Letters to garden makers

Dear reader, As you may know - the rectangular box hedge that subdivided a mixed border and provided a horizontal axis for the eye - succumbed to box blight - it lost most of its leaves and was beyond recovery. I had to dig it out which was a difficult thing to do both emotionally and physically. After desolation Before desolation The roots had gone deep. The resulting empty space is heart breaking. I have not rushed out and bought anything to replace it as yet, but I have moved some plants around - fortunately before the soil turned to iron. The space is now open to the elements. Sue is happy though as she always said the hedge took up too much space - making the hanging of washing on the retractable line difficult -  that's true as I also struggled to manipulate larger items in the space available. There is now more space between the line and the border - these considerations are important in a working domestic garden. I will...

Dear reader, Dreary weather persists, dank misted skies drip and the cold wetness has got inside me. I have had an unforeseen viral holiday. Yesterday briefly the sun shone through my prison widow. I need to do so much in the garden. I have to replace spalled terracotta pots possibly with recyclable plastic. Every type of 'frost proof' terracotta pot has been damaged. I will need to invest in glazed terracotta but I need to save up for them, and the shrubs can't wait that long for re potting - with their exposed root systems. I feel guilt at the idea of plastic - he says this while tapping on a plastic keyboard. It is everywhere in our homes and environment. Strange that it sits at the back of our conscience for so long and then there is a critical mass of opinion which washes it up to the surface. Perhaps we are too late to try and undo the damage - but at the very least we can help to prevent further amounts getting into the environment. And here I...