In a Vase on Monday - Something old and somethings new

It feels so spring like this morning: cool clear skies, sunshine and the birds are singing.  The change to British Summer Time really suits me as I am an early riser, and it also gives us more light hours in the afternoon in which to garden. As usual I am joining in with Cathy over on 'Rambling in the Garden'.

Early this morning I picked the flowers of flowering currant Ribes x beatonii, aka Ribes Gordonianum, or Gordon's Currant as the starting point.  I featured the plant in my Six on Saturday giving its details.  The primula is one I picked up at Yeo Valley HPS Spring Fair on Saturday.  It had the name P. 'Masie Michael', which I had not heard of, but looking it up, I realise it had the wrong label, and since then the grower has come back to me and said it is likely  to be Millwood Cream.  

It has just the right amount of pink up the stem to then bleed into the pale yellow, which goes so well with the Currant.The flowers on the Ribes seem brighter in the garden, maybe the camera bleached out the colours slightly.

Ribes x beatonii, aka Ribes Gordonianum, or Gordon's Currant 

The something old is the Persicaria Red Dragon, which 15 years ago came to me in the post, from Cathy, as a small rooted cutting.  I wish I had kept track of all the divisions I have taken and shared or sold for charities at plant fairs.  I took seven good sized plants to Yeo Valley and they all sold.  I showed the combination of Red Dragon and Sorbaria sorbifolia 'Sem' which I also posted about on Saturday. I also showed the combination to Derry of Special Plants, who was much taken with the combination which she hopes to try out in her garden.   

Six on Saturday - End of March 2025

The weather at the end of March continues cool, and yesterday it was quite windy , but with no frosts,  and bright days mostly is just right for the garden.  I am joining in with other gardeners over at Jim's, where we link in six observations from our gardens.

Today I shall be at Yeo Valley Gardens which is on the northern side of the Mendips, helping out at the HPS Spring Plant Fair, and taking a fair few potted up plants to sell in aid of our funds.

1. There may be lots of colour at the moment from the early spring flowers, however plant leaf colour is making a good show:

Here Persicaria Red Dragon with Sorbaria sorbifolia 'Sem' in the foreground made a good combination.

2. Where there are primulas and pollinators it isn't surprising that a little hybridisation should occur: within a short distance of the Primula White Wanda, which is at the bottom of the picture , a little seedling has come up with a creamier hue.  

Primula White Wanda in the foreground

3. Another Primula: 'Blue Horizon'' which like Primula Wanda is a juliae type, is having a particularly good season.

4. When a little celandine hitched a lift at the side another plant in a pot bought from the HPS, I thought I would keep it and see how it would grow: quite nice, and a double. It looks very similar to Ficaria verna 'Picton's Double' but the leaves are quite different, so who knows what is its name? 

5. There is nothing quite like the excitement of seeing a shrub growing in a garden, one I haven't seen before, and falling in love at first sight.  That is what happened when visiting Broadleigh Gardens last year. When I saw Gordon's Currant I knew it was one for me to try.  Within a week a little plant arrived in the post, and less than a year later, having made some satisfactory growth it is now in flower.

    

Close up the shape and colouring of the blossom is delightful.

Ribes x gordonianum, also known as Gordon's Currant

6. One of the plants I bought at the Bishop's Palace Rare Plant sale a couple of weeks ago was this rather fetching cross between P. juliae and P. elatior, named after its creator, David Valentine, in effect a P. elatior hybrid. Through finding out a little more about Primula David Valentine,  I learnt this week is that the Gold Lace Primulas are also P. elatior hybrids.

Primula David Valentine

Plants from friends this week: 

Omphalodes linifolia is a plant I very much admired, but had yet to grow in the garden, so I was delighted when my gardening friend Alison who has an English Flowers business for which she is growing many different plant brought a little plant for me when she visited for tea this week.  I was also very pleased that she was able to take several primulas and other plants to grow in her home garden.

Lovely white border Phlox from Maggie R, which was planted by the previous owners of her new home.

Yellow Lime Marmalade

 A Lime is a thing of beauty, and as we buy them when they are lime green they are picture perfect.  Just by coincidence when we were walking past a gallery in Bath today, there in the window was a beautiful oil painting extolling the beauty of limes.

Even in our kitchen I have chosen lime green as an accent colour.  However I have known for some time that lime green limes are under ripe limes and once picked do not ripen. If left to mature on the tree they turn yellow, and as they ripen they get juicier and loose that extreme acidity.  When they are unripe and green a set marmalade requires the maker to reduce its acidity by adding bicarbonate of soda.  

