This week has been a great improvement, weatherwise. We’ve had lots of sunshine, a few gentle showers, warmer temperatures, in fact good gardening weather for a change. My flood is drying up and blossom is coming on the trees and shrubs as well as new bulbs and perennials flowering, so no more messing about, lets get on with my six for this week.
No 1
I thought Pulsatilla vulgaris looked lovely on the scree with the sunshine showing through the petals.
The flowers move around to face the sun, pity they have their backs to the house!
No 2
Epimedium Amber Queen has now started flowering, such a lovely plant with very thin flower stems, so the flowers look as though they are floating in the air.
No 3
Having just posted about my fritillaries in the woodland I though this white one could represent them all. The markings don’t show up as well on the white ones, I think I like the pale purple ones best. It was good to see Monty Don’s fritillaries last night, relishing in the same flooded conditions that mine have, they really do like wet soil.
no 4
A cross between our wild primrose and our wild cowslip. The height and multiheaded flower comes from the cowslip and the size of each individual flower is the same as the primrose. Not a true oxlip, known as a false oxlip.
No 5
My latest daffodil to start flowering is Narcissus Geranium, which has a lovely perfume. There are still a couple of varieties that will flower later.
No 6
I am so pleased with my Amelanchier blossom this year. Never before has the tree looked so beautiful with so many flowers on it.
In the past I have had Bullfinches sitting at the top, pecking off all the lovely flower buds, but I haven’t seen any at the bird table for quite a long time now. Also it could be the heat from last summer that has ripened the wood to make flowering better. whatever it is, I love it!
Those are my six for this week. I feel everything is coming at such a rush, that I just can’t keep up with everything. I feel like this each year and know that eventually I do catch up, but in the meantime I do my 2 sessions of gardening each day when the weather lets me and enjoy all the flowers when I go for my early morning wander.
Thanks to Jim for organising Six on Saturday at Garden Ruminations, if you pop over to him you will see what is going on in the gardening world this week.
Beautiful pictures, the amelanchier is stunning!
Thank you Helen, I am so pleased with the amelanchier, I’ve never seen it so beautiful before!
That Amelanchier is absolutely stunning. I had a feeling mine was rather elderly and not performing as it should be, but that photograph proves it.
I watched Monty talk about the Fritillaries last night too, and I’m glad he pointed out that they like very damp ground, so I know where to plant some. The markings on them are so fascinating.
Thank you so much Catharine, in the past I often wondered what was the matter with mine as it never looked as good as any others that I saw, until this year! It must be at least 25 yrs or more since I planted it and can honestly say that this is its best year so far. I’m going to do a new area with the snakeshead fritillaries come the autumn, another area that floods in the winter. hope you are successful with yours, just remember, keep sprinkling the seed and you will soon have a drift!
I’m glad you mentioned the points about the false Oxslip and its relatives, I’m never quite sure what is what when I see similar plants.
I have lots of both the primrosees and cowslips in the garden here Rosie and of course, the bees have done what they do naturally and I now have the results!
Narcissus Geranium is a lovely fragrant variety – mine have just started to open. The Pulsatilla vulgaris looks smashing in the sun. Wow to the Amelanchier blossom.
Wow was exactly what I said Graeme when I saw the Amelanchier catching the early morning sunlight the other day! Thousands of little flowers, it was truly amazing. The Pulsatilla is another one that has far more flowers on it than in previous years, maybe I have to be glad of the heat last summer, some plants seem to have liked it even though I didn’t!
I think I might be jealous of your gorgeous Amelanchier ! Mine are positively sullen in comparison. I shall have a word with them and with the Bullfinches that have been visiting our feeders recently. Happy Easter .
I know the feeling Mary, mine was definitely underperforming in previous years! Bullfinches are such lovely birds, but to see 7 males tucking into the flowers at the top of the tree was too much one year and I did actually chase them away, didn’t stop them coming though!
I just bought ‘Amber Queen’, people do seem to speak highly of it. How tall is it? I think I know where I want to put it, replacing a non-flowering Geranium.
It is such a lovely plant Jim, at the moment it is dark so I’ll go and measure it in the morning, will report back! At a guess I would say about 18 inches.
Happy Easter Jim,
I’ve just measured the Epimedium and the foliage is about 12 inches and the flowers more like 2ft, but they arch over so look about 18 inches.
It really would be nice if we could just slow down time a little at this time of year. The pulsatillas are lovely Pauline, pity they are turning their backs on you lol.
I agree, it would be lovely to be able to catch up with everything. I had never realised that the pulsatillas were like little sunflowers, following the sun round the sky, but their faces can’t be seen from the house! Happy Easter Denise!
All so lovely Pauline, and what an intriguing picture of the epimedium! I remembered to trim the leaves from mine in good time this year, but I haven’t spotted any flowers yet
Fab amelanchier ! I love it.
Here the pulsatilla flowers haven’t come back…
Thanks Fred, it is pretty spectacular this year! Sorry to hear your pulsatillas haven’t returned, that is frustrating!
Some beauties here. Wow, what a gorgeous tree.xxx
The Amelanchier has been amazing Dina, but not many flowers left now after all the gales that we have had from the East!x