War of the Weeds

Weeds are nature's graffiti. ~Janice Maeditere

We've always struggled a little with weeds. In the beginning it was because I wasn't as focused on the garden as I am now, but since Anthony (my partner) starting breeding parrots, it's gotten harder and harder. Because of course parrots spread their seed around, and it grows. Into weeds. For a while he encouraged it because the birds ate them (and I wasn't as focused on the garden), but after a while he didn't need to encourage it, if you know what I mean...

Beautiful things sometimes like weeds.

And then about a year ago I broke my knee. Not too bad, but it put me out of action for a significant period. In the springtime, when everything is growing, including weeds!
By the time I had enough mobility and confidence to get back to the garden, it was late summer and the weeds had taken over! Then winter hit and I think I've mentioned that I don't do so well in winter.

So when spring arrived again this year and I was feeling much more like gardening, I had an enormous task ahead of me. To get rid of the weeds and get my garden back. To give you an idea of what I was facing, here are some before and after shots of what I've managed so far. But believe me, there is still a loooooong way to go!

Beside the driveway...

and after.

Eek! Front yard.

And from another angle.

And now.

A little better...

October in the garden - new growth!

Every spring I feel like I'm coming alive again. I've lived in Canberra my whole life, but I still struggle with the winters: the cold (though mostly beautiful and clear) days are tough, but the shorter daylight hours are what really get to me. By September I'm really down in the dumps and ready for things to warm up.

So in the spring, the garden and I come alive together. The wonderful thing about growing food is that in spring there are lots of blossoms. On the apple trees,

the berries,

and especially the weeds (I'll tell you about those another time!).

I grow really good weeds too. Sigh...

October is a great month for asparagus too (although in the last week or so, it's gone crazy with the warmer days!):

(I swear if you had a couple of hours to spare, you could actually watch asparagus spears grow!).

There's a lot of work in the garden in spring, but it pays off when you've got a big bunch of yummies straight out of the garden!