Six on Saturday - 5 December 2020

 

It definitely feels like winter: I am grateful for the odd hour of sunshine, but it has mainly been dark and wet, and Friday from mid morning was glorious for a few hours, then back to poor light, mizzle and cold.   I feel like setting up a vigil through the night to catch the cat(s) that have chosen to use my beds where there are emerging bulbs, for you know what.  They are now strewn with every sort of thorny stick I could find. If anyone knows proven ways of deterring cats, please let me know.  

Jon the Propagator has a collection of winter beaten plants, and tips, and also a fancy new module system for seedlings which looks interesting.  I'll be looking into those Butaseed modules soon, for all those veg seeds I hope to grow.

1. There is nothing quite like the low winter sun shining on  Japanese Grass Hakonechloa macra Albostriata, to get me reaching for my camera. 

The variegated colour and stipes have been replaced by a warm sensual titian glow.  Contrary to usual guidance, this 'shade loving grass' has thrived  in deep clay pots in full sun all year, having been watered in the driest periods weekly. I had another in a more shaded area to compare it with, that one has less vibrant autumn foliage.  

Geranium robustum Silver Cloak

2.  I admired this plant in Beth Smith's garden: Foamlea. I feels such a long time ago that we visited her but it is only 18 months ago.  Beth gave me a small plant, but I had obviously not given it the good drainage it needed.  I felt quite bereft, and was soon trawling the internet for a grower of Geranium robustum Silver Cloak.  I bought two and placed one in the front hot dry sunny garden, and one in the gravel garden.  I am pleased to say that each plant is thriving, and there are a few cuttings taken as an insurance policy, and to send to Jim next spring.  I love soft grey leaves, intricately divided leaves, and hardy geraniums, so this has been a great introduction to the  garden this year.

3. Thanks to the generosity of Jim, the seeds he sent me of another silver hardy gernanium, are coming up nicely, and are being nurtured.  They could be G. incanum or G. harveyii and it will be interesting to compare this with Silver Cloak. According to Robin Parer. in the Plant Lover's Guide to Hardy Geraniums. G incanum is one of Silver Cloak's parents.

4. Whereas Geranium Silver Cloak is not deciduous,, many other geraniums have just melted into the ground in the last couple of weeks.  I have been watching a geranium that disappears in the summer.  I am happy to report that all three clumps of Geranium malviflorum luckily escaped being overplanted, or damaged during their summer dormant season, and I am very much looking forward to their spring flowering.  I have learnt that they are best moved/divided just after flowering whilst they are in the green.  I shall be sure to do that, and bring them closer to the edges of the borders, in between winter dormant perennials. 

Geranium malviflorum emerging in December

 5. Early to flower, this little primula reminds me of the time we visited The Vyne with my grand daughter when she chose this plant.  I had wanted her to choose a plant for herself, but she wanted me to have it.  Hope I can look after it and keep it healthy, and maybe one day she may want a piece.

6. I'm not sure if this plant is quite to my taste, and  I can't quite work out why.  I like white flowers, I like scabious, and to think this is flowering in December too. But this may not be the normal flowering period, it just seems so wrong. Scabiosa caucasica 'Perfecta Alba' might get moved a little further away, maybe it is just in the wrong place and not in harmony with the rest of the planting in that area. My plan this week  is to work out where it will be moved to.....

I shall give it one more year, and then....after all with so little space, and so many plants to try, I now am going round the garden removing the ones that are iffy.

Six on Saturday - 28 November 2020

What a variety this week: a dry and warmish day: great for gardening;  a dry and cold day: wasn't feeling on top form; rain: great for reading; we don't have climate, we have weather in the UK.  I remember a geography teacher, explaining this to our class.  Whatever the weather, we can enjoy our gardening inside or out. We had our first proper frost, not just on the top of the conservatory, and this has at last turned the leaves on the corner acer an attractive colour.  Jon, the propagator who this week is busy trying to fit in border line plants into his conservatory, again is bringing us all together. Always worth seeing what he and others have posted this week.

1. Primroses...

Having a little tidy up under the Fuchsia, I found a little clump of pink primroses in flower, a little soggy and well nibbled.

Primula vulgaris subsp. sibthorpii

2. Veggie Growing. I've cut down the runner beans, and am preparing to use the 'potager' to a much greater extent next year.  

I've been following Charles Dowding on Facebook, and hope to be able to build in sowing, and planting next year to make the most of the small area.  In readiness, I have spaded round the Lemon Verbena, ready to move it somewhere else in the garden.  Where to has yet to be sorted out! As I just sow a few of several things, the small packets from Moreveg are just right.

3.In print!  Thanks to this weekly meme, and my blog, over the years, I have enjoyed writing about my gardening.  I try to come up with something for the small garden too for our 'Covid' monthly gardening club newsletter.  This week, from somewhere quite different,  the Somerset Federation of Gardening Clubs magazine dropped through the letter box: I remember offering this article when I sent in some changes regarding our club, to be added to their webpage. 

I am sure there are many of you already contribute to local magazines and groups such as the HPS, and specialist groups. Through this one our gardening club links into county support systems, with lists of speakers, and sharing information with other clubs.

4. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.  On one corner table in the conservatory where I like to set the table for breakfast and lunch, and dinner on milder nights, I placed my new Fatsia plant.  It is destined to be outside, but for its first winter, I thought I would have it as an attractive conservatory plant.  Mr S asked me kindly,' not as a criticism', but as an 'observation', what was wrong with the plant. I quickly turned, to find the plant fine, but it was the patterning on the leaf, he thought it had some sort of disease. I did take a good critical look, and explained the variegation on Spider's Web Fatsia, and that each leaf was a little different. To me patterning on leaves is a thing of beauty. Then I spotted another 'ugly' thing: I had only recently brought the pot inside, and just plonked it in a 'cache pot' I happened to have lying around, and with the cache pot being too shallow it just looked ugly. 

