Sweet Mary

Now, if you had so many roses blooming in your garden that you were picking a huge bucket full each morning you would be thinking what to do with them all. After filling the house with vases of roses, giving rose bunches away to friends there is only one thing left to do and that is make rose potpourri. So, for weeks now I have had baskets of rose petals balanced on the shelves in the airing cupboard slowing drying out enough to go into the "master mix" with dried lavender and a few other pretty things from the garden. Here is a large bowl full below - being bagged up for sale on my next stall and through my FELT site ( left of this post, click on Felt - online).

Early evening with dinner cooking in the oven I went out to water the pots. We have a cute courtyard that has been created within the confines of the L shaped house and two outside rooms called "sleepouts" here in New Zealand. Its warm and sheltered and everything grows very well so I find I have to cut back on a regular basis to keep it looking nice. Watering done, I thought the pretty lavender against the wall could do with a trim so that I get another show in about 6 weeks time. I did mean to do this a couple of weeks ago so they would be flowering for Christmas but oh well... So pretty - it does seem a shame. Piled up on the table ready to be bunched up for drying in the airing cupboard alongside the rosemary and rose petals already there. I use the rosemary in my Sweet Mary "men only" sachets. My lavender goes into my Sweet Mary lavender hearts topped up with lavender that I buy in from a beautiful New Zealand lavender farm as I don't produce enough. Th...