#tulips

Six On Saturday: Almost all tulips

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It seems that when I write these SOS posts the mornings are chill and grey. The tulips are persuading me that things are better than I think so all praise to the tulip today. Here’s my six with two non-tulips for a little variety.

One

The second wave of tulips has begun, so I go back to re-visit the early flowering ‘World Friendship’ which is now joined by a white form, forgive me but I can’t remember if these are ‘White Triumphator or ‘Nicolas Heyek’. It’s one or the other!

Two

These tulips grow at the slightly shadier end of the long border where the white ‘Purissima’ flourish. This is a collection of ‘Shirley’, ‘Queen of Night’, ‘Violet Beauty’ and ‘Barcelona’. ‘Queen of Night’ is a late flower, so these have yet to arrive.

Three

Now for a sudden burst of sunshine. I took this photo earlier in the week when the light was shining through these, making them glow like boiled sweets. These are my miscellaneous collection of tulips bulbs that came as a free add on with another bulb order. They have proved to be wonderful performers. I have no idea what they are!

Four

Back to a shadier part of the garden, well in fact the veg plot. I planted the edge of path with a Sarah Raven mix of ‘Mariette’ (pink lily shaped), ‘Lasting Love’ (triumph, pinky red), ‘Ballerina’ (Lily orange) and ‘Sarah Raven’ (Crimson, lily flowered). Only the last two have opened up so far.

Five

So goodbye to the tulips for now and back to fritillaries. This beautiful white one has appeared and looks magnificent. The self seeded regular fritillaries are appearing against a wall, a dry and sunny spot. This white one is a mystery as I haven’t planted a white variety so maybe the birds have been generous again?

Six

Another mystery is the appearance of this peony. Not something that I planted but a peony it definitely is and wonder of wonders is has a flower bud. This part of the garden was an overgrown bed of weeds when I arrived so possibly the peony has lain dormant for several years and has only now decided that conditions are favourable for flowering. I’m very grateful!

Slow progress is being made with the seeds sown in the greenhouse. Just one or two germinations from the cosmos but there are some encouraging signs of digitalis lutea making progress. I am pulling up sycamore seedlings every single day. Next weeks sees the great dig out begin: gone for the cistus, pittosporum and I think too, a large choysia. Great opportunities for new schemes. Watch this space! Another space to watch is Jim’s Garden Ruminations, wise gardening words and all the SOS links. Happy gardening.

Six On Saturday: Mid April, motoring along gently

/ n20gardener / 15 Comments

First things first. Apologies. What with one thing and the other I did not get round to reading many SOS posts last week. I plan to do better this week. I did manage to be out in the garden for some of the fine weather and it was encouraging to see more and more plants making progress. The dead looking fuchsias are just showing signs of new growth from the base and more perennials are pushing through. This week the tulips took a bashing as the garden caught the edge of storm Noa on Wednesday and there have been cold winds and April showers galore. I cut back one of the winter damaged euphorbia melifera to the ground. Having spotted some very weak new growth on the second euphorbia I decided to leave the roots of both in the ground for a few more weeks to see if there is any real chance of recovery. The cistus does look very dead and I am readying myself to deal with that in the next week or two. Happily, there’s enough in the garden to keep the spirits up. Here’s this week’s six.

One

Undaunted by the chilly winds, more and more tulips are opening up. These are ‘Negrita’, soon to by joined by ‘Spring Green’ and possibly some ‘Ronaldo’ but I did dig a few of those up as I moved things around over Winter. Time will tell.

Two

I really should have featured these last week, as they are a little past their best this week. These are the very pleasing flowers of epimedium x versicolor Sulpehurerum together with a hart’s tongue fern. I planted these up in a container to fill a shady corner and although the epimedium may need to be moved on as it establishing, so far the results are positive.

Three

Note to self: Must add some more of these to the garden. I hear that leucojum ‘Gravetye Giant’ likes it wet so here is one plant that must be enjoying the weather.