Therefore when I saw a small box of limes being sold for 20p, yes about 1.5p each being sold off when I went up to Wells Fruit and Veg last week up at the Rocky Mountain Nursery, I knew one of the boxes had my name written on it.  

Even though I knew the acidity would be reduced, I still wasn't sure by how much, and thought about what I would add to the marmalade.  I have sometimes added extra 'botanicals' to lime marmalade such as cardamom and have tried juniper too, all of which taste wonderful. Over on my other blog, if you search on Lime, you will get an idea of some of those variations using limes.

This time I used cooking apples whole after removing just the stalk and flower ends.  The fruit was pressure cooked which really helps to soften the lime peel, which I then chop up after they are soften and passed all the remaining fruit through a fine sieve.  I wanted a fruity nicely set marmalade quite different to the jelly like Rose's Lime Marmalade. 

The set was perfect and this mornings breakfast proved that once again limes really do made a delicious marmalade. I'll be posting the recipe on  my other blog: Mrs Mace Preserves. 

Six on Saturday - 22 March 2025

I believe only a gardener could be thinking we need a little rain when everyone had been enjoying a really warm and sunny day on Thursday!  It rained overnight last night, so I had my wish granted, and this weekend I am sure there will be more mulch spreading, and adjustments, repotting etc.  Here are just Six of the many things going on in a small garden.  I am linking in with others over on Jim's Blog, where everyone rolls in with sixes, and you don't even have to play to enjoy watching what other gardeners are posting this week. 

1. Nothing quite like evening sun and Primula Wanda to brighten up the garden.

Primula Wanda

It doesn't mind the overnight frosts at all, is not fussy and happy anywhere in the garden.

2. A few years since first posting about Corydalis cheilanthifolia, it has found its own favourite place in the garden, no doubt helped by ants, and is very much thriving on the very sunny and dry stone wall.

A close up of the plant shows its dissected foliage and pretty flowers.

Jim showed his last week, and here are mine this week, here it is an evergreen.

3. Following Fred's almost all leaf theme last week her are beautiful shiny leaves of  Loropetalum 'Fire Dance', which this year seems so far to have survived the winter undamaged.

Loropetalum 'Fire Dance'

4.  There are so many plants in flower now in the garden and all around bees, bumble bees etc are harvesting, with this white Pulmonaria 'Sissinghurst' being one of the favourite. Again this is one of plants which reminds me of my friend Kay who gifted this to me many years ago.  I have three large patches in the garden, again one of those plants that I divide frequently to share with friends.

Pulmonaria 'Sissinghurst' 

5. One of the violets new to the garden last year is Viola 'Baronne Alice de Rothschild', doing very nicely in the Millefleur Border, aka the Conservatory Border.  I am trying to work on it looking like one of those very early tapestries during this spring periods. When my friend Alison visited, we went round the garden and she pointed out plants which I was able to divide and send her home with, I picked her a little pinch of these blooms, and they definitely have a strong scent.  They were put a little vase whilst we had coffee etc in the conservatory, and then with all the plants to pack up, I forgot to give her the violets, which are still on the Kitchen window sill.  

Viola 'Baronne Alice de Rothschild'

6. At this time of the year I find it hard to resist buying little pots of flowers, then placing them in the garden and forgetting what I planted and where.  This Spring I was totally surprised when these very pretty and small Scilla bifolia which I bought in 2023.  I read from my notes that I would need to find somewhere shaded to plant them.  I can't have headed my own notes as they were planted in a fairly sunny space, close to the seating circle in the bed that extends from the Acer. 

Scilla bifolia

New Plant bought at the Bishop's Palace last Sunday, to be featured in the coming weeks.

Phlox bifida 'Alba' from one of my favourite growers Pottertons

Primula David Valentine Vigorous cross between P.juliae and P.elatior. Lavender flowers in Spring.

Articles on Primulas this week:

https://www.rareplantfair.co.uk/news-and-articles/primulas-are-back-in-vogue/

Six on Saturday - 15 March 2025

 It is still cool here in Somerset, with some night frosts earlier on, but thankfully some good periods of sunshine.  The Snowdrops are very nearly over. On a couple of day a pair of Long Tailed Tits have been charming us as they search and collect little feathers and other soft material from between the plants. This weekly post is for the plants and matters gardening, and it is under Jim's wing that we gather and share .

