We answered the distress call to clean up our friend Patti’s garden, and then I fretted for days because I thought we should be doing the regular clients instead, the ones whose gardens we have not even been to yet. And then we finally made it to work at Patti’s garden and I had a wonderful afternoon there.
I have a long history with this garden. In 1994, I did some work here for the former owner (and garden designer) Dale. She paid too low an amount compared to other clients so I did not continue on with it. Eventually, Patti bought it and we became friends. She used to organize the Peninsula garden tour…through 2009 at least. And my former gardening partner, Robert, lived there for perhaps a year some time after we parted and designed the large space of the patio, which before had been much smaller.
I was filled with gloom about squeezing the job in until Patti mentioned this morning on the phone that “The hellebores need trimming.” I adore trimming the nasty blackened old leaves off of hellebores and immediately was burning to get to the job and do so.
While Allan did an excellent job weeding and chopping at the front garden, I did the back garden first, and then rewarded myself with the happy Hellebore interlude.
Patti’s back deck is a wonderful space to overlook the garden. In summer, it has a tropical look from clusters of cannas at the back of the rose garden. Between the deck and the patio, the garden is perfect for summer evening parties with friends and dogs.
The house also fulfills one of my dreams by being an actual compound with two other cute little cottages on the large lot.
After a little over three hours, we were done, and Patti was most pleased.
The difference might not be obvious to a passerby, but I know it is weed-free and cut back and all ready to grow.
[…] wine dinner along with our fellow landscaper and friend Ed Strange and our dear longtime friend Patti from Seaview. I credit the company and not the wine with being able to just let go and be and recognize that […]
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