Four

The bleeding heart has made a another appearance in the garden. I worried for this as in its first year it was attacked by slugs and then unwittingly dug up by me as I relocated something else. I hope it has a good year this year and really gets its roots into the soil.

Five

I may have to concede defeat on the pittosporum ‘Nanum’. It has lost more and more leaf and the stems seem to snap more than bend. It is looks even more dead now, backed as it is, by the striking green of the new growth of melica altissima ‘Alba’. The melica is clearly indestructible, it grows in a cold dark border and happily self seeds. The border may be just too cold for the pittosporum. I’m giving it a few more weeks to see if some steady warmth can help it into growth.

Six

Iberis sempervirens. A solid plant for falling over the edge of walls. It looked a little scruffy after winter but it is in its stride again and brightened up this gloomy morning. I took a few cuttings when I was tidying it up and now have two more young plants to fit along the edges of this wall.

On the seedling front, I have germination from the Marigolds but everything else in the greenhouse is being a little reluctant to burst forth. Inside on the kitchen windowsill, the chillis continue to put on growth and have just been joined by some basil, tomato and cucumber seedlings. I planted out the ‘Charlotte’ second earlies and the onions in modules in the greenhouse are just about sending up shoots. It’s a cold unheated greenhouse so I have to be patient. Yes, a little more warmth would be welcome but I’m pleased to see the garden filling up again in spite of the weather. I’m off to Jim’s Cornish garden now to see what’s putting in an appearance this week and also to improve on my reading statistics from last week’s effort. Happy gardening to you all.

Six On Saturday: That’s more like it

/ n20gardener / 9 Comments

Just a few days of sunshine in amongst the cold winds and hail has pushed the garden forward once again. Now I feel that there is momentum. Pillows of new growth from the perennials are appearing everywhere and the birds are in full voice. The clematis armandii continues to do the heavy lifting but there is more and more to enjoy. Here’s this week’s six.

One

More tulips have opened up. ‘World Friendship’ mixes in the thin border with narcissus ‘Thalia’. I haven’t topped up the tulips for maybe two years now. There are just about enough to make a reasonable display but I have made a note for July to think about ordering some more. This week for the first time ever I noticed that aphids had taken a fancy to the tulips. They were swiftly despatched.

Two

The second narcissus ‘Actaea’ poeticus has opened. The first one presumably did get to open, but the slugs got there before me. These are sweetly scented, I haven’t noticed it yet but once a few more have opened I will pay them a little more attention. These are scheduled to arrive in late April so I am pleased to see them having a go at flowering now.

Three

I did mention last week that the scilla had opened up, but I lied! These are not scilla at all. They are ipheion uniflorum aka the spring starflower. I remember that I was trying to decide between the two, and eventually chose the ipheion. I can’t remember what the deciding factors were but I’m happy with them anyway.

Four

The blue anemone blanda were open several weeks ago, but in the last week the white ones have got into their stride. They were soaking up yesterday’s sunshine, providing a sparkling spot of white in the border. Acknowledgements also due to the photo bombing celandine!

Five

There are signs of growth even in the colder shadier parts of the garden. I planted a few erythroniums last year and I think they have all survived the winter. Now they have to survive the slugs. These are erythronium californicum ‘White Beauty’. They are billed as ideal for a north facing border and shadier spots so I am hoping they will settle in and in due course make some cheerful clumps of nodding flowers.

Six

The very first of the plum blossom appeared this week. All on the lower branches of the tree. That gave me a nudge to making sure the cherry tree growing against a wall was securely netted.

The long Easter weekend here is a great opportunity to finish the tidying up of the stems left over winter. The grass had its first cut this week and I am on the edge of planting up the potatoes. Some seeds have been sown, but there are more to start. I was planning to grow a selection of annuals to fill out the thin border this year but the thin border is really very thin (about 90 cms) and once I plant up the 16 echinacea ‘Pallida’ and some other perennials that I have been growing on I may well have filled the border. After six years of building the borders here I may be approaching capacity. But does that ever really happen? I suspect Jim, our host, would say no, never. His garden always has room for more. Take a look and see what Jim has this week. Happy gardening.