My six this week:

1. I had not expected any gift, when I invited my friend and near neighbour Maggie round for a kitchen supper, but I couldn't turn down this little beauty: Anemone pavonina.  The 'Blooming Fun Gang' had all been to Forde Abbey earlier on that day,  but I did not go this time. Looking up its requirements and also its origins, a place downslope, in front of the Cistus x obtusifolius, was found. 

Anemone pavonina

2. Last week Beth mentioned the mosses in her garden, and joining in with that theme, here is one of the three pots growing in our side alley with ferns about to unfurl,  with their mosses.

3. On a little outing just on my own in order to maintain my driving, I visited a local spot called Rocky Mountain, to buy fruit and vegetables.  It also happens to be a plant nursery but here I only bought ericaceous compost and some slow release feed to plant up the Camellia 'Fairy Blush'.  A little detour saw me visiting a friend who had set up a new plant and gardenalia place, and I came back with a little addition to my primroses.  It is so small, neat and cute, and being well grown it easily separated into two.  Of course two labels were required!  I am showing flowers of Primula Schneekissen on the left, with Primula White Wanda on the right for comparison.

I wasn't surprised to read that it a  Juliana hybrid primrose from Germany, its original name Schneekissen, means snow kisses or snow pillow. Raised by George Arends sometime in the 1930's at his nursery in Ronsdorf, near Cologne.

Primula Schneekissen with label reading Snow Cushion

They may have had snow at the races in Cheltenham, but the only two snow cushions were lovely little primroses. 

I just love primulas, and here is a 'gratuitous' picture of the primroses in the Wells Bishop's Palace arboretum this week to show just how well they grow in Wells.  Their rampart walk bank is covered all with naturalised primroses with many variations.

 

4. Only a couple of weeks ago I mentioned on my SOS post my disappointment regarding the lack of growers for the Primula vulgaris 'Taigetos'.  I remember the wonderful display when the Blooming Fun gang visited  Broadleigh Gardens last year. My SOS Sis sent me a very generous package with two plants courtesy of one of her Patrons, and again two labels were duly written, and the garden will no doubt be a spectacular primrose garden this time each year going forward. 

5. In the front garden the earliest species tulip to flower is the multi headed T. Turkestanica.  You can probably see that the soil is in need of a much after the heavy rains this winter, and yes mulching is on the list of jobs to do this coming week.  I have had the bags standing by some time now, but the opportunity or weather have been against me till now.

6. Early in the week, I felt the lovely Pittosporum Tom Thumb was getting a little large and decided to have a prune of it. I didn't take any before pictures but this is what it looks like now, diminished in volume by about half.  It had a harder cut on the southern side. I had been looking to giving it  a trim, a little more than the odd the pieces which grace my Vases on Monday, for some time.  I also like to cut quite good handfuls and place them just on their own in a vase, and place them as if they were house plants around the house. The dark maroon shiny foliage is so attractive and it also gives off a pleasing scent. There often  seems to be the newer green growth appearing and I felt then the sap would be active and could lead to too much bleeding, I caught it when it was just ticking over without the new growth, and   I just hope it has not suffered too much. 

Pittosporum Tom Thumb pruned

A few days ago my friend Mandy asked me if some of the YouTube videos were possible such as growing a rose tree from a whole rose hip, which just grew roots and shoots.  I am sure this is a ruse to get people looking and a clever piece of trickery, but it did get me thinking and feeling pleased for having so many plants in my garden that I raised from cuttings.  This Pittosporum is one of them, taken from a shrub from my previous garden. Of course a few more cuttings were taken this time just to see if they would take, without knowing where in the garden there would be any space! 

Interesting sources of information found on the internet this week are the various names for leaf shapes for primulas...I had no idea there were so many! https://primulaworld.blogspot.com/2015/10/primula-leaf-glossary.html and that site offers so much more botanic details.

Snowdrops and Lesser Glory of the Snow In a Vase on Monday - 10 March 2025

Today I am linking into Cathy's post showing some of the garden spring flowers from my garden.

The first of the blooms picked this morning were the last two snowdrops in good condition.  These are from Galanthus Pride of the Mill.  This was a gift from my friend Brenda. These have been really slow to increase , and I wonder whether moving them to an 'improved site' may help.   When I put all the flowers and leaves in the vase I thought I ought to put something in to give a sense of scale, but with my two small soldiers they look even taller than they are. The kneeling soldier is just four inches high.

