Category Archives: flowers

Hellebores for early spring colour.

flowers, plants

Finally a bit of warm sunshine – warm enough for me to get a spot of gardening done and tidying up of the patio.  February was such a wet month, the ground has not been able to dry off for months now.  The patio is full of plants at the moment: some of which need to be planted in the back garden, while others are in little pots to be sold in May at the Duddingston Kirk Garden Club.
I have been waiting for my six double Hellebores to flower before I plant them as I couldn’t see any labels on them when they arrived from the nursery last year.  They were only small plants and so were nice and cheap.  Three have now flowered and have been planted, but three are still to flower.  I do love Hellebores as they give great colour at this time of year and they clump up well. I had a couple of old large clumps that needed a bit of rejuvenation so I  split  the old large white clump so that I could have some in the stumpery as well as in the main bed.  They didn’t mind at all being split and moved.

plants, flowers,
Helleborus niger white

I split the purple clump to have some at the back of the garden, raised bed and also the main bed.  This one is in the raised bed which is much drier and shadier than the main bed so it doesn’t put on as good a show.

plants, flowers,
Helleborus niger purple

The one in the main bed is also in the shade, but it gets more rain than the raised bed, and the soil is more moisture retentive too.  It loves it there.

plants, flowers,
Helleborus niger purple

Of the six Hellebores that I bought last year, the Helleborus Double Ellen white spotted is doing ok (a little bedraggled but ok) and was not on the list  – it may have been substituted instead of the double white but I won’t know until the others have flowered.

plants, flowers,
Helleborus Double Ellen white spotted
This next photo may be the Double form of Picotee but is is not in great shape so is pretty hard to tell.
(Just after I took the photo my new dog had a mad run around the garden and took both flower heads off! Grrrrrrrr!)
plants, flowers,
Helleborus Double Ellen Picotee?
The Double purple one is looking good and I can’t wait for them to clump up and put on a good display in the coming years.
plants, flowers,
Helleborus Double Ellen purple
The Helleborus argutifolius is situated in the stumpery and is just starting to flower now. Their flowers last such a long time and are a quite  bright, pale green that show up well against their very dark green foliage.
plants, flowers,
Helleborus argutifolius
Now I mentioned a new dog, well, he is a force to be reckoned with in the garden.  He has already charged into my lovely Acer palmatum Dissectum atropurpureum and broken off a very large branch.  He has trampled a few tulips (not in flower yet).  He has ripped out a Verbena bonariensis, and has chewed on a few shrubs and just loves to leap about in my favourite fern! Argh!  He is six years old (from the dog home) and still requires a bit of training so here’s hoping he will calm down a bit in the garden eventually.  I have already removed my beautiful dark red rose (‘Erotica’) as it had extremely big lethal jaggy prickles and I didn’t want the dog to get hurt.  The good news is that my good pals (neighbours) now have it in a position to deter opportunistic crooks.

There are a few bulbs in flower in the garden, like the purple crocus, but still waiting for the Narcissi and tulips.  The conservatory is looking colourful just now with the reds of the cyclamen, yellow Narcissus Tete-a-Tete, purple Oxalis, green Selaginella Kraussiana and  Soleirolia Soleirolli (mind your own business plant) and various Sempervivums, cacti and ferns.  The greenfly are around already so I have to regularly check my plants to just keep the blighters from getting out of control.

plants, flowers, conservatory,
Conservatory colour

There is still no sign of frog spawn yet although the heron has been spotted on the garage roof again, and Harry did find a frog in the front garden. The first spawn in 2018, was on 20th March, then in 2019, it was 27th February.  Wonder when it will be this year?  The pond is very overgrown at one side and really needs dug out and replanted.  That will be the next big job.

July, in between ninja showers…

flowers, plants, wildlife

it is muggy, sunny, and hot.  Lots of my plants have some kind of rust or mould on them..  The meadow sweet, verbena bonariensis and a few others have powdery mildew.  Some of the roses have rust and black-spot.  Some huecheras have rust.  I have sprayed the roses again, and have just given them their final feed so I hope they will pick up a bit.  I have taken off most of the rusty leaves form plants, but the powdery mildew can be quite stubborn  I am having the constant battle with the humongous slugs and have resorted to using some ‘Sluggo’ near my new delphiniums as I am sick of my new plants disappearing overnight.
Normally at this time of year I see loads of bees covering the purple lavender, veronica and agastache out in the front garden but this year there are only a few about.  The agastache to the left of the mahonia is devoid of all leaves courtesy of slugs and snails, while the ones at the right side are fine. The purple loose-strife, persicaria, hedge woundwort, verbascums, geraniums, delphiniums, cat-mint and a foxgloves are still attracting bees and other pollinators.
I finally moved the old bird-bath plinth from the patio as it was falling apart and found it had been a good home for the green cellar slugs (which are good guys) so I let them find a new home behind the patio plant pots.  I found a cricket on the garage wall (horrid photo taken with my phone) which was nice.  We used to hear crickets when we first moved here, but haven’t seen or heard any for years now so maybe they have come back this year? All over the garden are lots of tree seeds: mainly sycamore keys and tiny silver birch seeds.  They really make the place look untidy but I have finished dead-heading and weeding for today and I am off out to enjoy the sunshine before the next lot of torrential rain due tonight (along with thunder and hail so they say).

