Six on Saturday - 21 December 2024

Take it from someone who has gardened since being able to move around ie crawl, not even  the shortest day, where in the UK I heard that we have 7 hours 49 minutes of light (of course that depends on the latitude), is not a barrier to going into the garden and being in the fresh air where plants or maybe lack of plants catch my eye. For many more plants please visit Father Christmas Jim himself for more gardeners' views of Six on Saturday.

Here are mine: 

1. Galanthus plicatus 'Three Ships' was added to the garden in 2023, and I am delighted that it is up for Christmas 2024, named for the Christmas Carol ' I saw Three Ships'  by John Morley who found it growing under an ancient cork oak at Henham Park in 1984.  Hopefully next December there will be three bulbs flowering and then I shall be able to say I see Three 'Three Ships'.

Galanthus plicatus 'Three Ships'

 2. Over on the Amelanchier the Mistletoe continues to grow, but I am yet to find out whether it is female or male. Should it flower next year, I'll be able to tell, for now it is just a curiosity. Well it is a curiosity for me, since it is just at eye level.  In many trees in the locality you can see great balls of the stuff, but they are high up in the canopy of the trees.

3.  Sometimes it is a question of just being out in the garden at the right time to observe that even rain drops dripping from grass leaves  can be a thing of great beauty.

This grass was given to me by a friend and I have no idea of its name.  I like to move the pot around the garden.

 4. Two pots of Tropaeolum tricolor with some of my sticks and copper wire structures are trying to catch some winter light.  Should freezing temperatures be forecast, they will be moved back to the shed for some protection.  Their thin and brittle stems are starting to wind their way up. I do have two matching pots, and at least I ought to use those next year.

Tropaeolum tricolor

5. The golden baubles clipped balls of Lonicera nitida 'Baggensen's Gold in the front garden have been kept neat for the first time by regular clipping, which I came to enjoy more that tackling the long growths. Just keeping them trimmed regularly meant that I could just brush the clippings under them, rather than bag waste to send out with the green bin. As I go round the garden I enjoy remembering which plants I propagated by cutting and these are amongst the ones I grew myself.

6. I clipped ivy from our narrow side alley to make up our Christmas wreath. Now that I have also picked enough to decorate our living room, I can get on with the job of trimming it well back, and it won't be long before the robins start their nesting...as they are already starting their territorial shenanigans in the garden.

If I had but a Holly Bush I would have had the theme for another Christmas Carol! I used to have a great Holly Bush in my previous garden, and maybe it is time I looked out for one here?

  

  

Six on Saturday - 14 December 2024

 Mr SOS himself will probably say that I am in too mischievous a mood today and that I have pushed the boundaries to the extreme.   This week I am thinking outside the box a little as it is getting harder not to repeat six things I may have mentioned only a few weeks ago. It has also been so damp, with very low light levels, for a couple of days we were mist bound with long bouts of 'mizzle'. 

1. Don't these deserve a special first place? I had decided during the year to travel more lightly during the winter, by this I mean not overwinter so many tender plants. I have relinquished many of my pelargoniums.  However since this one is just braving on so well, it is a keeper for the next season at least!

Pelargonium 'New Century Salmon'

2. Pseudowintera colorata Red Leopard  is making an appearance as with 'winter' as part name it deserves to elbow its way to second place.

Pseudowintera colorata Red Leopard

3. Now I am stepping outside the box ie outside from the garden.  During a walk above some low wall,  I could see some rather fascinating fluffy seed heads, and this one was striking a peak photogenic pose.  Big cheer for anyone getting the right answer in the comments.  I did peer over the wall and recognised the plant.  Sadly I had just cut down the flower stems in the garden and will be sure to leave them standing to see if the conditions in the garden and the variety are similar. Wouldn't that make a good question for a Gardening Club Christmas Quiz?

4. There may not have been much damage in the garden, but outside my box there were high winds catching tall trees, and I was particularly sad to see the damage to this Cedar outside 'Cedar House' on The Liberty in Wells.  Earlier this year there had been a lot of decay identified and it was to have been felled.  The storm certainly found its weak points.  When I went to have a look most of the boughs had been removed off site, but the marks on the road and pavement evidenced the force with which the heavy limbs came down.  

