gardening

Six On Saturday: Gone missing

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Definitely the sun has gone missing and one or two other things. I read a post on Twitter(?) about the amount of plants that gardeners lose over the years. I lost so many last Winter. I can’t see any sign of a monarda I added to the garden last year, all this year’s annuals failed to thrive and don’t get me started on the plants I lose to slugs and snails. It is part of a gardener’s life. I don’t worry it about it too much now. I walked the garden this morning, braving the rain, and laughed out loud when I saw that every single lettuce planted out two weeks ago had disappeared. On my journey round I collected twelve fat slugs which were served as breakfast to the toads in the compost heap. I hope they get to them before the slugs escape. Here’s six things that were found.

One

Let’s start with some brightness. Rudbeckia ‘Goldsturm’. I think the slugs did have a nibble at the new shoots earlier in the year but ‘Goldsturm’ fought back and shines in the gloom. This does spread very happily and I have given many a pot to friends.

Two

More cheer in the shape of shasta daisies. These were grown from seed many years back. Some have been flattened down by the rain but this group, in the shadow of an apple tree, have remained upright – so far.

Three

Veronicastrum virginicum ‘Album’ also manage to shine out through the low light. I’ve had these for about five years and it’s only now that they seem to have settled into a good strong clump. The RHS does indicate that it takes five years to reach ultimate height and I can’t argue, well perhaps a little. I don’t think they’ve made it to 1.2m yet!

Four

New to the garden last year to replace a blighted box shrub, this hydrangea ‘Limelight’ isn’t doing too badly. It’s in the shadow of a very large and very old rhododendron so it has had to compete. This year’s rain will have helped it get its roots down.

Five

These kniphofia nearly went missing, one of the early spikes was felled half way up the stem by the munching menaces. I moved one clump last year and it doesn’t seem to have enjoyed it as so far there have been no flowers.

Six

I am considering abandoning all hope here. This is/was hosta ‘Thomas Hogg’. From time to time I have wondered if it was the birds or the slugs who were shredding the leaves. This morning the culprits were caught with their mouths full. Off to the compost heap they went. Maybe it is time for the hosta to be relocated to a pot.

Losses, yes. Gains, yes: from the many self seeders, from plants shared by friends and from new purchases that settle in and last for years. On balance I will keep gardening. It’s a wash out this weekend but I’ll be back out there as soon as possible. Jim, host of the links for this SOS posting meme, continues to show great variety from his garden. Join him and the others for a cornucopia of gardening news.

Six on Saturday: Rethinking yet again

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Another year in this garden has been chalked up and another area of the garden has come under scrutiny. After some painful picking of the gooseberries a decision was reached. The netting and un-netting, the pruning, the gooseberry sawfly and the thorny harvesting which often results in more gooseberries than we need, has led to the decision to let the gooseberries go. That was decision one. Decision two was not to replace the greenhouse that was destroyed in a storm last winter. I was all set to invest in a shiny new one but my neighbour’s tree is still standing and the thought of a second storm hurling down branches on a new greenhouse was too painful to bear. I have one smaller greenhouse that serves well enough for seed growing and chilis. I am moving on and am now looking at re-organising the veg and fruit plot at the back of the garden. More to come, in the meantime here is six from the garden this week.

One

Last week I showed a echinacea ‘White Swan’ that had reverted to a purple form. Here is another patch of ‘White Swan’ also being invaded by a purple form. How interesting.

Two

This is my attempt to show the very delicate thalictrum delavayi which was grown from seed a few years ago. I have about three plants and they are just beginning to get to a good size in the garden. I hope you can spot it in amongst everything else.

Three

The apple crop is looking good this year. The June drop seems to have come in July, no doubt the blustery winds have helped with the thinning.

Four

The erigeron karvinskianus really suffered over the cold winter but it is tenacious here and those that held on have got going again and are reclaiming their territory.

Five

This photo of ‘James Galway’ climbing rose also sums up the weather this week. There’s not been much sunshine and the skies have been grey most of the week.

Six

I am so undecided about this one. It’s persicaria polymorpha. Billed as upright stems and suitable for semi-shade, I used it at the back of the garden in the hope of shielding the neighbour’s fence. It should reach two metres. This is the second year and it’s not made that height yet and so far it is being a little floppy. Less so this year though. I will give it another year, patience is not my strong point!

Over to Jim’s garden to see what he has on offer this weekend. Wishing you all a good gardening time whenever you can manage to get out there!