Fatsia japonica 'Spider's Web'

 A quick change around  has made all the difference, to my eye, and Mr S is getting to appreciate the detail or at least my interest in it,

5. On the dry and mild day this week, I went a little too mad with the cutting back of the herbaceous plants, and now have an area of low cropped plants.  I also quite rightly removed some plants, which I feel did not quite work there. I hope that over the next few weeks to gain some ideas on how to give a little winter structure to the area.  I'll be viewing all the other weekly Six on Saturdays for inspiration.

6. Newly planted this year, rose Munstead Wood is slow to close down for the Winter. This bloom has come through rain, frost, sun and wind, and with another rose bud just starting to open, there will be roses in December. Yes a perfect sunny day yesterday, but I have loads of house cleaning to catch up with, so not much gardening.

Rose Munstead Wood

In a Vase on Monday - Needs Must

Pottering around the garden on a Sunday I saw that Alison's Sedum is behaving as if it is spring, sending up stems and buds, and the Hydrangea was starting to have its petals skeletonized by rasping mini snails. '

Of necessity these form the basis of the vase today, for who knows how long they will hold, and I ought to keep back other plants for posts in the weeks to come, when material will be meagre.  

 Materials this week

Sedum Hylotelephium  erythrostictum 'Frosty Morn', aka 'Alison's sedum'

Persicaria Red Dragon, aka Cathy's Dragon.

Achillea Millefolium Lilac Beauty

Salvia Amistad

various seed heads and capsules gathered on walks...

I often heard the expression or proverb or is it an idom:  'Needs Must', when I was a child, and did not quite understand its meaning. We've certainly been practicing this in the current situation, but with a little imagination and substitution, or acceptance of the not quite perfect, a few freedom can be gained.  This is just one example of  'All's well that ends well', as I attempt to come to terms with 'the new normal'.

Shakespeare used the old saying in his play 'All's well that ends well'. Apologies to all the linguists and word smiths, and historians for any misunderstandings....

I am joining in with Cathy who leads this weekly get-together. Cathy is posting some superb chrysanthemums this week, all spider like with excellent prop.

Six on Saturday - 21 November 2020

 I don't know whether the Prop is who our leader in this weekly show and tell, ask and answer, is aware that I am getting big pot envy?  However I realise that this garden and gardener needs to keep herself in check.  Why not spend a little time to look over what we have been up to or think worthy of sharing this week?

Here are my six....

1. For Succulents you need good drainage, and this container must be about the most appropriate I have.  I'm not sure what type of stone it is made of.  It looks like a piece of volcanic rock full of holes, but non the less heavy.  At present Echeveria Elegans is growing in a little gritty soil, and has been in  there for two or three years.  Did I ever deny that I liked succulents? But I do not like cactii to work with, though admire them elsewhere..its the thorns!

2. I've been dithering over a little mini succulent at the market over the past two weeks and this time I succumbed and brought home this Portulacaria Afra Variegata, also known as the Elephant bush. Some people buy cakes, I buy plants...

When we were on holiday in Crete a couple of years ago, I found huge specimens in flower! However it was not the variegata form, but in full flower.

Other succulents have been sheltering from excess rain outside the front door.  

3. We had our first Gardening Club Zoom meeting this week, where a friend and fellow member of the club: writer, garden designer, lecturer etc Sally Gregson gave us a talk: The Naked Garden, which was about the pleasures of a winter garden.  Outside the colour is starting to come in the corner Acer. Later I am joining in our first HPS Zoom meeting.  Bob Brown will be speaking, therefore I shall be coming back after that to read more posts.

4. This is the earliest I have seen the tips of crocus coming up....

5. Yellow shines through the gloom: Jasmine nudiflorum: Yingchun 'The Flower that welcomes Spring' in China is cheering up the Winter in Somerset.

6. I need to read up on how to increase this lovely plant growing in the gravel garden.  It has been flowering non stop! I just keep on dead heading it:  Erodium Fran's Delight. Will it be best to wait till spring, or would cuttings taken now be OK?

Chin up everyone...keep sane, and garden.  See you all next week again for another six? Hope so.

Mid Week Muddy Walk

One of the best ways I can think of at present to escape the hemmed in feeling is just to go for a walk. Early in the week, we had a few hours forecast without rain, and that was the signal to get out our boots, and explore a walk I had discovered on line. The Somerset Wildlife Trust Reserves are certainly worth visiting whatever the season.

From the top of Cheddar Gorge, where we parked on the road side, we walked along the path and stopped to look the over the old lime kiln, which was not far from the dramatic rock exposure left by quarrying.  

This area is called old Black Rock Quarry, and is part of the Black Rock Nature Reserve.

At the top of the eastern loop in the Long Wood Nature Reserve, we found a nice bench for a rest.  Tall slim tress reached skyward.

Beyond this as we arrived at a valley floor we could hear a stream flowing into a swallet.  

This stream  continues underground through the large caves, emerging lower down in the Cheddar Valley.

Returning along the valley, which is dry but very muddy, we came across a couple of cave entrances, and for the last part retraced our steps back through the Black Rock Nature Reserve.

We were very glad of our walking sticks to help along the slippery tracks.  The drive down the Cheddar Gorge with very few cars and just a couple of climbers here and there was as always an amazing experience.  We shall be sure to return in the Spring to see all the spring flowers.