The countdown timer officially started today - 7 days till we fly; Thailand to Cyprus, then the Netherlands for a few weeks to catch up with family and to take my daughter to College, then back to Thailand via Stockholm. Away about 5 weeks. Needless to say, our house has been awash with suitcases, laundry and lists for many weeks already, but we ALSO needed to get the garden ready!
Pre-covid, when we traveled internationally or inter-province for more than a few days, we had someone come to water and take general care of the animals. But last time, it didn't work so well and half the garden died.
This time? It's rainy season so watering shouldn't be an issue, and we found a friend to take our remaining cat as a house guest. 🐱
Which really just left us with a hard-day's work to tidy and clean everything so the house looks lived in and cared for, even with no one home. My staff will swing by to collect the mail and check on tings, but I don't want to rely on them to keep things alive.
Sooo, being the savvy entrepreneur and business-owning Boss Lady that I am, I abused my power 😆, closed the office for a day and instructed two of my workers to HELP ME OUT IN THE GARDEN. 😁 The joys of running a small business which employs extended family! Check out the jungle creepers taking over the electric cables... 😮 not quite sure how to manage that, so I didn't. Open to suggestions...
Anyway, we made a day of it.
In Australia, I planned, mulched and developed my garden to be low maintenance and drought resistant. But here? The Thai landlady is not much of a gardener AT ALL and our lease specifically precludes us from changing the garden. Originally we went 50-50 on a garden guy to maintain it the way she wants, and that worked for about 8 months. But he quit and she couldn't find anyone else at a cheap price, and so I offered to do it. Not a perfect arrangement, but I am secretly adding a few plants here and there, very surreptitiously making my mark.
The brushcutter did overtime on the mish-mash of grasses and herbaceous wild stuff which tries to be a lawn.
I think her garden designing puff all ran out by the time the landlady got round to the back yard. 🤣
All the pot plants had to be moved out from under the roof line of our front and side porches, and put under the protective cover of the banana trees.
Pretty darn happy to see some new banana trees sprouting... we have 5 new baby ones coming on... they will fruit later in the year, most likely.
All the pots had to be topped up with soil, given that the torrential monsoon rains wash it out of the pots so quickly when the deluges hit. I was delighted to see my coffee grounds project doing well. I'm rehabilitating horrid dry-dusty concrete waste bits of soil around the garden by applying fresh coffee grounds a few times a week. And the dry, soul-less dirt IS starting to become rich, fragrant and able to hold moisture!! Yay.... more coffee....!!
And so we worked hard, got it done and made sure everything's ship-shape and redy for us to embark on our adventure.
Just need to lock the bicycle and the tools in the back spare bathroom the day we fly...
What did I learn??
Apart from the pleasure of being able to enlist the troops for hard garden chores, I REALLY learned (again) that gardens need to be so incredibly well planned!! The garden around us right now isn't, but I guess you learn what you DO want by seeing how and why what you DON'T WANT makes for hard work and disappointment.
My mission for the next few years - apart from paying for my daughter's College and running our business? To BUY SOME LAND and create my own garden.
Meanwhile, I have some packing to do....
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Phew, hard work.. lucky you are the big boss! The vines over the wires make me laugh. Are you sure that in five weeks you'll be able to find the house or will you need a machete to get in the door?
We don't plan to go away til 2024 for two years and I'm already freaking out about the garden. If we have tenants will they take care of it or will it be full of rabbit holes? It's so high maintenance I think selling up might be easier...
The RATE of growth of EVERYTHING in tropical Thailand is intense... bacteria, bugs, critters and yes, choking vines.
2 years away in 2024... should I get the guest suite ready?? I HEAR you - selling up might be just a whole lot easier - and who knows what might happen after 2 years on the road.... ??
We aren't sure which route we will take. Perhaps ship direct to Europe. See what the state of world is like.
You'll be able to check on my girl for me... LOL
HAHA i 'm sure she'll appreciate that!!!
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Oml what a job to take care of all that land! The bosslady strikes again and closes the office, hahaha it is what you signed up for ;))))
Now the next part of packing begins!!
haha... yes, it's a full time job (feels like anyway).
Packing, opening discord... x Hope to see you soon.
You've got a wide garden plot. Can't wait to see what you are going to plant with it. Greetings from the Philippines!
It IS a big plot of land - we are blessed. When I get back form my trip, the first thing I'm going to plant is some Ganja in the banana grove.... and to make a special area for basils - we use them so much in Thai cooking.
I am excited about that plan of yours, please kindly share it with us when you do so. Good luck (^_^).
That’s a nice big garden with plenty of space for more plants!
Have a nice trip!
I'm looking forward to hitting the road after 26 months of enforced home stay. Do YOU have travels planned for the next little while??
Thanks for popping by.
No overseas trips for me! Too much effort and unaffordable these days.
Traveling locally is okay for me, much less effort!lol
I find that's the most annoying thing about going away when you have a garden to attend to. I only have a few plants and last time I went away for a week they all died!!
Anyway, hope you have a great trip!
Lucky this time it's rainy season, and as long as things are out from under the roofline (to be able to get water) and protected somewhat from the sun (banana leaves are great) then things will be mostly alive on my return...
It's TOUGH balancing the idea of a garden with a travel-filled lifestyle.
Where are you headed next??
I am so envious of your location, so exotic. Perhaps your garden isn't up to your standards, but it sure looks nice to me @artemislives
Marike, RE: the jungle creeper+power wires? Cut the plants off at the base, let the power company worry about the wires (though you COULD very judiciously and cautiously (use a wooden or plastic ladder if possible) prune away as much of the actual plant material as you can, otherwise that creeper will just climb back over it's dead relative's back.
Find the base of the plant and dig it up.
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Yup - I had a feeling that was basically the only way forward. 🤣 Tropical vines are relentless and grow meters each week.... I think for my birthday I'm treating myself to heavier-duty pruning shears - the machete is a little crude sometimes and I do worry using it near electrical cables. 😁
Exotic is relative, no? I'm looking forward to looking at some of the ancient arid gardens in Cyprus (dating back 5000 years!) and the Dutch summer gardens.... I still LOVE banana trees though!! And one adjusts to the green tree snakes after a while... 🤣🐍
You need to get some limb loppers
These are what I bought for here. They do the best for my needs (so far)
You need to get some limb loppers. These are what I bought for here, and they work well for my needs, (so far)
i love how that exterior porch room looks!
We love that space and spend most of the time out there.... usually I have pot plants scattered about. The porous terracotta tiles are FABULOUS natural air-conditioners... if you hose down the porch, the tiles absorb the water and stay super cool under foot... and the breeze coming into the house is noticeably cooler. The roofline is extended far enough that you can sit out on a monsoonal deluge night and totally bliss out with the frogs.
I'm used to the snakes that live in the palms there, but it's been known to freak out the occasional western visitor. They keep the frogs and lizards and critters down to a manageable level and are harmless if you don't annoy them. Even our cats left them alone.
Yeah! Love your mission. As well as your planned trip. How exciting for you and your daughter, on so many levels. Have an amazing time - although I think your chick flying the nest will be a bittersweet one