong. And, when to say if something works, or doesn't.  Of all things in life, surely having passion and indulging in it, never gets old.

A bit like my to do list. Which currently looks like this.

Paint fence. (sigh 15 done 9 to go, AND save up for a wall)

Put russian vine back on painted fence after you've put up climbing support wire.

Plant the 28 alliums ('Purple Sensation') you blew almost your entire budget on at Gardening Scotland.

Repot the last of the tomatoes.

Plant more Cerinthe major 'Purpurascens' seeds and hope for a late summer flowering miracle.

Plant the plants sitting on the terrace (Cosmos, Clematis, Onions, Garlic, Petunias, Diasicas, Hostas, Grasses (unnamed, not interested very much.....ahem), Knautia, and various things I'm not confessing to. 

Pot up the summer pots by the seats.

DIG THE VEG PATCH (like really)

Finish the beds by the greenhouse.

PLANT VEG GARDEN

Think about giant beds on the terrace and shudder at how much earth we'll need to fill them (ie what was I thinking)

Put up that tall garden gate you bought a year ago.

But, you see its OK to have a sort of a list which might never get done, as its progress, not perfection I'm after at home. And, whilst sometimes the idea of half done stuff just stops me blogging, maybe I should remind myself, I'm after progress and not perfection. This is not a show garden, its my life. And its OK to be messy and have 24 unfinished jobs on the go if that's what I like. Its about the journey right?

But for now, in our natty penguin pj's we'll sit and have a cuppa and enjoy the start of the day. We'll get dressed in a couple of hours, need to get a bit of pre-start-the-day gardening in first before we start on the rest of life later.

No I don't go to work in my pjs. Honest. Well maybe only once and it was cold and I had waterproofs on anyway so who cares, I was cosy?

In other news, my Clematis montana which has moved about 8 times in 15 years and did not like the Orkney climate, poor soul, is now putting on nice new growth and we have three lovely flowers. 

Lovely. Perfect. Progress.