5. I dislike light pollution and sadly live with a surplus of streetlights even  on the quiet road that we live on, and have grown to wonder why gardens etc are lit up.  It must have started a long time ago, but recently it seems to be part of the Christmas Season for large gardens. We popped into the Palace Gardens in Wells, and were suitably amused for a little while, and enjoyed a different view of the garden.

Guess the plants time again

6. If you frightened off the wild life then you have to recreate the scene: deer and swans...

Hopefully the dank weather will be out of the way for a few days.  Already the sun has come out, the washing hung out and the robins are singing setting out their breeding territory.

The Last Roses of the Season In A Vase on Monday

Just as the storm Darragh was starting to throw heavy winds on Friday I went out to pick the last rose buds. I didn't think they would come to anything, but just one day in on the Saturday they were starting to open.

I had booked myself if some time ago for a lesson in Botanic painting with Claire Corum at our local art gallery, and having paid a fairly hefty price, was waiting anxiously for a cancel or postpone email.  As it did not come, I ventured out making sure I didn't walk under any scaffolding etc.  I normally cycle into the centre but felt the gusts were too strong so walked. In the end there were just two students including myself who turned up, and the day went fast.  We studied and learnt how to take measurements to translate onto the page, then painting techniques, which include up to five layers of paint.  In just one day I could feel my powers of observation improve, and came home with some drafts as well as this painting of a sprig of mistletoe, which still need some more work which includes adding more layers of watercolour to build up depth richness in colour.

I could quite understand if you thought this was a vase from the summer, so here are the roses one day further on, taken in my kitchen against a slate serving platter.  The roses are a little more open on Sunday afternoon along with a couple of sprigs of mistletoe. I am sure you will recognise Roses Grace, Munstead Wood and Iceberg.

I am linking in with the creator of this weekly meme, who has fought on to post today despite serious connection issues.  Well done Cathy.

Six on Saturday - 7 December 2024

 From the garden Six things posted to meet up with others led by Jim over on the his blog called Garden Ruminations.  

As I do my first draft on Friday evening, on my phone comes a very official severe weather warning regarding Storm Darragh. It was a little strange. Will the warning prove to have been over the top? As I post this Saturday morning before breakfast and having been awake since two I can confirm that for this area it was not over the top.

I would rather have nature's warning via the beauty of morning sunrises as spied from the back window yesterday. But then not everyone would have seen the wonderful sky or understood its significance.

After breakfast yesterday, I went out and moved certain pots to avoid any breaks, parked buckets and empty pots in the shed etc., and generally rather enjoyed a couple of hours pootling around the garden.  In the beds, several of the early spring bulbs are coming up, and getting down on hands and knees, and removing some of the ground cover plants that have encroached a little too far and to find even more shoots were piercing through in places, where I had forgotten I had planted bulbs, was a such a joy. This end of year season where almost everything on the surface has finished and there are evergreens to admire, the anticipation for the spring fills me with a calmness which is quite surprising.   

Let us get on with Six things from the garden, before I get the Red Warning from the boss Jim, who gives us bloggers quite a leeway regarding posting six things from our gardens :

1. Covered in dew this self seeded poppy, is just pretty enough not to be rooted out.  I can't even recall its name, but I am hoping someone may identify it.  It is probably the Welsh sort.

2. When I cut anything down or prune any plants, I look on it as an opportunity to use the woody bits around the garden.  Sometimes they come in very handy as plant supports. 

Instead of using string which can end up rotting all too soon, I use copper wire which Mr S stripped for me from some redundant electric wires he would have sent to the tip.  I use them as ties and also to form a lattice which the plants are very happy to wind through.  When it is time to discarding the framework, the wire is easily recovered wound back up ready to use again.  

3.  A little flash of colour is most welcome, and so this Primula auricula 'Old Cottage Blue' in its pot is now on the shed shelf. I have such a soft spot for auriculas and it is possible to grow them even in a small garden with little protection.

