Fixing Things

Sweet Woodruff and Little Oak Trees Photo by ERSwett

Bliss.
Mixed textures.
Heavenly shades of green.
What's not to
​love?

A crowded garden bed Photo by ERSwett

But those
large green leaves
are mini-oaks, taking over
a place not prepared
for ​trees.

Taking Action Photo by ERSwett

Is it
magic - - 
these pesky acorns
becoming vibrant sources of
shade & food? Maybe,
but they've
got to
​go...

Room to Flourish Photo by ERSwett

...to make
room for this Sweet
Woodruff, a dainty & mighty
medicinal herb & groundcover. I love
this kind of work. The problem
is clear & the solution
simple.

A problem with water Photo by ERSwett

The
problem
of rain barrel
drainage in the veggie
garden was equally clear, but
the solution more complex than pulling
a few 'weeds.' But again, it's
such satisfying work.
The solution
​elegant.

Rain managed Photo by ERSwett

As happens,
though, solving one
thing leads to another. Like
this wonderful scented shrub whose
name escapes me. It was great when first
planted, but it's now outgrown
that spot, creating a 
barrier & not an
invitation.

A flourishing shrub, just in the wrong spot Photo by ERSwett

With
the right 
tools & care,
it's not so hard
to make a
​change.

A flourishing shrub in a new home & an invitation to enter Photo by ERSwett

There
is power in
transplanting and
re-imagining a plant or
a space or even an assumption
about how things are meant to be. I 
feel that way all the time in the
garden. There's the vision
& then there's
​reality.

Honeysuckle vine, tended over time, fills the corner Photo by ERSwett

And
sometimes
that reality is like this
honeysuckle, planted to fill
& beautify the corner of the garden
that happens to be adjacent to the compost
and happens to, over time, look
amazing on both sides
of the fence.

The abundant honeysuckle adds beauty to the composter Photo by ERSwett

As I free
the blueberries
& liberate bounded roots,
I am grateful for unexpected flourishings.
Amid the seeming chaos & disruption of transplants
& fixings, there are places where things
work and where beauty
​exists.

Herb Garden, Early June 2020 Photo by ERSwett

Honoring
these places feeds
me & gives me strength for
the next challenge inviting a solution.
And sometimes the solution involves nothing
more than patience, as the herb garden
reveals between the beginning
and the end of June.

Herb Garden, Late June 2020 Photo by ERSwett