greentapestry : A Week Of Flowers ~ Day 7

Saturday 28 November 2020

A Week Of Flowers ~ Day 7

 

My last flower of the week is one that is in flower today. Despite its appearance suggestive of early spring this little narcissus is a particularly early one to flower. The plantswoman Beth Chatto wrote in her 1998 book 'Dear Friend and Gardener' "On the kitchen window sill, I have a small vase of two or three flowers of our earliest daffodil, Narcissus 'Cedric Morris'. The late Sir Cedric, my old friend brought it from Spain more than 40 years ago. It seemed to be a one-off there in the wild, he could find no others around, and now the site has been blasted away to make a motorway. We always look, and find buds, if not open flowers, by Christmas , whilst established clumps continue to flower well into March. It is neither miniature (weedy), nor dwarf 'stunted', but stands in prefect scale, about 25cm (10 in ) tall. I love the green stain on the back of its perfect little lemon-yellow flowers ; the way its twisting petals curve round the frilly-edged trumpet. When picked, it lasts longer in a warm room than snowdrops". 

The Cedric she refers to was the artist and plantsman Cedric Morris.

It took me some time to get hold of some of the bulbs but after much patience I got my bulbs from the Beth Chatto nursery. They have taken a while to settle down, didn't do very well last year but are looking healthy this year and the bulbs are multiplying. I think that the flowers were much later in opening last year but this year they have opened up this week. I will have to check to see when I planted them but it was possibly four years ago or so. It will be some time before I have enough flowers to pick for a vase but I have noticed that the flowers do last for a long time despite any inclement weather that is thrown at them.

A BIG thanks to Cathy who came up with the idea of spreading some cheer in November by posting flowers from all the seasons. I must admit that I didn't stick entirely to the brief mainly because I have not taken many flower photos this year. However having said that all the flowers I've posted have flowered in my garden this year and it has given me great pleasure browsing through my photo archives. As well as photos of flowers, gardens, special gatherings I've also looked back at some holiday photos.  Do visit 'Words And Herbs' and see what flowers are there today and also check out the blogs of other gardeners who are participating.

5 comments:

  1. It is such a sweet and nicely shaped bloom. I guess you will keep this in a pot to keep it safe.

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  2. A lovely and unusual flower that makes me think of spring sunshine! Thanks for sharing the story about it too. xx

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  3. Such a treasure and difficult to get hold of. Mine are in bloom now, I am usually glad if they make it for Xmas so I am surprised to see them so early.

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  4. Gosh - clearly not a surprise to you Anna, but a surprise to those not expecting a daffodil in November! Are yours just in pots?

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All your comments are much appreciated and treasured. I wil try to reply to everyone who leaves a comment, but it may take me a few days, especially when I start spending more time in the garden and at the lottie. I know that you will understand :) I am sure that I will also visit your blog if I have not already done so. If you have any specific questions I will either reply to them here or you can email me at : thegreentapestry@gmail.com

Namasté

- Anna.