First blog post

This is my first attempt at a Six on Saturday (also first attempt at a blog!). It’s all plants this week

My first plant is Schizostylis coccinea ‘Ice Maiden’ (I think we’re supposed to call it Hesperantha coccinea now). I have a three varieties of Schizostylis in my garden, all in various shades of pink. I found this one at a local garden centre a couple of weeks ago and have eagerly awaited the first flowers. It’s very nearly white! Just a touch of pink.

Number two is Begonia sutherlandii. I bought some as small plugs back in April and they have flowered non-stop ever since.

My third choice is Salvia patens. I haven’t grown this for many years and had forgotten what a beautiful colour it is. It’s taken a while to start flowering but is well worth the wait. Number four is another blue flower – Ipomoea tricolour ‘Heavenly Blue’. I sowed the seeds quite late as the plants don’t like the cold and have planted them to grow through many of my climbers. It’s a shame the leaves don’t last. The photo doesn’t do justice to the colour!

A couple of weeks ago I went to Picton Garden and nursery where they hold the National Collection of Michaelmas Daisies. It’s a beautiful garden and, needless to say, I came away with a couple (maybe slightly more) of plants. This is a photo of an unnamed variety of Michaelmas Daisy that I have had for a few years  it doesn’t seem to succumb to the slugs either

Plant six has to be Cyclamen hederifolium. It’s taken me years to get a decent show of these and now the seedlings are popping up all over the place. This particular one is a seedling from a large corm I bought in Amsterdam several years ago

That’s my six for this week. Happy gardening.

Six on Saturday 16/11/19

Nearly missed Saturday!

More rain. That’s all I’m going to say about that. We’ve also had a couple of quite hard frosts which have just about finished the summer pots off.
I have managed to plant up some of the winter pots (they’ve had the greenhouse tomato plants in until recently)mwith layers of tulips, daffodils and crocus/iris reticulata.

I’ve waited all summer for this little Hebe to flower and it finally gets there as the frost arrives.

The leaves of the Beech hedge look beautiful as they get their winter colours.

Hylotelephium spectacular looks nearly as good now as when the flowers first emerged

I had two quite large hollies, one male and one female but had to remove the male a couple of years ago. There’s obviously another male in the area as Ilex aquifolium ‘Silver Milkmaid’ is still covered in berries. The birds have started on them already, working their way down from the top.

I’ve still loads of bulbs to plant but gardening isn’t part of the plan this weekend but I’ll catch up with myself soon I hope.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend and enjoy seeing all of the other gardens courtesy of our host at

https://thepropagatorblog.wordpress.com/

Six on Saturday 09/11/19

It must be Six on Saturday time  because it’s pouring with rain again! However, it was a beautiful sunny day yesterday so I took some photos then.

Thursday night saw the first proper frost and last night was colder again for a while. Between the awful weather and work I’m so far behind with the garden – plants that should be in the ground, plants that should be in the glasshouse, bulbs to plant, compost to mulch with……… oh well, it will all get done in the end.

1. Thursday nights frost brought the last of the leaves down from the Birch tree.

2. It also turned the leaves of Trachelospermum jasminoides ‘Variegata’ red overnight.

3. The Solenostemon were still looking quite good yesterday

but have dropped most of their leaves with last nights frost. A priority tomorrow will be to re-pot them and put them in the glasshouse for the winter. I have some cuttings as well as insurance.
4. The ‘Antik’ Geraniums haven’t been affected by the frost so far. I overwintered two large plants last year but they took up a lot of room in the glasshouse. I’ve taken some cuttings this year and will (probably) not keep the large plants.

5. I planted Mahonia eurybracteata ‘Soft Caress’ two or three years ago and it’s been very slow to grow. At least it’s having a go at flowering this year.

6. I’ve been meaning to include Miscanthus ‘Silberfeder’ for the last few weeks but keep forgetting. It’s slightly past its peak now but still looking good considering how wet it’s been.

Off to work now so I’ll be back later to read the other Sixes at https://thepropagatorblog.wordpress.com/

Six on Saturday 02/11/19

A week off this week so we’ve been away for a few days. On our return it was amazing to see how much the garden had changed in such a short time. The max/min thermometer in the greenhouse recorded an overnight low of 2.4 degrees while we were away and leaves have fallen, Cosmos and Zinnias have collapsed and lots of clearing up needs to be done. I spent yesterday in the garden picking up leaves, picking up slugs, removing annual plants, picking up slugs, planting bulbs and picking up more slugs. There’s still a lot of bulbs to plant but, with yet more rain and strong winds forecast, not a lot is going to get done today sadly. I’ll apologise now as some of the photos below are a bit blurry but it was windy yesterday afternoon.
1. I grow greenhouse tomatoes in large terracotta pots and when I removed them last week there were several patches of this fungus growing around the back of one of the pots.