Six On Saturday: Flowers in the rain

/ n20gardener / 14 Comments

Oh the agony of it all. The garden creeps forward so slowly. The March surge was a subtle stumble. The rain fell incessantly yesterday and the slugs had a feast. All week I had waited for the ‘Thalia’ to open and it was with delight that I went into the garden today to capture them in their gloomy glory. Beaten to it by squillions of slimy slugs. Decimated. Eaten. Aargh! Oh well. On we go, there are things to be celebrated and that is what will be done. Here’s six from the garden this week.

One

The front garden magnolia has opened up and manages to look moodily brilliant. Monday promises to be sunny and I know it will look fantastic then. But this is what it looks like today.

Two

I am sharing the ‘Thalia’, with you, ragged edges and all. I try to keep slug favourites out of the garden but ‘Thalia’ and delphiniums always find a home here despite their appeal to the rampaging hoards.

Three

Here are the tulips that I showed in bud last week. ‘Purissima’. They stood up to yesterday’s downpours and will also look glorious in Monday’s sunshine. Perhaps I can re-post this six on Monday with a back drop of blue skies.

Four

I have been snipping away at this mahonia, name unknown, for a couple of years. Gradually bringing it back under control. It has responded well to my efforts and those of the winter weather. An undemanding and, I would say, indestructible shrub.

Five

The fritillaries have also made their way into flower. It’s probably too cold for lily beetle but I’ll be on the lookout for them in the coming weeks.

Six

The scilla also opened up this week, but this morning’s cloud was not encouraging them to show themselves so my final offering is the very pleasing new buds on one of the apple trees.

So April has arrived. I have trays of perennials waiting to be planted out, seeds to be sowed and weeds to be pulled. It may be a gradual start to Spring but it is happening and before we know it the garden will deliver its promise. Don’t forget to stop by Jim’s garden to see how things are coming along there, and to catch up on the links to other SOS posts. Happy gardening everyone.

Six On Saturday: And we are off!

/ n20gardener / 20 Comments

The Spring equinox seems to be the jumping off point I was waiting for. The garden has crept forward once again, fed by the magic of rain and a few degrees more warmth. Of course there’s a downside. The snails are eating the tête-à-têtes and the perennial ground elder and cinquefoil weeds are running riot once again. But these are old friends (foes), and signal warming soil and better things to come. I think the garden is behind last year but finally buds are opening out and the bees are flying. Here’s my six from the garden this week.

One

By this time last year the clematis armandii ‘Apple Blossom’ was in full bloom. This year there are plenty of buds still to open but flowers have started to appear and on sunny days the scent emerges.

Two

The muscari are also on the edge of revealing their full potential.

Three

These are early tulips ‘Purissima’ chosen to flower to coincide with the hellebores. They are ‘scheduled’ to flower in late March/early April. Almost there then.

Four

The first of the cowslips have opened, encouraging me to really believe that Spring has arrived in this garden.

Five

Heralding promise for later in the year, the leaves of the climbing hydrangea have opened up. I have two of these, which have been in the garden about three years. They are slowly spreading themselves across a north facing fence and have almost met in the middle. I have high hopes for a good display this year.

Six

I can’t ignore that other indicator of the garden on the move: tree seedlings. Oh my, what a crop of them I have this year. The back of the garden is set aside for the veg and fruit growing and this particular space is destined for potatoes. The asparagus bed, in its second year of growth, is also showing a healthy crop of seeds. There’s work to be done here!

It was not a week for getting out in the garden, the rain was welcome but I could have done without the gusting winds. There wasn’t even time to sow seeds in the shelter of the greenhouse. I managed to pot up dahlia tubers and cut out the dead wood in the choisya. It might survive, as might the cistus. Today I spotted some new green growth in amongst the dead looking stems. There is hope. There’s plenty more to see in Jim’s garden, he hosts the Six On Saturday meme so stop by and take a look at his six and the links to all the other SOS gardeners. Happy gardening.

