In a Vase on Monday - End of May

 The weather is all askew: low light, high rainfall, high winds, low temperatures.  I might not have the quite the right names for all the flowers, but a vase is a vase, and we do have some flowers.  Here it is then...

Pelargonium Pink Capricorn can be spared as the plant has started blooming strongly.  white Centaurea montana 'Alba', Ceonothus repens which is blooming all around the front bay window, a stem of purple self seeded aquilegia, and some stems of a pink bistort probably a little like Persciaria bistorta 'Superba', are also in there.  I'm not sure how well the Ceonothus will hold, as I haven't tried it before. 

Again I can't seem to do the arrangement justice with the camera, sorry about that.  It is quite pretty and we shall enjoy it in our living room.  I'll be linking in with Cathy, who have some special sweet peas in a delightful Caithness Vase.  Mine is also a smokey grey and purple Caithness Vase, and with its very heavy bottom make a lovely stable posy holder.

Return Visit to Beacon Hill

 As we were going up to Rocky Mountain, I suggested Mr S came had a walk round Beacon Hill Woods.  I had been waxing lyrical about my previous visit with my Geology Group, and now at last he understands my praise.

In the first instance I wanted to catch the bluebells before they were over.  The canopy of green leaves from mainly beech trees had started to unfurl, and with the cold rain and poor light, the bluebells well not as deep a colour as I was expecting, of course the few albino ones are always white.

Towards the Eastern Side of the Woods along the tract, there were some colourful patches.

Only a taster walk was intended, so we doubled back to return to the car, but not before coming across one of the bowl barrows.

"This monument includes two circular enclosures and three bowl barrows which form part of a round barrow cemetery situated at the summit of the prominent Beacon Hill. The largest enclosure contains all the remaining features within its interior and survives as a circular area of approximately 200m in diameter defined by a low outer bank and partially buried ditch which survives differentially. The second enclosure is similarly defined with a bank which stands up to 2.5m wide and 0.5m high and has a diameter of approximately 36m. The three bowl barrows survive as circular mounds surrounded by buried quarry ditches from which the construction material was derived. They vary in size from 11m up to 21m in diameter and from 1.5m up to 2.5m high. Surface undulations indicate early partial excavation and the interior of the outer enclosure has also been subject to tree planting and surface stone quarrying. One of the barrows has a clearly visible ditch of up to 3m wide and 0.5m deep and another is topped by a standing stone."  Historic England

We used to love walking on the Ridge Way, and a regular walk with our dog went via The White Horse, and Waylands Smithy, which Mr S said made their hair and fur stand up!  

In all our walk, we saw only one person, and their young dog.  The dark trunks and pale green leaves of the beeches were calming, but we must have been there when the birds were having a rest, as we heard very few.

There was this mass of fruiting bodies emerging from a rotten tree trunk, but being still in the tight button stage, I am unable to name it. 

Six on Saturday - 22 May 2021

1.  When I feel the garden is in the doldrums, or maybe it is just my mood, I find satisfaction in caring for my succulents and propagating them. I don't have very many, and on the whole have them for many years.  From time to time the house plants get brought out to be rained on:

Caring for succulents only involves  gentle work such as removing any dead material and potting up, propagation and rejuvenation etc. Unless of course they are in large pots, but I am working on reducing those, as with my manual handling hat on, they do not make safe weigh training items!  The larger ones are in the conservatory for the moment and had their moment of care last week.  These succulents are mainly house plants.  The pan in the foreground is a Haworthia:  Haworthiopsis venosa subsp. tessellata (Veined Haworthia).which has the longest of flowering stems I have seen.  Back in 2015 I took a picture of the stem when it was about 1 metre long.  The pot on the blue table was repotted last year, but it has now had its three flowers removed! 

Portulacaria afra variegata. was bought late last year and I had been admiring it elsewhere for some time. After spending the winter in a small pot on the kitchen windowsill, it was time to take it up a pot size. 

2.  At the same time the crowded pan of Echeveria elegans, which spend the winter in the conservatory was turfed out, some fresh young rosettes selected and replanted in new well draining compost, topped with grit.

I had so many rosettes which I could have make something of, if I had mixed sufficient gritty compost, and found several local people who would have wanted them.   It was 7 am and threating to pour, and what would I do with umpteen little pots of these? 

I ought to be more disciplined and just throw the lot away, however here it is in the front garden, just by the small clump that successfully overwintered and is now coming into flower.  This has survived, frost, snow, rain etc.  It had a few leaves swell up and go black, but these have been removed.

3. The nasturtiums grown from seed found in the bottom of my posh coat pocket are wondering when it will be summer or even just stop raining and the sun come out. I must have been in a 'posh' garden and found some old nasturtiums seeds last autumn. The original plants were very compact with dark flowers, and yes I do remember where I was.  To repay my debt I did take round a couple of my unusual Pelargoniums for their collection. I'm sure a mouse would have eaten the seeds as they lay on the ground, and now I feel that I have deprived a mouse of its winter store!

4. The  Corylus avellana Scooter, planted a few weeks ago,  is coming into leaf.  In the very early morning light the dew/rain drops catch the light, and my eye, but I can't quite get the right picture...

