1. Ivy: Walking to the outside of our garden boundary fence, looking for ivy to glean for decorations, I found some 'mature growth flowering. It had flowered a month or so back, but I could see that there were new buds ready to break any time soon. Because we still have bees around on sunny days, I am going to leave these, and pick the longer juvenile stems. Apparently there is more ivy growing, as per this highlight from the New Scientist, reported on Bug Woman's blog.
2. The observations of earlier autumns in that article is contrary to what is happening in one corner of the garden, with a few leaves still hanging on to the Acer.
Another interesting source to dip into and find information is the Facebook group: Learning about our Garden Wildlife. There are short but interesting articles, with some amazing photography. There is an interesting Christmas Quiz being posted daily, but you can still catch up with all the previous ones, no answers yet. I learnt about the lifecycle of greenfly or blackfly, why and when they grow wings, and how they overwinter.
3. Suffering from the winter blues, a little cheering was in order, and I felt something golden and beautiful to look out on when the leaves have fallen, was in order. Solved of course in a way to please me year after year: the answer came in the form of a Cornus. I had this cornus in my last garden, and I do believe that if a garden is only big enough for one cornus, then for me it has to be Cornus sanguinea 'Midwinter Fire'.
4. A member of the Gardening Club came round to visit the garden this week, having taken up on my offer of cyclamen seedlings.. This is when my little stash of well rooted cuttings come in, as Patricia also had one of the Salvia Amistads which will overwinter in her glass house. And I am sure that John Massey would smile at my sharing seed from the Eryngium Silver Ghost. Even the C. coum are flowering very early this year, this is one of the standard ones, but non the less a lovely vibrant pink.
5. The Penstemom Rich Ruby has no idea of closing down for the winter just yet....
6. I've been enjoying the colour and texture of the Phlomis purpurea Matagallo in the low winter sun. My garden visitor admired the shrub, and Patricia was intrigued to hear of a pink phlomis. Although a shrub for the dry summer garden, with its upright form and interesting textured silver leaves, it shows up very well in a winter garden.
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| Low winter sun through Phlomis purpurea Matagallo. |
If you would like to spend some time reading up about what real home gardeners are up to, and maybe also contributing, the idea is to go over to The Propagators Post, where he put up a post each week, and we link in.
There's plenty of interest in your garden still. Thanks for highlighting the links for information on garden wildlife which I'll have a read of.
ReplyDeleteIt's great to still see penstemon flowers. There are no more around here and yet it hasn't really frozen strongly. Colour other than green, brown or yellow is hard to find in the garden, but I try to diversify my Six a little bit every week.
ReplyDeleteThat cornus is very appealing indeed - that will keep you smiling for many a winter to come.
ReplyDeleteThere is a large Cornus beside a country path that we sometimes walk along. It catches the early morning sun and looks beautiful. Does yours spread itself with suckers?
ReplyDeleteI have just got this one, and it is yet to be planted. The one I had previously just grew on its stem, which I just back every two years or so, and with no suckering.
DeleteI aspire to a cornus collection, with which I anticipate punctuating my hedgerows. The glow of their bark in winter is so lively.
ReplyDeleteSome of the bright green ones really shine through, your hedge will be glorious, but you will have to cut them back ever so often. There is so much you can do with their prunings around the garden.
DeletePenstemom Rich Ruby certainly lives up to its name. Lovely.
ReplyDeleteThat was an intriguing article from Bug Woman - thanks for that. Plenty of ivy here, although the Golfer is charge with removing some of it from one of our fences... Midwinter Fire is my favourite cornus and will be a great addition to your garden. I ahve been trying to establish various pink phlomis for the last few years, and am nurturing a couple of small plants in my temporary nursery beds. Your Penstemon is amazing!
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