Six On Saturday: Cool, Cool Summer

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To paraphrase an old song, the weather in July has been cool. Even with some heavy rain recently the garden is on the dryish side but the water butts are full once again. I have managed to catch up on a few jobs: the feeding of the roses has begun and I have spent a great deal of time weeding out the oxalis that has colonised the old greenhouse patch. Sadly no tomatoes this year but the cucumbers are fruiting and I have planted out a late sowing of lettuces as I cleared the oxalis (and slugs). Here’s six from the garden this week.

One

The grapevine has had a belated trim back. There are some good sized grapes this year but I don’t hold out much hope for edible fruit. They usually split, rot or are eaten by birds and wasps. I inherited it and it’s real purpose is to shade the pergola and dining table which it does very well.

Two

This var. unk. hydrangea by the steps is also doing well this year. There’s not too much in the way of scorched flowers and there has been enough rain. It’s turning a soft shade of pink now.

Three

This is echinacea ‘White Swan’. “Oh no it isn’t” you will say. “Oh yes it is” I will say. We could both be right. I definitely sowed seeds of ‘White Swan’. This is definitely not white. I read that echinacea often reverts back to the purple form so I guess this is what has happened here. There should be another opening up soon, it will be interesting to see what appears.

Four

The deciduous agapanthus in the borders are in flower now. This one is ‘Midnight Blue’ a lovely dark form.

Five

About a month ago a large Box shrub was taken out, the struggle with the dreaded caterpillar was not worth continuing. I invested heavily in a mature hibiscus syriacus Red Heart and last week it was planted in the space. A sunny spot against the wall. I hope it gets its feet down quickly and goes from strength to strength. There are flower buds so I will revisit soon.

Six

This is an attempt to show the veronicastrum virginicum. I was given these down a chain of gardeners and I don’t know the variety but of late there have been a few SOS sightings of v. ‘Fascination’. I wonder if this could be the same? I’ve had them for a couple of years now and they are just beginning to fill their space and reach a good height.

I’m hoping to feed a few more roses begore the rain sets in. Then I might, dare I say it, look at the bulb catalogues! There’s a trip to Jim’s glorious garden to be made, (vine weevils not withstanding) where all the links to SOS posts will appear through the day. Enjoy your gardening weekend.

Six On Saturday: A wet and windy weekend

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Unusually for me I am writing this on a Friday. The forecast for Saturday is heavy rain and gusting winds. Today it is just rain all day. It has been a showery week and you would think the garden would be well lubricated by now. But the late planting out of dahlias in pots revealed dry soil just an inch down. Of course a wet top surface is perfect for the slugs and snails and sure enough by the next day the new shoots of the over wintered dahlia I spotted last week and one of the newly planted dahlias had been munched. Hopefully the potted dahlias are strong enough to push on. Here’s six from a gloomy garden.

One

This is ‘Etoile Violette’, a viticella clematis that has been flowering for weeks. It is putting the neighbouring trachelospermum jasminoides to shame. I though it would be a good combination if they entwined but so far the TJ is being a little weedy!

Two

This is an early arrival on the anemone front. But I seem to remember they came early last year too. This is ‘September Charm’, so well in advance of expectations. They have bulked up well this year after a worrying year when I thought they had a disease of some kind.

Three

I admired a white form of geranium phaeum being shared on twitter. I succumbed and bought some, really thinking it was too late in the season and I would have to wait for next year for flowers but rather generously they have put out one or two new blooms. It’s in the northish facing border but there is a moment of morning and afternoon sun. I hope it does well.

Four

I didn’t have my secateurs to hand when I took this photo so I share spent blooms and new blooms of the red rose ‘Tess of the D’Urbervilles’. It’s a climber and I was also lacking string to tie in a few wayward stems. Must be better prepared!

Five

Another inherited plant that gets by without too much attention. The magenta phlox was thinned out last year and divisions added around the garden. They have all done well. Easy peasy plant! In the background is the grass Miscanthus sinensis ‘Silberfeder’. Second year in the garden and beginning to clump up quite nicely. Also in the background, gooseberries which need picking!

Six

A survivor! This hebe – inherited and unknown – is on it’s second move in three years. I think this will be its forever home. It coped with the move and the cold winter. The bees appreciate it and I hope it will be happy here.

I’m not sure what I’ve been up to lately but I have neglected my SOS reading duties. I’ve also neglected to give the roses their mid season feed. Last weekend the blackcurrants were picked and some of those gooseberries. The summer raspberries really didn’t have enough watering to do well this year but with the current forecast I’m more hopeful for the autumn variety. Sometimes the garden is neglected a little but it pulls through. Jim, the SOS host, had an abundance of blackcurrants last weekend, stop by and see what’s happening at Garden Ruminations this week. There’s always a surprise.

