December

November is a busy month for us. Half our closest family have birthdays around this month which means travel and some rather pleasant (childrens) partying! Then, of course, there is Thanksgiving to prepare for- and enjoy – with one eye always on the upcoming festive season. In the garden November is always a busy month. Living in the south,the elevated temperatures means that early November is prime bulb planting time and of course there is the additional maintenance -and enjoyment – that comes with fall. Despite the milder climate the one thing I always arrange to be done in November is the winterization of the irrigation system – much needed in 2022 due to the Arctic bomb that hit our area resulting in temperatures hitting -14 degrees Celsius.

Nellie Steven’s holly was planted with the main eye on winter berries.

December is a different kind of month. Much more relaxing, reflective and full of promise. It starts off well with CPs birthday to celebrate. Then the gradual build up to the festive season – the best time of the year. The magic of the Christmas spirit – the notion of goodwill to all – very uplifting. The memories of childhood Christmas’ past and the desire to create new memories with our younger generations. The promise of a New Year – hopes and dreams – aspirations of better things ahead of us, built upon our reflections of, hopefully, a year well lived. December is a good month!

Camellia offers winter color and well chosen foliage plants spark interest.

December offers plenty of opportunities in the garden – from the simple pot of bright,happy faced viola, highly scented Edgeworthia chrysantha, early flowering Camellia,red bark of Cornus and Acer sango kaku , yellow spires of Mahonia – Mother Nature offers us interest throughout the whole year.

Mahonia – planted in October to provide winter interest – if it does well there will be more planted.

December is the perfect time to reflect on the year past and look forward to the year ahead. 2022 was a year of turbulence for the world – a war in Ukraine; strife in other regions and the ongoing suffering of millions of people looking for a better life; a series of natural disasters; political turmoil on the back of the pandemic recovery and raging inflation. Whilst all these things cascade down to our own personal lives, on balance the year was good to our family.

Buds of Edgworthia getting ready to burst.

Buds starting to swell on the cherry trees.

In the garden, 2022 was the year the journey began.We are happy with how it has worked out – the crevice garden is maturing,the perennial beds filled out really well in the first year, the woodland garden (perhaps the biggest challenge) is starting to look promising; all the acers and cherry trees have survived! A long way to go but a nice start. A walk around shows buds that are swelling, flowers and leaves that are getting ready for a new cycle – something to look forward to in 2023.

Red twig cornus doing what it does best – a popping red color developing as the temperatures falls.