Autumn garden chores completed
Every year since I
returned from working abroad, I have set myself the target of adding a good
dose of compost to the vegetable beds, sowing mustard (green manure), digging
it all in when the mustard had gown well, then sowing some more mustard and
letting it grow and then die over the winter.
Once upon a time I could manage this effortlessly. The last few years it has required a big
effort, and frequent stops. But little
by little, and a bit later than usual, I have completed the tasks. There
is nothing to match home-grown vegetables; this requires attention to the
soil. Not cost effective, no doubt, but
well worth it. Tomatoes, potatoes and
runner beans were this year some of the best ever.
Suffering from cardiac failure, however inaccurate the
term, leads to some soul searching. Will
I still be here next year? If still here, will I be fit enough to do all the
raising from seed, planting and tending etc?
Am I foolish to waste valuable time preparing veg beds that may not be
used next year? Who knows? I
prefer to be positive. However tiring, I
actually enjoy managing the beds. I
would be extremely sorry if in a fit of pessimism I left the veg beds untended,
and found next year I was fit enough to do the usual garden work, but the beds
were not properly prepared.
I am keeping reasonably fit, though wonky knees make
walking hard on some days. I am sticking
to bedroom exercises (Bedex) several times a week, and have now refined them:
Warm-up:
alternate knees up, then legs up and back, heel raising (single leg raising
much harder for me) and deep breathing.
Aim for at least 10 repetitions for each.
Main
exercises.
Sit/stands, slowly with control), wall press-ups, single arm curls with
dumbbells rather than bands, single arm dumbbell
presses (lying on back to reduce pressure on back) and the “dead bug” exercise
for the back (watch the elegant demo on U-tube), and more sit/stands. For each I aim for at least 10 to 20
repetitions
Cool
down:
marching and lots of stretches, especially hamstrings.
Unfortunately there are days when lethargy makes even
these exercises hard. I work on the
notion that even doing some of them is better than doing nothing.