Six On Saturday: Those flowers keep coming

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Spoilt for choice this week. Those second half of summer flowers are coming through and a handsome downpour of rain on Tuesday perked everything up. Here’s my six for this week.

One

This is a plant I never would have chosen to add to the garden. It graces the front garden under a bay window and its intense blue really is quite an eye catcher. I still can’t decide if I like it but it is an inheritance I won’t be rejecting. Lacecap hydrangea btw!

Two

This is a hydrangea I did choose for the garden. It is hydrangea macrophylla ‘Blushing Bride’. I’ve looked this one up and I find that it is that it is part of the Endless Summer range and can flower on old and new wood. Thereby giving flowers from June to October. Well I never!

Three

Hurrah. A Winter survivor. Some penstemons were lost but this is a very healthy looking specimen. If I remember rightly it is ‘Plum Jerkum’ but please correct me if I’m wrong.

Four

I think it is obligatory at this time of year to show a pollen soaked bee in a hollyhock flower. I am happy to oblige.

Five

Here’s my collection of allium sphaerocephalon. Unspellable, unpronounceable and previously a little underwhelming. This year, after about four years in the ground, they have bulked up and their stems can now happily support the flower head. I’ve looked these up as well and belatedly see that they could look good against a backdrop of ornamental grasses. Here they work with gaura and day lilies. Not too bad.

Six

Speaking of day lilies, here is my only other variety. ‘Golden Chimes’ is its name, it’s been in the garden a few years now and about every other year it is divided and spread around a little more.

I’ve had to make a few decisions this week. Gone for the aging choisya, gone for two skimmias and gone for a euphorbia mellifera that I thought would pull through. One border looks a little thin now! On the plus side I spotted new growth from some dahlia tubers left in the ground and a salvia microphylla, aka Blackcurrant sage, has also woken up. I’m looking forward to a few more showers today to keep the hydrangeas happy. I hope the gardening space provides happiness for you this weekend too. Jim, our host, has a fabulous selection to share. Stop by for a visit and drop in on the other SOS bloggers for more gardening delights.

Six On Saturday: July and jobs to be done

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July is here. It’s a busy time in the garden as the May and June flowers need tidying. The roses have had a good year and I need to catch up on the deadheading. There hasn’t been much rain and my watering has been on the light side. I am trying to train the garden to get by with less. This does mean smaller flowers but on the whole things are managing. It’s about time I dug up some potatoes to see how they have got on. I can already see that the onions are small but the basil and chilies are flourishing. Here’s six from this morning’s walk round.

One

I was late putting in my summer pots, being late is the story of this year. This week saw the first flower on some geraniums I bought as plug plants at the beginning of June. I hope I can overwinter these.

Two

I grow a few varieties of achillea and each year seem to lose them over winter. I thought it was the weather but this year I spotted the snails munching the new shoots. With some extra vigilance I think I have managed to keep two varieties this year. This one is ‘New Vintage White’. It’s a low grower, around 35cms. It is surrounded by self seeded verbena bonariensis, which has grown very tall. It’s a very odd combination which would work much better if they intermingled.

Three

The salvia ‘Nachtvlinder’ was the only salvia that overwintered. There was plenty of brown at the beginning of the year but it was cut back to promising shoots and it did pull through. This is the third attempt to get this in focus and I give up!

Four

I inherited a clematis when I moved here. It was on its last legs then but after freeing it from bindweed and giving it some attention it gained strength. This year it is not so lush. There are some beautiful flowers but it is in need of some watering and feeding. Adds to long list of jobs to do!

Five

The very tall verbena bonariensis deserves a photo. They self seed happily here but never quite where I would like them to be.

Six

The first of the day lilies has opened. I do enjoy them but these ones are so prone to hemerocallis gall midge that I sometimes wonder about digging them up. The affected buds need to be picked off. Adds to long list of jobs to do!

The weather is kinder to weekend gardeners this week. Cooler temperatures will see me out and about working through the borders. I hope you are able to enjoy your gardening spaces this weekend. We all need to switch off and immerse ourselves in the beauty of flowers every now and then! This week Jim, our host, is down on the allotment. Stop by and take a look.

Six On Saturday: June madness

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The garden has had a week of neglect. No watering from me and one downpour from the heavens. It is surviving. Many things are in overdrive, thriving in the heat and enjoying being left to their own devices. Here’s six for this week.

