It has been a great gardening season so far this year. Although we have had some dry and hot spells, we have had a fair amount of moisture this year and the temperatures have been a little cooler than normal for the past few weeks. And the gardens are looking great because of it.

This year has been a bit unusual for me. Since we moved into our property 3 summers ago, I have spent most of my summers digging new garden beds, planting new plants and then of course caring for all those new plantings. That means that I typically by now am way behind on general garden maintenance. Pruning, weeding and dead-heading all seemed to creep up on me, making them seem more like a chore than any kind of enjoyment.

So this year I promised myself that once summer arrived, I would not, I repeat not!, buy any new plants or move any existing plants in the garden. I would take the summer off in a way and instead spend all that time just enjoying the act of gardening rather than designing and creating. This year I spend a leisurely couple of hours each day weeding my beds before they get ahead of me, pruning the roses so they can grow new ones and pruning the shrubs before I have to make the awful choice between form or next years flower. That doesn’t mean I haven’t spent the odd half day here and there with a few small projects, like putting a rock barrier to stop some soil erosion in one bed, or adding a decorative ornament or two. But all in all, it’s been a summer of gardening, just gardening.

And I’m pleasantly surprised at how I have achieved just as much a sense of accomplishment by just maintaining my garden as I have in the past from creating new ones.

And I have been rewarded with lovelier gardens as a result.