Partly the result of the severe drought, and extreme temperatures reaching 40 degrees celsius, my rhododendron’s leaves were burnt and I was sad. The evergreen alder out the back didn’t survive, either. But when many people lost their houses and lives in the Black Saturday bushfires, which ripped through Victoria in February 2009, I felt ashamed that I was worried about my plants.
My daughter’s partner’s aunt and uncle perished in the fires at Steels Creek, a fact which made me realise how lucky we were to be alive. Tears are sneaking down my face as I remember that sad time. Tragedies help you put your own life in perspective. Let’s treasure every day.
Sorry for my digression, but sometimes my fingers get away from me. Luckily I can type fairly fast and keep up with all these random thoughts. Then with the magic of computers, it’s easy to edit, deleting and cutting and pasting so the whole thing flows. (Hopefully!)
Back to the garden: drastic water restrictions were in place, so the lawns were dying as well as trees, flowers and shrubs. In April I decided to get rid of the front lawn and mulch it instead. We planted a third weeping Japanese maple (Inaba Shidare) as a special feature tree in the centre.
princessprattles 
A weeping tree is an apt memorial plant don’t you think?
D’accord (agreed)