2. I bought Hydrangea macrophylla ‘Blue Star’ at the Malvern Spring Show this year. As it was in flower in May it went over quite early in the season. A while back I noticed new flower heads forming and so cut off the old ones. The new flower heads aren’t very big but give a lovely shot of colour at this time of year.

3. Hesperantha coccinea ‘Ice Maiden’ is finally flowering, although there aren’t many stems.

4. The weather doesn’t seem to have suited some of the Salvias so well this year but they’re having a final flourish.

5. In the spring the Non-Gardener replaced an arch and some trellis which gave a new planting opportunity. On one of the trellis I planted Ampelopsis henryana. It has grown quite well and was beginning to show its autumn colour last weekend. While we were away a lot of the leaves have dropped so this is its last opportunity to feature in a Six.

6. Sorbus aucuparia ‘Autumn Spire’ has struggled this year. It’s a young tree and the long, dry summers of last and this year have taken their toll. However, it has managed to put on a beautiful autumn display, despite dropping a lot of leaves in the summer.

When I was in the garden yesterday I started to make notes about plants to move/get rid of/acquire etc so I think I’ll work on those plans a bit more today and then spend the rest of the day being the gardening quilter instead.
I hope the weather doesn’t stop you getting out into your garden this weekend but whatever the weather don’t forget to check in with our host to see the other gardens at

https://thepropagatorblog.wordpress.com/

Six on Saturday 26/10/2019

A very late Six this week as it’s been so wet today (and yesterday) that I’ve not been able to get in to the garden to take some pictures. It finally eased off late this afternoon and I could take some photos from the gravel path so here we go.

1. The overnight temperature has been around 3 or 4 degrees this week and some of the plants have suffered. After several hours of 40 mile an hour winds last night the Tithonias have reached the end of their season.

2. Autumn colours are appearing everywhere now. I bought a Ginkgo biloba as a very small plant three years ago. It’s grown much quicker than I expected it to but  it’s still in a pot as I haven’t really anywhere to plant it. Sound familiar? The leaves have turned a beautiful yellow this week.

3. I grow acid lovers in pots as the soil here is very alkaline. Acers in pots don’t seem to give a very good autumn show – as soon as the leaves turn they drop. I managed to catch them this afternoon, I’m expecting the branches to be bare tomorrow.

4. The Eucomis bicolour haven’t done quite so well this year – too dry, not enough sun, too windy, too wet – but they’ve turned a lovely colour.

5. Fuchsias are still giving their all.

6. Another Michaelmas Daisy this week, Symphyotrichum novae-angliae ‘Purple Dome’. Being a short variety all of the rain and wind hasn’t affected it too much. It might feature again in a couple of weeks when it looks a bit less dishevelled.

After all of this rain we’re forecast a sunny day tomorrow and I intend to spend every minute of it in the garden clearing up and planting bulbs. Enjoy the rest of your weekend and don’t forget to see how all the other Sixers are getting on at

https://thepropagatorblog.wordpress.com/

Six on Saturday 19/10/19

I can’t believe that it’s over two years since I joined the Six community. I’ve discovered so many new plants, (if only I had room for them all) and read some really helpful hints and tips. Thanks to our leader and long may it continue.

The weather has been a little kinder here this week and we’ve actually had a couple of days with no rain and on Thursday the sun came out. Even better was that I wasn’t working so could go gardening. Luckily I took photos for this weeks Six at the same time as the rain returned on Friday. It was good while it lasted.

1. Having not done a lot in the garden due to the weather there was a lot of clearing up to do. I need to find some spaces to plant Wallflowers and Sweet Williams plus some of the large quantity of bulbs that I seem to have ordered. I’ve had my best success with Echinacea purpurea this year and the seed heads are standing well, despite the wet. When I looked closer though I could see that the seeds are germinating while still in the seed heads! I’ve never noticed this before, it shows how damp everything is.

2. This weeks Michaelmas Daisy is Symphyotrichum ericoides ‘Yvette Richardson’. It’s about 20” tall and very delicate.

3. I have grown Persicaria virginiana ’Painter’s Palette’ (I think) for a few years. I like it but feel that there are better varieties and keep thinking I’ll replace it. It also seeds around too much. That said, it looks quite good now. The cobwebs etc don’t add a lot though.

4. Another Persicaria in the border is ‘Indian Summer’. Sadly, the weather has beaten a lot of it down but this bit is still upright.

5. Last Persicaria for this week is P. microcephala ‘Red Dragon’. It’s a vigorous variety that I don’t have room for in the border but I want to grow it as the foliage is so beautiful. My answer to this problem was to grow it against some trellis. As it grows up I just thread it through occasionally. It’s reached over six foot tall this year.

