Watering the garden

is essential in this climate. The forecast temperature today is for 35'C. Ugh! The plants need water.

Until now the garden has not been my responsibility. It was the Senior Cat's hobby. He grew all sorts of things. He experimented. He put up poles and trellises. He researched organic gardening methods. He went to talks and was even the president of something called "The Soil Association" for a while.  

And yes, the soil in this garden is of far better quality than the soil of most gardens around us. It has been nourished with compost and mulched on a regular basis. 

All this took hours of the Senior Cat's time. It is time I don't have. I know very little about gardening. I am a "well I will put it in the ground and water it and if it grows good" sort of gardener. I can tie a tomato plant to a stake to keep it from the ground and that is about it. All this does not mean that I can ignore the garden. 

We have a patch of lawn in the front garden. It is not very big. Once a fortnight S.... appears and mows it for me. He has been doing this for many years. I can remember his first child being born - and she is now over thirty.  I know S... so well now that I simply put the cordial, the jug and the glass on the table and he helps himself when he has time to stop for a drink. I try to make sure he does stop because his partner, A...., warned me about his tendency not to - and that once led to a kidney stone. S...had also done little things like change a light bulb for me. I don't think we pay him enough but he just smiles and says that the cordial makes up for it. I certainly think I owe him for his close inspection of the lawn and telling me, "Time to start giving it a bit more water Cat."

No, we aren't "wasting water on a lawn". Our entire area is built on highly reactive clay soil. It shrinks in dry weather and expands in wet weather. This means that houses are prone to cracking and shifting on their foundations. Our house was built on deeper than usual footings to try and overcome the problem. The house just "rests" on the foundations. 

This does not entirely solve the problem though. The soil around it still needs moisture. I need to keep the lawn alive...and so I water. S...has told me where to find some local housing where there are cracks in the walls - because the lawns and gardens were allowed to die off. People do it in the mistaken belief that they are "saving water". 

The Senior Cat's first addition to our house was a rain water tank and then another and another. He then added one to his workshed and one to the gardening shed. We use that water for many things. It takes time but I have been happy to do it. In this climate it makes sense to use some of the water that would otherwise enter gutters and be lost.   Of course all this has to be balanced out but it does make sense and it is why houses must now have some rainwater storage. 

But for the last week or so I have had to use mains water. It is much quicker to do the essential watering that way and that is all for which I have had time. This week will be no better.

But I am going to find time right now to remind the post-person that there is water available for him/her at this property. I will refill the bird bath too - because all the animals use that. Watering the garden is about more than watering plants.