cutting back the pots again

2026 · 08

An hour on the balcony this morning cutting things back before the weather turns. It's the melancholy job of the year and also a satisfying one. Trim the spent stems, tip the tired soil out, stack the empty pots.

The basil went mad again, the way it does. Dried a big bunch and there's still more than we'll get through. Tomatoes were better this year, though better just means a small bowlful instead of the three sad ones from last summer.

What worked: the herbs, and that I finally labelled everything so I actually know what I planted. What didn't: whatever the tall thing in the corner pot was. Grew like anything and then died the moment I turned my back. Never did find out its name.

Fewer pots next spring, better ones. I say it every year. This year I half mean it.