My garden is wilting, wilting, wilting. Somehow the earth seems to be hotter than last year and it is hard to believe that any roots can withstand being cooked in the soil. Even the toughest groundcover is taking strain. Today we threw bagsful of wood chip mulch on all the exposed areas - hopefully this will bring a little relief, and if that doesn't work, I give up. I think the potplants are also stewing their roots as the sun beats down from all sides. I dragged them all into the rather inadequate shade of a tree, as it seems unfair to expect them to survive on brick paving.
If I look at photos of the garden over the years, I can see how it has deteriorated from fairly lush to semi desert, with a corresponding reduction in rainfall and lowering of the water table. It seems that lawns are a thing of the past (they are overrated anyway), but the garden is far too big for pretty pebbles and stone chips that work so well in townhouse situations. The conversion to beds of indigenous, waterwise plants and swathes of mulch will continue for the foreseeable future, as none of us knows what the rainfall patterns will be and a self-sustaining garden is the best I can hope for.
Of utmost importance is that we continue to provide bees and birds with the plants that provide them with the necessities of life, and to persevere in calling for the banning of all pesticides and weed killers.
And with that the sky fills with clouds and covers us with a cooling blanket to soothe the scorched earth.
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