The Little Red Wheelbarrow

I have potted up a small succulent garden in the little red wheelbarrow my once-small boy would push happily around full of mulch, soil, weeds and the occasional worm. The memory of him, hands in his tiny gardening gloves, pushing his little barrow around our lawn and from garden bed to garden bed, "helping", warms my heart so. Spending time outside together, in our garden, was a favourite part of our days at home together.

 A succulent garden in a child's wheelbarrow.

As it holds such lovely memories, I kept his little red barrow. I have grown flowers in it previously but recently decided I wanted to make a little feature of it, up in the new garden bed we've been creating where our son's old sandpit used to be. So, with extra drainage holes drilled into the bottom, some potting mix with a little leftover sandpit sand mixed in, and some small succulents gifted to me by a good friend, I planted it up.

Gifted succulents potted up  in the wheelbarrow.

One of the succulents has a pretty flower spike. I love the red in the buds as it matches the red of the wheelbarrow. A couple of the other succulents have tinges of red and pink too which I think, once they grow and fill up the space, will look lovely with the fire-engine red of the wheelbarrow.

Flower buds on one of the succulents.

While he has apparently "lost" his enthusiasm for gardening, in favour of hitting cricket balls and kicking footballs, I still point out things of interest in the garden to my boy. A certain plant flowering or going to seed, the scent of an open bud or a herb, a bird splashing in the birdbath or another creature making its home here. While he may not push his little red wheelbarrow anymore, I know the time I spent with him in the garden planted much within him. 

A little red wheelbarrow that holds succulents as well as memories. I am very glad I kept it and that I will see it often in the garden. 

What memories have you got planted in your garden?

Meg