After what at one point seemed to be eternal winter, spring has truly arrived. In fact we now have something else to moan about - no rain! The garden is so dry.
My first blooms of spring came several weeks ago in the shape of Fritillaria meleagris. They were a bit of a shock to be honest - at the end of last summer when I was sorting my pots out I stuck some of the baby offset bulbs in fresh soil and sat it on the bench in the shed. Fast forward to early February when I spotted flower heads on these "babies".
Also known as Snakes Head Fritillary, the ones in the garden faired less well, with a lot of losses and few flowers on the survivors.
Next to burst into life was the Dwarf Iris reticulata "Katherine Hodgkin" which was added to my garden last autumn........
......which was closely followed by Scilla siberica..........
For some reason, since I moved house a couple of years ago my Daffs only just beat my Tulips into bloom. So I had to wait until the end of March for my first (and only) Daffodils to bloom. I've had these for years and have forgotten the name of them.
The next two are again new plants for me this year.
Erythronium "Kondo" despite its sheltered spot did not enjoy the winter with only one of the five tubers planted surviving. Such a little gem though, so I'll buy more and hope for the best..........
The second new plant is the star of the year for me and faired better over the winter months - Hermodactylus tuberosus..........
It thrives in full sun and chalky soil, so I planted mine in partial shade and neutral soil! However, four of the five tubers got through the freezing temperatures, so there they will stay.
Pulsatilla vulgaris (Pasque flower) was an impulse buy from the bargain bin last summer, and to be honest I had completely forgotten about it until the blooms poked through!
One of the surprising survivors was Eccromocarpus scaber (Chilean Glory Flower), which according to the text books here in the UK is a tender perennial. No way! This remained green all winter, and despite being "summer" flowering (according to the same text books) it was back in bloom at the start of April!
Tulips always confirm the arrival of spring, and I now have three varieties in bloom.
"Little Beauty" is a dwarf variety.......
A rogue bloom next.......
Followed by my favourite - "Queen of the Night". The colour appears a little washed out on them this year, but it's still a great Tulip........
The downside to spring is discovering what has been lost to the cold weather, and losses this year have been particularly heavy - all my Lobelia "Queen Victoria", Penstemon "Electric Blue", Tricyrtis hirta and a climbing Aconitum being the most notable and keenly felt.
Thanks for looking!
My first blooms of spring came several weeks ago in the shape of Fritillaria meleagris. They were a bit of a shock to be honest - at the end of last summer when I was sorting my pots out I stuck some of the baby offset bulbs in fresh soil and sat it on the bench in the shed. Fast forward to early February when I spotted flower heads on these "babies".
Next to burst into life was the Dwarf Iris reticulata "Katherine Hodgkin" which was added to my garden last autumn........
For some reason, since I moved house a couple of years ago my Daffs only just beat my Tulips into bloom. So I had to wait until the end of March for my first (and only) Daffodils to bloom. I've had these for years and have forgotten the name of them.
The next two are again new plants for me this year.
Erythronium "Kondo" despite its sheltered spot did not enjoy the winter with only one of the five tubers planted surviving. Such a little gem though, so I'll buy more and hope for the best..........
The second new plant is the star of the year for me and faired better over the winter months - Hermodactylus tuberosus..........
Pulsatilla vulgaris (Pasque flower) was an impulse buy from the bargain bin last summer, and to be honest I had completely forgotten about it until the blooms poked through!
One of the surprising survivors was Eccromocarpus scaber (Chilean Glory Flower), which according to the text books here in the UK is a tender perennial. No way! This remained green all winter, and despite being "summer" flowering (according to the same text books) it was back in bloom at the start of April!
Tulips always confirm the arrival of spring, and I now have three varieties in bloom.
"Little Beauty" is a dwarf variety.......
A rogue bloom next.......
The downside to spring is discovering what has been lost to the cold weather, and losses this year have been particularly heavy - all my Lobelia "Queen Victoria", Penstemon "Electric Blue", Tricyrtis hirta and a climbing Aconitum being the most notable and keenly felt.
Thanks for looking!
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