plants, flowers,
Lavender
plants, flowers,
Veronica spicata ‘Royal candles’
plants, flowers,
Persicaria affinis superbum
plants, berries,
Sorbus  hupehensis Pink pagoda berries
plants, flowers,
Delphinium cameliard
plants, flowers,
Verbascum chaxii album
Old bird-bath plinth
wildlife, slugs,
Green cellar slugs (Limacus maulatus)
wildlife, snail,
Grove snail or brown lipped snail (Cepaea nemoralis)
wildlife,
Cricket?
plants, seeds,
Sycamore keys (samara)

New plants…

flowers, plants, stumpery, wildlife

for the widened border.  I have been shopping at MacPlants again to fill in some gaps in the border. For a nice soft purple and yellow combination there is Nepets junior Walker and Coreopsis verticillata ‘Moonbeam’.  Along side some Cosmos Xanthos (which I had in pots on the patio).  A couple of Leptinella squalida ‘Platt’s Black’ for a couple of corner areas.  I had planted some Ammi visnagi but the massive slugs got them (one seedling survives).  These massive slugs are such a pain and even all the wool pellets I put down are no deterrent what so ever.  These slugs have destroyed half a dozen honesty, all my blue poppies, primula vialii, the ammi, knapweed and loads more besides.  I do a slug patrol every morning and pick loads.  They curl up into a ball to prevent being eaten, and I have found some almost the same size as a golf ball!
The milk churn was moved to a corner in the bed to make a focal point and I didn’t have a pot the correct size but ended up putting a bronze grass on a plastic saucer inside the churn, which is held up by a wooded support underneath.  It looks great just now.
We moved the bench that was sitting under the tree canopy (overhanging from the golf course), which was collecting loads of bird droppings so was rather dangerous for anyone sitting there.  It is still in the stumpery area but under clear skies so much nicer for resting on.
There is still more planting to be done, and moving plants about – which probably shouldn’t really be done just now but some are now in the wrong place.  They used to edge the border but now that the  borders are wider they need to be moved to the new edge.

plants, flowers,
Coreopsis verticillata ‘Moonbeam’,  Nepeta Junior Walker
plants, flowers,
Cosmos bipinnatus Xanthos
slugs, wildlife,
huge slug curled into a ball
slugs, wildlife,
huge slugs
slugs, wildlife,
slug on the wool pellets
plants,
Carex commons bronze in milk churn
plants,
Carex commons bronze (diff view)
stumpery,
bench in the stumpery

Finally a little bit of sunshine…

bee, flowers, plants, wildlife
in amongst the rain showers. The lawn is like a huge sponge, full of water, and every time my wheels go over it, it gets churned up so is like a quagmire now.  The sooner I get more paving the better. When the sun does come out, it brings the bees out with it.  They are everywhere.  Here is a list of plants in flower now that they visit: deutzia, heuchera, syringia, foxgloves, aquilegia, centaura, rhododendron, geraniums, daisies, thyme, hebe, saxifrages, cirsium, erigeron, geum, clematis and philadelphus.  The garden is literally humming with them.  I have been playing with my macro lens again trying to learn how to use my mirrorless camera.
plants,
Cactus buds
plants,
Aquilegia seed head
plants,
Honesty seed head
plants,
Sepervivum arachnoideum
plants, flowers, bee, wildlife,
Bee on deutzia
plats, flowers, bee, wildlife,
2 bees on Centaura
plants, flowers, bee, wildlife,
2 bees on Cirsium

