15 December: more weeding weather

Tuesday, 15 December 2020

At home

The predicted rain and wind had not arrived, even though I could see from the south window the double red wind warning flags flying over the port office. So I had to delay my reading and do some weeding and some rearranging of containers and plant sale plants. I did enjoy it, even though I need two more days now to finish the Katharine Graham memoir (1000 plus pages in the large print edition).

First, I noticed a handsome conifer and then had a look at some more of my conifers and a few other plants.

Front garden

Front garden.

Maybe I should get the conifer above out of its pot. One of the two dark leafed pittosporums I planted might have plotzed and this could go in the ground in its place. I should dig around in the pot to find the tag, if possible, and see how tall it gets.

In the back garden, one of the conifers I bought at Pam Fleming’s former nursery…or at least she inspired me to buy it.

Also….trailing Rosemary in bloom

A flat rock holding rain water

I would like to have some rocks that have really good water bowl capacity.

Cistus ‘Mickie’ and olearia

Iris feotidus. I really should take the better camera outdoors for all garden walks.

Looking north over the garden boat

Broad beans already up (and corn salad aka mache). I wonder if the beans will survive winter.

I weeded and rearranged by the spider web arbor where the big hebe came out.

The big tub is now in the front shade garden; it contains a fuchsia and did contain a start of a rose that I dug out and potted for my plant sale.

This area will get some good mulch from my next compost sifting.

I was excited to think of a new planting area till my sensible side remembered that the Euonymus ‘Green Spire’ will take up a fair amount of room so…annuals, maybe.

The cattens had run through the house to the back Catio in order to watch me.

They’d have more fun if there were a cat run along the wall from the back Catio to the front porch.

On the other hand, the new and so far unenclosed shelf would be good for displaying attractive objects like flower pots and old watering cans.

From awhile back. Table is full of plant sale plants again. Old watering cans would look good on that shelf. But I’d enjoy them less than the cats would enjoy another cat run.

With still no rain, I had to do some more weeding. Some areas are just a mess.

I got partway through one area…

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…when the rain arrived forty five minutes before dark and I was able to abandon it and go indoors.

My Queen’s Tears houseplant is blooming.

This little cat makes it a challenge to type out a blog post from the comfy chair.

From Katharine Graham’s memoir about her life and The Washington Post:

Now that’s civilized behavior.

A couple of news stories below the lines…

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I found this useful article about how to talk to “anti-vaxxers . I have known one person who was so adamantly anti vaccine that they would insert the topic into random conversation with a great deal of fervor. I felt surprised and disconcerted and would just try to change the subject instead of pressing for ….science. Perhaps this article would have helped, or perhaps the book Non Violent Communication would have helped me get out a sentence like, “When you seem so angry about vaccines, it gives me indigestion because I become concerned about your health. Would you be willing to read some scientific articles on the topic of whether or not vaccines cause the damage you fear?” At the time, it did not seem like a critical issue. Now it would be. Although I no longer personally know anyone who’d be opposed to getting the Covid vaccine, I see plenty of anti-vaccine talk on local social media groups.

Meanwhile, across the river, Clatsop County, including Astoria, has been declared extreme risk for Covid, with strict rules in place for businesses and social gatherings.