Six On Saturday: Slim Spring pickings

/ n20gardener / 11 Comments

It’s been a tough week. The weather is still cold, with warnings of cold winds from the North and the possibility of a snow flurry or two. The garden has an air of neglect as it patiently waits to burst forth. The heavy mulch that was put down in December is beginning to show cracks as new growth pushes through so I know that it is all just ready and waiting for the temperatures to rise. In the meantime there’s not too much on show. Here’s my six for this week.

One

These are the new shoots of Japanese anemones, forcing their way through a good layer of mulch. Strange to think that it will another five or six months before these are in flower.

Two

Warming up for their appearance in May, new tulip shoots. These have been in this corner for several years now and a reasonable amount are coming back each year. I’m not one who treats them as annuals, preferring to leave them in peace for as long as possible and only topping them up when they are really thinning out.

Three

Cold weather or not, the pulmonaria is coming into flower. This gets divided regularly, it puts up with complete neglect and happily offers its flowers to the early bees. One of those ‘taken for granted’ doers.

Four

The cornus alba ‘Sibirica’, relatively new to the garden is putting out a good number of new buds. I’m following advice that recommends not cutting new plants back for the first two years. Once it is established it should have annual cut back in Spring

Five

Last summer I planted out three lavenders in a large pot. ‘Munstead’, I think. Although I do really prefer ‘Hidcote’. They put on good growth last year and have come through winter unscathed. I think I chose ‘Munstead’ over ‘Hidcote’ as ‘Munstead’ is thought to be hardier. Seeing them looking nonchalantly content encourages me think about the summer warmth to come.

Six

Lastly, so nearly there but probably still two weeks off opening, the almost ready to flower clematis armandii ‘Apple Blossom’. When this flowers I will know that the garden is really off and running again.

I’ve been shuffling seed packets, looking at my overwintered perennials sown from seed last year and planning out the veg patch. The gooseberries, other fruit bushes, and borders will be fed in the next few weeks as the weather warms up. I try to do that just before a good downpour of rain but there’s little of that in the forecast. I’m limbering up on the starting line ready to make that dash forward. But not just yet! If you are curious to see how other SOS gardens are doing, then stop by at Jim’s. He is our generous host and shares the links to other posts.

Six On Saturday: Green is a good feeling

/ n20gardener / 17 Comments

The week here has ended with a string of cold nights but thankfully no frost. The carrot and parsnip sowings remained under cloches, the potatoes are just peeking through and the onions are looking good. I have finally, after five sowings, managed to germinate two more mange tout seeds. Hopefully the May sowings will be more successful. French beans and courgettes have just been sown. Here’s six things I noticed in the garden this week.

One

The view from the kitchen was a very verdant green this morning as the rising sun shone through the persimmon tree. Just behind the persimmon the fig tree is just breaking into leaf. Further back the trees that surround this garden are also greening up. It gave an uplifting zing of freshness to the start of the day.

Two

One of the ‘Cairo’ tulips had been niggling away at me and I finally got round to sending off a photo to the bulb supplier with the question ‘Is this a healthy tulip’. The response was immediate. A phone call advising me that the stripes were due to tulip mosaic virus and I should remove the bulb and as much of the surrounding soil as possible. There is much to admire in the flower colouration but it is sensible to act on the advice to prevent the spread of the virus. Those darling aphids are to blame. The tulip stem will decorate the kitchen. The bulb will be disposed of.

Three

I am sure that if it wasn’t for SOS I would miss out on a number of things happening in the garden. I have admired the wood anemones that others have shown over the last few weeks but only yesterday did I remember that I too have some in the garden. It’s a small group that are almost hidden by the hellebores and the relentless snowberry. Here they are peaking through.

