There are lots of things that are disappointing. There’s the stuffed orange duck I bought our 11 month old puppy, which she destroyed in 5 minutes flat, which was supposed to squeak and didn’t. There are the 8 jackets without working zippers thanks to the same puppy. There’s a pot shortage, as in pots for plants, thanks to lockdowns in the Netherlands and Italy, a world shortage of shipping containers and problems with NZ ports. There’s the new bottle of toilet cleaner with the childproof lid that won’t open and the expensive black hoodie that my son lost. Then there’s the stained glass window that I made, broke, fixed and broke again - that was really disappointing. But trumping all of that is Covid 19. Thanks to that pernicious virus we’re back in lockdown.

You probably noticed that I haven’t posted a blog in over a year. I could bore you with lots of reasons why I didn’t but I won’t. Let’s just say I got busy or sidetracked or overcommitted, all of which is true. Most importantly - I’m back!

Just over a year ago my number one gardening and running companion died. Bessie was eight. I was heartbroken. She’s left a big hole in my life, which I guess seems overly dramatic to anyone who hasn’t had a dog. But, all you dog lovers out there, and there are many of you, you know exactly how I feel. Like someone has cut off a small bit of your heart. I was meant to look after and protect her but I couldn’t. Dogs.

So here’s the puppy (and our other dog Moussa). She’s called Scout and she’s a lot of fun. Scout is your typical Labrador - full of bounce and enthusiasm and good natured cheekiness. Naturally she’s obsessed with food, and shoes and books and pens. We’re going through a lot of pens and most of our books are missing the corners. She isn’t, however, a very good gardening companion. She refuses to stay off the garden. She doesn’t listen. She doesn’t learn. I’ve spent hours chasing her off the front garden (which isn’t fenced like the back garden), yelling and clapping and swearing all the while. And when I eventually get her off the garden she gives me this gormless look and does the whole thing. all over again. It’s just a game to her.

I haven’t done much in the garden. I planted some cos lettuce and spring onions and kale in the kitchen garden (I didn’t grow them from seed - I’m sure they won’t taste as good). There’s something magical about growing vegetables from seed, especially heirloom varieties planted in homemade compost.

New Zealand is 7 days into a very-hard lockdown. It’s our second (though there have been several regional lockdowns since). Our luck has run out. Hopefully we’ll get on top of this outbreak and enjoy freedom once again.

One ray of hope is spring. It arrives in 9 days (although my garden would tell you that it is already here). Spring (what a beautiful word). I wanted to welcome spring with a bang so I built and decorated 3 window boxes (that aren't really window boxes) and bought a whole lot of mop buckets. I also bought a whole lot of bulbs and plants (of course bulbs are plants too but I have to differentiate between two groups of plants - so there are bulbs and there are plants).

I planted the window boxes and buckets with two kinds of daffodils: ‘Fortuna’ and ‘Tete-a-tete’, and some yellow tulips called ‘Strong Gold’. I absolutely stuffed each container full of bulbs in three layers: bottom layer tulips, middle layer ‘Fortuna’ and top layer ‘Tete-a-tete’. I covered each layer of bulbs with potting mix. I mixed blood and bone in with the potting mix. On the very top I planted several different plants that I bought in punnets from the hardware shop: white pansies (with yellow centres), little chrysanthemums, white primulas and calendula. These top plants have two very important jobs. They will hide the dead leaves and stalks of the daffodils and tulips ( when they eventually die) and provide beautiful foliage and flowers for many more weeks. Now I just have to wait and see wha happens.

Here are some plants that are looking great at the moment. Most of the garden is looking pretty ugly. This is because the dogs have decimated large areas, there are lots of weeds growing and most of the plants are brown or dead or hibernating.

Behind the yellow chair (middle one) in the photo of the front of the house are these two plants: a corokia and a euphorbia.

One of my favourite shrubs is the abutilon. I have 5 different coloured abutilons: white, yellow, orange, red and pink. It flowers all year round and is much loved by small birds and bees. It’s easy to prune and grows in full sun or semi-shade.

This bleak looking corner of the garden (below) is part of the front border. I had to cut a path through it so the meter-reader could safely access the gas meter. The dogs are also responsible for this area looking flattened.

My friend Sophie gave me these wonderful plants that look like they’re covered in dappled sunlight (they’re in the middle of the photo). I think they’re Farfugium japonicum (but I could be wrong). They join a group of other woodland plants in this woodland corner (most of which are still hiding under the ground, which is just as well or the dogs would’ve killed them). As soon as lockdown ends I’m going to buy some short fences for the front garden.

Here are some the brown plants I was telling you about.

And now we travel to the back garden. The euphorbias and the Aeonium are both flowering or at least producing flower-like floriferations (I made that up).

Here are some photos of the border in the front garden. I took them at the end of autumn this year. And finally I have lots of things in the garden to look forward to - now that the days are longer and the soil is warming up.

I always have a few gardening books that I read or dip into regularly. Here are 3 of them.

‘The Forager’s Treasury’ is a book I’ve wanted for a long time. Once lockdown is over my cousin Catherine and I (and any other cousins and sisters who want to join us) will go on a foraging expedition around Wellington (our books in hand).

As soon as I saw Monty’s latest book at the local bookshop I bought it - who wouldn’t want Monty in their bookshelf or on their bedside table?

The final book is a joy to read. It’s the sort of book that you can read in the bath. Beth Chatto is so encouraging. I’m going to make a new garden up on the Kapiti Coast (as well as looking after my current garden in Wellington). I’ll tell you more about this in my next blog.

And here’s a quick peak at my kitchen garden. The tumble compost bin is refusing to tumble and its locking device (which allows it to stand upright) is broken. It still makes great compost though.

Spring has arrived. The oak tree in the back garden is my first deciduous tree to burst into leaf. See you in a couple of weeks.