For daffodils
For tulips
For helibores
And hyacynths
Start with snowdrops
And irises.
Crocuses
And primrose.
Pushing up through
Bare. Cold ground
Warmth arrived
Each. Flower head
Brings. Spring
Closer.
Waiting
Tag: Plants
December hanging basket.
How is this possible. The hanging baskets are still alive and flowering despite a few frosts and cold winds. It’s not just one plant though. The flowers are still on four or five plants. Maybe they are so tightly packed that they are sheltering each other. I also think the flowers were not pollenated because of a lack of insects? I will keep posting about this till they wilt and die off.
Hanging basket tomatoes
A handful of tomatoes from our hanging basket. I wasn’t expecting to find anything. It’s almost the end of November. I guess the expected frosts haven’t really arrived yet so they have survived through the darkening days. I don’t know if they will ripen, I will have to wait and see.
Hanging baskets hanging on….
Yes they are still surviving. Plants and flowers that would normally have shrivelled away by now, a series of frosts due this week might do that, but the plucky baskets (OK they are not thinking or animated) have hung on together with the plants around the yard. I guess there must be a microclimate. I will let them stay where they are until its time to get them refilled again in spring next year…
There are various plants in the photos, including nasturtium, fushua, begonia, aster, pelargonium and many more.
Snail
I was reviewing my photos from the summer and saw this in my hanging basket flower. Not a bee but a snail! How did it get up there.. Must have crawled up the wall, then the fence and finally across the hanging basket to get to this flower. I hope it enjoyed its meal.
Dying plant
Hubby ‘rescued’ this, but I think there is no chance of survival. Its a blackened mess of sagging stems. The result of a particularly cold night and a very tender plant. I’m afraid it’s going to be relegated to the compost bin tomorrow after rescuing some spring bulbs that have started to grow even before the winter arrives. I have even seen blossom on the apple tree a few weeks ago. Gardening is tough at this time of year. The day length and cold kill the annual plants and shut down perennial ones. Can’t wait for spring……
Poppy painting
I ccan’t remember if I’ve already blogged about this. It’s based on the flowers in our garden a few years ago. I took some photos and put the images together to create this. I’ve had a few problems posting this morning, so sorry the text has appeared after I posted the photo…
Sad hanging baskets
They are wilting…
Every day they are declining, wilting, leaves and flowers crumpling. We still haven’t had a frost but we have had cold rain.
Once they are gone we won’t have flowers till April or May. A few plants might be able to overwinter. I’m still thinking of getting some winter flowering pansies and a few cyclamen.
The main decline is amongst the plants are the begonias, their soft stems hold lots of water but I think their cells are only thinly walled and they split in the cold weather. Fushias are stronger, their woody stems hold out against the cold….
And then I’ve got baby raspberries… Weird!
Baby raspberries
I went out to take photos of our hanging baskets and took a photo of these at the same time. I was lucky to see them because they are a bit further into the garden.
I was surprised because they didn’t flower earlier in the year. I’m sure they won’t ripen, but I’ll give them 10/10 for trying!
I never know which bits of a flower are stamens bur whatever the little bits of fluffy stuff are, but you can clearly see where the ones that have been pollenated have started to turn into green fruit.
I’m pleased the photo turned out so clear, it was windy and hard to get the phone camera to focus.
Poppies for remembrance
Poppies germinate in disturbed soil so when the First World War came to an end they sprang up in ‘Flanders fields’. This then became the iconic symbol for armastice day and is used as a way of collecting donations. Paper flowers are sold in shops and by volunteers to raise money for the Royal British Legion charity.
Poppies come in a variety of forms, among which are the common poppy, probably the ones that grew in the fields after the war. Welsh poppies, oranges and yellows. Californian poppies (I’m not sure they are the same plant as I think they are called Escholsia? not Papaver). Oriental poppies, which are grown in some places to make opiates. Himalayan blue poppy (mecanopsis) one of which I managed to grow last year. Then also different garden varieties, perrenials and annuals.
My favourite annual poppy is Shirley. Lots of variety of colours from pale pinks and whites to deep reds and with different shading, also the perrenial Patty’s Plum although it’s colour tends to fade. I also love painting them….
Mallaband-Brown 