If you think “What I do in the lull” has echoes of “What We Do in the Shadows” (the 2014 Taika Waititi film) then you’re on the right page. 😀

Although in my case, it’s far more mundane! I believe I may have mentioned gardens from time to time here, particularly in regard to their being patient (like books). But not endlessly patient, so the writing lull coinciding with autumn (Southern Hemisphere!) is a great time for maintenance as the garden enters it’s own winter lull.

There’s still a few poppies showing their bravura faces.

One thing gardeners in this part of NZ love to do is mulch with peastraw, which both suppresses weeds, helps retain moisture over the summer months, and nourishes the soil as it eventually breaks down. So I have spent the last few days preparing the ground then laying down the peastraw, which definitely makes a change of scene from the writing desk.

Kowhai* (r) meets weeping birch (left) with new peastraw underfoot

The area I was working in today was among my “dreamy gloomy friendly trees”, hence the photos to show you both the peastraw phenomenon, and the trees.

The peastraw laying was a w-i-p at this stage, but I love the multistemmed, structural shape of the lancewood (Psuedopanax sabre.)

* Kowhai, like the Pseudopanax (aka Houpara), is a NZ native shrub/small tree. It's a forest fringe 
species, with gold, bell-shaped flowers in the spring.