Sunshine and ninja showers…

flowers, plants, raised bed, stumpery

are more usual for April not May.  However, it does make everything grow pretty fast.  Keeping on top of the slug population by doing a morning and evening slug patrol has helped enormously, especially with the problem of the huge, so called Spanish slugs.  They did get my Primula vialii so I have covered what is left of the  plants with a 1/2 plastic bottle as a cloche so we shall see if they can still come through.  The Aquilegias are fab at the moment, flowering away, but some of them keeled over in the ninja showers.  I found bright orange aphids on the Mahonia out in the front garden, so hubby gave it a prune and that got rid of some of them.  Aphids are everywhere just now and most of the time I jet them off with a water hose, or squish them as I check the plants (if I can reach them).  The cactus in the conservatory have nice magenta flowers out now.  I love the mahogany of the sempervivum , also in the conservatory.  There are a few nice plant combinations that I have quickly taken a few snaps of (bit windy out there).  Some I like for the flower colours together, and others have the same colours but different foliage forms.    I have taken a few snaps of the raised bed from different angles as it is a kind of triangular shape.  The Erica tree heath is covered in flowers, but just now it is a strange shape due to the pruning it had last year, so this year I won’t prune the spent flower heads off at all so that all of the branches will flower next year.

flowers, plants,
Selection of Aquilegias
wildlife,
Orange aphids on Mahonia leaf
plants, flowers,
Phlox and chives
plants, flowers,
Erigeron (and peony in background)
plants, flowers,
Cactus in flower
plants,
Sempervivum Reginald Malby
plants, flowers, raised bed,
Raised bed end on
plants, flowers, raised bed,
Raised bed curved side
plants, flowers, raised bed,
Raised bed back end on
flowers, plants,
white Aquilegia and Primula snowflake
plants, flowers, stumpery,
Stumpery (part of)
plants, flowers, stumpery,
Stumpery (part of)
plants, flowers,
Veronica and Tierella
plants, ferns,
Osmunda regalis purpurascens
plants,
Rodgesrsia leaf
plants, flowers,
Rodgersia, fern and Polygonatom
plants, flowers,
Hebe and Heuchera
plants, flowers,
Erica tree heath (part of)

Still cold…

crow, flowers, foliage, plants

but the weather is supposed to warm up starting from Wednesday.  I went into the garden this morning with great intentions of feeding and mulching the roses but I was just feeling too cold so I just took a few quick snaps.  A couple I took a few days go when the sun came out.  A few plants are going over now like the cherry and the pink corydalis.  Even some of  the hellebores are looking a bit ropey.  Some of the narcissi are flowering away, like Cheerfulness, whilst others are not up yet, like  Erlicheer and Pipit.  Some of the brunnera and forget-me-nots are flowering but the brunnera ‘Jack frost’ is very nearly in flower, (the foliage look fabulous though).  The cowslips are looking cheery but I had thought they would have self-seeded a bit but looks like I will have to divide it to get another clump.
My friendly crow followed me round the garden again so I blathered to him while he was pecking away at the old log.

crow, wildlife, birds,
Crow
plants, foliage,
Astilbe leaves
plants, foliage,
Brunnera ‘Jack frost’
flowers, plants,
Prunus Shirota Mount Fuji
flowers, plants,
Corydalis solida pink
flowers, plants,
Primula veris (cowslip)
flowers, plants,
Corylus avellana Contorta
flowers, plants,
Narcissus Cheerfulness

Still chilly out there…

birds, flowers, plants

yesterday saw snow, sleet and rain.  Today, so far, a bit of sunshine and a chilly wind.  Out in the front garden, the daffodils got a bit flattened by the snow and rain, but they have perked up again.  The mahonia is looking a lot better this year, compared to the same time last year, and is flowering quite happily and smelly lovely.  A brave hoverfly landed just as I was taking the photo.  The tiny sulphur yellow flowers of the epimedium and looking good and so are the white vincas.  I found loads of snails camped out behind the epimedium.  There are a few little grape hyacinths coming through but not flowering yet.  Out in the back garden the hellebores are all flowering (some better than others), some primula are flowering, pulmonaria is up and has started flowering,  the snowdrops have all gone over, the iris reticulata haven’t flowered yet (although they were out this last year), a few pink corydalis are flowering, and a few chinadoxa too.  It is a bit windy to get good crisp photos.  The crow swooped down just above my head and landed next to me, and proceeded to follow me around the garden like the robins do. He didn’t mind me blathering to him either.  The magpie was trying to get to the fatcake and not managing very well.  Funny how we always think of them being black and white birds.  I caught the blue colour of the wings but not the iridescent green of the tail.  Still looking forward to some warmth of spring proper.

flowers, plants,
Daffodils and white vinca
flowers, plants,
Mahonia
flowers, plants,
Mahonia and brave hoverfly
flowers, plants,
Epimedium sulphureum flowers
plants,
Epimedeum sulphureum leaves
birds, wildlife,
friendly crow
birds, wildlife,
magpie, not just black and white

