Gardening, PJ , and The Dog.

Every 2nd day or so, when PJ visits her friend down the road from us, she takes his old dog for a walk. This dog is blind, so he can't walk fast, but his sense of smell is strong. He particularly likes to find and sniff Lavender, as he has a patch at home and his favourite activity is to roll in the lavender. He must love the strong fragrence that is liberated by his rolling.

I don't often meet up with PJ as she walks the dog at different times, but the other day, I was out working on my side garden when she was walking the dog.

I have been slowly up-grading that garden, as the Gazanias which were growing there were becoming a problem for the neighbours, as Gazanias spread far and wide if given half a chance.They are a South African plant and have adapted here very well which makes them now a declared Noxious Weed.

In one section I have completely removed them, and most have gone from the other section. I have been planting succulents as they don't need a lot of water, and have pretty details on their leaves and have a compact growing habit (mostly).

PJ is a friendly sort of person, so we often have a chat if we happen upon one another. One of the lovely things about chatting to PJ are her compliments about my efforts on with the side garden- it is a Nature Strip or Verge on the street side.She loves the new plantings and says my garden is beautiful; and she appreciates every little new planting. I was going to remove all of the Lavender at one stage ( along with the Gazanias), as that too is spreading down the street. However, the bees love it, and The Blind Dog especially loves it, and makes a "B Line" for it on his walks.

So, today, I'll be spreading more stones that I recently bought, and planting more succulents down the side. I garden for myself mostly as it is a pleasurable activity , but even if one person appreciates what you do, it can make a Huge difference to your motivation.