I can't really explain it

I didn't intend to take such a long break from writing about my garden. I can't quite put my finger on what has kept me away - life I guess. There was the hospitalisation of my husband, the weeks of recuperating, the 10th birthday of my son, the school productions for Kindergarden (Peter Rabbit show) and Grade 3-6 show (Rocky Monster show), the visit to Berry to catch up with family, the visits of family from Melbourne, the school fete....anyway, just life.

I think the break has also been about the, what is the word, nothing seems right, despair? panic? dismay? of the long, dry spring. We knew the Il Nino was over and when it ends we are meant to get a wet Winter. And Winter wasn't too bad, but the four months July, August, September, October have been very dry. The dams, which hold the water supply for Canberra, are lower going into spring/summer this year than they were last year.

There was a time when I really was expecting stage 4 (no outside watering) to be called. Under this pressure, I found it hard to summon up the courage to plant out my garden for spring. Slowly though I've been coming around. ACTEW have said they think we can get through summer if we are all moderate with our watering and we manage to live within our stage 3 restrictions. They are currently projecting stage 4 in March 2008. If they can hold off till then I can certainly harvest a summer crop under stage 3. So....relax Melissa...go forward. Plant those plants, weed those beds, let nature do it's job. Breed and multiply. Worrying wont make the rains come and refusing to plant a vegetable garden out of fear that they will all wither and die in the drought is no solution.

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