6. Ageratina altissima ‘Chocolate’ grows quietly in a very shady corner and then at this time of year suddenly comes to life. The flowers are small but such a perfect white. Sorry it’s a bit blurry but the wind had come up by this time.

Have a great weekend, hopefully with some time in your garden. Then catch up with all the other Sixers at

https://thepropagatorblog.wordpress.com/

Six on Saturday 12/10/19

There is only one question in my mind this week – WILL IT EVER STOP RAINING? The garden has been beaten down by the wind and the rain and is looking very, very sad at the moment. The ground is saturated so it’s not been possible to work out there this week. This is the path by the cold frame

There’s bulbs to plant, Sweet Williams and Wallflowers to plant out and plants to move but I don’t think any of that will be happening in the near future. I’ve really missed being outside, the garden is definitely my ‘happy place’. It’s good for the mind and the soul and I’ve got withdrawal symptoms. At least I’ve got quilting!
Here’s this weeks Soggy Six on Saturday.

1. Very few of the plants are looking their best for photos. Most look like this

2. However, despite the rain some plants are still looking good and showing what’s to come next year.

3. I’ve grown some named varieties of Solenostemon this year and, overall, they’ve done really well, especially the ones in pots.

I took cuttings last month and they rooted very quickly. They’re growing on in the glasshouse.

However, the ones in the ground have been SnS fodder recently.

4. I’ve tried to grow Nerines a few times but without much success. I thought I’d try some in pots this year but they haven’t grown very well. However, N. bowdenii ‘Stefani’ is at least flowering.

5. I’ve got quite a few grasses in the garden. Pennisetum alopecuroides ‘Hameln’ is quite late flowering this year. It’s one of those grasses that you just have to touch as you pass it. I think I’ll move it to a more open place next year as I don’t think it gets quite enough sun.

6. Amelanchier lamarckii ‘Ballerina’ is late to leaf and very early to drop. The spring flowers are beautiful and the birds love the berries. Descriptions of it always say about the glorious autumn colour but I find that if you blink you miss it. The wind has certainly speeded up the leaf drop!

That’s a bad photo but if I leave it until next week there won’t be any leaves left.

Work today but that’s okay as yet more rain is forecast. I’m planning a glasshouse day tomorrow. The peppers and tomatoes need to come out and I’m going to plant some of the bulbs in pots. Have a good weekend and I hope you get some garden time.

Don’t forget to see what’s going on in other Sixers gardens courtesy of our host at

https://thepropagatorblog.wordpress.com/

Six on Saturday 05/10/19

Another Saturday and another Six. They come around so quickly. Between work and the weather not a lot has happened in the garden this week. Quite a lot of bulbs have been delivered though. I just need to make some space to put them in.

1. Salvias have done well this year, although Capsid Bug was a problem earlier on. S. uliginosa is very exuberant and I find it fairly impossible to control. The bees love it though. The annual Heleniums have been amazing his year but are reaching the end of their lives. All this rain means the SnS have had a feast on their petals.

2. Hylotelephium ‘Lost Labelum’ is doing well in this narrow border. I’ve a few different ones in this dry patch that are doing well so I think I’m going to remove the majority of the other things that mostly struggle here and replace them with varieties of the above and some more grasses. The Geranium will stay.

3.  Hesperantha haven’t done so well his year with very few and much smaller flowers. It seems a shame not to have one variety in my Six though. This is the most prolific (usually) in my garden – H. coccinea ‘Mrs Heggarty’. I’ve a couple of other paler colour varieties but I saw a clump of really red ones in a garden the other day and want some. Research needed.

4. The Asters have taken a bit of a beating but a white flower at his time of year is very welcome. Sorry about the focus, it’s getting windy again.

5. I have spent many years trying to increase my few original Cyclamen hederifolium. It’s working! I have them at the front of a lot of the borders and they are popping up in a few unexpected places as well. The colour and leaf variation is lovely. Beautiful plants.

 

6. I plant up two hanging baskets each year with Fuchsias, Begonias and Geraniums mostly but this year was seduced by an offer of reduced price Begonia ‘Apricot Shades’ plug plants. I planted one mixed basket as usual and one with just this Begonia variety. The first one has had most of the plants twisted out of it by the wind (should have taken it down temporarily!) but I’m really pleased with the other. It has suffered some damage but still adds a good splash of colour. I’m becoming a convert to single variety baskets.

Out with the Non-Gardener today and a quilting regional day tomorrow so very little is going to get done in the garden this weekend 😔 but the joy of gardening is that it will all be waiting for me for when I do have the time. Have a great weekend and keep up to speed with all of the other Sixers at

https://thepropagatorblog.wordpress.com/