It has been an extraordinary adventure, taking in 33 amazing gardens all across the country, travelling with nice like-minded gardeners.  You would have loved them. Gardeners really are the nicest people.  I’ve grabbed some inspiration here and there and am now trying to figure out how to add a waterfall to the garden… I’m sure it can be done – where there is a will there is a way.  But I have to say I’m a bit wiped out.  The responsibility of making sure everything runs smoothly as well as all the walking around gardens is a tad exhausting.  Not that I’m complaining.  I had a fab time.

I did miss you all though and thought of you often, however other than a cursory glance I didn’t get a chance to keep up with your gardens in real time.  But I knew Kayla was doing a good job looking after you all.   Since I got back I did binge read all the blog posts I’d missed and hit each one with a like as I went.  It is amazing how much can go on in a garden in three weeks.

The weather has certainly been a bother for some of you with Cyclones and flooding, Hail, frost and just nastiness.  Hopefully, El Nino will kick in soon with the hot dry bit.  Having said that, we'll probably be complaining about the hot dry conditions in a month or two… 

And Rachael I’m sorry to hear about your minor accident, I’m glad it wasn’t serious, but things like that can certainly be upsetting.  I hope the encouragement award helps ease the stress.

Monique, it is good to see you are on the mend, but take it easy getting back into the garden, we wouldn’t want to see you overdoing things.

Welcome Samwise, it is lovely to have you in the community.

And it is good to see we’re getting things to eat… especially strawberries – they are like growing candy. 

My garden coped quite well in my absence, but I worked really hard before I left to get it in a good shape, and I had my handy helpers popping in and laying mulch and pulling weeds. Which is just as well as my garden is open to the public on the weekend, to raise funds for the local Kariotahi Surf Club who is desperate need of a new club house, especially as it is the most dangerous beach in the country. But needless to say, the next few days will be spent in the garden – getting it looking perfect.  I think giving everyone a quick drink of Yates Thrive Natural Fish & Seaweed+ Plant Food Concentrate will make everything look lush and healthy for the big day.

I just want to say a big thank you to Kayla from the office, who has done such a great job of making sure everything ran smoothly while I was away. I’m so grateful for her efforts.

And back to business – this week’s lucky random winner of the weekly free packet of seeds is The flower lady.  The seeds will be on their way to you very soon.

Keep posting your wonderful updates to increase your chances of being next week’s winner!

I hope you all have a fabulous week in the garden and as always – if you want to get in touch leave a comment below.

Sarah the Gardener: o)