Six on Saturday - 5 September 2026

We are sighing with relief as rain arrives every few days.  Gardening is once more a great pleasure, as I am sure several of us will admit to when you read other posts linked in to Jim's weekly Six on Saturday post.

1. The garden has perked up nicely following cooler temperatures, a little rain, and some cloud cover. The colour change had started to creep in a few weeks back, the Cornus sanguinea 'Midwinter Fire' as it feel its chlorophyll needs stashing away, do doubt brought on early due to the drought.

Cornus sanguinea 'Midwinter Fire'

2. You have to bend to see these little gems, but it is worth it.  From one small pot several years ago, I have from time to time split the clumps and they finally form a 'fairy circle' around the Ginkgo Tree. The  Acis autumnalis have just started to come up, and strangely not that evenly, as regards to timing. Next week the whole ring will be up and flowering.

Acis autumnalis

3. Another bending moment is required to view the lovely Cyclamen hederifolium that are appearing around the garden.  In a few weeks these will have beautiful leaves lasting all winter, many with unusual patterning.

Cyclamen hederifolium coming up

4. Am I scraping the barrel with this one, or scraping a fungus off a terracotta saucer?   I read that 'The bright yellow fruiting bodies commonly seen in houseplant soil belong to Leucocoprinus birnbaumii, a saprotrophic fungus known as the flowerpot parasol or plant-pot fungus'. These growths are likely to belong to Leucocoprinus birnbaumii, the "flower pot" fungus. I saw this on another base of pot and saucer, a few weeks ago, and went slightly wobbly at the knees wondering whether this would be fatal, not so I read but it is the tell tale sign that I may have been overwatering!

5. Athyrium otophorum var. okanum got moved to the garden from its pot in 2024, but this year proved dire for its health where it was.  This week, I decided to dig it up and hopefully with a lot of tlc it will recover so it is a question of  'In the convalescence bay' rather than  'The exit bay'. At least if we have as hot and sunny a summer next year, I can easily move it to the shade, and water it, but not overwater it! Hopefully it will look like this next year. 

On the subject of ferns,  my three ferns in lovely pots also looked a little bedraggled a few weeks ago. Each year I have a little moth/caterpillar which feast on it.  The leaves then start to get brown and tatty.  For the last few years, and again these have occupied the same pots now for probably fifteen years, I trim all the leaves back, and soak the whole pot and top in a bucket of dilute seaweed extract.  It only takes a couple of weeks for new fronds to form, and I have the pleasure once more of delicate new green fronds along the shady side alley.

This was a fern that 'appeared' in the Kenilworth garden, the first one one is probably a year older, than the other two, and new ones have formed in the garden here too.  

6.  The sting from the sun has gone, and I felt it was time to consider a freshen up of the succulents, and with rain now in the offing, they can now be moved back to each side of the front door.  Each year I have left them there more or less all summer, but this year they would have been too hot, and have been in the back garden since late May. Some have been repotted, old leaves removed and cuttings taken etc.

The balance are back in the shed or still out in the garden. It is usually 5C above forecast temperatures here, and I only move the succulents into the conservatory when the forecast is for ground frosts.

I continue to reposition, trim, edit, and take cuttings...all wonderful activities preparing for next year.

In a Vase on Monday - Birthday Posy

With the few remaining flowers in the garden, I managed to make up this small arrangement.  It is dedicated to my sister, whose birthday it is today.  Just three types of material...three sisters, arranged in my mother's favourite little vase brought back from Japan by my father.  The darker bronze foliage tipped by small white flowers is the Persicaria Red Dragon, a present from Cathy, the little roses are Ghislaine de Feligonde, and white Michaelmas Daisy.  

The Persicaria has now yielded at least five new plants, and all going to members of my gardening club, to raise funds for getting some great speakers for the new year!

The Michaelmas Daisy is magnificent.  I bought it as a small flowering plant, in a pot, the sort you get at the greengrocers for about £1, but it must have been sprayed with dwarfing compound as it was flowering then at about 20cm high.  This year still at the front of the border where I thought it belonged, it has grown to about a meter and is covered with lovely blooms, must appreciated by the bees and other flying insects at this late time of the year.  The stems are strong and there is no sign of flop at all, most probably the best white daisy I have seen!  It very nearly got grazed completely to the ground by the hoards of slugs and snails we had earlier in the year.

The little dish I bought at the airport in Spain returning from my visit to the birthday girl many years ago.

This afternoon we had a walk to the birthday girl's favourite woods, which earlier in the year are bathed with dapple light and bluebells.  Now there is the the 'straw' from the leaves and stems, but on a long fallen silver birch tree were were beautiful fungi...as since this is one of the reasons we walked out there, to see if there were any fungi..I was pleased to see this one.

Cathy is also thinking of Autumn, but her arrangement full of colour is an echo is the glorious weather we are having at the moment.  Do go and and have a peep!

Close up to fungi

On the green just outside the house, two 'fairy' rings but with large fungi has been emerging over the last few days...they almost glow in the low light! Each morning I wake up and look across to see how they are growing.

When they first started to emerge over a week ago,  I could not have imagined how they would grow

they are so beautiful...anyone have any idea what type they are?

Fungi Season continues

Monday morning I am frequently 'at home', and look out for a visit from Penny.  Also with her, this week was little Daniel, her little grandson, for whom I keep the little miniature strawberries, and he can just about toddle down the garden and we are encouraging him to pick them himself, maybe next time.

Penny brought me an early Christmas Present: a Bundt tin and a long cake tin.  So I think some festive baking recipe research is now on the cards.

Penny had noticed this clump of fungi as she got off the bus, so of course, on her way out, we went to have a look, and I took these pictures which shows the interesting pattern which reaches down the stem.  I believe they are Shaggy Pholiota.

On my way back, I showed a neighbour the pictures and he said that a large tree used to grow there many years ago.

Fungi Season

Along the bed by the patio.  What are these?  Are they edible?