Primula auricula 'Old Cottage Blue'

4. When it comes to winter ground cover the silver leaves of Cyclamen hederifolium take some beating, and being so close to the ground they can take any amount of wind.

Cyclamen hederifolium

5.  The Willow is late to turn but is now finally starting to drop its leaves, and by the time it has been subjected to winds even in this sheltered corner, the wind will probably have striped it bare.

Salix matsudana 'Tortuosa' 

6. Pittosporum Tom Thumb being rounded and just below a metre high is bound to survive the winds unlike the tall Pittosporum I cut down last week.

Pittosporum Tom Thumb

Quince preserves and memories

 A few weeks ago some choice Quinces arrived at my favourite Wells Fruit and Veg stall up on the Mendips. The display was small but with perfect large fruit, and I was fortunate to visit on a day when they had them. After paying, I carefully laid my two large fruit on the top of my full basket so as to bring them home in pristine condition.  With their sensuous shape and colour and still partly covered with their fur, they were laid in pride of place in the centre of the dining table and much admired over a couple of weeks or so. 

If you have had quinces before,  you learn to observe them for the moment of maturity to arrive.  Having cooked with them before you also know just how hard the fruit are and just how long they take to cook.  I was not in the right frame of mind to go on and be inspired to make up a dish to do them justice. Not wanting them to be wasted I decided to cook them and freeze the fruit and the decision on what to do with them pushed further down the line.

On my chopping board I simply cut the washed fruit, into segments, removed the central part where there tends to be the larger grittier parts, and place the unpeeled fruit chunks in a stainless steel dish with a little lemon juice and just a little water.  This I put onto the trivet in the pressure cooker with a little water in the bottom  and gave them about eight minutes.  In the cooking period the fruit had turned from its creamy colour to a beautiful translucent muted deep peachy colour. A knife test said fine, and when cooled the whole dish covered went into the freezer.

I needed the space and out from the freezer came the cooked fruit a couple of days ago to defrost gently in the fridge, with its skin so soft it would have been pointless removing it. Quince Cheese is all that I felt like making.  For once I didn't feel inspired to make anything with flavourings or spices, but with the finest shavings of a Sicilian lemon rind and its juice, with sugar in the ratio of 450g sugar to 600ml pureed fruit, as per Marguerite Patten. The fruit was pureed down with the stick blender, and then the melange patiently stirred until a thick consistency was achieved. 

In amongst my stash of empties, I found some little jars where the whole cheese will slide out onto the plate in just perfect of portions to be sliced and used with cheese.

I can't remember when I had my first taste of quince or when I first saw my first quince tree, but its existence must have seeded itself perhaps through poetry or through reading historical novels.  My eye is drawn to them in old tapestries, Japanese art and Botanical drawings and  I love the beauty of the trees as well as the  flowering quince shrubs, which is a totally different type of plant;

In gardens I seem to be able to spot them and admire them at any time of the year, however when hanging with golden fruit they are easy to spot. I remember the beautiful trees at Kelmscott Manor during a delightful visit with my friends from Kenilworth WI. At Kenilworth Castle there were some young trees planted on the bank at the approach to the formal gardens which I used to admire almost weekly.

My fried Penny (RIP) would bring me some lovely fruit from her garden, and I cannot pass a quince but remember her.

Friends Bearing Fruit 2014

Quince Prepared for the Freezer November 2015

In a Vase on Monday - One Man's Waste

 I had a pile of garden waste to ditch, far more than would fill my waste bin, so I went to a neighbour and asked if I may use some spare capacity if they had any.  Yes we do ask, and I am so pleased that a few months back I was able to offer spare capacity to them.  The following day, their bin was wheeled over to our drive.  As I opened the lid there were the clippings of their Fatsia, which is how this week's In a Vase on Monday is the result of salvaging unexpectedly One Man's Waste. Which links in quite well with Tales of the Unexpected which is the title of Cathy's Post this week.

It won't be a waste to pop over to Cathy and see what see has posted, and what others such I are offering this week.

