Taming the beast

 

 

What is gardening, but a balance between nature and human intervention, the wild and the cultivated?  Learning when to let go is just as important as hard work. Today I hacked back the tomato plants, clematis vines and dahlia, but most everything else in the beds can wait until early spring. There's nothing I like better than getting outside on a quiet February day. 

Having said that, sometimes you can show some tough love in the fall. This time last year, I pruned the scraggly hydrangeas almost to the ground, a no-no if you want flowers the next summer. 

 

As expected, few blooms, but healthy, strong, rejuvenated shrubs that should be gorgeous next year. But who knows? Hydrangeas are finicky things, like lilacs. 

A big sports weekend in Seattle, with BOTH a Mariner's playoff and Seahawk game on Sunday afternoon, bringing tens of thousands downtown, including us, for the Symphony concert.

Our route to and from West Seattle goes right past T-Mobile Park and Lumen Field where all the action is. That will make for some interesting traffic. 

Have a good weekend.