Lesser Celandine

Posted on March 22, 2023 Posted in UncategorizedTagged daisy like, Environment, Gardening, Lesser celandine, Nature, Plants, Spring, YellowLeave a comment

One of the plants that appears in Spring, this is lesser Celandine. It has mid green shiny leaves and yellow and white daisy like flowers. This plant is one of the things that used to be on a website where people recorded when things appeared in the Spring, like butterflies, moths, flowers, tree blossom for example. It was a citizen science project. I don’t remember what it was called.

Lesser Celandine spreads by little bulbs (bulbils) that can stick to shoes or animals feet. It’s pretty, but if you get it in your garden it can spread like mad. I’m not sure if animals van eat it, it just looks cheery in Spring.

Buds on the willow tree

Posted on March 20, 2023 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Birds, Blue tits, Buddlea, Buds, fuzzy catkins, Gardening, Growing, Life, old willow, WillowLeave a comment

Ooo the fuzzy buds are opening on the old willow tree in the garden. Once they fully open the blue tits will start pulling at them, I don’t know if they get the fluff out of them to use in their nests or if they are eating insects on them?

I’m not sure what type of willow tree it is, I think it’s a wild type, one that floats in on a seed and grows, a bit like a buddlea Bush, we have them too. They sneak in, but the butterflies love them. Which reminds me, I need to prune the buddleas, you have to cut them back by two thirds before they start growing in the spring, so that’s a job to do. Spring is on the way! Gardening begins.

What first?

Posted on March 16, 2023 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Beauty, Flower, Gardening, Green, Life, Photo, Purple, scrambling, Shady, spiralling, Spring, Vinca9 Comments

Do you post a picture or the title first? I generally choose a picture to write about then decide on the title. Sometimes there is an ambiguity because my image may have nothing to do with the title or the actual wording of the post.

So why Vinca? It’s a cheery little flower, nice colour, it scrambles over the ground in a green mass and then in spring these lovely, twirly flowers pop up. I just wish I could get it to grow better, but I think our garden is too shady. Also if you look closely the five petals of the flower spiral inwards in a whorl.

As to the question ‘what first?’ it all depends on how I’m feeling, how inspired (or uninspired) I feel.

Buds required

Posted on March 6, 2023 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Air, Buds, Bushes, dry, February, Garden, Gardening, Life, Nature, Snow, snowfall, Spring, Trees, Water1 Comment

Come on rain, its been the driest February for years. The trees and bushes need a good sprinkling of rain. I can see tiny buds on our willow tree but they aren’t opening. The branches and twigs are bare. We may get some snow this week. But I didn’t know that ten centimetres of snow is equivalent to one centimetre of rain? That’s because fallen snow is mainly made up of air (think of how snow flakes are crystals that branch and leave gaps and air pockets). Let it rain, for a while, water the trees, please!

Spring Helibores

Posted on March 4, 2023March 5, 2023 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Beauty, Colours, Gardening, Helibores, Leaves, Life, Nature, Overlooked, Plants, seasonal, Spring, subtleLeave a comment

I think of daffodils and crocuses at this time of year, or snowdrops and later tulips. But an often overlooked plant is the Helibore. The flowers tend to droop their faces towards the ground and they have larder five lobed leaves. There colours can be a mottled grey green, white with green splotches or a greyish pink. This is a manipulated image to show how interesting they can be. Lift up a flower and be captivated by its hidden subtle beauty.

Garden Centre

Posted on January 29, 2023January 29, 2023 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Day out, Garden Centre, Gardening, Life, Lunch, Oatcakes, Recovery, Staffordshire oatcakesLeave a comment

Lunchtime and I actually went out for it! We went to a local garden centre and sat by artificial plants while eating cheese and bacon oatcakes (a local delicacy). It good to be getting out and about again although I am feeling it now.

We bought a climbing rose to incorporate into the hedge. It was damaged by a water leak that basically flooded the roots for months. We didn’t realise what was happening till it was too late so now? We are adding various other plants and bushes to make it more random and wild.

Magenta?

Posted on January 19, 2023 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Beautiful, Dahlia, delicate, Gardening, Plants, Poem, Poetry, Pompom dahlia, RhymeLeave a comment

Magenta or pink

What do you think?

A pompom dahlia

Beauty not failure

A garden delight

A lovely sight

Meditation in mauve?

I must be in love!

Winter flower?

Posted on December 12, 2022 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Cold, Damage, Frost, Gardening, geranium, Icy, killed, last week, pelargonium, Plants, This week4 Comments

Geranium plant today and a week ago. The poor thing has flopped because the cells have been frozen with ice in them. Only woody stemmed plants and evergreens have survived the coldest areas around the house. Some of the ones snuggled together have just about survived but snow and mist is forecast.

I am sad to lose the lovely flowers, but it’s only natural for this to happen. I’m glad I had time to enjoy them into December. X

Gone!

Posted on December 8, 2022 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Cold, Flowers, Freezing, Frozen, Gardening, Jet stream, Life, North, Plants, South, WeatherLeave a comment

Minus 7.7°C in Shropshire last night, and below freezing locally. My Nasturtiums which were still in flower yesterday have collapsed in little siddy heaps. Their plant cells have all burst as the fluid inside them expanded into ice crystals. I knew it would happen, I was hoping to still have some in flower at Christmas.

The Jet Stream up in the sky has settled below England to our south and low pressure systems are pulling down cold air from the North of Britain. We are expecting freezing conditions for at least up to the weekend. By then the damage to my plants will be done. I haven’t got any garden fleece to protect the plants, I can only hope having plants close together will help some of them survive. X

December Fushias

Posted on December 5, 2022 Posted in UncategorizedTagged cold snap, Colour, fushia bushes, Fushias, Garden, Gardening, Portmeirion pottery, Time, WeatherLeave a comment

Fushias in flower outside Portmeirion pottery. In December!

I took this photo today because I was amazed at how many flowers were blooming on the fushia bushes outside our local pottery. The leaves have wilted a little and I’m expecting it to be clobbered by the cold because we, are due freezing weather over the next few days. But its December, this is not normal. Its getting dark earlier every day and we have a chilly northerly wind blowing. It’s not proof of global warming, but it makes you think!

Mallaband-Brown

Tag: Gardening