Cack-handed Musings!

Hello!  I am still here, complete with my strapped up arm (courtesy of the tree) which is causing me some (a lot) of frustration, but the good news is I've been to a physio and he's certain he can fix it.  So I haven't been able to do any gardening, or sewing, or knitting, and I'm only allowed to type left handed.  In fact I'm having to do most things left handed which so far has led to several cack-handed incidents including managing to break the front door key by twisting it the wrong way in the lock, fortunately I noticed what was happening just before it severed and managed to remove it from the lock in one piece!

Despite all of this the garden is doing well.  The new dahlias I bought in the spring from Rose Cottage Plants have been flowering for weeks and weeks now.

Dahlia Rip City

Dahlia Waltzing Mathilda

Dahlia Classic Poeme

In the front garden the roses are still blooming as are the clematis.

Rosa Scepter'd Isle

Clematis Gypsy Queen 

 But autumn is marching onward and the anemones are blooming their little socks off.

Those of you who follow me on twitter might have seen that I was quite incensed the other week when a non-gardening colleague of mine described my garden as 'over-grown'.  I suppose to the untrained eye it might appear that way, but I prefer to think of it as abundant and flowing!

Anyway, whatever it is, I like it :-)

Springing into Summer

It's that time of year where, if one isn't careful, the garden goes from cottage garden prettiness to exuberant overgrown chaos almost overnight.

Old, unknown variety, Iris Siberica nestles in with Clematis Montana Broughton Star,

Rosa Charles De Mills hangs over from the back of the bed, wafting its delightful scent into the path.

Red Valarium grows amongst self seeded aquilegia and through the blue potato vine (solanum crispum)

and Oriental poppy Patty's Plum has opened in all her glory.

The Cornus Sousa is spectacular this year (even if it is about 6 feet above my head!)

and the frogs are often found having a group sun bathe on the rocks around the pond.

This robin has been following me around as I weed

and the Generous Gardener Rose has almost covered the arch by the back door.

I really love this time of year in the garden, even if though the flipping slugs do keep eating my plants!

Brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

The temperature's dropped and the sun has generally stayed away but it did stop raining for a little while today so I rushed out into the garden to see what was flowering.

There are red tulips,

pink dicentra,

and, bizarrely, a peachy rose (Abraham Darby)!

There's white exochorda (The Bride),

white lilac,

and white 'blue' bells.

There's a white and blue iris (Knick Knack),

bluebells (proper blue ones!), 

and tiny blue forget-me-nots.

But my favourite has to be this wacky, black parrot tulip.

It's in a pot by my front door, and they've actually done very, very badly (only about 1/2 have flowered) but the few that have opened make me smile!

Let's hope it warms up again soon!

Nearly Narnia

Remember my favourite tree tunnel through Elveden Forest?  Today they were like something out of Narnia

beautiful, but not especially nice weather to drive in so I was quite relieved when the school I was heading to phoned to postpone our meeting.

Looking up it was possible to imagine Mr Tumnus arriving to greet me - but he didn't, and I'm now safely tucked up at home.  Hope you're all safe and warm

Autumn's Arrived.

Autumn appears to have arrived.  It's not my favourite season.  I do love the colours that it brings, but what I don't like is that it heralds the dark, cold days of winter.

Today though was all about colours.

The Snake Bark Maple looked as if it was just starting to turn into its fiery autumn colours,

but then I looked more closely.  It's not the leaves that are turning red, it's the seed pods.

I've never noticed them do this before.  The tree is absolutely dripping with them this year.  Is it because its getting older, or is it to do with the weather?  I don't know, but they are magnificent whatever the cause.

In the front garden the verbena is also full of seeds.  They are snuggling underneath the flower, again I'd never noticed this before (maybe I've just had my eyes closed before?).

And the clematis seed heads are wonderful as always,

as are the skeleton leaves on the hydrangea.

But I'll leave you with a close up of those amazing pink maple seed pods.

Isn't nature wonderful.

It's That Green Time Of Year

It's the time of year when everything is green isn't it?  Everywhere I look in my garden is the bright green of spring.

Top Row:  Cerinthe, Box, Feverfew

Middle Row:  Choisya, Euphorbia, Philadelphus

Bottom Row:  Heuchera, Fern, Campanula

And hiding amongst the green leaves are poppy buds full of the promise of beauty still to come.

(This is actually one I don't remember planting and has appeared next to one that is normally orange flowered.  I guess it will all be revealed soon!)

And remember these trees in Elvedon Forest in the autumn?

Well today they looked like this - all green and young and new.

My favourite avenue of trees, and an extra bonus was that it wasn't raining and I didn't get mown down by passing traffic!

An Easter Stroll

Would you like to join me on a little stroll down my garden?  I'm afraid it's still looking a bit "winter sad" in places but there are some lovely blooms appearing if you look closely.  Shall we go then?

Just outside the back door Clematis Alpina Constance is starting to flower (about 10 days earlier than last year).

On your right you might spot the first bloom of Camellia Tiffany.  You'll have to look hard as the few buds it has seem to be facing the fence not the path!

Now, as we reach the end of this courtyard area, you'll see some Snake's Head Fritilleries (and yes, that is a white one which has appeared in with the red ones!).

Come through into the next area, and hiding in the north facing shade of a large Elaeagnus is this delightful Dicentra Spectabilis (although I've just discovered that it's now had its name changed to Lamprocapnos Spectablis for some reason!).

A little further on, under the Snake Bark Maple the Epimedium is just starting to flower (I don't usually like yellow flowers, but somehow they seem ok if they're pale and flower in the spring).

Come past the pond (no further sightings of Mrs Newt I'm afraid), past the greenhouse and veg beds and through to my secret sitting area where no-one can see me and from where I can't hear the phone or doorbell.  Clematis Macropetala 'Maidwell Hall' was only planted last year and is so very nearly open.

These little white grape hyacinths have appeared down here this year, I didn't plant them so guess I must have disturbed them when I was planting last year.  They look lovely next to the Scillas.

 
I hope you've enjoyed your stroll down the garden with me, as you leave through the front garden keep an eye out for Viola Freckles and a rather confused, self sown Cerinthe which is flowering already!

I hope you all have lovely Easter weekends and maybe the next time that we take a stroll down my garden we should stop for tea and cake, what do you think?

Spring is Springing!

I know it's not technically spring yet, but on a little wander down my garden this afternoon I found that as far as the plants are concerned then it is spring!

There are daffodils and primroses,

anenomes and hyacinth buds,

clematis buds and self sown hellebores,

 rhubarb shoots and chaenomeles blossom 

and a hotel for ladybirds!

I do so love this time of year, and hope that spring is springing in your gardens too.