Monday, December 01, 2003

finished

I finally got all the leaves mulched with the lawnmower. I don't think of myself as having major compulsions, but in the same vein of not being able to cook until the kitchen is cleaned up with no clutter, I cannot really garden without making sure that the mowing/raking/and other lawn maintenance is done.

In my past two gardens, in Austin and in DC, I had no grass. I used the entire yard for a garden.

But here, despite my best efforts, I still have a good amount of grass. And certainly enough trees to fill up several bags of leaves each fall. The mulching lawnmower reduces these leaves to organic stuff.

But until that kind of work is finished, I often put off the things that I really want to be doing in the garden -- planting, weeding, transplanting, adding organic matter, making new beds, working on the hardscape (ala stone or brick).

Given that all the leaves have now fallen, I am through for this year in terms of either mowing grass or leaves.

But of course, I have almost run out of time to do serious work that I have been looking forward to for the past few months.

I realized that part of this is because the mosquitoes were so bad this year that I really haven't spent that much time outside, certainly not as much as I would like to.

Just a few more weeks of tolerable weather, that being days when I can dig around outside before the ground freezes. I am pushing this and thus depending on the kindness of midwestern winter weather.

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