Their flowers are quite dramatic and I do find them attractive as well.  I asked if I may use them and here they are in a large glass vase  in the dining room. 

From time to time I wonder whether it is time to get rid of my copper as it takes quite a lot of elbow grease to get through the various pieces, but when they are all newly shined up, they do add a certain charm.  These pieces are not newly cleaned but some time this week, I shall sit in the sunny conservatory and get everything shining nicely ready for Christmas. The large stock pot acts as a place to stash away packets of goodies when all the containers in the kitchen are being used: dried apricots, walnuts, pistachios, dates, you know the sort of thing...and when I go to get something, levels have strangely gone down.

Greenwich - Time to say goodbye

For our last day of our three day break, with two nights already passed, we continued to enjoy the reasonably good weather.  For it didn't pour with rain and it wasn't windy.  

Having seen the entrance to the foot tunnel close by the Cutty Sark on our first day, my anticipation and eagerness to walking right across under the Thames to the north bank, was formed having read the notice on our late night walk along the Thames the previous evening.

I was looking forward to walking under the Thames. Just inside this glass domed entrance we descended the steps.

the lifts were working and apart from the descent when I imagined so many people each day using this to go to work when it was built in the early twentieth century. It was reasonably quiet as far as pedestrians go at that time of the morning, what seemed like leisure cyclists and runners were completely ignoring breaking the no running or cycling rules. On the north bank we walked a little way along the park under the plane trees and enjoyed the views of the Queen's House and all the other buildings.  Had we had longer I would have liked to have walked in amongst all those skyscrapers.

At the Greenwich Hospital were able to join in the First Sunday of the Month tour with guide who told us a little about the history but mainly about the architecture afterwards taking us to the Painted Hall. Because we spent time waiting for the start of the tour, we missed out on reading about the Hospital, but I have been able to find more about it online. From 1705 to 1869 The Hospital accommodated sailors, and The Royal Naval College used the Hospital’s original buildings at Greenwich from 1873 until July 1998. There are so many stories about the people who came into contact with these buildings, which are well worth accessing either before or after a visit.

Landowner in Northumberland.

Greenwich Hospital History

Life as a Greenwich Pensioner

We were guided past the Chapel as there was a service taking place, and walked along past the skittles alley to the Painted Hall.  It quite took my breath away.  The Painted hall had a large art installation in it, but beyond,  in The ceremonial dining room it was possible to stand and admire the decorations by James Thornhill. It took him nineteen years to complete the work.  We had seen some of the work of  James Thornhill when we visited Sherborne House a few weeks earlier.

With all the history, culture and art around these two young visitors still had their phones to hand, but maybe they were one step in advance of myself taking time out to read in situ about the amazing art around them. Here is a link to a guided virtual tour of The Painted Hall which is well worth following.

I learnt that Hero Admiral Lord Nelson's body was lain in state from 5 to 7 January 1806 here over the space of three days when more than 15000 people filed past.

https://www.culturalwednesday.co.uk/painted-hall-greenwich-2/

We decided to have some lunch at the National Maritime Museum, before starting on the tour of the Museum bearing in  mind we had to back at the hotel for 14:30.  We viewed The Astronomy Photographer of the Year exhibition and had a quick walk through a couple of rooms. I am sure we shall be visiting Greenwich again, and will need to devote at least a whole day to this Museum alone, as we only scratched the surface.

Here are the links to the first two days posts  

Day 1 Greenwich Holiday

Day 2 Greenwich Holiday

Six on Saturday - 30 November 2024

It is fairly calm today, and reasonably mild, for which I am delighted after the gales heavy rains and frosts of the last few days,  I don't switch off from the garden, and love to get out there and tiddle around.  As usual I am joining in with Jim over on 'Garden Ruminations'.

1. Having removed the usual tender plants from the alcove by the front door, some pots from the back garden were co-opted to soften that space: one of them being the Nandina that I had bought  earlier in the year at the HPS spring sale at Yeo Valley.  It had perked up pretty well after being moved to  a larger pot.  

