A Good Year For Hydrangeas

Dave Suters' Hydie

Doug Twaits' Hydies

The plentiful rain this last spring and early summer has revitalized our hydrangeas. Those in the lower photo were struck for me by my friend Doug Twaits, I would say about fifteen years ago, maybe more. He took some hardwood cuttings in winter and planted them in a row in his vegie garden then dug them up and gave them to me in the spring. I Potted them and later planted them in semi shade under our eucalyptus and they did very well for a few years as I manured, pruned and watered them.

Along came our prolonged drought and after several years of struggle to keep the water up it all became too difficult. Water restrictions meant I was limited to a small water tank on the shed so I let them go. As conditions get drier the eucies get more voracious, massing roots wherever you water, and I was wasting my time, particularly as the hydies did not produce a financial return to speak of. Amazingly most survived the most extreme conditions and neglect although some died and others are stunted as they hardly had energy to return.

But hey presto as the photo shows we have a show this year. Robbie weeded them. They were full of wire grass and blackberry and the pokers were taking over. If there's a heaven Doug would have made the cut I reckon and if those in heaven can see back here I'm sure Doug would be pleased as punch. Doug died in a car accident in 2002 I think, aged 86. He was an Australian champion wrestler in the late1930'sand missed Olympic selection as the 1940 games were cancelled. He was captured on Crete by the Germans and spent the rest of the war in Stalag 83 in Germany. He had an interesting life post war including learning the building trade and building houses for the country club estate in Emerald, pig farmer, nurseryman, gold mine manager in New Guinea, nurseryman again, and naturalist bird expert writing for the Trader in his retirement. We kept bees togther at his place for a few years before he died.

The other hydie, top photo, we bought at a fete in Eaglehawk about twenty years ago. We went to a fair at which our friend Dave Suters, whom I visited in Albury on Boxing Day, was playing and marching in his Bendigo Pipe Band. We have always called it Dave's Hydrangea. It too has struggled through the drought but has the advantage of being more in a garden than bush setting.

My friend Grace Delarue offered me a big old Hydie last winter. I'd picked flowers from it for years, it's a particularly good one. Her gardener Glen Binstead dug around it and we put a rope round the base and pulled it out with his Ford station wagon. It has done well with all the rain and I took numerous cuttings and planted them strategically on the other side of our house, the west side but where they get some tree shade. Most of them have grown but I've had to water them through a few dry weeks which isn't too bad as we have water tanks now that have been full nearly all this summer. It rained over 20ml this afternoon again topping them up.

On a not so happy note, I hurt my back on Jan 4 the day after my last post. I was cutting long grass in our steep paddock with a brushcutter when I stepped backwards into a wombat hole giving my back severe jarring. That night it went WHANG as I got out of the lounge chair and the next day it was all downhill till I was virtually unable to walk, with agonizing spasms. Six days later I resumed my morning walk with great discomfort, this morning, and I'm still in quite a bit of pain with the back locking up on me intermittently with the accompanying spasm agony. Needless to say I haven't been able to work, exascerbating my predicament. I should have extracted honey last weekend but no way could I and I'm praying I'll be able to next weekend. The honey on the bees is ground flora which candies quickly, and if it candies in the combs before I extract well it's good night nurse for this year as it won't come out and I have no more combs for any more honey which may be coming as there's a bit of messmate blossom starting.

A crook back is a disaster in my particular circumstances. I have a lot of beech to pick for orders tomorrow. Jod has covered for me this last week, picking all the easier stuff. I'm hoping to have made a miraculous recovery by tomorrow. Jod can't pick the higher harder stuff, that has always been my task. It's not an easy life for self employed farmer/gardeners. I think of my retired in laws with their first div tattslotto sized super payouts with some mirth, particularly when I hear them whingeing about this or that, but it does not help me and I don't want the tone of this blog to descend into miserable self pity so shut up Carey and go to bed. Goodnight.

PS. I'm enjoying War and Peace although I'm only up to about page 400 of 1400.