One Chore Begets Another

– Posted in: Garden chores, Garden Tweets
12 comments

Spent 2 hours cutting dead stuff down (mostly peony foliage), revealing weeds that will have to be pulled another day. Sigh.

About the Author

Kathy Purdy is a colchicum evangelist, converting unsuspecting gardeners into colchicophiles. She gardens in rural upstate NY, which used to be USDA Hardiness Zone 4 but is now Zone 5. Kathy’s been writing since 4th grade, gardening since high school, and blogging since 2002. Find her on Instagram as kopurdy.

What differentiates a bulb from a perennial plant is that the nourishment for the flower is stored within the bulb itself.…There is something miraculous about the way that a little grenade of dried up tissue can explode into a complete flower.

~Monty Don in The Complete Gardener pp. 142

Comments on this entry are closed.

commonweeder October 8, 2009, 8:36 am

The withering peony foliage AND the weeds are calling to me. But yesterday the wind blew. And blew. The rain fell. So I went and visited a friend and we talked about gardens – and lots more beside.

Deborah at Kilbourne Grove October 7, 2009, 9:14 pm

I think that I am easily distracted. I go out into the garden to accomplish one task, and I find that I look up four hours later, and have not even started what I went out for.
.-= Deborah at Kilbourne Grove´s last blog ..My Garden Design: Part I =-.

Sue October 7, 2009, 11:33 am

I too have an out of control perennial bed. I used a spring trimmer to get rid of all of the weeds because there were far too many of them. I dug out as many of the plants and transplanted as I could. The crab grass has totally taken over but I still have plants left behind. Any idea as to the best way to get rid of the grass and not disturb the plants? I plan on in spring moving what comes up but so much that is left (bulbs, etc.) will not be able to get through the grass.

Thanks for any suggestions.

Sue

Willi October 7, 2009, 1:40 am

I meant to weed today too. Then I noticed that all my lamb’s ear had a serious case of powdery mildew. So I spent all my time picking off the icky leaves. Then I got distracted by the sunshine and sat on my porch, soaked up, and looked at my weeds. It was a good time.

Kathy Purdy October 7, 2009, 8:36 am

There is a time for weeding, and a time for not weeding. This time of the year, I tend to wander around the garden and just do whatever calls to me. Those peony leaves called to me; they made the whole garden look bad. The weeds hiding underneath them are not calling to me so much.

Joseph Tychonievich October 6, 2009, 11:31 am

BUT: The great thing about pulling weeds in the fall is that you know they will stay gone until spring, unlike the endlessly repeating task of pulling and pulling all summer.

Kathy Purdy October 6, 2009, 11:42 am

Some weeds grow under the snow and are there when snow melts. But you can’t pull them until the soil thaws.

element October 6, 2009, 9:49 am

Sadley this season I let my garden get out of had. Since the weather has cooled off some I have been spending a time in the yard when I am not to busy and not feeling bad. Yesterday I was out pulling weeds that were 10 foot tall and I found even more weeds in areas that should not be. So yes, “One Chore Begets Another.”

Kathy Purdy October 6, 2009, 9:58 am

Element, my garden has gotten out of hand more times than I can count. Perhaps my post on Triage Weeding will help you.

michelle October 5, 2009, 10:29 pm

What joy.

Mary Delle October 5, 2009, 6:28 pm

I really like the quote at the end of your blog by Laurie Lyle.

Kathy Purdy October 5, 2009, 6:43 pm

Thank you. The quotes rotate, so the next time you visit, you will probably see a different one. Your comment made me want to tell you the title of the book, and in searching for it I discovered I had misspelled the author’s name. The correct spelling is Laurie Lisle, and the name of the book is Four Tenths of an Acre: Reflections on a Gardening Life.