#lilies

Six On Saturday: Midsummer madness

/ n20gardener / 12 Comments

It is that time when the borders spill on to the paths but even as the alchemilla mollis froths up over the edges I know that the garden is moving to a new phase. The roses have had their first sprint and now stop to draw breathe before the next round. New flowers are stepping up. Day lilies, hebes, shasta daisies and stocks are just beginning to open. The veg patch is being productive with French beans, strawberries and in a day or two the first courgettes. New potatoes are about to be dug up. Here’s six from this week’s garden

One

I can’t take a photo in the garden these days without geranium psilostemon crowding in. The star of this photo is the rose, one that is still pumping out the flowers, ‘Natasha Richardson’. It came to me as an allotment purchase from someone who no longer wanted it in their garden. It is superb! I’ve seen it described as a modern floribunda. I describe it as floriferous, beautifully scented and a winner.

Two

I almost missed this Turk’s head lily, ‘Lake Tulare’. It’s tucked away at the shady end of the garden behind an apple tree. It’s happy there so I won’t move it. It came from Beth Chatto’s garden – honestly purchased! I have to fight off lily beetles but it’s worth it.

Three

Ox eye daisies seed freely down in the veg patch and have to be kept under control. I always allow one or two clumps to flourish, for me and the pollinating insects.

Four

The veronicastrum have opened up this week and will give glorious height to the border. This is ‘Fascination’ which is prone to fasciation. Apparently not harmful but probably a genetic weakness.

Five

I am amazed by what I lose over winter and what survives. This is a white antirrhinum majus that came through a wet winter. I am also lucky enough to have another one that has self seeded itself. I grew these antirrhinums from seed a couple of years ago – the tiniest seeds I’ve ever sown.

Six

And finally how about this for a surprise? I have a hellebore in flower, with plenty of buds too. Another happy moment!

Wishing you all happy moments in your gardening spaces this weekend. Jim, our host, as always offers a varied SOS and hosts the links to other SOS gardening pages. I’ll be weeding out the willowherb which also steps up to flower at this time of year! And those roses need deadheading.

Six on Saturday: sunny thoughts

/ n20gardener / 12 Comments

It has been a week of blue skies here and although the winds are still cold I have finally braved putting some new purchases outside to toughen up. Joining them has been a tray of dahlia seedlings and some climbing beans. There have been plenty of jobs to do – soft fruit netted, penstemons cut back and a tray of zinnias sown. Going against habit, I have not sowed cosmos or sweet peas this year. But I am going back to having a cut flower bed prompted by some tempting seed that came free with a magazine. I have an ever growing collection of free seed that rarely get sown. This year I’m going to use a up few packets. Here is this week’s sunny spring six

One

Cherry blossom for the second year in the garden. Last year’s few blossoms came to naught but there is a much better display this year. I am training the tree against a fence and will have some important formative pruning to do this year. I’ll have to read up on that. The cherry is netted now, which might give a little protection from the inevitable late frost.

Two

The tulips in the long border are opening up. These were planted four years ago to create an avenue of tulips along the edge. This worked well for the first couple of years but then became patchy. Last November I topped up the planting but this year there are more empty spaces. Time for a new plan. The tulips in this combination are ‘Shirley’, ‘Barcelona’ – not quite showing in its true colour and ‘Violet Beauty’.

Three

These dainty tulips are ‘Doll’s Minuet’. I have planted all of the patio pots with these this year, putting five or six to a pot. Clearly I could have squeezed a few more in. Once they go over I should be moving them on to make way for the scented leaf pellies, which are looking a little worse for wear in the greenhouse. Hopefully some judicious cutting back and a feed will improve things.

Four

I was also brave enough to unfleece the evergreen agapanthus and was very surprised to find a flower bud. A little pale from lack of light and curled up into the fleece, but as above, a clear away of the dead leaves and some liquid seaweed feed will get things going again.

Five

The warmer weather brings out the nasties. The lilies were barely above the ground before I spotted a crowd of lily beetles on them. They were despatched and the lilies were drenched in a spray of Grazer C4, a spray I am trying out for the first time this year. It should reduce the damage caused.

Six

It wouldn’t be Spring with out bluebells would it? Despite my efforts to remove an extensive spread of them from a corner of the garden they are very resilient. Here they have found their way out from underneath an old garden roller. What can I say?

Mr P, host of this meme, has tulips and blossom too. Plus an interesting looking seedling – curious? Stop by and have a look. There’s plenty more to see if you go to the comments section. Happy reading and happy gardening.

Six On Saturday: Pinky, greeny, white flowers

/ n20gardener / 14 Comments

Around time of year I’m usually on my way to Suffolk with a stop off at the Beth Chatto gardens. The gardens are open now but the trip to Suffolk is off. Which is a shame because a week on the Suffolk coast next week might be a blessed relief. Temperatures here are forecast to make 30 degrees. At least the garden has had a very good soak and the water butts are almost replenished. Here’s this week’s six.

One

I’m opening with this is mallow, or malva moschata.  I didn’t realise just how pretty it was until I took the close up.  Beautiful and it is a regular self seeder that fills a corner of the garden quite happily doing its thing with very little attention.

Two

The hydrangeas which were gasping for a drop of the good stuff are very happy now.  This one is hydrangea macrophylla ‘Blushing Bride’.  Being one of the Endless Summer ranges apparently it can flower on new and old wood. Something I did not know before today.  

Three

The lilies that are in a pot by one of the pergola legs opened up last weekend. Just in time to provide some scented evening distractions.

Four

From Cornwall to France the Yuccas have been flowering and here I offer a flowering cordyline.  Which by coincidence came all the way from Cornwall some twenty years ago.   It has lived in a pot for all those years, with a belated move to a larger pot about three years ago.  It has never flowered before and I don’t know if it will again but here it is for now. 

Five

This clear white geranium is sanguineum ‘Album’ used in the northern corner of the garden and is finally in flower.  

Six

And just around the corner is this inherited geranium.  White with beautiful pink veining. It was quite a large clump so I divided it up and dotted it around the garden on the shadier side and it has done well in all locations.  I wonder if it could be ‘Kashmiri White’.  

I’m going to be making the most of this cool weekend to get some gardening jobs done.  The last stragglers of the annuals to be planted out.  There are tomatoes to be looked over – those side shoots are sprouting fast and the second sowing of french beans to be put in the ground.  Enjoy your gardening jobs and look in at  The Prop’s Place for his six  (I have fallen for sidalcea ‘Rosaly’) and all the links to other good gardening blogs.