February colour continued…

ferns, flowers, plants

a few more plants have come into flower and the sun has been out on this lovely mild day.  In the stumpery; I planted some wallflower last year by the garage wall, beside the apple trees, in amongst the cyclamen and crocus.  The crocus are looking good but the cyclamen have not flowered this year yet.  The Helleborus argutifolius are looking good (apart from the bird poo that is!).  They are planted beneath a tree where the pigeons, crows and jackdaws often sit.  The snow drops and golden Japanese rush help to brighten the shady area.  Just last week I bought and planted 3 small cyclamen coum Ruby star and they are so pretty.  Along from them, near the stump, is the primrose ( primula vulgaris) and a lovely creeping fern (polypodium vulgare).  In the raised bed; I normally have to cut back the huge fern (Polystichum setiferum ‘cristato Pinnulum’) around this time of year but it is looking fabulous just now so I won’t touch it.  On the patio; the tiny yellow iris (Katherine’s gold) are looking nice and bright and a few of the other Hellebores are flowering but pretty much look the same as last year so I won’t take more photos yet.  There is still a chance of some bad weather and snow before the spring really gets going, but so far, so good.

plants, flowers,
Purple crocus
plants, flowers,
Helleborus argutifolius
plants, flowers,
Cyclamen coum ‘Ruby star’
plants, flowers, ferns,
Primula vulgare and Polypodium
vulgare ‘Bifido grandiceps’
plants, ferns, foliage,
Polystichum setiferum ‘cristato Pinnulum’
plants, flowers,
Iris ‘Katherine’s gold’ alpine

February colour…

flowers, plants

well there aren’t many plants that like to flower in this cold weather. The snowdrops are up but the buds haven’t quite opened yet.  Other bulbs are poking through but will need a few more weeks to flower.  Some of the hellebores are flowering whilst others are not.  The best one so far is the white one in the woodland area (that I call my stumpery due to it having one stump).  Also in that area is the witch hazel with it’s fiery orange flowers.  I do however have more colour in the conservatory with the cyclamen and bulbs coming up.  There is a lot of green in the garden with the ferns, grass, evergreen shrubs and ivy.  Shame the cold hasn’t got rid of the greenfly.
I thought that I would try and get some of the fallen leaves out of the pond but only the top couple of centimetres are melted and the rest of it is frozen.  Most of the leaves were frozen in so I am going to have to wait.  Poor frogs and other pond dwelling creatures.  In the past we had a pond heater on throughout the winter but something kept hauling it out leaving it dangling over the side and it would melt a hole in the pond liner.  The pond liner is concreted in now so we have been trying to keep a small hole open in the ice.  Doesn’t look like we managed to do that so any noxious gases will be accumulating under the ice.  The last time that happened a few dead, bloated frogs rose to the surface once the pond ice had all thawed.  Don’t worry I didn’t take photos.

plants, flowers,
white hellebore
plants, flowers,
Hamamelis inter Diane
plants, flowers,
conservatory bulbs

Autumn is approaching…

ferns, flowers, plants

and things are gradually slowing down in the garden. When I first started the stumpery area, I filled in a lot of spaces with ferns (soft shield ferns I think) with the intention of replacing some of them later with different plants.  Some of these ferns are huge now and are really outgrowing the space or hiding other plants, and not just in the stumpery. So, at the weekend, my husband dug out one of them from beside the ramp and replaced it with Persicaria amplex Blackfield – I love the colour of the flowers.  I just hope it isn’t going to become a thug.  I have another 5 or 6 of the same ferns so I will ask hubby to divide a couple of them so at least they will be smaller, and completely dig up the rest so I can buy some new plants for the spaces.  He also dug out the Rosa rugosa which has been a big disappointment.  It has been there for 3 years and only produced 3 roses!  All the rest of the growth has been hight and suckers. I would really like another rose there but it is just too shady, unless I can persuade our next lot of neighbours to chop down their rather large shrubs and trees.  I have acquired a bench to put in the dry shady area at the back of the garden but as not a lot will grow in deep dry shade so I will have to think about what else to put around the bench.  The corner wall is in need of repair but again I will have to wait and speak to our new neighbours.  The trouble with that is that the actual owners are planning on splitting that house and garden into two, but they haven’t actually started any work yet so I may have a heck of a long wait for that work to be done and the house sold.

At the Annual flower show last weekend my little Davallia canariensis Hare’s foot fern) won an award!  Not only did it win first prize for the foliage plant section, but it got the Jones trophy for best exhibit in pot pants too. Dead chuffed.  I am so glad I scrubbed the pot the night before and took off the not-quite-so-attractive fronds.

plants, ferns,
Ramp with overgrown fern to the right.
plants, flowers,
Ramp now with Persicaria amplex Blackfield
plants, ferns, foliage,
Davallia canariensis and Jones trophy