To complement the snowdrops there are a few of the Cyclamen coum which come up year after year, and develop their own colour variations.  Coming up again which I am delighted with is the Scilla sardensis also called Lesser Glory of the Snow. The leaves are from Corydalis cheilanthifolia.

We have had some warm and sunny weather during the last week, and spring flowers are raring to go.  The cooler weather this coming week will hopefully help to prolong this most favourite of times in the garden for me.

Six on Saturday - 8 March 2025

 After a fine week which started off with a walk along the coast, I've been able to do a little pottering around in the garden, and have more moving around to do this weekend.  However for this get together over at Jim's here are six spring topics from the garden.

1. On the table in full view of the kitchen sink, the small pot of Crocus heuffelianus 'Shock Wave'continues to delight me. Although they have been the most expensive crocus bulbs I have ever bought, from the number of flowers alone per bulb, and their resilience to weather, they have have an excellent choice.  Of course I did not know that at the time of buying but I had confidence in the recommendations of a grower such as Rob Potterton.

Crocus heuffelianus 'Shock Wave'

2. I noticed that there are a number of noses of little bulbs showing above ground, and I found a barely legible label which read Chionodoxa sardensis. I had failed to add those to my plant spreadsheet, but luckily I was able to search the blog and found that I had bought them as bulbs, grown them on in pots and then planted them out.  For me the fortunate thing is that these little plants are now known as Scilla sardensis.  The new label or list will bear that name.

Scilla sardensis

3. There is something about this garden that just does not suit daffodils, and despite this I could not resist picking up some pots ready grown from a plant stall in Dunster. They were in tight bud, but have been glorious this past week on the round sitting circle table.  The weather has been so good, we have had coffee there several times this past week. I think I am just going to keep these over and grow them again in pots next year.

Baby Moon Daffodils

4. And for several years, the Crocus minimus Spring Beauty is back again, for fancy pattern and delicacy this one has top marks.

5. This little primula is just starting its weeks of flowering. Its habit is very similar to the juliae group and must have been a natural cross and it has been growing strongly and just about the best flowering primula for around 45 years, even growing well in sunny situations.

6. And finally bud break on the Amelanchiers,

and just below the Amelanchiers the tight clipping on the balls of Golden Lonicera last year, has kept them much neater that in previous years.

I hope the weather continues to favour gardening, and until next week, Happy Gardening.

A glorious day for a walk

After weeks we are having blue skies, and frosty nights.  It is fine weather for a walk, and this walk offers views, sea air, exercise, and  a bit of botanising and bird watching.

We've walking along to the end of the Brean Down Peninsula a number of times.  We had thought of going of Sunday but with the fine weather, the car park and paths would have been very busy.  It was a quiet Monday and therefore with picnic prepared we departed with no expectations other than just to just enjoy the outside.

The tide was going out, and when we sat right at the end in amongst the Victorian naval fortifications to eat our lunch, we watched the sea gradually receding to expose rocks. Earlier on our walk  the morning  sea mist gradually cleared to reveal clearly the islands of Steep Holm and Flat Holm with its lighthouse. 

There are a few weather battered Hawthorne Trees, and on the less windy side towards the north of the promontory, this tree was having to bear a heavy load of ivy where the deep purple fruit will soon be ready to feed the birds. 

Overlooking the Western Super Mare bay we paused to admire the views

Birdsong carried in the still clear air, and there were lots of LBBs, and robins. 

 

Six on Saturday - 1 March 2025

On this first day of spring,the garden, having had a few days of bright sunshine, is certainly getting into gear.  The news described the first of March as the end of winter, but I thought it the spring equinox.  I prefer to focus on this gardening at the moment or my head will burst with everything else going on. Those of us who love to garden and to note the changes in our gardens, meet up over on Jim's post.  If that is something you would like to join in with, even from time to time, Jim has some guidance. 

Here are Six from the garden on this gloriously sunny spring day.

1. This crocus is small but beautiful and a true delight. Last year I was not convinced of its name, and hopefully someone will be able to name it. It certainly has done very well overwinter in the ground, unlike a couple of the other yellow varieties I had bought a couple of years ago.

2. Seriously I would love to be able to increase this gorgeous little Crocus.  I bought the bulbs last autumn from Pottertons, and I am getting many blooms from each little bulb.  I appealed to The Crocus and Colchicum group on Facebook for guides on how best to do this, and the author of an excellent article 'Botanical Bulbs' sent a link to an article they have written. I'm not so dedicated as to go the whole hog, however there are some good tips, and hopefully next year, I shall have more of these bulbs.I look forward to even more Crocus heuffelianus ‘Shock Wave’ blooms opening during the sunny weather.