One

This just about sums it up. Lychnis coronaria with ‘Brookside’ geraniums and astrantia major. It is madness but I love it.

Two

The madness has its downsides. The path is impassable as geraniums psilostemon and ‘Brookside’ and the alchemilla mollis reach out to join together. The lawn mower shall not pass is the message.

Three

On the other side, in a shadier space, it is the froth of the grass melica altisssima ‘Alba’ combining with geranium sanguineum ‘Album’ that creates a haze of green and white.

Four

In a new planting the purple spires of salvia nemorosa ‘Caradonna’ is beginning to work together with gaura lindheimeri. This is the first year in the garden for these two together. I have lost gaura overwinter before but I am hoping this sunnier spot will suit them better.

Five

I will definitely be coming back the agapanthus again. This the first flower on the evergreen agapanthus. They grow in pots and are wrapped in fleece over the winter. One pot was lost. One has just about pulled through and the other three are pushing up an encouraging number of flower spikes.

Six

The lavender is just on the verge of bursting forth. The bees will have something to move on to from the madness of the borders to this space on the patio. It’s all happening out there.

It is going to be a very hot weekend here. I will not be gardening in it! But I will enjoy the mid summer madness. I will not give a single thought to the fact that the days begin to get shorter now. Oh no, there is still so much to appreciate. I encourage you to take a look at more SOS gardens by visiting Jim’s place where all the links to other SOS blogs are posted each week. Of course you will also get to enjoy Jim’s wise words.

Six on Saturday: Whose garden is it?

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June is the month, that seven years ago, I took over this garden. The previous owner had loved his soft fruit and fruit trees but much of the rest of the garden had gone to weeds. That family was the second family to garden here. There is evidence in archived local newspapers that the first owner also loved his soft fruits and had won prizes for raspberries. There has been over 100 years of gardening here and I am gradually leaving my mark. I have come to appreciate that I share this garden with the past, with the numerous slugs and snails, with the foxes and cats and with the birds and insects. I share it with my neighbours too. Sometimes they have no choice as the clematis armandii knows no bounds. I also get to share theirs. Their roses peek over the fence. The hawthorn and ceanothus in Spring take my eye to their gardens and in June I enjoy a superb display of flowers from a neighbouring elder tree. Seven years of this garden has passed by so quickly and there is so much more to do. Here’s six for this week.

One

This is the creature that prompted this little outburst. A red admiral butterfly on a hosta. The hosta is in a pot at the end of garden. At this time of year it basks in the evening sun and this a favourite end of day spot for a visit. Clearly the butterfly also agrees but it is not so keen on sharing and each evening it dive bombs us in an effort to persuade us to leave this little corner. The butterfly always wins. This is the third year of this interesting behaviour.

Two

A combination of persicaria bistorta ‘Superba’ and alchemilla mollis. This has probably been in the garden for about five years. The persicaria has spread a little but not too aggressively.

Three

The suns rays shining through the lovely geranium ‘Johnson’s Blue’. This is a garden share from an aunt and has been divided and lifted many times. It has been with me for, and it seems incredible to say this, about twenty years, joining us in each house move.

Four

The roses are exuberant at the moment. This is ‘Darcy Bussell’, great colour and scent.

Five

And this is ‘Jaqueline du ‘Pré’. Looking at its very best in this photo.

Six

Lastly, the very rampant geranium ‘Brookside’ with the rose ‘Gertrude Jekyll’. One of the previous residents of this house was a Gertrude so I hope this meets her approval.

The Six On Saturday meme is all about sharing gardens. Our host is Jim of Garden Ruminations and each week he shares the links to the posts of other SOS gardeners. All are welcome to stop by to have a look and to take part. It’s going to be very hot this weekend, I will briefly mention the lack of rain and the diminishing water storage. But let us enjoy what we can – it is Summer.

Six On Saturday: It’s all happening here

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Yes, the garden is hotting up. Some good things and some bad things. In the interests of full disclosure before we get to the good I will share the bad. The lily beetles are having fun amongst the martagon lilies. At least six of them. Regular inspections will be required. My last box shrub is wriggling with box moth caterpillars and I am going to call it day. I’ve had enough spraying. If it’s not meant to be I will move on. It’s a blob anyway and has a top spot against a sunny wall. Perhaps a hibiscus for a replacement. There’s more bad. Two skimmia have yellowing, progressing to dead leaves. Perhaps their location is just too dry for them. They can go too. The last of the bad news is the tomato plants look awful. There is no spacious greenhouse for them to move to this year and frankly I think it’s barely worth planting them outside at all. It could be a problem with over-watering and/or nutrient deficiency. I’ve given them a dilute dose of tomato feed and I will plant them out this weekend. I switched brands of peat free compost this year and I have not had much success. This one seems to dry out at the surface, shrink back from the sides but still manage to be wet at the bottom of the pots. It was not a combination I handled successfully. I’ll go back to the previous brand in future. That’s cleared the air. On with six good things.