Four

As the tulips go over, so Irises should be filling in the spaces. But my division of last year has not been very successful. Thanks to Fred and to the good folk on twitter I have been reminded that these are I. germanica. I love them for their height and colour. I have now found a source for a restock and next year’s borders will be jammed with them again.

Five

Down at the veg plot end of the garden, on the way to the compost bins, I pass by a group of tiarellas. They rarely die down over winter and usually end up with a sprawl of scruffy untidy old foliage. I gave them a tidy last week and entirely by coincidence this week they have produced a flurry of flowers.

Six

More green to end on. While the mange tout have been frustrating the lettuce are chugging along very well. I have some in the greenhouse growing away, and two trays of potted on seedlings waiting to go outside when the night temperatures settle down. I can pick leaves now from these trays which is what I must do this weekend.

This weekend I will pulling tree seedlings out, cutting back tulip stems and beginning to pull out the forget-me-nots before they drop too much seed. The bindweed has appeared at the very back of the garden, a sure sign that the soil, even in that shady place, is warming up. Goody! Mr P will host as usual, probably run, and perhaps sow seeds. Rain, however, does not seem to be on the cards!

Six On Saturday: Spring delights

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It’s mid-way through Spring and I am jumping forward to the next bulb order. Gardening does that to you. Always looking for the next excitement, it’s exhausting! I’ve made my notes on the calendar and settled the mind again to concentrate on what’s good at this moment in time. Here’s six from the garden this week.

One

I am sure it will be camassia week for many. These are my first to begin to flower against the trellis of an arch. I have these down as c. leichtlinii. But I am willing to be corrected!

Two

Last November I planted some ‘Cairo’ tulips to flower with the camassias. I think I planted about ten either side of the arch. They have come through just in time and once again I am thinking why didn’t I plant double the quantity?

Three

I’m coming up to completing six years in this garden and this combination of tulips was one the first planted here. Originally they ran the length of the long border but over the years they have become concentrated at the bottom, slightly shadier end. I have topped them up from time to time but now I am thinking it is time to replant the top end of the border with a new combination. This mix is ‘Queen of Night’, ‘Shirley’, ‘Barcelona’ and ‘Violet Beauty’. There are some ‘Purissima’ in the background

Four

Brought from the old garden these geranium phaeums have bulked up over the years and are now providing regular new stock for ground cover in shady corners. Solid, reliable and very lovely.

Five

The apple trees are all in blossom and as I was admiring the pretty mix of pink and white I espied the tell-tale fluff of woolly aphid. Just a few small patches so it was out with a spray of a dilute soap mix which I hope will do the trick before it gets a hold.

Six

Here’s a splash of sunshine to end on. Self-seeding welsh poppies are popping up everywhere. Entirely against my colour scheme but who could turn them out? I read that they can tolerate shade so I am thinking of re-locating a few to new spaces.

Vegetable seed sowing continues to be hit and miss, still no sign of later sown mange tout, but earlier sown cukes have delivered, and I have lettuces that have been hardened off for about a week so I may chance planting some of those out. I’ve seen the very first sign of carrot seedlings sown under cloches – I’m holding my breath and crossing my fingers. The soil seemed to be warming up so I’ve also direct sown some parsnip seed. Hope you are finding joys in your gardens. The Propagator will be sharing the news from fellow SOSers so do stop by for a read.

Six on Saturday: Nature’s bounty begins

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Suddenly the garden is truly alive. Humming with bees, birdsong bouncing off the trees and butterflies flitting, as they do. Of course the nasties are out too. Slugs munching, things biting me and crowds of lily beetles arriving for the warm weather. Vigilance is required but beauty abounds too and last year’s new purchases are delivering.

One

I decided the hedge border was not much to look at in Spring so I invested in narcissus ‘Actaea’ to lighten the space. Yes I like them but of course so do the slugs. This year I am adopting the philosophical ‘what can you do approach’. I tried nematodes and last winter the border was mulched with Strulch. Possibly there are fewer slugs but their unerring sense for finding new delights is very strong.

