Getting the garden looking nice for summer with #HDYGG

There was a cool breeze this evening in Dubai, the temperature was still 32c, but the sun had set and the wind felt cooler, than it had done all day.

To get an idea of what it feels like to live in Dubai in the summer, stick the central heating on to 30c, as that's what we're battling to cool our villa down to, wrap yourself in cling film to represent the humidity, sit in front of the hot oven with the door open and aim a hairdryer at the back of your neck, then remember it's not the height of summer yet and it's going to be at least 10c hotter.

Anyway, I took advantage of the cooler air and decided to do some gardening, I've noticed quite a few triffid like weeds and the sand is covered in green ground cover and scraggly grass.

                 

        I opted to uproot the tall spiky plants as on closer inspection there was a lot of colour underneath their foliage that I wasn't getting to see. i may have made a mistake, it may have only been flowering due to the protection from the leaves from the sun, but I've nothing to lose, I wasn't benefitting from the underneath, so only time will tell.

                 

             What I found is 2 plants and a tray of bedding that I forgot all about, as well as a lot of shrubs, that are still in flower.

                

                        

                       

                     

And grass, more suited to the side of a motorway than a lawn, thick, strong, lanky grass, with roots that go down forever. Today's high was 35c, the rest of the week it's 38c+. It's under 30c at 5am when I get up for work in the morning, so I'm going to set the alarm 30 minutes early next week so I can finish tidying up, before it gets too hot to go out in.

   

                   

                  

The remains of the spiky plants will have to sit by garage door until the gardener comes on Saturday.

I say gardener, but what I mean is 'tidy upper' sweeper' and 'waterer of the sand'.

I'm in the UK in July and August and I'm really looking forward to the cooler weather there, despite it looking like it's going to be a hot summer by UK standards. I'm staying in Hertfordshire, Warwickshire, Yorkshire, Gloucestershire, South Wales, Somerset and Dorest, so if you're around and fancy visiting a stately home or public gardens with me do let me know. But first I have winter in South Africa and a week in Germany to see as much of the outdoors as possible, whilst catching up with friends.