Nandina domestica 'Obsessed'

It is just one of those plants I bought on impulse having admired it elsewhere, but without a mind of where to plant it in the garden.  Whilst it is in its pot I shall move it around, until having been potted up maybe a couple of times, it becomes too heavy for me to move, and then it may well end up somewhere in the garden. Mr S's back is 'fragile' and I have been given notice that he is retiring from being the too big and heavy pot mover!

2. On the other side of the front door are three pots: Primula 'Treborth Yellow' which I planted up a couple of weeks ago, Hebe Topiara plants grown from cutting and the piece of lava stone filled with Echeveria Elegans, which is only brought in if the temperature is likely to fall below freezing for several hours. 

3. Why am I thinking about violas this time of the year? I have long been charmed by these small pretty flowers and on and off have grown several violets, violas, pansies etc. Unsurprisingly I was drawn to a delightful small old book on the growing of sweet violets which I bought at an HPS Somerset meeting. It is beautifully written and so full of interesting information about how to grow healthy plants for the market and also for amateur gardeners.  In the middle of winter isn't delving into books and finding a new group of plants to learn about a source of joy for gardeners and plant lovers? 

Here is how 'not to grow' Viola odorata 'Kim'.  A tangled mess of the original plant together with all its runners.  

4. Last weekend we were well and truly under the influence of Storm Bert and we seemed to have the strongest winds from a southerly direction which for a time ravaged the back garden and rocked that lovely tall Pittosporum.  When the winds stopped the plant was still at the same incline as it was at the height of the storm

I used all my weight and strength to try to righten it, but it was no use.   Except on one side by the fence where one of the big roots is exposed,  the rest is still intact, and for now I have cut down the shrub, and will see if it sprouts back.  It had had some damage earlier in the year and it was then tied back to the fence.  This time the thick rope was broken and we were very lucky that happened and that it was not the whole fence that was brought down. 

5. Just how unattractive can a Fatsia Japonica Spider's Web get? 

Not only are the shoots reverting to green, but I suspect that snails have found a favourite exotic flavour.  I may well have to dig this plant right out, cut it back and hope new growth may give a reasonable plant  year.  I'm considering whether to grow it in a pot where defence from from snails will be easier.  I only say this as I have a couple of suitable empty pots, or should I really bother?

6. Over towards Acer Corner, just in front of the other E. fortunei 'Blondy', is Fuchsia Silver Linings with leaves completely caught by the harsh frost.  If you were to look out there today, none of this top growth would be seen.  I have cut  this down for  a number of years now and know that here in the shelter of the wall, covered with a good mulch for the rest of winter, it will come back next year.

That's it for this week but over at Jim's there will be more from gardeners keen to log six things from their gardens. 

In a Vase on Monday - After the Storm Bert

We have had some atrocious weather during the weekend, with gales and heavy rain brought by Storm Bert and our usually sheltered garden was absolutely battered.  The lovely large Pittosporum Garnettii had such a rocking that parts of its roots were torn from the ground, breaking its rope tie to the fence and ending up far from upright.  I tried to straighten  the plant which was about 12 foot high with five stout leaders, but its weight was far too much for the fence post to act as anchor fearing that any more wind would simply bring the fence down too.

I spent the better part of the morning sawing each individual branch down, and salvaged some fine twigs to add to a vase.  It is goodbye to this lovely shrub.  For now we have a much more open view over the stone wall.

The vase is a lovely studio glass vase, a present from my friend Jean a few years ago.  It has had a dried flower arrangement in it which after a couple of years only recently got thrown out.

For more flowers and arrangements, it is over to Cathy's post.

Molten Ebbor Goat's Cheese with Roasted Banana Shallots

 In Jack Sturgess's Bake with Jack Home Baker's Club each month as well as bread recipes and full length classes, he also has each month a 'With Bread Recipe'.  To accompany the Rosemary and raisins rolls, there is a Molten Camembert on Roasted Banana Shallots.

Since we don't eat cow's produce, I decided to try this with an Ebbor goat's cheese from Wookey Farm. 

