I’ve gotten out of the habit of writing lists.  Even though I carry a notepad with me at almost all times I apparently find every excuse not to write in it.  (Usually it’s for lack of a pencil.)  But this time of year, just like spring, I’m so easily overwhelmed with all the things that seem to need to be done this instant – or at least before frost that I really ought to write it all down.  There are so many to-dos floating around in my head it almost feels as if I’m walking around under a threatening thunder cloud – and I’m afraid my demeanor lately reflects that.

So just now I finally wrote a list.  And wouldn’t you know, it’s remarkably short and entirely do-able.

The mansion is open for only one more (long) weekend so we’ve had to begin to say goodbye to the gardens.

We’ve made some telltale holes  – a few stock plants and planted container beauties have come into the greenhouse to roost and the Rockettes began the great container bed move today.  The teasels finally came down yesterday but with any luck you’ll be able to see them again soon reincarnated as Christmas decorations in the mansion.  Next Tuesday will be a Display Garden doomsday as we take out the Cutting Garden to make way for tulips (which arrived yesterday – wahoo!) and we’ll begin in earnest to un-furnish the other beds as well.  My to-do list for the next week or so looks like this:

1. Take more cuttings

2. (which really ought to be #1) Pot up rooted cuttings to make room for new ones

3. Bring in and pot up a few more stock plants – in case my cuttings don’t take

4. Continue to move containers into greenhouse

5. Help Fred and Dan put up the bubble wrap again (maybe)

6. Make room to store dahlias (and decide on a storage medium – saw dust and shavings again?)

See?  Not so bad!

My weekend to-do list for home looks like this:

1. take out stinking cabbages and yesterday’s tomatoes before the neighbors call the pretty police

2. dig out and pot up tender keepers

3. think about cutting the grass

4. make a cup of tea

It’s so easy!

And If I were you and I lived nearby but hadn’t made a visit to Blithewold in a while, I’d add that to my list.  This weekend promises to be gorgeous and this will be the last chance to catch the hat exhibit in the house and an amazingly riotous abundance of color in the gardens.  But if you visit the greenhouse too, make sure you use the “other entrance”.