Corylus avellana Scooter

5. Clematis Sugar Sweet growing in a pot a mixed perennials is fully coating the hand made trellis.

6.This dainty little plant from China is growing in my estimation,  Semiaquilegia ecalarata is starting in flower.  I was a little under impressed with it previously.  I allowed it to self seed, then moved a few plants around and they seem to be much happier, or maybe they are in  a position better to be appreciated. The green and purpled infused leaves are also rather attractive the rest of the year. Now that I know I can easily raise new plants from seed, but this I mean they self seed, and are happy to be moved, I shall be viewing up different parts of the garden to try it.  I'm not quite sure how long lived the plants are. As they are described as short lived perennials it probably is a good thing to keep a few new seedlings in different parts of the garden, and discard older plants.  I like the way they are growing through surrounding encroaching plants, just as seasonal wild flowers do along the edges of woodland and fields.

Semiaquilegia ecalarata

We had our first 'in person' monthly Henton Village Gardening Club meeting, and  we were delighted to welcome Alasdair Moore from Heligan. He came up for a 'break' to visit a friend, who is also a member of the club. Along the way, during a visit that morning to another 'Holy' garden, picked up another great gardening mind who came to the talk.  At the meeting I was wearing the same jacket when I visited their garden on the day the nasturtium seed was acquired!  My blushes were well hidden by my mask.

Almost as much  excitement now, as I go over the the Prop's site, when Jon gathers a few of use that enjoy cataloguing things from our garden, sharing etc, each week.  

In a Vase on Monday

 Even if the light is poor, and the photograph a little grainy, why should this little posy with flowers from the garden not get posted for this week's In a Vase on Monday?  

Clematis Sugar Sweet was the starting point, to which I added some Thyme Jekka, Hardy Geranium Elizabeth Anne, and her dark foliage, a stem of Ajuga Reptans 'Atropurpurea, and Semiaquilegia ecalarata.  My little soldier that I bought from a street peddler in Xi'an is there to give scale to the arrangement. 

Since the Semiaquilegia comes from China, I wonder whether any real soldiers would have knelt down to admire them? Maybe It would have inspired a general to compose a poem about them to send home to their beloved.

I'm joining in with Cathy who has time to Ramble round her garden too, and pick some flowers, and write a little prose to go with them.

Six on Saturday - 15 May 2021

1.  Last autumn, I  added Thyme 'Jekka' to the gravel garden as I found its form interesting.  It is quite prostrate spreading out in every direction.  Now that it is in flower it proves itself worthy of a single solo appearance set off nicely by the gravel, and up to now used purely as an ornamental.

Thyme 'Jekka'

2.  I've bought my last lettuce from the greengrocer for some time.  At first I shall pick a leaf here and there, but I also ought to get on to sow a few more seeds to have plants to follow on from these.  

3. It is that time in between the spring and summer flowers, but with a little bit of rain this week, the plants have perked up considerably after weeks of drought.  I watched the flowering stems of the Sicilian Honey Garlic, Nectaroscordum siculum. slink around, and contort themselves as if sinewy snakes, and then the rain came and it is as if the great snake charmer played the tune which caused them to stand on their points.  They grow near the tip of this peninsula.

4. Rarely seen by me as it grows on the fence on the windowless side of the house, but much appreciated by my neighbours is Clematis Montana Warwickshire Rose.  

This was originally one of those Morrison bargain small clematis, nurtured carefully, but now starting to give a lovely display.  I love the scent of this one, and find its dark foliage very attractive.

5. This is a small herbaceous perennial, which I have brought with me from several gardens ago, and even when not in flower has some neat nicely pattered foliage:  Tiarella Spring Symphony has so many flowers open at the moment.  If I dead head them all, after a short rest I'll get a second flowering.

I have another Tiarella Mint Chocolate which has more dramatic leaf marking with a raised textured surface, but there is a little apricot in it its flower colour, but it is placed a little away on the other side of this conservatory bed. I see that there is one called Angel Wings, which I shall definitely be on the look of for at future shows and garden festivals.

6. Over in the shady border, I have recently planted a new primula to me: Primula sieboldii Spring rose.  It is rather bowed down with all the rain.  If it does well, I may well have some more cultivars as part of my Christmas 2021 presents! I think Penny's Primulas will be where I order from.

and just look at the structure in these beauties:

Athyrium Otophorum v  Okanum 

This fern has been pot grown for several years now, and repotted last year. Its  beauty can best be admired close up, and it suits the tall pot, though I think it would look a lot more dignified in a stone pot rather than an old plastic one.

Gradually moving towards to the 'despatch department', but noted a couple of days ago by Mr S for its lovely flowering stems is Carex Ice Dance.  This Japanese Sedge may well have to dance to somewhere more permanent, out of its first pot, if I am to please him inside. Or maybe it ought to have a better pot.  

On my early morning pavement walk , slugs and snails are slithering home.  The rain has brought them out, so I shall be out assessing the damage in the garden later. Many SOS gardeners will be out getting on with all those urgent tasks today, but not before linking in with the Prop, or maybe they will wait and rest after their tasks and take their time to link in.