 

With thyme from the garden and red peppercorns and a sprinkling of the special salted fresh Kampot Pepper, we had a delicious lunch.  I had never eaten a baked cheese, as when we go out it is normally a baked cow's cheese that is on the menu.  Now that I have the technique for baking the cheese, this will most definitely be repeated.  Since I had to open a bottle of wine to help finish off the butter and olive oil in which the shallots were braised, we felt a glass of the Esk Valley Sauvignon Blanc that we had enjoyed and bought at The Grape and The Good's last wine tasting event,  was the perfect match too.

I do remember fondues! 

Six on Saturday - 23 November 2024

 I really thought last week might be last posting of SOS from my garden, but I have managed to scrape through for another Six.  The first frosts hit the garden over a couple of days with water frozen on the bird bath, but we had no snow. Today with Storm Bert which is bringing winds and rain, the plants are swaying around.  I am joining in with others oven on Jim's Blog Garden Ruminations.

1. The Frosts hit the garden this week leaving behind collapsed nasturtium leaves and surprisingly the Persicaria Red Dragon.  It had grown quite extensively over the summer as it did not get its regular cut backs.  It had even covered this Golden Euonymus which was grown from cuttings 'purloined' from an overhanging and totally overgrown plant which was obstructing a country path.  I haven't a clue as to the variety. After a suggestion from Jim, see below in the comments, and looking up pictures I do believe this is Euonymus might be Euonymous fortunei 'Blondy'. 

2. At this time of the year when the flowers are nearly over it is the bigger leaves that catch the eye. Zantedeschia aethiopica from South Africa which I used to call Arum lilies must be in a slightly less frosty part of the back garden.  The leaves add a little drama.

Zantedeschia aethiopica

3. Each year I am in two minds about rooting up this winter flowering Jasmine which is one of the original plants in the garden.  It flowers spasmodically but the little birds love perching in the tangle of branches, and when I catch sight of a beam of sunshine on the frosted flowers, it melts my heart and earns its reprieve,  

Jasminum nudiflorum

4. These Pelargoniums were outside by the front door, and were sneaked into the conservatory just in time to escape the frost.  With such lovely flowers still they can continue to give us a little colour for a few more weeks.

5. Late bloomers and early bloomers appear to collide with each other.  When I cleared the nasturtiums away, this early snowdrop was revealed.  I'm unsure of the variety as its label was not visible, but one of the specials or else a lucky seedling.

First snowdrop of the 2024/2025 Season

6. The Fuchsias have all been hit by the frost, however Aster Monch is holding out for just a little longer. Again this plant could probably do with being better placed as it is a little crowded out and needs a fair bit of space.  Now is not the time to move it, that will best be done in the spring.

We are getting lots of rain this morning, and the light conditions are very poor all brought about by Storm Bert.  Let us hope there will be a little dry weather and sunshine in the coming week.

The First Snowdrop

We had our first frost last night, but today has been bright and clear.  This afternoon I went into the garden to clear the nasturtiums that been nipped by the frost, and look what I found.  The first of the snowdrops.  Name tag missing, but I may look further tomorrow.  Might be Galanthus J Haydn. 

First snowdrop 20 November 2024

 More cutting back over the next few days, and looking forward now to the bulbs coming up.

Rosemary, Raisin and Sea Salt Rolls

The pre ferment which is left to rest overnight in the fridge helps to give a great depth of flavour to these delicious Rosemary Raisin and Sea Salt Rolls.  These are one from November 2024 Jack's Home Baker's Club. For me the shaping technique was a new one, which I almost got right after watching Jack's demonstration. 

We had them for supper last night with some cheese, after a hotpot/soup made up from the left overs from The Sausage and Lentil with Apple and Sage Recipe on page 139 of my new copy of How to Eat 30 Plants a Week by Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall. 

I just happened to have bought some sausages from our market butcher, and didn't want to go out to the shops again.  Hugh's swaps and additions suggestions were useful , as swede was used in  place of celeriac and frozen spinach balls in place of Kale or cavolo nero. For the soup dish,  I just added some water and cut the left up veg and sausages into smaller pieces.  

