Changes aplenty...

Just when you think that everything is settled and you can relax a little with things, along comes a whirlwind to take you completely off course and in so doing requires a remake around the garden to now make it a much safer place for Nick to be in. With all Nick's health issues this past 9 months we sadly realised that the garden in it's current form was a place he could not be in due to extreme fall risk due to too many uneven surfaces and obstacles, watering hoses and dripper pipe left exposed which made it all too much of a trip hazard. So, when our dear friend Roy paid us visit for a week or so he was also able to help with some heavy stuff that needed doing. We started with lifting up the pavers that had originally been put down along the paths. We also began some pruning of plants. Always a good idea to get help whenever you can. So, this past few weeks has been one of fixing up all the things that needed to be done to make the garden more Nick friendly, and this is an ongoing job. Adelaide is currently in the grip of drought, with almost no rain since before Christmas 2024. Water storages are down to 30% capacity and not helped by the long hot spell of above normal heat still happening just a few days away from winter. The normal weather patterns that would occur at this time of year just have not eventuated which means more heat and less rain. We have been forced to organise out dripper systems to water every plant every other day and the lawns every 3 days. This past summer was horrendous with endless days of 30+C temps day after day after day. We lost a few plants that just could not cope with the excessive heat so this has also brought about a change of plants in the garden to ones much more capable of surviving the long hot summers here, so we have embraced succulents far more and also putting in more native plants that can also cope with the heat.