After an historically momentous week here in the UK , I feel that I’m ready to get back to normal and tackle SOS once again. Lets face it, I can remember the late King dying ( I was 9 yrs old) and the Coronation of our dear Queen, neighbours bought a little TV and we all sat round the tiny screen to watch it. I have to face the fact that I am now classed as old by the media!
After a couple of weeks of rain , everything is recovering and flowering once more. It is also time for tidying up and clipping back. The news is that the farmer has cut his field of maize so the squirrels aren’t going to be happy, no free meals any more!
No 1
Box Chinese Ginger Jar in desperate need of a haircut, looking very shaggy!
An hour later it looked a lot better, neat and tidy once more, thank goodness.
No 2
Colchicums are now flowering, making a lovely splash of colour on the rockery. The strong winds have knocked a few over, but most have survived.
I moved some of the Colchicum bulbs further round the rockery, many years ago, these always flower at least 3 weeks later than the original clump, don’t know why, but it means I can enjoy them for longer.
No 3
Quite some time ago I told you the tale of my Acer that had nearly drowned in its pot because its roots had filled the only drainage hole at the base of the pot. It lost most of its leaves, but now after being repotted in a larger pot with numerous drainage holes and new compost, it has sprouted loads more leaves. All the leaves in the photo are new ones and more buds are still to open up. Hopefully by next year it will be back to normal.
No 4
Seedling michaelmas daisies have spread all along the front border by the drive. The flowers are only tiny but they are a bee magnet, always masses of bees buzzing round them and for that reason alone, I keep them.
No 5
Clematis Rouge Cardinal has started flowering at last, I thought it never would. For some reason the flowers are facing away from the sun, towards the north, so I had to photograph them from an upstairs window.
No 6
Golden Rod in the border by the field has made a good sized clump at last, maybe in a few years I’ll be able to split it! Another plant that is a bee magnet and therefore earns its space.
Those are my six for this week, a lot more clipping back is needed to tidy up but most plants are surviving after the hot dry summer, putting out new leaves and flowers. I think I have lost a couple of rhododendrons though, which is a shame, but then I will now have space to plants something different. Thanks once more to our host, Jon The Propagator for organising us, do pay him a visit to see what is going on in gardens round the world.
That is a fabulous tidy up of your Box Ginger Jar.
Thanks Rosie, it has been annoying me for a while, just had to get on and do it!
Very impressed by your topiary skills. Lovely clematis, flowers do not always point the right way for a photo shoot, do they? It is great to see everything rallying again.
It was hard work Gill, had to have a rest half way through! The garden is looking a lot happier now, thank goodness.
So glad your garden is recovering Pauline, and that the losses have been minimal. I love the colchicums and the solidago for that late splash of colour they provide.
I’m always surprised when the Colchicums pop up Denise, they do make a lovely splash of colour at this time of year. The golden rod seems to be well behaved so far and goes so well with all the michaelmas daisies.
Good to see your colchicum – I have remembered to check mine and yes, they are flowering too! And the leaves of my amelanchier have not turned, by the way – did yours end up losing its leaves after they began turning? Once temperatures cooled and we had a little rain a premature autumn seemed to be halted
Yes Cathy, I would say that most of the Amelanchier leaves have come down. Autumn does seem to be on hold at the moment, but I think I’ve lost 2 rhododendrons and hydrangeas, but we will see, maybe next spring they will be in leaf again. The colchicums are a lovely spash of fresh colour, must buy some more different ones.