Two

After many years of wondering what to plant in the shadier corners at the back of the garden I finally added in some erythronium ‘White Beauty’. Can’t think why I didn’t do this sooner or why I didn’t order at least double the quantity.

Three

The last of the trio of new bulbs was ipheion uniflorum. I can’t quite remember what sent me in their direction but here they are, also beloved by slugs but managing to fill the front edge gaps before the perennials come through.

Four

In 2019 I planted a ‘Stella’ cherry tree to grow against a wall in an espalier fashion. There is an abundance of blossom this year. Let’s hope the frost stays away and the fruits don’t get eaten by the birds!

Five

Of course there are more and more tulips. These are ‘Negrita’ which will be joined by ‘Ronaldo’ and ‘Spring Green’. I’ve decided this corner needs a revamp so it is on the list for a complete clearance as the end of the summer.

Six

Tulip ‘White Triumphator’, has been in the thin border since 2016. There are fewer of them this year and the size is diminishing. I like to mix them with ‘World Friendship’ and I’m still happy with this combination so I will be topping them up this autumn.

The weather has been glorious and I have been planting out the onion sets started off in modules. I have sown carrots under cloches and yesterday I sowed parsnip seeds. My veg patch is in part shade so it is always a little tricky to get the timings right. I have been sowing mange tout indoors every couple of weeks with very poor results. So far only four germinations. Let’s hope the current sunshine gives everything a boost. Mr P has also been busy so stop by and take a look over his fence and those of all the other SOSs. All welcome!

Six On Saturday: Green, green grass

/ n20gardener / 22 Comments

I’m a little late to the grasses party. I’ve some melica and a couple of Karl Foersters but this year I’m planting up the difficult area against the back fence with a grass combination. Having taken the plunge and chosen the mix I added a few more essentials to the shopping basket and the pricey ‘little’ package arrived this week. Here they are.

One

This is a selection of the back fence mix. I will be planting three miscanthus giganteus, three persicaria polymorpha, five luzula nivea and six stachys hummelo. I’m very much hoping the miscanthus will grow to their advertised three meter height asap and cover up the fence panels. The panels give a rain shadow to the border and the trees that surround our garden give plenty of summer shade. The miscanthus should be able to cope with this. Likewise the luzula should also enjoy the shade. For everything else, I have my fingers crossed. There is some late afternoon sun to help things along.

Two

Having made the main selection, I added in hakonechloa macra. This can also take a some shade and I am using it to underplant the ‘Darcy Bussell’ roses. The roses suffered with black spot last year so I really should be using salvias as per Sarah Raven’s advice. I think that does work. But no, I’m going with grasses. I do have a couple of salvia ‘Amistad’ cuttings that I plan to sneak in at the back so perhaps they will deal with the black spot.

Three

Finally I added a euphorbia palustris. My e. ‘Wulfenii’ have suffered over the last two years. The magnificent four have dwindled to one and a half. The soil has been too wet and heavy for them. A shout out on twitter gave the suggestion of this euphorbia which enjoys damp conditions. Sadly not evergreen but it has lime green flowers and good autumn foliage so I’m giving it a go.

Four

Speaking of euphorbias. the e.mellifera seedling that blew in from a neighbour’s garden has flowered this year. It is just over a metre high and is doing a great job of filling the border.

Five

Oh my, the tulips took bashing in the gusty winds on Thursday but miraculously there were no losses. These are ‘Purissima’ among the hellebores. I had forgotten that these open creamy yellow and then fade to white. I was expecting pure white but the creamy yellow works well.

Six

The diminutive ‘Doll’s Minuet’ which I plant in pots have just opened. These are last years bulbs that I lifted and stored. Good to see them in flower again.

While I will be out in the veg patch this weekend The Propagator will be on his 50k run and then taking a well earned rest. Miraculously he will also be hosting the Six On Saturday meme. Good on yer! It looks like the overnight temperatures will be a little warmer so I will be planting out the potatoes and onion sets. Wishing you well with your weekend gardening.