One

I seem to be having a good year with allium ‘Mount Everest’. I would say that bulbs that I had given up on seem to have re-emerged and those that are in the shadier end of the garden are reaching heights that justify their name. I like them and so do the bees.

Two

The astrantias are also doing well. This started off as ‘Roma’ but I think a little hybridisation has occurred as this year’s colour doesn’t seem, to my memory, what is was last year. I don’t mind this at all.

Three

This is my garden favourite this week, so much so that I’m sharing two photos. The first is the view of the arch from the veg plot back into the garden. The rose is ‘Mad Alf’, Madame Alfred Carriere. Mad because the flowers are held on such long stems and she climbs vigorously. A winner.

Four

This is the view of the arch from the other side, where clematis montana Wilsonii is flowering in profusion. I think it is vanilla scented but it could be slightly chocolatey. Whatever, it is a dream to walk through and I find myself doing this several times a day. There is a bench nearby and it is such a pleasure to sit their of an evening and ‘feel’ the scent drift over. Top marks.

Five

Having spent much time, along with many others, moaning about the Winter and Spring weather, I am now wondering if, in fact, it has been just what the garden needed. So many plants seem to be doing really well this year. In truth I’m a little concerned that this geranium ‘Brookside’ will go on to swamp its neighbours. I’ll update you soon.

Six

Lastly the first ‘Wisley’ rose has opened up. The bush is full of buds and it will be a splendid sight when they all get going.

It’s a long weekend in the UK and the weather looks set fair. I will be sitting on that bench and enjoying the changing scenery. I hope you too will be able to find some moments to enjoy this weekend. Jim, our host, shares the SOS links and this week looks at Cacti. Stop by and enjoy. Happy gardening everyone.

Six On Saturday: Teetering on the edge

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Oh, the garden is so nearly at lift off time. There has been some sunshine and even on a cloudier day the temperatures are climbing. I’m not worrying about poor germination this week as I can see that the borders are filling up nicely. The roses are just bursting with buds and the grasses are beginning to come through again. There seems to be an amazing number of self-seeders this year and I don’t mean those never-ending sycamores. The alchemilla mollis is doing rather too well. The astrantias, aquilegias and geranium psilostemon are definitely settling in and I even have a few seedlings of tellima grandiflora which I will treasure. Here’s this week’s six:

One

There are some plants I look forward every year and these siberian irises are probably top of the list. The first ones opened this week. I just love the colour of the flower and the promise of the buds. I was very happy to see these again.

Two

This is luzula nivea, a new plant to the garden in 2022 as part of a revamp of a dry shady border. So far, it hasn’t self seeded but it does have that attribute. I like it and so a few extra clumps wouldn’t go amiss.

Three

It’s always lovely to see the first strawberry flowers. I threw out all the old strawberry plants last year, they were inherited and so I have no idea how old they were but they were not fruiting well. Here’s hoping the new ones will do better.

Four

These are bought in aquilegias, ‘Alba’ to be precise. I collected seed last year and forgot to sow it! These are also in a dry shady border and seem to be coping quite well. I need a few more to fill out the space, in the meantime I added in some foxgloves. Rookie error – they provide a perfect home for the slugs who then shred the hosta ‘Thomas Hogg’. The foxgloves will go once they have flowered.

Five

The ubiquitous ‘Purple Sensation’ has self-seeded but there’s a long way to go before those bulbs are big enough to flower. I’m impatient so I will be buying in more bulbs in the Autumn. A cheerful plant and so easy!

Six

Lastly, can you believe it. The dead and bedraggled scented leaf pelargoniums have sprung back to life. These have been with me for several years and all have survived. Two new ones I bought last year were not so fortunate. So there I was, thinking I could add some new combinations to the summer pots but the pellies have other ideas. I’m just wondering whose garden it is!

Jim at Garden Ruminations is our not so new host. Please stop by to visit his wonderful garden and see the links to other SOS posts. I am feeling more and more confident about wishing everyone a Happy Gardening weekend. There is much to be done and much to enjoy.