Fall Cleanup

I can finally say I have my garden done and prepared for winter. I had to do a bit of research first, as I wasn’t sure about the care of the hosta I have in my small garden. I hoped the garden experts would say cut it down, as I didn’t do that last year and it looked horrible after the frost.

I started to cut it on Saturday, managed to rake and bag some of the leaves and got 3 of the 4 hosta plants trimmed before I was near collapse. I got dizzy, light headed, and with my current balance issues, not a good state. Maybe it was due to all that blood rushing to my head when I was bent over to cut the stalks.

I left the last plant, hoping to get to it the next day, but after the long nap I had on the heating pad after my first venture, I took Sunday off. Today I managed to cut the last one, gather a few more leaves the wind blew my way, and moved my plant stand from the porch to the garden for winter storage.

I hate the look of all these empty stands, once full of summer bloom. I want to fill them all with winter greenery, and some solar lights to brighten the space. I think about this every year, a Christmas or winter outdoor arrangement, and never get it done.

I know the reason for my ongoing failure. It goes back to that independence thing. I want to be able to get my own greenery, like when on a walk through the countryside. But walking through the uneven grounds in the woods is risky for me. Maybe I should be content with a few cedar boughs, as there are trees at the edge of the property here.

Worst case scenario, I hit the garden store before they close and buy an arrangement. Why deny myself the pleasure of some color, some brightness and cheer in my winter landscape?

This is the year it will get done. I’m determined.