In a Vase on Monday - Joining in with the 11th year Anniversary

I was delighted to read Cathy's post this week celebrating the 11th Anniversary of In a Vase on Monday and she has certainly earned my congratulations on this day.  I'm not quite sure when I first joined in, it was perhaps June 2015. 

I haven't been on top form regarding standards of vases for these weekly gathering recently, and neither have I been a constant contributor.  At the 11th hour I have decided in recognition of both Cathy and all the other people who have joined in over the years to mark this occasion.  It is not with a fancy vase or a boastful range of blooms, but with just what happens to be on the mantle shelf today. Even when I don't post I will have plant material such as this adding something to rooms, which I feel don't match up to what might be expected. 

Form and shape were very much in my mind when I arranged these few stems of Pittosporum Tom Thumb, picked from the garden simply to reshape the shrub.  The new growth is green and the older leaf purple.  As both Mr S and I react to pollen, we often have just some leaves in a vase.  The feeling is very much in the vein of a house plant I suppose, and here the vase is joined by some beautifully coloured leaves of a Cercis tree which I picked up in a friend's garden. The Vase itself is a Caithness one which I found when browsing one holiday. 

Over the last few weeks I began to realise that the world is getting too full of various viewpoints and opinions, seems to be unnecessarily fast and too complex, everyone seems to want to hear and give and share and discuss and influence, inform, cajole and judge.  I feel more calm and am embracing simplicity, and maybe this vase reflects this.  

Six on Saturday - 16 November 2024

The weeks wiz by , and now we arrived at mid November leaves me baffled.  Jim is our leader for sharing of six things in our gardens.  The guidelines for joining in and the place to anchor your post is on his blog Garden Ruminations. 

1. With sunshine came butterflies and bumble bees visiting the Chrysanthemums, and made the grey days of last week melt away. 

Another special moment came when a robin  made the most of the bird bath, and since then, I have been cleaning it and changing the water each day. As I did yesterday evening.  I worked in the garden till it almost dark enjoying the company of Robin even though he is still very shy. Digging out the sedum, planting the fern, and giving the Conservatory bed a good tidy and mulch in readiness for the spring bulbs to emerge.

2. The cyclamen coum are already starting to flower in that bed.

3. At the start of the week the nasturtium leaves were still vibrant and green, adding to the frisson of wondering just how much longer they will hold, and still today they are green. I may well go and pick some since next week is forecast to be much colder.

4. The grass Panicum virgatum 'Sangria' bought this year is lovely but has not developed the red or purple flushed leaves I had expected.  It have developed a pale golden colour which works nicely in that spot.

Panicum virgatum 'Sangria'

The height suits this space and hopefully next year when it is a little more mature it will be more handsome.  I had Japanese Blood Grass on my list, and when I popped into my local garden shop to get some grit, they had one by the entrance.  I shall wait till next year to plant it out in the garden.  If anyone would like to comment on the foolishness of this please do leave your views in the comments.  I don't want to release an invasive plant into the garden, so shared experiences would be useful.

5. I've made a start on gently mulching the conservatory border.  Around one of the Rosa Grace  was the Primula "Treborth Yellow", which I was quite bowled over by this spring. Not surprisingly I had split it after flowering  into three.  A few weeks ago I had taken one and split it into three good plants, that I moved so that it as backdrop the dark foliage of the Pittosporum Tom Thumb.  

Primula "Treborth Yellow" planted up

This week the remaining two got divided and planted up into one of my special pots, hoping that it makes a real eye catcher next spring. With  a good sized space round the poor struggling Rosa Grace and a good measure of manure, it had better show its gratitude next year, or else it is being removed.

6.  Yesterday afternoon as the sun set Cornus sanguinea 'Midwinter Fire' was giving off what seemed like a glow, with the colours even more intense and rich than in the picture taken in the afternoon.

Strangely it is only now that it is starting to flower.

I really had thought I would not have had sufficient to choose six this week, it may be harder still next week, but hopefully I shall be able to go out, potter around and enjoy as pleasing a session as I had yesterday.