3. For seven year I have been enjoying the colourful spring foliage on Sorbaria sorbifolia 'Sem'. This is the first spring that it is doing its uncurling of delicate foliage with its roots down in the ground.

Sorbaria sorbifolia 'Sem'

4. One of the largest and last of the snowdrops this to grace the garden is Galanthus Marjorie Brown. It is described as a strong growing elwesii var. monostictus with large flowers and glaucous leaves, and it started to emerge weeks ago, each bulb having three leaves, it almost looked like it was going to be a grey leaved tulip. 

5. Of course I am delighted that the primula are starting to flower again in the garden. This Primula juliae 'Port and Lemon' has done really well in the garden since it came here four years ago.  Easy to divide and its name a little teaser. Its lemon coloured blooms and its bronze leaves are easily recognisable. Here the sun and the camera have colluded to bleach out the port coloured leaves.

Primula juliae 'Port and Lemon'

I was rather disappointed when reading the result of RHS trials of Primulas in their March 2025 edition, to find that Primula vulgaris 'Taigetos' has no current suppliers.  How fustrating is that to someone like me who has just the right situation for it!  Anyway, I consoled myself by setting off in wellies to check on a local bank of primroses just a few fields away from the house.  In another two weeks it will be in its full glory.

6. The sun is bringing out bumblebees and other insects, and drawing my attention to the various plants inviting them to visit.

The sap is rising, buds and bugs setting to do their thing, let us get out there and enjoy that.  

And because it is St David's day, and my David likes little things too, here is what is left of my Narcissus cyclamineus

Narcissus cyclamineus

From The Garden - Six on Saturday - 21 February 2025

As usual I am joining in with Jim as he posts his garden ruminations. This regular post of mine covers six things from my garden. 

1.  This week arriving in the post was this little treasure.

Camellia Fairy Blush 

It is still in its pot, but not wanting the flowers to get bruised and damaged in the strong winds it is gracing the conservatory.  I am not sure whether our soil will suit it, although I have seen the odd camellia growing in front gardens, so it destined to be potted on with ericaceous compost after flowering, into in slightly larger pot. Hopefully over the next couple of years at least, I will be able to have it as a conservatory plant during the winter.  

 

I've been looking at testing kits and seen digital Ph testers that also test for moisture.  If anyone has experience of successfully using these I would be very pleased to hear from you. This would be quite useful in gauging the humidity in my large pots in the garden as well.

2. In the front garden, the very first variety of snowdrop I planted there was most probably one that I either brought with me from my last garden, which came fromHill Close Gardens in Warwick, or were bought on the first visit to Shepton Mallet Snowdrop fair when we first moved.  It is really happy in the hot front garden, increasing well.  A request for a name was generously suggested by Galanthophiles as being Galanthus 'x valentinei', which is a name given to all hybrids between nivalis and plicatus with one mark.  Looking this up I found that in nature its range is NW Turkey, which explains perhaps why it is thriving and increasing well, self seeding and germinating under the leaf litter. I have many other plants in that area which come from Mediterranean type climates as it is very sunny there.

Galanthus 'x Valentinei'

3. Another snowdrop which is doing very well in the back garden is Galanthus Sprite. The green scratches on the outside certainly make it easy to identify.

Galanthus Sprite

4. To bring more colour to this week's post, what better than the yellow hellebore which seems to be doing well though its nectaries have yet to turn the good golden colour they had previously, but they will do so as they have only just emerged.

5. Yesterday I went to the Snowdrop Festival at Shepton Mallet, and did not come back with any new snowdrops!  I can't say that I didn't come back without any plants!

I already have Primula Blue Horizon which is at the bottom of the picture, and previously our leader kindly gave me some back history for that: AGS Primula book lists 'Blue Horizon'as a julianae hybrid and describes it as a sport of 'Wanda' P.C. 1950. Therefore when I saw for sale Primula vulgaris 'Hall Barn Blue', I just had to get that so that I can do some comparisons.

Primula vulgaris 'Hall Barn Blue' in pot

6. Another Primula came home, and will give a lovely touch of yellow and hopefully will self seed, so I shall be leaving the flowers to set seed. This is the Oxslip, and I am looking forward to planting it out once it stops raining.

The start of the week was cold and dreary, and yesterday it was warm and wet and dreary...today I hope we are going to have some sun.