#MyGardenRightNow

VP over at VegPlotting has organised an event for the Chelsea Fringe - a reprisal of the rather wonderful #MyGardenRightNow,  This hashtag encourages us to take a photo of ourselves in, as the name suggests, our own garden this very weekend.

The original hashtag event took place in March, and I participated via Twitter, with a photo of my feet in a rather wet lawn. It's officially summer now, though the low clouds are currently glowering at me like a teenager being asked to tidy their room. Nevertheless, I have been out in the garden, with an actual camera rather than my phone for the first time in ages.

I was tempted to act like a professional garden photographer (apart from the getting up at 4am to photograph the dewy lawn part), and frame the best views of the garden:

But, of course, with a five-year-old, some bits are hard to hide. Because the garden isn't just a place of quiet contemplation, gentle weeding and a glass of wine. In fact, rarely any of those three, unfortunately.

Instead, the garden is more frequently a site of intergalactic strife, where Darth Vader and Emperor Palpatine fight those dastardly do-gooders, the jedi (we're always the baddies, except when I have to be the goody, to be killed). It's also a water park, where box bushes act as shields against water pistols or hosepipes. Sometimes, it's an athletics track, for sprinting or for games of tag. It's a minibeast zoo, too. It's certainly a repository for bits of plastic.

And, of course, there are those corners I might prefer to keep hidden. Well, more than corners, if I'm honest. Huge chunks of the front garden are rather bare at the moment, after a winter of removing overgrown shrubs. I've just planted the gaps with herbaceous perennials, but it will be a while before it looks anything other than a mess. I particularly like it when the local gardeners come round, touting for business - "We could tidy up that front garden for you". Yeah. Thanks.

The area by the back door is awful. Empty plastic strawberry planter, with some tree ferns which didn't get watered during the dry month or so we've had and so are now languishing. Actually, languishing isn't really the right word as it suggests someone, beautifully adorned, in a swoon on a chaise longue. These look rather scabby and emaciated. More fleabitten stray cat than silk-swathed maiden. I'm quite thankful for this hashtag as it has made me realise what a non-event it is, and that *something must be done* (said in a stern and not-to-be-ignored voice).

One thing I'm quite proud of at the moment is the removal (and accidental demolition) of a half barrel by the front door which contained nothing but ivy and looked an eyesore. Going against the name of this blog, I'm actually quite pleased with the new frilly and rather coordinated bedding planting I've got there. Frivolous, but not inelegant.

Finally, a view of my whole domain - looks much smaller than if I just take photos of individual borders. And a bit of me, too.

So, there you go. #MyGardenRightNow